Approaches in psychology- COGNITIVE APPROACH Flashcards
When was the first cognitive school founded ?
1959
What did the founding of the first cognitive school develop ?
The start of cognitive psychology movement which is a major force in psychology
In the cognitive approach what is said to influence our behaviour ?
Thought processes
Who does the cognitive approach criticise and why?
Wundt as it says introspection to too objective
What is the basic assumptions in psychology?
Scientifically is how thought processes should be studied
Introspection is too unscientific + well controlled lab studies can investigate what we are thinking
Our mind works similar to a computer in that it has input from senses which are then processed + outputs are produced i.e language or specific behaviours
Stimulus + response is inappropriate but only if the thought processes that occur between the stimulus + response are acknowledged
Explain the basic assumption of the cognitive approach that it is a direct criticism of behaviourism
It is said that ‘stimulus + response is inappropriate but only if the thought processes that occur between the stimulus + response are acknowledged’
Behaviourist -> skinner said that stimulus produces response
Cognitive -> says there is an organism in-inbetween:
S-O-R = stimulus - organism - response
What is it called when the cognitive psychologists endeavour to work out what thought processes are occurring from the behaviour an experiment elicits ? explain
Study of internal mental processes
Apply the scientific method + have worked out some ingenious way in which to examine thought
Even though we as humans are aware of our thought processes, there is time when we are unaware of our thought processes which led to us doing a certain thing
In the study of internal mental processes what are the experimental conditions used by the cognitive psychologists for ?
Understanding the situations where we can carry our behaviour, that we are unaware of what thoughts led us to behave in that certain way
What is the study of internal mental processes ?
When cognitive psychologists aim to work out what thought processes are occurring from the behaviour an experiment elicts. Scientific methods are applied and have worked out ingenious ways to examine thoughts.
They are also used to discover and understand the times where we are unaware of the thoughts that led us to carry out a certain behaviour
Who carried out Gorillas in our Midst experiment in 1999/
Simons + Chablis
What is the Gorillas in our Midst experiment a classic example of?
Cognitive experiment designed to test the processes of perception and how they differ from person to person
What was Simons + chablis’ aim ?
See how much individuals could be unaware of in their visual field
Would focusing attention on a task mean that other info could be missed
To test what is missed in a dynamic moving scene as previous research had focused on static stimuli
What were the results of Simons + chablis’ experiment ?
Of the amount of people who noticed the gorilla was 54%
When the task got harder less people noticed
What is the conclusion of the research carried out in 1999 by Simon + chablis ?
Due to inattention we miss much of what we see in our visual field
Evaluate the Gorillas in our Midst experiment ?
Highly reliable -> as experiment has been repeated many times + same results have been found.
Lacks ecological validity -> not everyday scenarios
Define a schema?
A unit of knowledge that we hold about the world
Formed through experiences and they help us to understand + predict that world around us
What is the role of a schema ?
Each individual has a different schema due to everyone having unique experiences
So the way in which each individual sees the world depends on what they have/ haven’t experienced
Our schemas mean we have our own version of reality so people who say we all see things the same our wrong
How do schemas differ ?
Cultural effect in that people from the same cultures form similar schemas due to shared experiences but the schemas we as individuals form is dictated from persona experiences
Who carried out the experiment into schemas ?
Bartlett in 1932
What is the meaning of interference ?
Where assumptions are made by mental processes from these theoretical + computational models
What doe theoretical + computational models allow us to do ?
Make interferences about mental processes
Why were theoretical models devised ?
To explain how information passes through multi-store model -> there are a series of steps in the MSM that illustrates how memory goes from sensory inputs to LTM.
Also how memories are forgotten in the process/ how they pass on to the next stage
Explain the information processing model
The way cognitive psychologists apply the idea of computational models to human mind + draw similarities between the 2
Three stage process -> argued to explain behaviour
Strong influence today
Inputs -> processing -> outputs
Inputs- from environment via senses + enclosed by individuals
Processing - when info has been encoded
Output - behavioural response
What is cognitive neuroscience a discipline of ?
Cognitive psychology
Science
Neuroscience
Explain how cognitive neuroscience has emerged ?
As technology has advanced, discipline emerged -> ability to investigate Brin has advanced.
Who used cognitive neuroscience ?
Miller + Gazzangia
what are the strengths of the cognitive approach ?
Thought process + their influence on behaviour are thought about
Scientific -> experimental methods used
Good description of what processes occur have been produced which inform treatment
What are the limitations of the cognitive approach ?
Lack ecological validity -> thought processes measured could be argued to be artificial
Over simplifies complex processes using model
Referring people to computers is a big criticism as they are saying we are mechanistic + lacking for will
