Approaches: Cognitive And Biological Approaches (L5-8)

Question 1

Key assumptions of the cognitive approach (internal mental processes)?

Answer 1

• psych should be the study of internal mental processes, e.g. memory, perception etc
• importance of the role of schema
• appropriate to make inferences about cognitive processes
• use of models of explanation – theoretical and computer models
• possibility of combining cognitive processes and biological structures (cognitive neuroscience)

Question 2

What are inferences?

Answer 2

• going beyond the immediate evidence to make assumptions about mental processes that cannot be directly observed

Question 3

What are theoretical models, CA?

Answer 3

• simplified representations based on current research evidence
• often pictorial in nature, represented by boxes and arrows that indicate cause and effect in mental processes
• often incomplete and frequently updated
• e.g. the Working Memory Model was first
  proposed in 1974, but a fourth component was added in 2000

Question 4

How do cognitive psychologists use computer models?

Answer 4

• to explain mental processes
• use of computers as analogies
• e.g. info inputted through senses, coded into mem then combined with prev stored info
• often used to explain mem, LTM like hard disk and RAM, which is cleared and reset once task carried out, is like working memory

Question 5

What are schema, CA?

Answer 5

• mental representations of experience, knowledge and understanding
• they help organise and interpret information in the brain
• e.g. schema for specific events are based on expectations of how to behave in a different situation (e.g. a restaurant or a classroom) or in different roles (e.g. as a prison guard or a student)

Question 6

Why are schema useful, CA?

Answer 6

• they help us predict what will happen in our world based on our previous experiences
• also enable us to process vast amounts of information rapidly
• prevent us from becoming overwhelmed by environmental stimuli

Question 7

What is the downside of scheme, CA?

Answer 7

• schema can distort our interpretation of sensory information
• could also lead to perceptual errors or inaccurate memories
• can cause biased recall as we see what we expect
• negative or faulty schema may have a negative impact on mental health (e.g. the negative triad)

Question 8

What is cognitive neuroscience?

Answer 8

• integration of cognitive and biological processes
• scientific study of the neurological structures, mechanisms, processes and chemistry which are responsible for our thinking processes

Question 9

Practical applications or cognitive neuroscience?

Answer 9

• brain images techniques like Position Emission Tomography (PET) and Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) used to locate different types of mem in different areas of the brain
• e.g, episodic in hippocampus, semantic in temporal lobe and procedural in cerebellum
• led to more effective treatments for memory disorders

Question 10

Cognitive approach +ve:

Answer 10

• emphasises scientific methods such as lab experiments when collecting data
• means that high levels of control can be exercised in these settings and cause and effects relationships can be identified
• but laboratory experiments can be criticised for lacking ecological validity. - focus on detail of exactly what can be recalled by participants in controlled environments means an understanding of the everyday use of memory is missing from explanations
  = used to explain the development of negative schema which can aid our understanding of mental illnesses like depression
• had a vast influence on the development of therapies in Psychology
• like cognitive behavioural therapy aims to change negative thoughts into more positive thoughts to help treat depression
  = can be applied to practical and theoretical contexts and has helped develop cognitive neuroscience
  = has helped contribute to the development of artificial intelligence and, “thinking” machines such as robots

Question 11

Cognitive approach -ve:

Answer 11

• uses computer models
• phrases like storage and retrieval are taken directly from computing
• but there is an important difference between the sort of information processing that takes place within a computer programme and the processing that takes place in the human mind
• computers do not make mistakes, or ignore available information, or forget what has been stored on their hard drives
• humans, on the other hand, do all of these things
  = can be seen as mechanical in regarding human thinking as processing
  = like the computer leaving little room for the irrationality often seen in emotional behaviours
• lack of ecological validity

Question 12

Key assumptions of the Biological Approach (genetics and biological structures)?

Answer 12

• behaviour has evolved through evolutionary adaptation
• genes an individual possesses influence their behaviour
• biological examination of animals can provide useful information about human behaviour
• biological structures and neurochemistry control and influence our reactions to the environment

Question 13

What is evolution, BA?

