CA ERQs

Question 1

Evalluate one theory relevant to: Reconstructive memory

Introduce+ discuss reconstructive memory

Answer 1

• Theory of mental recall proposed by Bartlett
• Our memories are not like fotographs, they are constantly rebuilt.
• Remembering a past event is infuelnced by leading words, (questions that are suggestive in some way), misleading information (when facts are added which may not be true)
• The misinformation effect: explains when someone is provided with wrongful information, altering their memories.
• Our memories are filtered out by our schemas each time we remember something.
  *

Question 2

Reconstructive memory

Study 1

Answer 2

• proposed by Loftus and Palmer
• Aim: Investigate the influence of leading words on eye mean estimation speed.
• IV: The different leading words (smash, collided, hit, contracted) to make reference to the crash.
• DV: A memoery which was measured by mean estimation speed of participants
• Participants were given 7 short films to watch
• asked to fill a questionaire that cocnisted in them estiamting the speed of the crash.
• Had a critical question –>asked same question but the verb changed ‘‘How fast were the cars going when they… each other’’
• Results: Participants had a higher estimation of 40.8 with the highest intensity verb (smahed), while a lower estimation when the word was contracted (31.8).
• Link—-> each verb activated different mental schemas.

Question 3

Evaluation of study 1

Answer 3

• low ecological validity–> it was not a real crash (less emotional impact)
• precise control of variables–> used same video, age in order to identify a relationship.

Question 4

Study 2:Yulli and Cutshall

Answer 4

• aim: investigate if leading questions would affect eyewitness of a real crime
• done under natural conditions
• procedure: In a gun shop in vancouver a thief tied the owner before stealing guns. Owner escaped, thief shot him twice, then he was killed.
• 4-5 months later, 13 participants agreed to take part on experiment
• asked to recall event +were asked questions.
• 2 leading Q—>if they recalled a broken headlight in geatway car, 2) yelloe panel on car (which was blue)
• asked about their stress levels
• Results: eyewitness were a reliable sourced as they were not affected by the misninformation effect.
• most participants aswred that there was no broken headlight, and that panel was blue.

Question 5

Evaluation of study 2

Answer 5

• high ecological validity–> naturalistic setting
• in depth anaalysis (quantitative data)
• low reliaiblity–Z cant be replicated.

Question 6

Applicability

Answer 6

• See extent that legal system relied on eyewitnesses
• applicable to legal system because eyewitnesses can give out false memories in court
• ensure of what they saw–> inclined to follow leading Q.
• In legal reprots police should not only focus on eyewitness (DNA, videos etc)

Question 7

Evaluation of theory

Answer 7

• S–> many studies clearly show that our memories are reconstructed.–Z also falsified by Yulli and Cutshall.
• S–> theory is highly applicable
• L—> does not consider the role of emotions
• L–> in some cases people do have relaible memories.

Question 8

SCHEMA THEORY

introduce mental schemas

Answer 8

• explains how we organise information in order to make sense of the world.
• mental representation that helps individuals arrange ideas, expectations based on past events.
• we process information by basing it on past knowlege and experiences.

Question 9

Describe mental schemas

Answer 9

• infleunces how individuals make sense of the world
• Types of schema: Script, self, social
• Script schemas–> how individuals behave in order to fit their cultures.
• Social schemas—> how we interpret others behaviours in different scenarious
• Self–> how we perceive ourselves
• when information gets filtered by schemas there are processses happening\
• 1. Assimilation–> words are replaced with words with similar meaning to fit our schemas.
• Levelling–> removing information that does not make sense.
• Sharpening–> info being added to make sense.

Question 10

Describe study 1

Answer 10

• investigate if recalling a native american story would affect the details that participants would recall.
• IV: time that passed until they were told to recall the information.
• DV: details recalled.
• participants–> english males
• asked to read the native american story ‘‘war of ghosts’’
• 1. one person read it and recalled it aftter and relied on another person to recall the information.
• After 2 weeks results showed that the story was sharpening–> adding information. Also, assimilation as they changed the menaing od words (ie canoe–> boat). Also, levelling, where particiants removed information.

