Cognitive Area Flashcards
Key assumptions about cognitive area
Mind works like a computer processor-inputting and storing and retrieving
Investigates internal mental processes influence behaviour
People make decisions about how they behave
What was the aim of loftus and palmers
To investigate the effects of language on memory
What was experiment 1 method and design in L.P
Lab and independent measures
How many participants in L.P experiment 1
45 students slept into 5 groups of 9
What was the procedure of experiment 1 in L.P
All participants shown 7 film clips and given a questionnaire to complete after each one, they were asked to give an account of accident and to answer questions relating to it
How was Order effects eliminated in L.P’s experiment 1
Groups presented with different order of films
What was the independent variable in experiment 1 of L.P
Wording of critical question: “about how fast were the cars going when they …… each other?”
Contacted, hit, bumped, collided, smashed
What were the results of experiment 1 in L.P
Smashed-40.8 Collided-39.3 Bumped-38.1 Hit-34.0 Contacted-31.8
What did loftus and Palmer say to explain/interpret the results of experiment 1
Response bias, if deciding between 30 and 40, smashed may cue the response of 40 as it suggests higher speed
Language used causes change in participants memory representation of events, very smashed may change participants memory such as that he sees that accident as more severe than it was
What was the aim of L.P second experiment
To see if participants asked the smashed question would be more likely than two other groups to report seeing broken glass when tested week later
What was the research method and design of experiment 2 in L.P
Lab and independent
How many participants took part in L.P second experiment
150, split into 3 groups of 50
What was procedure f experiment two in L.P
1 min clip of Multiple car crash with accident lasting less than4 seconds shown to each group
After they were asked critical question including smashed, hit, or not asked speed at all
Then week later asked question did you see any glass, with choice of yes or no
What were results of experiment two in L.P
Smashed group predicted sig higher speed estimate 10.46mph than hit group 8mph
Smashed- 16 yes 34 no
Hit-7 yes 43 no
Control- 6 yes 44 no
What was conclusions of loftus’ second experiment
- Questions asked subsequent to event can cause memory reconstruction
- verb in question can affect speed estimates info they can recall such as seeing broken glass
How did loftus explain his conclusions of experiment two
- Suggested participants took in info from original scene and merged it with info given after event
- producing a memory of event with original info and subsequent info
Discuss ethics of loftus and Palmer
- No deception as knew it was memory tes
- deceived as didn’t know about hypothesis of leading questions but this ensured demand characteristics didn’t occur
No harm as clips were not gruesome
Discuss validity of L.P
Highly controlled lab-high design validity however low ecological validity as it was lab and in real life you don’t get to prepare to memorise accidents
Knowing they are in study may affect their answers may not be valid demonstration of how leading questions affect memory
Discuss reliability of L&P
Highly controlled lab, meets criteria for scientific research, therefore study is replicable and the findings of originals nd secondary study’s can be correlated to see if test refers reliability is established
Discuss sample bias of L&P
Done in university and so uni students are the sample as it’s cost effective and easy, however it means the sample isn’t generalisable as students will use their memory more in every day studying than perhaps other people
Is L&P ethnocentric
Not ethnocentric, as species specific behaviour as cognitive processes such as reconstructive memory depend on the physiognomy of brain
However may only reflect how university educated people’s cognitive processes work, as only students studied, and many are top or middle social classes
Why does L&P link to link to psychology as science
Carried out laboratory experiment
Fulfil theory, control, evidence, replication
Why does loftus and Palmer link to usefulness
Series of studies showing how memory can be used to distort eyewitnesses memories, led to research being Carrie don’t in best way for police to interview and question witnesses without altering their memories
Why does L&P fall into cognitive area
Investigating the cognitive process of memory, specifically aimed to investigate the reconstructive nature of memory showing that information introduced after event in form of leading questions would have effect on eye witness testimony
Why does L&P link to key theme memory
Provides empirical evidence into effects of information received after the event on a persons memory of an event. An experimental demonstration of effects of leading questions on eyewitness testimony and show how memory is reconstructive in nature
What was the aim of grants study
Investigate context dependent memory effects on both recall and recognition
What was Grants sample
8 psychology student experimenters recruited 5 participants each, data from 39 was recorded (1 dismissed as results atypically low)
17 female, 23 male aged 17-56
What was procedure of Grant
Participants read two page article, given a recall test - short answer test, given recognition test - multiple choice test
What were the 4 test conditions in grant
Silent study silent test
Silent study noisy test
Noisy study silent test
Noisy study noisy test
Name some controls grant used
All participants wore headphones
All told they could highlight or under line and they’d be tested after
Given 2 min break between study and test without headphones on
What are the conclusions of Grant
Context dependency effects for newly learned meaningful material, best performance achieved when studying and testing take place in same environment with same level of noise
What are results of Grant study
Silent study silent test - 6.7/10 & 14.3/16
Silent study noisy test - 4.6/10 & 12.7/16
Noisy study silent test - 5.4/10 & 12.7/16
Noisy study noisy test - 6.2/10 & 14.3/16