WGU D570 COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY OA
EXAMINATION TEST 2026 QUESTIONS WITH
FULL ANSWERS GRADED A+
● artificial intelligence . Answer: a field of study aiming to make
machines behave in ways that would be considered intelligent if a
human were behaving that way, as defined by John McCarthy during the
Dartmouth conference
● behaviorism . Answer: an approach to psychology founded by John
Watson that emphasizes the study of observable behavior and rejects
introspection and the investigation of unobservable mental processes
● classical conditioning . Answer: a form of learning introduced by Ivan
Pavlov and associated with John Watson, wherein a neutral stimulus
becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus, resulting in a learned
response
● cognition . Answer: all mental abilities, including perceiving, learning,
remembering, thinking, reasoning, and understanding
,● cognitive psychology . Answer: the study of mental processes,
encompassing characteristics and properties of the mind and how it
operates
● cognitive paradigm . Answer: the approach of focusing on
understanding mental processes and the operation of the mind, which
emerged during the cognitive revolution
● cognitive revolution . Answer: a shift in psychology from behaviorism
to a focus on understanding mental processes, which occurred during the
1950s and was marked by events such as conferences on artificial
intelligence and information theory
● decision-making process . Answer: the mental process involved in
making choices, as inferred from behavior in Donders' experiment
● filter model of attention . Answer: a flow chart proposed by Donald
Broadbent in the 1950s that depicts the operation of the mind in terms of
processing stages, particularly in directing attention to stimuli in the
environment
● functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) . Answer: a brain
imaging technique introduced in 1990 that allows the observation of
activated areas in the human brain during cognitive activity without
radioactive tracers
,● higher mental processes . Answer: the complex cognitive functions,
such as thinking, problem-solving, and long-term remembering,
considered in the study of cognitive psychology
● operant conditioning . Answer: a form of learning introduced by B. F.
Skinner that focuses on how behavior is strengthened by the presentation
of positive reinforcers or the withdrawal of negative reinforcers
● stimulus-response relationships . Answer: the association between a
stimulus and the resulting behavior, a central focus of behaviorism
● scientific revolution . Answer: a significant shift in scientific thinking
from one paradigm to another, marked by changes in dominant ideas and
approaches
● sensory memory . Answer: a stage in Atkinson and Shiffrin's model of
memory that holds incoming information for a fraction of a second
● short-term memory . Answer: a stage in Atkinson and Shiffrin's model
of memory with limited capacity, holding information for seconds
● biological milestones . Answer: universal developmental events, such
as puberty
, ● cognitive development . Answer: development of thinking and
reasoning abilities
● developmental milestones . Answer: normative events marking stages
in development
● fluid intelligence . Answer: information processing abilities, such as
logical reasoning, spatial ability, and reaction time
● genotype . Answer: genetic makeup influencing traits
● learning . Answer: the improvement of an organism's response to the
environment through the acquisition of new information
● memory . Answer: the study of the capacity and fragility of human
memory, focusing on acquisition, storage, and retrieval
● neuroplasticity . Answer: the brain's capacity to reorganize and adapt
● normative approach . Answer: study of age-related averages for
developmental milestones
● object permanence . Answer: understanding that objects continue to
exist even when out of sight
EXAMINATION TEST 2026 QUESTIONS WITH
FULL ANSWERS GRADED A+
● artificial intelligence . Answer: a field of study aiming to make
machines behave in ways that would be considered intelligent if a
human were behaving that way, as defined by John McCarthy during the
Dartmouth conference
● behaviorism . Answer: an approach to psychology founded by John
Watson that emphasizes the study of observable behavior and rejects
introspection and the investigation of unobservable mental processes
● classical conditioning . Answer: a form of learning introduced by Ivan
Pavlov and associated with John Watson, wherein a neutral stimulus
becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus, resulting in a learned
response
● cognition . Answer: all mental abilities, including perceiving, learning,
remembering, thinking, reasoning, and understanding
,● cognitive psychology . Answer: the study of mental processes,
encompassing characteristics and properties of the mind and how it
operates
● cognitive paradigm . Answer: the approach of focusing on
understanding mental processes and the operation of the mind, which
emerged during the cognitive revolution
● cognitive revolution . Answer: a shift in psychology from behaviorism
to a focus on understanding mental processes, which occurred during the
1950s and was marked by events such as conferences on artificial
intelligence and information theory
● decision-making process . Answer: the mental process involved in
making choices, as inferred from behavior in Donders' experiment
● filter model of attention . Answer: a flow chart proposed by Donald
Broadbent in the 1950s that depicts the operation of the mind in terms of
processing stages, particularly in directing attention to stimuli in the
environment
● functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) . Answer: a brain
imaging technique introduced in 1990 that allows the observation of
activated areas in the human brain during cognitive activity without
radioactive tracers
,● higher mental processes . Answer: the complex cognitive functions,
such as thinking, problem-solving, and long-term remembering,
considered in the study of cognitive psychology
● operant conditioning . Answer: a form of learning introduced by B. F.
Skinner that focuses on how behavior is strengthened by the presentation
of positive reinforcers or the withdrawal of negative reinforcers
● stimulus-response relationships . Answer: the association between a
stimulus and the resulting behavior, a central focus of behaviorism
● scientific revolution . Answer: a significant shift in scientific thinking
from one paradigm to another, marked by changes in dominant ideas and
approaches
● sensory memory . Answer: a stage in Atkinson and Shiffrin's model of
memory that holds incoming information for a fraction of a second
● short-term memory . Answer: a stage in Atkinson and Shiffrin's model
of memory with limited capacity, holding information for seconds
● biological milestones . Answer: universal developmental events, such
as puberty
, ● cognitive development . Answer: development of thinking and
reasoning abilities
● developmental milestones . Answer: normative events marking stages
in development
● fluid intelligence . Answer: information processing abilities, such as
logical reasoning, spatial ability, and reaction time
● genotype . Answer: genetic makeup influencing traits
● learning . Answer: the improvement of an organism's response to the
environment through the acquisition of new information
● memory . Answer: the study of the capacity and fragility of human
memory, focusing on acquisition, storage, and retrieval
● neuroplasticity . Answer: the brain's capacity to reorganize and adapt
● normative approach . Answer: study of age-related averages for
developmental milestones
● object permanence . Answer: understanding that objects continue to
exist even when out of sight
