Behavioral Science: Cognition, Consciousness, Language Flashcards
Piaget’s (4) Stages of Cognitive Development
There are qualitative differences between the way that children and adults think.
- Sensorimotor: birth - 2 yrs. Learn to manipulate environment to meet physical needs. Primary and secondary circular reactions. Object permanence (end of stage).
- Preoperational: 2-7 yrs. Symbolic thinking, egocentrism, and centration.
- Concrete operational: 7-11 yrs. Conservation, consider perspectives of others, logical thought working w/ concrete objects.
- Formal operational: 11 yrs and beyond. Logical thought working with abstract ideas. Reasoning and problem-solving.
Problem-Solving: Trial-and-Error
Various solutions are tried until one is found that seems to work.
Problem-Solving: Algorithms
Formula or procedure for solving a certain type of problem.
Problem-Solving: Deductive Reasoning (Top-Down)
Starts from a set of general rules and draws conclusions from info given.
Problem-Solving: Inductive Reasoning (Bottom-Up)
Starts with specific instances, then draws a conclusion from them. Creates theory via generalizations.
Decision-Making: Heuristics (2) (Availability, Representative)
Heuristics: simplified principles used to make decisions. Can lead you astray, but are essential to speed and efficiency.
- Availability: make decisions based on how easily similar instances can be imagined. Used when deciding how likely something is.
- Representative: categorize items based on whether they fit the prototypical, stereotypical, or representative image of the category.
Decision-Making: Biases (4) (Disconfirmation, Confirmation, Overconfidence, Belief Perseverance)
Can impede a person’s analysis of available evidence.
- Disconfirmation: evidence obtained from testing demonstrated that the solution doesn’t work.
- Confirmation: tendency to focus on info that fits an individual’s beliefs, while rejecting info that goes against them. Contribute to overconfidence.
- Overconfidence: tendency to erroneously interpret one’s decisions, knowledge, and beliefs as infallible.
- Belief perseverance: inability to reject a particular belief despite clear evidence to the contrary.
Decision-Making: Intuition
Ability to act on perceptions that may not be supported by available evidence.
Decision-Making: Emotion
Subject experience of a person in a certain situation.
Emotions experienced while decision is being made AND emotions that a person expects to feel from a particular decision are involved in decision-making process.
States of Consciousness: Alertness
Awake and able to think. Higher cortisol levels. EEG waves Beta (high f, alert or attending task requiring concentration) and Alpha (slower than Beta, awake but relaxing w/ eyes closed).
States of Consciousness: Sleep
EEG waves Theta and Delta.
4 stages of NREM sleep. REM sleep is interspersed b/w cycles of NREM sleep stages. REM sleep associated with memory consolidation and dreams; paradoxical sleep.
States of Consciousness: Dreaming (3 Theories / Neurocognitive Models)
- Activation-synthesis: caused by widespread, random activation of neural circuitry –> mimic incoming sensory info, pieces of stored memories, desires, needs, etc. –> cortex tries to stitch unrelated info together –> dreams.
- Problem-solving: dreams are a way to solve problems while you’re sleeping. Dream world is untethered by real world –> different interpretation of things.
- Cognitive process: dreams are the sleeping counterpart of the stream of consciousness.
States of Consciousness: Altered States (Hypnosis and Meditation)
Hypnosis: person appears to be in control on normal functions, but is in highly suggestible state.
Meditation: quieting the mind for some purpose. Decreases heart rate and BP. EEG resemble Stage 1 sleep w/ Theta and slow Alpha waves.
Sleep Disorders (Types of Dyssomnia and Parasomnia)
Dyssomnia: difficulty falling or staying asleep, or avoiding sleep. Insomnia, narcolepsy (cataplexy, sleep paralysis, hypnagogic and hypnopompic hallucinations), sleep apnea.
Parasomnia: abnormal movements or behaviors during sleep (NREM). Night terrors, sleepwalking.
Consciousness-Altering Drugs: Depressants
Alcohol, Barbiturates, Benzodiazepines.
All increase GABA activity. All reduce NS activity –> relaxation and reduced anxiety.
Consciousness-Altering Drugs: Stimulants
Amphetamines (increase DA, NE, 5-HT release at synapse and decrease reuptake), Cocaine (decrease DA, NE, 5-HT reuptake), Ecstasy.
Increase arousal of NS via increase of action potentials.
Consciousness-Altering Drugs: Opiates
Morphine, Codeine.
Opioids: bind to opioid receptors in PNS, CNS –> decrease rxn to pain and sense of euphoria. Oxycodone, hydrocodone, heroin.
Naturally occurring forms of opium.
Consciousness-Altering Drugs: Hallucinogens
LSD, peyote, mescaline, ketamine, shrooms, marijuana (THC acts at cannabinoid, glycine, opioid receptors –> increase GABA and DA activity).
Cause distortions of reality and fantasy, enhancement of sensory experience, and introspection.
Types of Attention (2) (Selective and Divided)
Selective: filter allows us to focus on one thing while allowing other stimuli to be processed in the background. Cocktail party phenomenon.
Divided: ability to perform multiple tasks at the same time. Familiar/routine actions can be performed w/ automatic processing –> permits brain to focus on other tasks w/ divided attention.
Components of Language: Phonology
The actual sound of the language. Phonemes are speech sounds.
Components of Language: Morphology
The structure of words. Morphemes are building blocks of words. Redesigned = re + design + ed.
Components of Language: Semantics
The associations of meaning with a word.
Components of Language: Syntax
How words are put together to form a sentence.
Components of Language: Pragmatics
Dependence of language on context and pre-existing knowledge.
Theories of Language Development: Nativist / Biological (Chomsky)
There exists some innate capacity for language. A theoretical pathway in brain that allows infants to process and absorb language rules. Critical/sensitive period for acquisition of/maximal development of language ~2 yrs to puberty.
Theories of Language Development: Learning / Behaviorist (Skinner)
Language acquisition by operant conditioning / reinforcement.
Theories of Language Development: Social Interactionist
Interplay b/w biological and social processes. Language acquisition driven by child’s desire to communicate and behave in social manner. As biological foundation for language develops + exposure –> brain groups sounds and meanings together. Interactions reinforce and de-emphasize circuits (plasticity).
Whorfian Hypothesis of Language and Cognition (Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis)
Our perception of reality is determined by content of language. Language affects the way we think, not the other way around.
Broca’s Area and Aphasia
Located in inferior frontal gyrus on frontal lobe, controls motor function or speech via connections w/ motor cortex.
Aphasia –> speech comprehension intact, but reduced or absent ability to produce spoken language.
Wernicke’s Area and Aphasia
Located in superior temporal gyrus of temporal lobe, responsible for language comprehension.
Aphasia –> motor production and fluency of speech is retained, but speech comprehension is lost.
Arcuate Fasciculus
Bundle of axons that connects Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas. Allows appropriate association b/w language comprehension and speech production.
Conduction aphasia –> speech production and comprehension intact, but pt unable to repeat something that has been said bc connection b/w the 2 regions is lost.
