Cognition, Consciousness, and Language Flashcards
cognition
how our brains process and react to the incredible information overload presented to us by the world
dual-coding theory
states that both verbal association and visual images are used to process and store information
information processing model
state that the brain encodes, stores, and retrieves information much like a computer
cognitive development
development of one’s ability to think and solve problems across the life span
Piaget’s stages of cognitive development
sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational
sensorimotor stage
focuses on manipulating the environment to meet physical needs through circular reactions. Object permanence ends this stage; birth -2 years old; Piaget
object permanence
objects continue to exist even when they are out of view; this ends the sensorimotor stage
preoperational stage
2-7 years old; marked by symbolic thinking, egocentrism, and centration; Piaget
symbolic thinking- make believe/imagination
egocentrism- inability to imagine what another person may think or feel
centration- tendency to focus on only one aspect of a phenomenon, inability to understand idea of conservation
concrete operational stage
7-11 years old; children can understand the idea of conservation and consider the perspective of others; able to engage in logical thought with concrete info; Piaget
formal operational stage
11 years old +; marked by the ability to think logically about abstract idea; Piaget; do an experiment where only one variable is changed
Lev Vygotsky
educational psychologist, proposed that the engine driving cognitive development is the child’s internalization of his or her culture, including interpersonal and societal rule, symbols, and language
Fluid intelligence
problem solving skills
Crystalized intelligence
related to use of learned skills and knowledge
dementia
impaired memory, later progresses to impaired judgement and confusion
delirium
rapid fluctuation in cognitive function that is reversible and caused by medical (non-psychological) causes ex. delirium tremens, caused by alcohol withdrawal
functional fixedness
inability to consider how to use an object in a nontraditional manner
heuristics
simplified principles used to make decisions; “rules of thumb”
representativeness heuristic
categorizing items on the basis of whether they fit the prototypical, sterotypical, or representative image of the category
disconfirmation principle
evidence obtained from testing demonstrated that the solution did not work
confirmation bias
tendency to focus on information that fits an individuals beliefs while rejecting information that goes against them; leads to overconfidence (tendency to erroneously interpret one’s decisions, knowledge or beliefs as infallible)
belief perseverance
inability to reject a particular belief despite clear evidence to the contrary
recognition-primed decision model
intuition, ex. a doctor’s brain is actually sorting through a wide variety of information to match a pattern
Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences
7 types: linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal
consciousness
one’s level of awareness of both the world and one’s own existence within that world
reticular formation
a neural structure located in the brainstem, to keep the cortex awake and alert; brain injury that results in disruption of these connections results in a coma
Electroencephalography
EEG, helps record the electrical patterns within the brain while sleeping
beta waves
have a high frequency, when we are awake, occur when the person is alert or attending to a mental task that requires concentration
alpha waves
awake, relaxing with our eyes closed, slower than beta waves, more synchronized than beta waves
Stage 1
once you doze off, enter Stage 1, marked with the appearance of theta waves
Theta waves
in stage 1 sleep, slower frequencies, higher voltages, irregular wave forms of EEG
Stage 2 sleep
sleep spindles and K complexes on EEG
Stages 3 and 4
slow-wave sleep (SWS), low-frequency, high voltage sleep waves called delta waves
Stages 1-4 Sleep
Non-rapid eye movement (NREM sleep)
REM sleep
interspersed between cycles of NREM sleep stages, paradoxical sleep
Paradoxical sleep
occurs in REM cycle, HR, breathing, and EEG mimic wakefulness, but individual is still asleep, muscles are paralyzed
BAT-D (Bat sleeps in the day)
beta, alpha, theta, delta–> sequence of these brain waves
melatonin
makes you sleepy, serotonin derived hormone from the pineal gland
cortisol
steroid hormone produced in the adrenal cortex, wakes you up, (hypothalamus) CRF–> (anterior pituitary) ACTH –> cortisol (adrenal cortex)
activation-synthesis theory
dreams are caused by wide-spread, random activation of neural circuitry
