WGU D570 COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY OA EXAM COMPLETE
2026 ACTUAL EXAM 150 REAL QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT
ANSWERS WITH RATIONALES COVERING THE MOST
FREQUENT TESTED QUESTIONS GUARANTEE A+ GRADE
1. Which psychologist studied the quantitative measurement of mental processes?
☑ A. Ebbinghaus
☐ B. James
☐ C. Wundt
☐ D. Watson
Rationale: Ebbinghaus conducted experiments on memory using measurable methods, pioneering the
quantitative study of mental processes.
2. Which psychologist wrote the first psychology textbook and based observations on his own mind?
☑ A. James
☐ B. Ebbinghaus
☐ C. Wundt
☐ D. Skinner
Rationale: William James emphasized the study of consciousness and mental life, laying foundations for
psychology as a science.
3. What system creates mental representations of the world and controls mental functions?
☑ A. Mind
☐ B. Cognition
☐ C. Brain
☐ D. Neural network
Rationale: The mind organizes, interprets, and controls cognitive processes and mental representations.
4. Mental processes involved in perception, attention, memory, language, problem solving, reasoning,
and decision making are collectively called:
☑ A. Cognition
☐ B. Intelligence
☐ C. Perception
☐ D. Behavior
Rationale: Cognition refers to the processes through which knowledge is acquired, processed, and
applied.
5. The scientific study of the mind and mental processes is known as:
☑ A. Cognitive psychology
☐ B. Behavioral psychology
☐ C. Neuropsychology
,☐ D. Psychophysics
Rationale: Cognitive psychology focuses on understanding mental processes like memory, learning, and
attention.
6. What is the measurement of how long it takes to respond to presentation of a stimulus?
☑ A. Reaction time
☐ B. Simple reaction time
☐ C. Choice reaction time
☐ D. Response latency
Rationale: Reaction time measures the speed of response, used to infer mental processing speed.
7. What is the measurement of how long it takes to respond to a single stimulus?
☑ A. Simple reaction time
☐ B. Choice reaction time
☐ C. Reaction latency
☐ D. Sensory response time
Rationale: Simple reaction time tests speed of responding to one known stimulus.
8. What is the measurement of how long it takes to react to one of multiple stimuli?
☑ A. Choice reaction time
☐ B. Simple reaction time
☐ C. Reaction latency
☐ D. Sensory response time
Rationale: Choice reaction time involves a decision between multiple stimuli, reflecting cognitive
processing.
9. Which approach explained perception as the combination of small elementary units called
sensations?
☑ A. Structuralism
☐ B. Functionalism
☐ C. Behaviorism
☐ D. Gestalt psychology
Rationale: Structuralism, led by Wundt and Titchener, analyzed conscious experience into basic
elements.
10. Which procedure involves trained participants describing their experiences and thought processes
in response to stimuli?
☑ A. Analytic introspection
☐ B. Experimental observation
☐ C. Case study
☐ D. Survey
Rationale: Analytic introspection required detailed verbal reports about mental experiences to study
consciousness.
, 11. Who performed the first cognitive psychology experiment?
☑ A. Donders
☐ B. Wundt
☐ C. Ebbinghaus
☐ D. Watson
Rationale: Donders measured reaction times to study mental processes, pioneering experimental
cognitive psychology.
12. Who established the first laboratory of scientific psychology?
☑ A. Wundt
☐ B. James
☐ C. Watson
☐ D. Skinner
Rationale: Wundt founded the first psychology lab in Leipzig, Germany, in 1879.
13. What measure did Ebbinghaus use to determine memory retained from initial
learning?
☑ A. Savings
☐ B. Retention index
☐ C. Recall rate
☐ D. Forgetting curve
Rationale: Savings compares repetitions needed during initial learning versus relearning to
quantify memory retention.
14. A plot showing the amount remembered versus the time between initial learning and
testing is called:
☑ A. Savings curve
☐ B. Forgetting curve
☐ C. Learning curve
☐ D. Retention graph
Rationale: The savings curve visualizes memory retention over time.
15. Which approach by John Watson stated that only observable conduct provides valid
data for psychology?
☑ A. Behaviorism
☐ B. Structuralism
☐ C. Functionalism
☐ D. Cognitive psychology
Rationale: Behaviorism emphasizes studying behaviors that can be measured objectively.
16. What occurs when pairing a stimulus with a neutral stimulus changes the response to
the neutral stimulus?
