Approaches - The Cognitive Approach

Question 1

What does the cognitive approach focus on?

Answer 1

The cognitive approach focuses on how the internal mind works to influence behaviour.

Question 2

Outline assumptions of the cognitive approach

Answer 2

• The mind actively processes information from our senses (touch, taste etc.).
• Between stimulus and response are complex mental processes, which can be studied scientifically.
• Humans can be seen as data processing systems.
• As internal mental processes cannot be directly observed, inferences must be made.

Question 3

What is meant by an inference in the cognitive approach?

Answer 3

The process whereby cognitive psychologists draw conclusions about the way mental processes operate on the basis of observed behaviour.

Question 4

What does cognitive neuroscience do?

Answer 4

Cognitive and biological processes are integrated to relate mental processes to brain structure.

Question 5

What is a computer model in cognitive psychology?

Answer 5

A computer model is how we can think of the brain as being like a computer.
CPU = brain
Coding = turning stimuli into thoughts
Output = behavioral responses

Question 6

What is a theoretical model in cognitive psychology?

Answer 6

Theoretical models are like flow chart models used in computer programming and are a representation of how information flows and is processed through a mental system e.g. MSM

Question 7

Why are cognitive models important in the cognitive approach?

Answer 7

Models produce testable theories that can be studied with scientific methods, with inferences made from experiments.

Question 8

What is a schema?

Answer 8

Schemas are cognitive frameworks formed from prior experiences that help us navigate life easily. e.g. what a chair is for and what to do at a restaurant.
Assmimilation = when we add new info to an existing schema e.g. seeing a new red chair.
Accomodation = when an existing schema has to be changed or a new one has to be created.

Question 9

What did Piaget say about schemas?

Answer 9

Piaget suggested that as children developed they acquired new schema through interaction with the world and others.

Question 10

What can schemas lead to?

Answer 10

Prejudice, bias, stereotypes

Question 11

What was Bahrick’s 1975 study and how does it relate to the cognitive approach?

Answer 11

Bahrick:
17-74 year olds were shown photographs containing some ex-school friends and asked to identify the photographs.
Found that recall after 15 years was 90%, after 48 years recall was 70%.
Can infer that long term memory duration is very long, but does reduce over long periods of time.

Question 12

What methods are used in cognitive neuroscience?

Answer 12

FMRI/PET Scans - used to investigate brain activity whilst engaged in various cognitive tasks to see the interaction between separate brain regions.
Clinical case studies - brain damaged patients with cognitive deficits compared to healthy brains are useful in showing how some aspects of cognition are separate.

Question 13

Why is cognitive neuroscience useful?

Answer 13

Brain mapping - techniques used have been able to provide a map of the brain, showing localised areas of function for language, memory etc.
Applications - Identifying areas associated with memory, language etc can help develop treatments.

Question 14

Is the cognitive approach an example of determinism or free will?

Answer 14

Soft determinism
- Thoughts are influenced by previous experiences (schema) and brain structure, however conscious thoughts can override as an expression of free will.

Question 15

Is the cognitive approach an example of reductionism or holism?

Answer 15

Machine reductionism
- The approach can be seen as overly mechanical in describing human thinking as processing like a computer.
- This does not explain human irrationality in many decisions and the role of emotions.

Question 16

Is the cognitive approach nature or nurture?

Answer 16

There is an inheritance of general brain structure that leads to the development of mental processes. However, the development of schema is down to experiences within the environment.

Question 17

Is the cognitive approach idiographic or nomothetic?

Answer 17

Cognitive psychologists use large scale experiments to make general rules of human behaviour, so nomothetic.
However, do use case studies of people with brain injuries to make suggestions about the structure of mental processes.

Question 18

What area of the brain has been linked with OCD?

Answer 18

Parahippocampal gyrus

Question 19

Evaluate the cognitive approach - inferences

Answer 19

Many concepts in this approach are hard to test, as it considers internal mental processes, which cannot be directly measured. This means it is hard to know how accurate the explanations actually are.

Question 20

Evaluate the cognitive approach - scientific

Answer 20

The cognitive approach uses controlled, rigorous scientific procedures, enhancing the credibility of the theories.
However, some experiments take place in artificial environments and perform tasks that are lacking mundane realism, so the validity of the results can be questioned.

Question 21

Evaluate the cognitive approach - machine reductionism

Answer 21

Cognitive approaches have been criticised for reducing human personality and behaviour to the level of a computer, neglecting the role of emotion on actions. This is known as machine reductionism, and is a problem was it does not recognise how much more complex humans are than machines.