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Question of the Day: MCAT Social and Behavioral Sciences
Perception is the process that occurs when the brain processes sensory stimuli and translates them in a way that a person can understand. Perception is not usually a conscious process; furthermore, sensing a particular stimulus is a different process than the interpretation (i.e. perception) of that stimulus.
A team of perception researchers decided to test the difference between sensation and perception by testing the reading speed of a paragraph in three conditions. In the first condition, the researchers correctly spelled the words in the sentences. In the second condition, they had the same words with the letters randomly jumbled within each word; however, the first and last letter of each word remained in the correct position. In the third condition, researchers used the same words and randomly jumbled every letter in each word, including the first and last letters. Sample sentences from the paragraphs are below:
1). Mary crossed the street to purchase a cookie after lunch.
2). Mray csorsed the sretet to pruachse a ckooie atfer lnuch.
3). Rmya rsocsed het teerst to curaepshs a okocei feart culhn.
The researchers timed how long it took for the participants to correctly say a sentence fluently. They found that participants in condition three took significantly more time to read the sentence fluently, whereas they found no significant difference in the average amount of time it took participants to read the passage in condition one compared to condition two.
Suppose the researchers wanted to also test whether reading fluency in the three conditions varied by language status (i.e., native English speaker vs. participants who learned English as a second language later in life). Whereas in the original study, participants in conditions one and two did not vary significantly in reading fluency, participants who learned English as a second language later in life were slower at reading the sentences in condition two compared to condition one. Given this effect, the researchers would be most likely to conclude which of the following?
Native English speakers rely more heavily on bottom-up processing whereas individuals who learned English as a second language later in life rely more on top-down processing in reading.
Native English speakers are less likely to use a-priori knowledge of the English language to form fast mental impressions of words.
Individuals who learned English as a second language later are more likely to have reading disorders.
Native English speakers rely more heavily on top-down processing whereas individuals who learned English as a second language later in life rely more on bottom-up processing in reading.
In order to get into a medical college, you need to take the MCAT. The Medical College Admission Test is broken into four primary testing subjects. With the Social and Behavioral Sciences MCAT, you need to be prepared to answer questions based in social sciences related to psychology and sociology. You can use Varsity Tutors’ Learning Tools to prepare for the upcoming Social and Behavioral Sciences MCAT. The Learning Tools are particularly useful for brushing up on materials you may not have studied in a while. You can use the Question of the Day for daily test practice, as well as flashcards, practice tests, and Learn by Concept Learning Tools. These offer a fun, new way to study that can be used alongside ongoing coursework. Whether you need MCAT tutoring in Atlanta, MCAT tutoring in Houston, or MCAT tutoring in San Francisco, working one-on-one with an expert may be just the boost your studies need.
The Question of the Day offers you a means of totally random review. The daily question can be completed at your leisure, and offer valuable information to your performance in different areas. You will typically be given a passage to read, along with a question relating to the passage. All the questions are drawn at random from the wealth of Social and Behavioral MCAT materials included with the Learning Tools. You will be given a question to answer each day that is similar to what you will find on the test you will be taking. If you are planning to go into a social science degree, you will benefit from strengthening your knowledge of Social and Behavioral Sciences through Learning Tools. Varsity Tutors also offers resources like free MCAT Social and Behavioral Sciences Practice Tests to help with your self-paced study, or you may want to consider an MCAT tutor.
With the Question of the Day, you may be quizzed on a wide range of topics. You might see questions pertaining to emotional processes, stress response and management, physiology, psychological disorders, treating and biology behind specific disorders, physical aspects of behavior, such as neurons and nervous system, self-expression, social identity, change in learning and behavior, associative learning, conditioning, behaviors, social classes based on social mobility, power, prestige, privilege, and healthcare, social change, social behaviors, cultural phenomena, and group behavior phenomena, such as bystander effect and groupthink. You can use these questions to broaden your knowledge of these different concepts. In addition to the MCAT Social and Behavioral Sciences Question of the Day and MCAT Social and Behavioral Sciences tutoring, you may also want to consider using some of our MCAT Social and Behavioral Sciences flashcards.
When you use study materials, they can enhance the information you are learning through your coursework. These supplemental materials provide additional evidence and support to the concepts within class. By practicing with these skills outside of class, you are able to actively work to build your expertise in these subjects. If you need assistance with specific concepts, you can take further advantage of the other free Learning Tools to get additional resources and practice time, pairing the tools together or using them individually.
The Question of the Day forces your mind to change directions repeatedly, enforcing the strategies and techniques within your mind, and allowing for flexible thinking. You can use the questions each day to test your skills in different concepts. You can use the flashcards for a quick review, or to identify concepts that you need to study more. In addition, practice tests offer you the chance to evaluate your progress. Lastly, Learn by Concept lets you study through specific concepts for as long as you need. Try out the different Learning Tools to see what study method works best for you.
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