Cognative approach

Question 1

When was the cognitive approach developed?

Answer 1

The 1960’s

Question 2

Why was the cognitive approach developed?

Answer 2

As a response to behaviourists ignoring cognitive processes

Question 3

What are the assumptions of the cognitive approach?

Answer 3

• Behaviour can be explained in terms of internal mental processes
• Cognitive psychologists cannot study these directly so study them by making inferences.
• The mind works like a computer

Question 4

Cognitive approach

Answer 4

This approach is focused on how our internal mental processes affect behaviour. Therefore, dysfunctional, negative, and irrational thoughts lead to maladaptive behaviours such as depression, EDs and anxiety. Therapies based on this approach focus on changing the thoughts to change behaviour.

Question 5

Internal mental processes

Answer 5

Private, inner operations of the mind such as perception and attention that mediate between a stimulus and a particular response.

These subjective internal mental processes can be studied using scientific methods such as lab experiments to infer their existence from observable behaviour (inference)

Question 6

Schema

Answer 6

A mental framework of beliefs and expectations that influence cognitive processes (thinking): mental representations of knowledge. Schemas (schemata) are developed from past experiences and allow us to make sense of the past and help us predict the future.

A mental representation of our beliefs and expectations that influence our behaviour. We developed these beliefs and expectations from our previous experience.

They allow us to process information quickly and avoid us fe getting overwhelmed

Question 7

Inference

Answer 7

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

Question 8

Cognitive neuroscience

Answer 8

The scientific study of biological structures that underpin cognitive processes.
Includes the use of brain imaging techniques like PET and fMRI scans to identify and describe the neurological basis of internal mental processes.

Question 9

What are the types of models in the cognitive approach?

Answer 9

• Theoretical models
• Computer models

Question 10

Who created “the rat man”?

Answer 10

Bugelski and Alampay (1962)

Question 11

What is “the rat man” experiment?

Answer 11

Two groups of participants are shown a sequence of pictures - either of rats or men. Then they were shown the ambiguous figure of “the rat man”. Participants were more likely to see a figure relating to the sequence of pictures they just saw.

Question 12

What is cognitive neuroscience?

Answer 12

The scientific study of the influence of brain structures on mental processes and mapping brain areas to specific cognitive functions.
Brain mapping has been improved by the development of technology and techniques such as fMRI and PET scans

Question 13

What are the strengths of the cognitive approach?

Answer 13

• real life applications
• it uses scientific and objective methods - cognitive psychologists have always employed controlled and rigorous methods of study eg. lab studies in order to infer cognitive processes. This means that this approach has established a credible, scientific basis.
• It is less deterministic than other approaches - it is based on soft determinism and recognises that our cognitive system has limits but we are free to think before responding to a stimulus. This contrasts the behaviourist approach which states that we lack free will.

Question 14

What is a limitation of the cognitive approach?

Answer 14

• It is based on machine reductionism - There are similarities between operations of a computer and the human brain but this approach has been criticised as emotions and motivations have been shown to influence human behaviour eg. accuracy of recall. These factors are are not considered in this approach and oversimplifies human cognitive processing.
• It lacks external validity - Cognitive psychologists are only able to infer from the behaviour they observe, so the approach can be too abstract and theoretical. Research is also carried out using artificial stimuli which may not mimic the everyday experience.

Question 15

What is the theoretical model?

Answer 15

A diagrammatic representation of the steps involved in internal mental processes.
Information flows through the cognitive system in a sequence of stages:

Input - Storage - Retrieval

Question 16

What is the computer model?

Answer 16

A software simulation of internal mental processes.

There are similarities between a computer and the mind in the way information is processed eg:

Central processing unit (CPU) = brain
Coding (information is turned into a usable format)
Stores to hold information

These models have been used in the development of AI

Question 17

Information processing approach

Answer 17

This is a type of theoretical model that illustrates how information flows through the cognitive system in a series of stages.

Question 18

Artificial intelligence

Answer 18

This is where computers are programmed to think like humans and mimic their actions. These machines can mimic human abilities such as problem solving.

Question 19

Broca’s area

Answer 19

An area in the brain that was found to influence our ability to produce speech. Damage to this area of the brain can result in very slow or slurred speech.

Question 20

Inference

Answer 20

An inference is where we draw a conclusion about the way information is mentally processed based on observing behaviour.

Question 21

External validity

Answer 21

This refers to whether the findings we get in an experiment are true in a real-world context. External validity is concerned with whether the findings from a study can be generalised to different settings and different people.

Question 22

Machine reductionism

Answer 22

This is the idea that likening the mind to a computer is too simplistic. People who see the mind as similar to a compute, ignore important differences between them. For example, unlike computers, humans are also influenced by emotional factors. This means that findings drawn from computer models may not be wholly valid.