Question 11

Evaluation study 1

Answer 11

• low ecological validity–> artificial to memorize a story
• no stamdarized instriction–> performed in the 1930s(was not controlled)

Question 12

Describe study 2

Answer 12

• performed by BREWER AND TREYES ‘‘The picnic basket’’
• aim: investigate if the steryotipical schema of an office would affect memory recall.
• participants–> uni students
• left in office for 30s, taken to experimental room where they were asked to recall as many details they could remember of the office.
• Results–> some recalled objects that were not there (eg stapler)–> connected it to an office, other did not recall some objects there (eg picnic basket)

Question 13

Evaluation of study 2

Answer 13

• sample bias
• ethical concerns–> deception

Question 14

Applicability

Answer 14

1. DEPRESSION:

• BECK—> negative triad negattive thoughts about themselves, future and world
• influenced by negative self schemas–> cognitive biases
• peole are easily trapped in neg thoughts as ifnromation is filtered out by depression.

2. STERYOTYPES:

• tend to categorize people based on similar chacrertics (social categorisation)
• we make generalizations about people in order to reduce cognitive demand.
• role of schemas on sterytpes is seen in gender roles—> attenied prevous knowledge about what is considered ‘‘appropiate for each gender.

Question 15

SCHEMA THEORY

Limitations

Answer 15

• unclear how schemas are acquired
• theory is very abstract and braod
• reductionsist in relation to depression–> schemas are not enough to explain why people have depression as other factors play a role (eg biological).

Question 16

Contrast two models of memory

Intro

Answer 16

• define memory: process of encoding (sensory info into memory), storing (consolidating encoded info into memory), retrieving (bringing memoris back to conciousness).
• TWO main models:

1. multi-store model of memory (MSM)–> proposed by Atkinson and Shriflinn
2. working memeory model (WMM)–> propsoed by Baddley and Hitch

Question 17

Argument 1: Subsystems

Answer 17

• MSM–> assumes that memory has three separate stores that work uniformly in a single way and does NOT assume the presence of subsystems.
• WMM–> does consider the existance of subsystems in regards to the STM.
• Central executive–> in charge in the operations of the slave systems, order systems to focus on a single task or switch between them.
• Phonological loop–> auditory store and it is divided into two. (1) Phonological store–> retains info in speech-based form.
• (2) articulatory rehearsal component that converts visual stimuli to sound.
• Visuo-spatial sketchpad–> processes visual and spatial info for navigation.

Question 18

Study 1: Subsystems

Answer 18

• proposed by shallice and warrrington.
• case study of KF
• man that lost his parietal occipital lobe because of a motorcycle accident.
• asked him to recall a list of words (he was unble to do so)
• asked to recall pictures (he was able to do so)
• struggled to transfer verbal info from STM but visual not.
• study suggested the existance of the different subsytems (1) phonological loop and 2) visuo spatial sketchpad.
• Part of brain with PL was affected while other part was not.
• propsoes existance of two different substems

Question 19

Argument 2: Multitasking

Answer 19

• According to the WMM–> if two tasks are performed using the same subsystem, they will not be correctyly performed due to information overload.
• if distinct components are used it may be succesfull
• MSM–> does not establish multitasking as it fails to explain how info gets processed in each store.

Question 20

Study 2: Multitasking

Answer 20

• proposed by Strayer and Jhonson
• aim: study inattention blindness while driving
• had to multitask while being in a computer simulation of traffic
• they recorded participants reaction time to unexpected events
• group 1–> listen to a book or radio tape
• grooup 2–> cell phone convo
  Results: listening to radio did not affect participants reaction.
• Cell phone convo decreases their reaction time.
• 1st group could multitask while the 2nd group had an overlaod of info. (much difficult to multitask)

Question 21

Applicability: multitasking

Answer 21

• runnning and talkign you can do them at the same time becasue they require two seprate subsystems
• when studying and listenign tyo msuic this is much diffucult as you use the same slave system (overlaod of info).

Question 22

Argument 3: Information displacement

Answer 22

• improtance of reheresal and how info gets lost between each store
• model proposes that sensory-memory store retains info for 4s and has unlimited capacity. Information may be forgotten if it is not rehersad and does not arrive to stm.
• STM: has a duration of 30s but without rehersal information is forgotten. LTM has unlimited capacity and stores information for a lifetime but info must be rehresed to provent displacement.
• WMM–> does not propose hoe information gets lost because it focuses on what happens in each subsystem.

Question 23

Study 3: Info displacement

Answer 23

• propsoed by Glanzer and Cunitz
• aim: investigate if position of words alters recall
• participants: US army males
• presented with a list of 15 words which they had to recall
• three experimental condition
  1. Inmediate recall
  2. 10s delay (distraction task)
  3. 30s delay (distraction task)
• had to count from 100-0 bakwards.
• results: In IR they remebered more the first and last words (primacy recency effect), first words entered LTM and last words were in STM.
• In distraction task they remebred less words.
• Shows how words were dispalced as they were not rehreased.

