Cognitive area

Question 1

What are the defining principles of the cognitive area?

Answer 1

Our behaviour is influenced by internal mental processing such as memory, attention and perception
Your mind is like a computer when processing information: inputted, processed, stored, retrieved

Question 2

What are the mental processes that cognitive psychology looks at?

Answer 2

Attention
Memory
Perception
Language
Thinking

Question 3

Key concepts within cognitive area

Answer 3

Reconstructive memory
Schema theory
Auditory attention
Cocktail party effect

Question 4

Strengths of cognitive area

Answer 4

Useful (practical applications) eg in interviews in how to reconstruct accurate memory
Uses lab experiments so heavily controlled = reliable and valid
Not ethnocentric = cognitive processes spans all cultures (universal)

Question 5

Weaknesses of cognitive area

Answer 5

Lab experiments = Studies lack eco validity so processes in research not accurate to irl and demand characteristics are present
Can’t use observation but self report = flaws

Question 6

Reconstructive memory

Answer 6

the information we input is processed to not be accurate to reality but a reflection of biases and prejudices about the world
So our memory is reconstructed to fit narratives about the world

Question 7

Schema theory

Answer 7

Packets of information we have about the world that influence the we store by