Cognitive approach Flashcards
Cognitive approach
How our mental processes(for example, thpughts, perceptions, attention) affect behaviour
The assumptions of the cognitive approach
- Our mental systems have a limited capacity: The amount of information that can be processed will be influenced by how demanding the task is and how much other information is processed.
- A control mechanism oversees all mental processes:
. This will require more processing power for new tasks, leaving less available for everything else. - There is a two way flow of information: We take in information from the world, process it and react to i. We also use our knowledge and experiences to u derstand the world.
Three main research methods used
- Laboratory experiments - very scientific and reliable
- Field experiments - taking place in a natural situation
- Natural experiments - making observations in a naturally occurring situation
Information Processing Model
Input:Processing:Output
Information Processing Model features
Used to explain mental processes.
Used to make inferences(intelligent guesses) about mental processes.
Compares a human to a computer
Role of schema
A package of ideas and information developed through experience. Helps you to organise and interpret information and experiences, with schema affecting behaviour.
When information is consistent with a schema?
It’s assimilated into the schema - experience is assimilated and schema is strengthened
When information is inconsistent with a schema
Accommodation occurs - the scheme has to change in order to resolve the problem
Different types of schema
- Role schema
- Event schemas
- Self schemas
Role schemas
These are ideas about the behaviour which is expected from someone in a certain role, setting or situation
Event schemas-
These are also called scripts. They contain information about what happens in a situation
Self schemas
These contain information about ourselves based on physical characteristics and personality, as well as beliefs and values
Bartlett method
- English participants were asked to read a Native American folk tale, called ‘The War of the Ghosts’.
- It was an unfamiliar story, full of strange and unusual names, ideas and objects. It also had a different structure to an average English story.
- The participants were asked to recall the story after different lengths of time.
Bartlett(1932) The War of the Ghosts results
- All of the participants changed the story to fit their own schemas.
- The details in the story became more ‘English’, the story started to contain elements of English culture and details and emotions were added.
- As the length of time between hearing and recalling the story increases, the amount of information remembered decreased.
Bartlett(1932) conclusion
People use their own schemas to help interpret and remember the world aroind them.
Bartlett evaluation
This study was conducted in a laboratory, so it lacks ecological validity.
But it was highly influential at the time as it paved the way for further cognitive research.
Schema problems
Schemas can stop people from learning new information.
Prejudice and stereotypes can be an outcome of schemas.
Schemas which hold expectations or beliefs about a certain subgroup of people may bias the way we process incoming information.
This can lead to faulty conclusions and unhelpful behaviour.
Can lead to perception errors.
Methods involved in brain scanning
- Lesion studies
- Electrophysiology
- Neuroimaging
Lesion studies-
See if brain damage changes behaviour, by removing parts of the brain(normally rats and mice)
Electrophysiology-
Using electric and magnetic fields to measure brain activity and brain waves
Neuroimaging
Pinpointing areas of the brain which are active when a task is performed
Corpus Callosum:
Bridge between the two sides of the brain.
Integrates motor, sensory and cognitive performance
Thalamus-
Senses except smell
Front lobe-
behaviour, language Personality
Hypothalamus
Homeostasis
Hippocampus:
Regulates emotions, learning and memory
Amygdala:
Processes emotions
Pituitary gland:
Produces and releases hormones
Medulla oblongata and brain stem:
Unconscious brain
Controls heart rate, breathing, swallowing
Cerebellum:
Co-ordination balance
Pineal gland
Releases melatonin(sleep/wake cycle)
Tulving et al
Using PET and fMRI scans, Tulving et al(1994) systematically observed neurological basis in mental processing.
Tasks involving episodic(personal memory store) and semantic(knowledge of the world store) memory may be located at different sides of the pre-frontal cortex.
Left side - involved in recalling semantic memories
Right side - involved in recalling episodic memories
