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A Level Psychology: 3. Approaches > APPROACHES: The Cognitive Approach > Flashcards

APPROACHES: The Cognitive Approach Flashcards

1
Q

What is the cognitive approach

A

How our mental processes (for eg, thoughts, perceptions, attention) affect behaviour

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2
Q

How do cognitive psychologists study processes

A

Cognitive psychologists study processes indirectly by making inferences abt what is going on inside ppl’s minds, based on their behaviour (reductionist approach)

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3
Q

The 3 assumptions of the cognitive approach

A

Our mental systems have a limited capacity - the amount of info that can be processed will be influenced by how demanding the task is & how much other info is processed

A control mechanism oversees all mental processes - this will require more processing power for new tasks, leaving less available for everything else

There is a two way flow of information - we take in info from the world, process it & react to it. We also use our knowledge & experiences to understand the world

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4
Q

3 main research methods used for studying cognitive approach

A
  1. Laboratory experiments - very scientific & reliable
  2. Field experiments - takes place in a natural situation
  3. Natural experiments - making observations in a naturally occurring situation
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5
Q

What is the Information Processing Model (model)

A

INPUT —–> PROCESSING —–> OUTPUT

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6
Q

What is the Information Processing Model used for

A

(see slide 8 for egs)
- Used to explain mental processes
- Used to make inferences (intelligent guesses) abt mental processes
- Compares a human to a computer

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7
Q

What is a schema

A

A ‘package’ of ideas & info developed through experience.
Helps you to organise & interpret info & experiences

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8
Q

What does schema affect

A

Schema affects behaviour.
eg. if someone had a negative experience w a dog in the past, their schema for ‘dog’ would affect their behaviour (avoidance, frightened)

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9
Q

What happens when information is CONSISTENT with a schema

A

It is assimilated into the schema, and the schema is strengthened

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10
Q

What happens when information is INCONSISTENT with a schema

A

Accommodation occurs & the schema has to change in order to resole the problem

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11
Q

3 different types of schema

A
  • Role schemas
  • Event schemas
  • Self schemas
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12
Q

3 different types of schema: Role schemas

A

These are ideas abt the behaviour which is expected from someone in a certain role, setting or situation

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13
Q

3 different types of schema: Event schemas

A

These are also called scripts. They contain info abt what happens in a situation

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14
Q

3 different types of schema: Self schemas

A

These contain info abt ourselves based on physical characteristics & personality, as well as beliefs & values. Self schemas can affect how you act

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15
Q

3 points + 1

Schema problems

A
  • Schemas can stop ppl from learning new info
  • Prejudice & stereotypes can be an outcome of schemas
  • Schema which hold expectations/beliefs abt a certain subgroup of ppl may bias the way we process incoming info

This can lead to faulty conclusions, unhelpful behaviour & perception errors

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16
Q

What did Bartlett do and when

A

Experiment on ‘The War of the Ghosts’, 1932

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17
Q

Method of Bartlett’s ‘The War of the Ghosts’ study

A
  • English participants were asked to eat a Native American folk tale, called ‘The War of the Ghosts’
  • It was an unfamiliar story, full of strange & unusual names, ideas & objects. It also had a different structure to an average English story
  • The participants were asked to recall the story after different lengths of time
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18
Q

Results of Bartlett’s ‘The War of the Ghosts’ study

A
  • All of the participants changed the story to fit their own schemas. The details in the story became more ‘English’, the story started to contain elements of English culture & details/emotions were added.
  • As the length of time between hearing & recalling the story INCREASED, the amount of info remembered DECREASED
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19
Q

Conclusion of Bartlett’s ‘The War of the Ghosts’ study

A

People use their own schemas to help interpret & remember the world around them

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20
Q

Evaluation of Bartlett’s ‘The War of the Ghosts’ study

A
  • This study was conducted in a laboratory, so lacks ecological validity
  • BUT it was highly influential at the time as it paved the way for further cognitive research
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21
Q

3 points

Methods involved in brain scanning

A
  • Lesion studies
  • Electrophysiology
  • Neuroimaging
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22
Q

Methods involved in brain scanning: Lesion studies

A

See if brain damage changes behaviour, by removing parts of the brain (normally rats & mice)