problem solving dream theory
dreams are a way to solve problems while you are sleeping
cognitive process dream theory
dreams are merely the sleeping counterpart of stream-of-consciousness
neurocognitive models of dreaming
unify biological and psychological perspectives on dreaming by correlating the subjective, cognitive experience of dreaming with measurable physiological changes
dyssomnias
disorders that make it hard to fall asleep, stay asleep, or avoid sleep (insomnia, narcolepsy, and sleep apnea)
parasomnias
abnormal movements or behaviors during sleep (night terrors, sleepwalking)
cataplexy
loss of muscle control and sudden intrusion of REM sleep during waking hours (type of narcolepsy symptom)
hypnagogic hallucinations
hallucinations when going to sleep
hypnopompic hallucinations
hallucinations when waking up
somnambulism
sleepwalking
hypnosis
a state when a person appears to be in control of his or her normal functions but is in a highly suggestible state
depressants
reduce nervous system activity, result in a sense of relaxation and reduced anxiety
Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome
issue from drinking, caused by a deficiency of thiamine (vitamin B) and characterized by a severe memory impairment
barbiturates
anxiety reducing and sleep medications, increase GABA activity, cause a sense of relaxation
stimulants
increase in the arousal in the nervous system, increases the frequency of action potentials
amphetamines
cause increased arousal by increasing release of dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin at the synapse and decreasing their reuptake, increase in HR and blood pressure
marijunana
THC in the active chemical, THC inhibits GABA activity, indirectly increases dopamine activity
mesolimbic reward pathway
one of four dopaminergic pathways in brain, includes nucleus accumbens (NAc), ventral tegmental area (VTA), and the connection between them called the medial forebrain bundle (MFB), addiction pathway is also activated by gambling and falling in love
divided attention
ability to perform multiple tasks at the same time; new tasks usually require undivided attention, utilize effortful/ controlled processing
automatic processing
familiar or routine actions can be performed with this, permits the brain to focus on other things with divided attention
controlled/effortful processing
new tasks or complex task require your full attention
phonology
actual sound of language; about 40 speech sounds or phonemes in English
morphology
structure of words, words are built from multiple building blocks called morphemes ex. re –> to do again
semantics
association of meaning with a word
syntax
how words are put together
pragmatics
dependence of language on context and preexisting knowledge, may tell a friend to “GTFO” while your boss, “do you mind if i have some privacy”
prosody
rhythm, cadence, and inflection of our voices
language acquistion
9-12 months - babbling
12-18 months- about one word per month
18-20 months- an explosion of language and combining words
2-3 years- longer sentences (3 words or more)
5 years- language rules largely mastered
nativist (biological) theory
advocates for the existence of some innate capacity for language, developed by Noam Chomsky, innate ability is called the language acquisition device (LAD), critical period of language learning between 2 years old and puberty
learning (behaviorist) theory
BF skinner, language acquisition by operant conditioning, language acquisition by reinforcement
social interactionist theory
language development focuses on the interplay between biological and social processes, language acquisition is driven by the child’s desire to communicate and behave in a social manner, such as interacting with caretakers and other kids
Whorfian hypothesis
linguistic relativity hypothesis, suggests that our perception of reality is determined by the content of language, ex. Inuits are better at discriminating between types of snows bc they have multiple words for types of snow
Broca’s area
located in the inferior frontal gyrus of the frontal lobe, controls the motor function of speech via connections with the motor cortex
Wernicke’s area
located in the superior temporal gyrus of the temporal lobe, responsible for language comprehension
What connects Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area?
arcuate fasciculus
Broca’s aphasia
a nonfluent aphasia in which generating each word requires great effort, pts have the sensation of words on the tip of their tongues
Wernicke’s aphasia
a fluent, nonsensical aphasia with lack of comprehension, make nonsense sounds
conduction aphasia
marked by the inability to repeat words heard despite intact speech generation and comprehension, unable to repeat something that’s been said