Question 24

Reserach methods to study one cognitive process:

Introduce research methods +cogntive process:

Answer 24

• RM–> study how humans process and understand info.
• Cognitive process–> memory: complex process of encoding storign and retriving
• RM–> Experiments +questionaires

Question 25

Describe experiments

Answer 25

• quantitative data
• cause and effect relationship
• IV: Independent variable
• DV: Dependent variable
• variables must be operazionalized
• Null hypothesis. no significant relationship between variables
• Alternative hypothesis: significant relationship.
• Control extraneous variables: they affect the internal validity (degree that IV is the only factor affecting the DV)
• to control this they allocate participants to random conditions.

Question 26

Study 1 (Experiements)

Answer 26

• proposed by Loftus and palmer
• aim: find out whether leading words affect mean estimation speed.
• participants: watch seven short films
• asked fill out questioanire with questions including leading words.
• Ranged in intensity (smash, collided bumped bit, contracted).
• verb smashed was the highest in mean estimation speed while contracted was the lowest. Clear cause-effect relationshipn between variables.

Question 27

Study in relation to RM:

Answer 27

• IV: Intensity of verb
• DV: mean estimation speed
• allowed them to identify a cause-effect relationship.
• finding supported the idea that each verb activates a different schema.

Question 28

Strenghs and Limitations

Answer 28

Strenghs:
* control variables–> laboratory setting, randomlly assigned to conditions
* reduction of selection bias by preventing favoritism to other groups.
* controlled order effect as they counterbalanced order of the presentations of the films. –> enhanced internal validity.

Limitations:
* artificial setting reduces external validity–> cant be applied to real-life contexts
* lacks realism as they cant be applied to life scenarious because people do not rate crashes on a daily basis.

Question 29

RM–> Questioanaires

Answer 29

• structured questions
• designed to collect qualitative data about thoughts, behaviours and attitudes of individuals.
• large sample and have standarized questions.
• identify trends rather than statistical significance.
• anonymity+confidentuality.

Question 30

study 2: Questionaires

Answer 30

Brown and Kulik

Question 31

Strenghs and limitations (questioanires)

Answer 31

Strenghs:
* influence of naturally.ocurring events and random life events can be investigated which could not be achieved from an experiment.
* data collected is more profound –> provides a transparaent insight into the functions of memory.

Limitations:
* present social desiribility bias
* retrospective data: answers could be exaggerated or made up.
* Correlational relationships are weaker because extraneous variables are not controlled

Question 32

Discuss one or more biases in thinking and decision making

Introduction

Answer 32

Explain thinking +decision making:
* explains wayin which our brain processes information to make sense of the world
* dual processing model–> proposes existance of two systems

(1) system 1–> intuativem fast and automatic
(2) system 2–> is a slow, non-concious qay of thinking

• system 1–> as it is very automatic it is prone to cognitive biases.
• cognitive biases–> heuristics
• cogntive shortcuts to make effective judgements with minimal effort.
• Types of heuristics: Anchoring bias and framing effect

Question 33

Describe anchoring bias +framing effects

Answer 33

ANCHORING BIAS
* individual relies on first piece of info to make decision.–> known as ´ánchor´´
* all judgements and decisions are based on that anchor, neglecting rest of info.
* Creates biases when interpreting information.
FRAMING EFFECT
* when an individual reacts to information based on how the information is presented.
* people prefer information that is positively framed, but prefer less when it is negatuvely framed

Question 34

STUDY 1–> anchoring bias

Answer 34

• proposed by Traverskky and Khanemann
• aim–> investigate impact of the order of numbers on the estimation given in a multiplication.
• participants–> high school students
• givewn multiplcation task and where seperated into two groups
• ascending condition–> 1x2x3x4x5x6x7xc8
• descending condition–> 8x7x6x5x4x3x2x1
• told to estimate the mutiplication
• results–> participants overstimated in the descending condition and underesteimated in ascending.
• shows how first piece of info acts as an anchor–> in this case the first multiplication number.

Question 35

Evaluation study 1

Answer 35

• high internal validity
• low ecological validity–> not a commo situation.

Question 36

Study 2: Framing effect

Answer 36

• TRAVERSKY AND KHANEMAN
• aim: influence of + and - frames on decision making
• párticipants–> undergraduate students
• given hypothetical situation of deadly virus outbreak, estimated to kill 600 people.
• choose between two options–> positive and negative frame

posotive frame–> A. 200 people will be saved B. 1/3 prob that 600 people are saved
begative frame–> A. C. 400 people will die, D. 1/3 not die and 2/3 die-

Results–> in positive frame more people chose A than B and in negative frame more people chose D than C.
* people prefer positively framed information.