☑ A. Classical conditioning
2026 ACTUAL EXAM 150 REAL QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT
ANSWERS WITH RATIONALES COVERING THE MOST
FREQUENT TESTED QUESTIONS GUARANTEE A+ GRADE
1. Which psychologist studied the quantitative measurement of mental processes?
☑ A. Ebbinghaus
☐ B. James
☐ C. Wundt
☐ D. Watson
Rationale: Ebbinghaus conducted experiments on memory using measurable methods, pioneering the
quantitative study of mental processes.
2. Which psychologist wrote the first psychology textbook and based observations on his own mind?
☑ A. James
☐ B. Ebbinghaus
☐ C. Wundt
☐ D. Skinner
Rationale: William James emphasized the study of consciousness and mental life, laying foundations for
psychology as a science.
3. What system creates mental representations of the world and controls mental functions?
☑ A. Mind
☐ B. Cognition
☐ C. Brain
☐ D. Neural network
Rationale: The mind organizes, interprets, and controls cognitive processes and mental representations.
4. Mental processes involved in perception, attention, memory, language, problem solving, reasoning,
and decision making are collectively called:
☑ A. Cognition
☐ B. Intelligence
☐ C. Perception
☐ D. Behavior
Rationale: Cognition refers to the processes through which knowledge is acquired, processed, and
applied.
5. The scientific study of the mind and mental processes is known as:
☑ A. Cognitive psychology
☐ B. Behavioral psychology
☐ C. Neuropsychology
,☐ D. Psychophysics
Rationale: Cognitive psychology focuses on understanding mental processes like memory, learning, and
attention.
6. What is the measurement of how long it takes to respond to presentation of a stimulus?
☑ A. Reaction time
☐ B. Simple reaction time
☐ C. Choice reaction time
☐ D. Response latency
Rationale: Reaction time measures the speed of response, used to infer mental processing speed.
7. What is the measurement of how long it takes to respond to a single stimulus?
☑ A. Simple reaction time
☐ B. Choice reaction time
☐ C. Reaction latency
☐ D. Sensory response time
Rationale: Simple reaction time tests speed of responding to one known stimulus.
8. What is the measurement of how long it takes to react to one of multiple stimuli?
☑ A. Choice reaction time
☐ B. Simple reaction time
☐ C. Reaction latency
☐ D. Sensory response time
Rationale: Choice reaction time involves a decision between multiple stimuli, reflecting cognitive
processing.
9. Which approach explained perception as the combination of small elementary units called
sensations?
☑ A. Structuralism
☐ B. Functionalism
☐ C. Behaviorism
☐ D. Gestalt psychology
Rationale: Structuralism, led by Wundt and Titchener, analyzed conscious experience into basic
elements.
10. Which procedure involves trained participants describing their experiences and thought processes
in response to stimuli?
☑ A. Analytic introspection
☐ B. Experimental observation
☐ C. Case study
☐ D. Survey
Rationale: Analytic introspection required detailed verbal reports about mental experiences to study
consciousness.
, 11. Who performed the first cognitive psychology experiment?
☑ A. Donders
☐ B. Wundt
☐ C. Ebbinghaus
☐ D. Watson
Rationale: Donders measured reaction times to study mental processes, pioneering experimental
cognitive psychology.
12. Who established the first laboratory of scientific psychology?
☑ A. Wundt
☐ B. James
☐ C. Watson
☐ D. Skinner
Rationale: Wundt founded the first psychology lab in Leipzig, Germany, in 1879.
13. What measure did Ebbinghaus use to determine memory retained from initial
learning?
☑ A. Savings
☐ B. Retention index
☐ C. Recall rate
☐ D. Forgetting curve
Rationale: Savings compares repetitions needed during initial learning versus relearning to
quantify memory retention.
14. A plot showing the amount remembered versus the time between initial learning and
testing is called:
☑ A. Savings curve
☐ B. Forgetting curve
☐ C. Learning curve
☐ D. Retention graph
Rationale: The savings curve visualizes memory retention over time.
15. Which approach by John Watson stated that only observable conduct provides valid
data for psychology?
☑ A. Behaviorism
☐ B. Structuralism
☐ C. Functionalism
☐ D. Cognitive psychology
Rationale: Behaviorism emphasizes studying behaviors that can be measured objectively.
16. What occurs when pairing a stimulus with a neutral stimulus changes the response to
the neutral stimulus?
☑ A. Classical conditioning