Answer 13

• according to Charles Darwin
• our behaviour has adapted and changed over time through natural selection
• this is where profitable behaviours are selected in mates and therefore reproduced
• over time, advantageous behaviours will continue which will continually increase our ability to survive

Question 14

What is heredity, BA?

Answer 14

• refers to the idea that characteristics are ‘passed on’ from one generation to the next through our genetics
• characteristics can be physical like height and hair colour
• or psychological like intelligence and predisposition to mental illness

Question 15

How is the extent to which genes influence behaviour examined, BA?

Answer 15

• work is often carried out on pairs of twins
• these studies often involve comparing the likelihood of a behaviour/disorder occurring in
  identical twins, monozygotic (who are 100% genetically similar)
• to the likelihood of the behaviour/disorder occurring among non-identical twins, dizygotic (who are 50% genetically similar)
• if the MZ twins show a higher concordance
  rate (shared behaviour) then there is argued to be a genetic component

Question 16

Is it likely for the concordance rate for MZ twins to be 100%, BA?

Answer 16

• it is very rare
• suggests that as well as genetic influences
• some behaviours may be a mix of both genetics and the env

Question 17

What is genotype, BA?

Answer 17

• refers to the genes the individual possesses
• an individuals genetic make-up

Question 18

What is phenotype, BA?

Answer 18

• refers to the observable traits/characteristics shown by an individual
• due to the combined effect of genes and environment

Question 19

What biological structures are there?

Answer 19

• the nervous system
• the endocrine system

Question 20

What is the nervous system divide into, BA?

Answer 20

• the central nervous system
• the peripheral nervous system

Question 21

What is the central nervous system, BA?

Answer 21

• consists of the brain and spinal cord
• centre which controls the individual
• via cognitive processes of the brain

Question 22

What is the peripheral nervous system + what it does, BA?

Answer 22

• made up of the somatic nervous system and autonomic nervous system
• somatic consists of the muscles attached to the skeletal and is therefore required for movement
• autonomic oversees bodily organs and is involved in the fight or flight response

Question 23

What does the endocrine system do, BA?

Answer 23

• maintains levels of hormones in the blood that are released by glands

Question 24

What is the most important gland in the endocrine system, BA?

Answer 24

• pituitary gland which is located in the brain
• sometimes called the master gland
• as it instructs other glands in body to secret hormones when needed

Question 25

What are the aspects of neurochemistry, BA?

Answer 25

• neurotransmitters
• hormones

Question 26

What are neurotransmitters, BA?

Answer 26

• neurons communicate with each other by releasing chemicals called neurotransmitters
• argued that neurotransmitter levels can affect behaviour
• e.g. low serotonin linked to depression

Question 27

What are hormones, BA?

Answer 27

• released as part of the endocrine system through glands
• argued that hormone levels in system can affect behaviour of an individual
• e.g. high testosterone linked to aggressive behaviour

Question 28

Biological Approach +ve:

Answer 28

• uses the scientific method, especially experimental method as main source of investigation
• take place in highly controlled env
• so other researchers can replicate research studies in same conditions
• so also increased reliability
  = practical applications
  = knowing about neurochemical imbalance in depression (low serotonin) leading to development of drug treatments (SSRI’s) to correct imbalance
• if aware of a genetic predisposition for mental disorder e.g. schizophrenia can avoid env factors likely to trigger this
• or can develop coping skills that would protect them from its potential influence

Question 29

Biological Approach -ve:

Answer 29

• biologically reductionist
• reductionism is belief that complex human behaviour can be broken down into smaller components like genes, neurotransmitters and hormones
• argued that we cannot fully understand behaviour without taking account of all the different influencing factors
• such as cognitive, emotional and cultural factors which have a significant influence on behaviour
  = recent studies suggesting a genetic basis for criminal behaviour led to concerns about how this info could be used
  = could lead to genetic screening of populations to identify genetic susceptibilities
  = then subsequent discrimination against those with a genetic predisposition to crime