Question 37

Applicability

Answer 37

1. ANCHORING BIAS:medical field and diagnosis–> doctors are soemtimes ingleinced by the first symtoms encountered by patient and less on subsequent symtoms–> doctores may rely too much on first piece of info –>dangerous to patients
2. FRAMING EFFECT: mrketing +sales: brands trick people by psotively framign their products. eg 20% sugar and 80% sugar free.

Question 38

Heuristics limitations

Answer 38

• overly reductionsist–> does not specifiy how they interact
• does not explain the role of emotions
• definitoos of system 1 and 2 are not always certian–> there are not 2 systems in the brain.

Question 39

Evaluate one study or theory related to thinking and decision making

Introduction

Answer 39

• how our brain processes information to make sense of the world
• model–> dual processing model
• proposed by Traversky and Khanemann.
• based on idia that our way of thinkign is divided in two systems
  1. System 1–> automatic, intuative and effortless way of thinking, low cognitive energy
  2. system 2–>slow, rational and a more concious way of thinking, and required more effort as it is used to make improtant decisions.
• both systems are required

Question 40

Study 1

Answer 40

• propsoed by ALTER AND OPPENHEIMER
• aim: investigate if the font used would affectr participants disfluency when doing cognitive reasoning tests.
• participants–> undergraduate students and were divided into 2 groups.
  1 group–> easy to read font
  2. group–> difficult to read font
• both groups were given same questions
• results–> students that got the difficult to read font had more correct answers comapred to those with easy to read font.
• in the difficult to read font participants used more system 2.

Question 41

study 1: evaluation

Answer 41

• high ecological validity–> applied in many contexts in our lives.
• high internal validity–>
• sample is not representative

Question 42

Study 2

Answer 42

• wason task
• aim: see if participants would use their first instinct when asked to solve task
• task–> set of cards some were odd/even or red/brown
• asked which had needed to be turned first so taht card shows even number on one face and opossite face is red.
• asked to turn card
• results–> most ansers had initial instinct to turn red card to check for even number
• answer–> only the even number (not implied that red is always even)
• link–> show how individuals are influenced with content of info provided–> used system 1 as they relied on a fast answer.

Question 43

Applicability

Answer 43

• applied to any situation
• system 1–> used to make day to day decisions: for exampel what clothes to wear, brushign teeth etc,
• system 2–> mor eintuative and more improtasnt decisions such as selecting a university.

Question 44

Evaluation:

Answer 44

S–> supported by evidence
L–> reductionsist does not specifit how models interact and the role of emotion.

Question 45

To what extent does emotion affect cognition:

Intro

Answer 45

• memory–> process of encoding,storing and retreiving information.
• vivid, long-lasting memories, that come from emotional and surprising events which are from high importance for an individual.
• maintained by overt rehearsal–> discussing with others and covert rehresal which is based on private rehresao.
• FB can recall specific events such as places, events, who was affected and aftermath.
• more resistant +accurate than everyday memories.

Question 46

Study 1: Brown and Kulik

Answer 46

• aim–> find whether surprising/significant events cause FB memories.
• participants–> 40 african americans +40 white americans
• iv: different personally signficant event–> murder of JFK +Martin luther king
• given questioanires which had very specific questions regarding the events
• asked about death of a loved one
• results–> most participants recalled more detah of a loved one. AM recswlled more martin luther king. CA: recalled more JFK.

Question 47

Study 2

Answer 47

• Sharot et al
• aim: role of biological factors on FM
• after 3 yrs of 9/11 attack participamnts who were in new york where asked to retrive memories when palced in fmri.
• given word cue while in fmri: included words (summer and september)
• then they rated their memories +wrote desceription.
• those that recalled more FM were closer to the world tarde center.
• they had a higher activation in their amygdala when exposed to word september.
• amydala activation correlated with FM.

Question 48

applicability

Answer 48

• when people pass through traumatic events they are more likely to remember them than ordinary memories.
• eg school shooting or natural disaster
• may be used as relaible source in police investigations.

Question 49

Limitations

Answer 49

• FBM may not be accuarte as people may rehrase story to friends/family–> distorting the memory.
• as time passes memory becomees distorted.
• EE–> Neisser +Harsch: invesigated accuracy of FBM.
• givrn Q about a disasters that hapened 24 hrs ago, 2nd one 3 years ago. There memories had been distorted.
• shows how FBM change thriugh time.