cognitive explanations Flashcards
Cognitive approaches in psychology focus on what?
Cognitive approaches examine mental processes, such as how people think and process information.
What is schizophrenia associated with in terms of cognitive processes?
Schizophrenia is associated with several abnormal cognitive processes, leading to dysfunctional thought processing and symptoms like delusions and hallucinations.
What are cognitive deficits in schizophrenia?
Cognitive deficits occur when sufferers experience problems with attention, communication, and information overload.
How do cognitive deficits affect schizophrenic individuals?
Schizophrenics may misperceive voices in their head as people speaking to them, rather than perceiving them as ‘inner speech’.
What difficulties do schizophrenics have with processing information?
Schizophrenics have difficulties processing visual and auditory information, and understanding other people’s behavior.
What is a potential explanation for some schizophrenic behaviors?
Difficulties in understanding other people’s behavior and social cues might explain some of the experiences of those diagnosed with schizophrenia.
What social skills do some schizophrenics struggle with?
Some schizophrenics appear to have difficulties using other people’s actions as clues to understand what they might be thinking.
What behaviors might cognitive deficits explain in schizophrenia?
Cognitive deficits may explain behaviors such as reduced emotional expression, disorganized speech, and delusions.
What cognitive deficit involves difficulty focusing and filtering irrelevant information?
Attention: Difficulty focusing and maintaining attention, leading to difficulty filtering out irrelevant information.
What cognitive deficit involves problems with holding information in mind or remembering past events?
Memory: Problems with working memory (holding information in mind for a short time) and long-term memory (remembering past events).
What cognitive deficit involves impairments in executive functions like planning and decision-making?
Reasoning and Problem-Solving: Impairments in executive functions, such as planning, decision-making, and problem-solving.
What cognitive deficit leads to difficulty retrieving and using words, causing disorganized speech?
Verbal Fluency: Difficulty retrieving and using words, leading to disorganized speech.
What cognitive deficit involves delayed mental processing and reaction times?
Speed of Processing: Delayed mental processing and reaction times.
What cognitive deficit involves difficulty switching between tasks or thoughts?
Task Switching: Difficulty shifting between different tasks or thoughts.
What are cognitive biases in schizophrenia?
Cognitive biases refer to selective attention and have been used to explain behaviors traditionally regarded as symptoms of schizophrenia.
What is the most common delusion reported by people diagnosed with schizophrenia?
The most common delusion is that others are trying to harm or kill them (delusions of persecution).
What cognitive biases are associated with delusions of persecution?
People with delusions of persecution tend to assume that others cause the negative events in their lives.
How are auditory hallucinations linked to cognitive biases?
Bentall (1990) found that auditory hallucinations, such as hearing voices, are linked to cognitive biases.
How do cognitive biases contribute to auditory hallucinations in people with schizophrenia?
People who feel powerless in social relationships may misattribute their inner voice as external speech, reinforcing negative self-perceptions.
What role do feelings of inferiority play in auditory hallucinations?
Those who feel inferior may hear voices reinforcing their perceived worthlessness, with the ‘voice’ gaining power in proportion to their sense of powerlessness.
What is metarepresentation in cognitive processing?
Metarepresentation is the ability to reflect on thoughts and behavior, allowing us to identify our goals, intentions, and interpret others’ actions.
What happens when there is dysfunction in metarepresentation?
Dysfunction in metarepresentation can disturb our ability to recognize our own thoughts and actions, leading to confusion about whether they are our own or someone else’s.
How can dysfunction in metarepresentation explain hallucinations?
It can explain hallucinations because the inner voice may be experienced as coming from an external source, rather than from within the person.
What is central control in cognitive processing?
Central control is our ability to suppress automatic responses while performing deliberate actions.