23
Q

Methods involved in brain scanning: Electrophysiology

A

Using electric & magnetic fields to measure brain activity & brain waves

24
Q

Methods involved in brain scanning: Neuroimaging

A

Pinpointing areas of the brain which are active when a task is performed

25
Q

see slide 15 for differences between normal & psychopath brain

A
26
Q

see labelled diagram of the BRAIN on slide 16 + goodnotes

A
27
Q

12 points

Name the parts of the brain

A
  • Cerebral cortex
  • Gyri
  • Thalamus
  • Frontal lobe
  • Hypothalamus
  • Hippocampus
  • Amygdala
  • Pituitary gland
  • Pineal gland
  • Medulla oblongata & brain stem
  • Cerebellum
  • Corpus Callosum
28
Q

Parts of the brain: Cerebral cortex

A

The outer surface of the brain

29
Q

Parts of the brain: Thalamus

A

Sense except smell

30
Q

Parts of the brain: Frontal lobe

A

Responsible for behaviour & language

31
Q

Parts of the brain: Hypothalamus

A

Homeostatis

32
Q

Parts of the brain: Hippocampus

A

Regulates emotions, learning & memory

33
Q

Parts of the brain: Amygdala

A

Processes emotions

34
Q

Parts of the brain: Pituitary gland

A

Produces & releases hormones

35
Q

Parts of the brain: Medulla oblongata & brain stem

A

Unconscious brain. Controls heart rate, breathing, swallowing

36
Q

Parts of the brain: Cerebellum

A

Co-ordination balance

37
Q

Parts of the brain: Corpus Callosum

A

Bridge between the 2 sides of the brain. integrates motor, sensory & cognitive performance

38
Q

Parts of the brain: Gyri

A

The folded membrane (folds on the outer surface)

39
Q

Parts of the brain: Pineal gland

A

Releases melatonin & controls sleep cycle

40
Q

What did Paul Broca discover

A

Broca’s area:
Paul Broca (1860s) identified that damage to the frontal lobe could permanently affect speech

41
Q

What did Tuvling et al. do

A
  • Tuvling et al. (1994), using PET & fMRI scans, systematically observed neurological basis in mental processing
  • Tasks involving episodic (personal memory store) & semantic (knowledge of the world store) memory may be located at different sides of the pre-frontal cortex
42
Q

What does the left side of the brain do

A

Involved in recalling semantic memories

43
Q

What does the right side of the brain do

A

Involved in recalling episodic memories

44
Q

The left side of the brain controls the…

A

…right side of the body

45
Q

The right side of the brain controls the…

A

…left side of the body

46
Q

Significance of the left Parahippocampal gyrus

A
  • Plays a role in processing unpleasant emotions
  • Links with OCD & impairment to frontal lobes (controls logical thinking)
47
Q

What did Braver et al. do

A
  • In 1997, participants were given tasks that involved the central executive whilst having their brain scanned
  • Greater activity in the left pre-frontal cortex - the activity increased as the task became harder
  • Working memory model - as demands on the central executive, it has to work harder to fulfil its function
48
Q

SUPPORT for scientific & objective methods

A
  • Employs highly controlled & rigorous methods of study in order to enable researchers to infer cognitive processes at work.
  • Lab experiments - reliable as objective data is produced
  • Biology & cognitive psychology now work tg
49
Q

Machine reductionism

A
  • Ignores the influence of human emotion & motivation on the cognitive system & how this may affect our ability to process info
  • Humans have an unreliable & unlimited memory - computers have a limit but it is reliable
  • Humans have free will…?
50
Q

LIMITATIONS of the cognitive approach

A
  • Only able to infer mental processes from behaviours observed (what abt feelings, emotions)
  • Too abstract & theoretical in nature
  • Use of artificial stimuli that may not represent everyday memory experience, so may lack external validity
51
Q

How has the cognitive approach helped treatment for mental health

A

Cognitive behavioural theory (CBT)
- Patients learn how to notice negative/faulty though cognitions & test how accurate they are
- Goals are set to think positively/adapt thoughts

52
Q

BENEFITS of the cognitive approach for technology

A
  • Cognitive psychology has made important contributions to the study of artificial intelligence (AI) & the development of thinking machines (robots)
53
Q

Is the cognitive approach a determinist view?

A

It is less determinist than other approaches.
- Soft determinism: cognitive approach recognises that our cognitive system can only operate within the limits of what we know, but that we are free to think before responding to a stimulus
- This is a reasonable ‘interactionist’ position

54
Q

What is determinism

A

The view that free will is an illusion, & that our behaviour is determined by internal or external forces over which we have no control. Consequently, our behaviour is viewed as predictable.

Belief that all physical events occur in cause & effect relationships.

A Level Psychology: 3. Approaches (7 decks)

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