cognitive approach Flashcards
when did it begin to revolutionise
the late 1950s and early 1960s to become the dominant approach in the late 1970s
assumptions
- internal mental processes can be investigated using scientific methods and principles; well controlled lab studies
- mental processes are private and can’t be observed
- cognitive psychologists study them indirectly by making inferences
- cognitive psychologists claim that our internal mental processes are affected by schema that we have formed through experiences
- assumes that internal mental processes of the mind work in a similar way to a computer
internal mental processes
- humans seen as information processors
- info received from our senses is processed by the brain and how this processing directs how we behave
- looks at how various cognitive functions work together to help us make sense of the world
- mental processes mediate between the stimulus and response
- cognitive approach believes that internal mental processes can be investigated using scientific methods and principles
schema
the mental representation of experience and knowledge and understanding
- help us predict what will happen in the world based on past experience
- can process a lot of info quickly using schemas
- develop and evolve with experience
- become more detailed and sophisticated
- schema is a “packet of information” or cognitive framework that helps us organise and interpret information. based on our previous experience
- useful by helping us to take shortcuts in thinking
- help us predict what will happen in our world based on our experiences
- enable us to process vast amounts of info rapidly
- prevent us from becoming overwhelmed by environmental stimuli
negatives of schemas
- lead to faulty conclusions and unhelpful behaviour
- cause us to exclude important info to instead focus only on things that confirm our pre existing beliefs and ideas
- may develop stereotypes that are difficult to confirm
- can distort our interpretation of sensory info
- can lead to errors or inaccurate EWT
- cause bias recall based on what we expect to see
Bugelsky & Alampay (1962): Rat-man
- two groups Pp’s
- shown faces or animals
- shown image that looks both like face an animal
what can we do if we can’t directly see processes such as thinking
make inferences i.e. make assumptions about mental processes that cannot be observed
why is the mind like an information processing system
- how the brain inputs, stores and retrieves information
limitation of computer models
-some computers do not forget
things as human’s and do
not have emotions like humans
- only describes how humans do things but not why
what is cognitive neuroscience
the scientific study of relating brain structure on our mental processes
how has the use of scanning equipment enabled scientists to describe the neurological basis of mental processing
- helped to study the influence of brain structures on mental processes
- neuroscientists can now study the brain as it processes info through the use of PET scans and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).= allowed us to locate the parts of the brain involved in info processing
how has neuroimaging techniques helped
establish neurological basis for some disorders such as enlarged ventricles in schizophrenia however they cannot tell us if this is the cause or a consequence of the disorder
practical applications of cognitive neuroscience
use of scanning techniques to: -locate different types of memory in deferent arias of the brain leading to treatment for memory problems
- study mental processing patients with depression or OCD or in children with autism or dyslexia
-use of imaging techniques and angiography to study effects of normal ageing on the brain or to observe the effects of stroke on the brain
use of computer simulations to:
- test theories or hypothesis about mental processes such as attention, memory, problem solving etc
- help in the treatment of schizophrenia
- develop voice recognition programmes
- use of eye tracking to study visual word processing and reading
strengths of the approach
- highly scientific= objectivity and control ensure studies are reliable
- finding from studies carried out by cognitive psychologists have provided the basis for therapies and strategies to help people with behavioural problems through CBT for example
weaknesses of the approach
- lab experiments used to study behaviour with the cognitive approach can be criticised for being too artificial making it difficult to generalise the findings to real world situations
- we cannot observe what is going on in someone’s mind, any inferences made within the cognitive approach rely on observing behaviour. so any findings could have been influenced by demand characteristics and investigator effects, reducing validity and reliability of the study
