Cognitive Approach Flashcards
What is the cognitive approach in psychology?
A framework that studies internal mental processes scientifically and contrasts with the behaviorist approach.
What areas does the cognitive approach investigate?
Memory, perception, and thinking.
How does the cognitive approach study behavior?
It studies behavior indirectly and makes inferences about the mind based on behavior.
What are schemas?
‘Packages’ of information and ideas based on experiences; mental frameworks.
Give an example of a basic motor schema that babies are born with.
Schemas for suckling and grasping.
What is the grasping schema?
Moving hand towards an object and closing hand around it.
How do schemas help us process information?
They act as mental shortcuts to prevent being overwhelmed by stimuli.
How do schemas change with age?
Schemas become more detailed with age.
What did Bugelski and Alampay (1962) find about schemas and perception?
2 groups shown a series of images
- Group 1 saw images of people
- Group 2 saw images of animals
- Then shown the ‘rat man’ and asked what it was
- Group 1: thought it was a person
- Group 2: thought it was an animal
The interpretation of ‘rat man’ was influenced by prior exposure to different types of images.
What is the information processing approach?
A theoretical model suggesting information flows through the cognitive system in stages.
What is a computer model in cognitive psychology?
Programming a computer to see if the output resembles human cognitive processes.
Helped develop artificial intelligence
What is cognitive neuroscience?
The scientific study of the influence of brain structures on mental processes.
Mapping brain areas to different cognitive functions
Who was Broca and what did he discover?
Broca discovered that damage to the frontal lobe can impair speech production.
What imaging techniques are used in cognitive neuroscience?
fMRI and PET scans.
Able to observe and describe neurological processes
- Expanded recently to include computer generated models designed to ‘read’ the brain
What did research find about episodic and semantic memory activity?
Activity occurs on opposite sides of the prefrontal cortex.
Established the neurological basis of some mental disorders
What is linked to activity in the parahippocampal gyrus?
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD).
What was the aim of the experiment on problem solving?
To find out the effects of other people on problem solving.
What were the conditions in the problem-solving experiment?
Condition A: children allowed to talk; Condition B: children worked in silence.
Both conditions have to answer 30 questions in 2 hours
What were the findings of the problem-solving experiment?
Condition A solved 204 problems; Condition B solved 324 problems.
Why is the objective and scientific nature of the cognitive approach a strength?
- Uses highly controlled methods
- Practical application
- Contributed to artificial intelligence development
- Enhances scientific credibility
What is the limitation of the cognitive approach?
Relies on inferences
* Can be too theoretical
* Studies use artificial stimuli
* Lacks external validity
* Doesnt represent real life experiences
True or False: The cognitive approach is the most dominant field in psychology today.
True.
Fill in the blank: The cognitive approach has practical applications in the treatment of _______.
depression.
What is the cognitive approach based on that makes it a limitation?
Machine reductionism
- assumes mind and machine are similar
- Ignores emotion and motivation
- Memory can be affected by emotions
- Learning can be affected by motivation
