cognitive psych

Question 1

basic definitions for attention

Answer 1

attention allows us to focus on specific stimuli while ignoring others.

types:
external attention = selecting information from the environment

internal attention = selection of internal thoughts and sensations, overlaps with other cognitive processes.

focused attention. = directing and maintaining attention on one task

divided attention = sharing attention between multiple tasks/ modalities (seeing/hearing)

cocktail party problem = tuning into just one voice among many

Question 2

models of attention

Answer 2

1. Broadbent’s early selection model
   = posits that stimuli are filtered, or selected to be attended to, at an early stage during processing
   - filters out unattended messages, allowing mnimal processing.
   - people can still detect their name from unattended messages
   - cognitive processing is a series of channels (sensory register -> selective filter -> STM
2. Triesman’s attenuation theory
   - partial processing of multiple inputs is possible
   study found -> voice differences improve rejection of irrelevant messages, same voice in different language was harder to select efficiently.
3. Deutsch and Deutsch late selection model
   - all stimuli are processed for meaning, selection happens late at the memory level
4. Resource theory
   = attentional capacity can change in size depending on the demand of the task
   Kahneman (1973) -> attention is a limited and flexible resource that can be directed and divided based on task demands (central processing unit)
   * LaBerge, (1983) -> Attention works like a spotlight, which can be focused without eye movement.

Question 3

sustained attention and vigilance

Answer 3

sustained attention = maintaining focus on a stimulus over time

successive discrimination = detecting changes in a single target
- two (or more) stimuli are presented one after another, and responses to one are reinforced whereas responses to the other are not.

simultaneous discrimination = identifying one target among similar stimuli.

vigilance = Prolonged focus to detect rare target stimuli.

Challenges: Attention declines over time and with higher working memory load.

Question 4

attention and memory

Answer 4

working memory = holds and processes limited items short term
- attention is required to maintain items in working memory

selection:
Early: Filters stimuli before deep processing.
Late: All stimuli are processed fully before filtering.

Question 5

dual task paradigm and shadowing

Answer 5

dual task paradigm = dividing attention depends on resource demands (how far apart are they from each other)
- competing resources = difficult
- non-competing = easier

Shadowing Tasks: Repeating speech while listening to different audio streams reveals selective attention. (conflict of Broadbents model)

Question 6

understanding prospective memory

Answer 6

= memories for actions we plan to carry out in the future

time based = remembering to perfrom a action at a specific time
event based = remembering to act when a certain event or condition occurs

types:
pulses = event plus time (meet friend at 11 after lecture)
intermediates = event, no time (call mum during lunchbreak)
steps = no event, no time (buy bday card today)

• pulse is most successful, steps are least, intermediates in the middle

Question 7

why can prospective memory fail?

Answer 7

interruptions = dividing attention away from task can impair prospective memory
-Interruptions split attention, causing new task demands to distract from the original task. After interruption, we may rely on implicit memory cues to resume the task, without explicit cues or encoding.

Question 8

how does prospective memory work?

Answer 8

preparatory attentional and memory processes theory (PAM) = Success in prospective memory requires maintaining a working memory state, relying on retrospective memory to distinguish actions
- once an individual effectively encodes a PM task, the individual still monitors the target cues even if the PM task has not yet appeared.

multi-process theory = Event-based memory uses both strategic and automatic monitoring. We cannot be in a constant state of readiness, so some intentions may pop into mind spontaneously.

Question 9

autobiographic memory

Answer 9

= memories for events in ones own life, significant experiences, life history.

4 dimensions:
1. Autonoetic memories = experiential memories (persoanl recall, emotions attatched)

2. noetic memories = factual knowledge about self
3. reconstructions = inaccurate memories shaped by interpretations over time
4. copies = vivid memories with lots of irrelevant details

Specific vs. Generic Memories: Specific events (e.g., last vacation) vs. general memories (e.g., family holidays).

field perspective = from your own perspective

observer perspective = remembering an event but feeling like your observing from the outside

Question 10

episodic memory

Answer 10

= memory for personal experiences at specific time and places, usually short term and unique to individual

Episodic memories tend to be specific and short-term, while autobiographical memories are broader and span longer periods.

Question 11

infantile amnesia

Answer 11

= the inability to recall autobiographical memories from early childhood, usually before 2.5-3.5 years.

causes;
1. brain development = the hippocmous and frontal cortex are insufficiently developed at birth so cannot store long term memories.

2. cognitive development = memories of self require an understanding of personal significance which is not developed until 21-24months.
3. language and cultural development
   - without the language to explain and express memories, cannot retain early memories.

• Memories tend to become denser with age, especially with family storytelling and the development of a sense of self.

reminiscence bump = Adults remember more from late adolescence and early adulthood, which is disproportionately represented in their autobiographical memories.

Question 12

flashbulb memory

Answer 12

= vivid and detailed memory of dramatic events and how we learned about them(where you were when you heard the news of a significant event)

Not always reliable. They can change over time as they are re-retrieved, influenced by external sources or personal interpretations.

Question 13

what are categories and concepts

Answer 13

concept = mental representation of a category

category = is a set of objects (or events/abstract entities) that can be treated as equivalent in some way, they have some commonality.

Question 14

theories of conceptual representation

Definitional approach (classical view)

Answer 14

• concepts are represented as strict definitions (mentally)
• Example: Triangle = closed geometric figure with three sides, interior angles summing to 180°.
• doesn’t handle exeptions (dog with 3 legs)

Question 15

theories of conceptual representation

prototype theory: typicality

Answer 15

• categories are represented as a prototype, an ideal example with typical features
• Objects closer to the prototype are seen as better category members (high typicality). <- graded membership

strengths:
- Explains typicality effects (e.g., faster “true” responses for typical members like robin vs. atypical ones like chicken for the category bird).
- explains family resemblance (members share features but not one defining category)

limitation:
Doesn’t account for variability within a category or goal-based categorization.

typicality judgements are based on how closely the item resebles all other category members

Question 16

theories of conceptual representation

exemplar approach

Answer 16

= concepts are represented by specific stored examples from experience (no prototype is assumed)

• can account for variability in a category
• comparisons with new stimuli are made with stored examples in memory

Question 17

basic level concept

Answer 17

superordinate = furniture
basic = chair, lamp
sub-ordinate = kitchen chair, floor lamp

• basic is the first to be learned
• As someone’s expertise grow, the subordinate level to a normal person may become the basic level for them e.g. birdwatcher

Question 18

theories of conceptual representation

probabilistic approach

Answer 18

= individuals can form prototypes and examplar representations simultaneously
- differen brain area used for each
- Prototype representations= parietal areas
- Exemplar representations = memory related areas

Question 18

theories of conceptual representation

knowledged based approaches

Answer 18

= focuses on how intuitive theories or goals shape categories

Ad hoc categories = Created spontaneously for specific goals or demand, intuitive theory of what we deem as valuable and neccessary guide our decision making (e.g., “things to rescue from a burning house”).

goal derived categories = Previously ad hoc, now established through frequent use (e.g., “things to pack for a trip”). <- are well established memories

Question 19

the concept of typicality and how it affects categorisation

Answer 19

typicality refers to the extent to which an object is representative of a category.

Central = Typical (e.g., sparrow for “bird”).
Peripheral = Atypical (e.g., penguin for “bird”).

Impact on Categorization:
People are faster and more accurate when judging typical members.
Typical items are often listed earlier in free recall tasks.
Judgments are based on family resemblance—how much an item resembles other category members overall.

Question 20

network models of knowledge representation

Answer 20

semantic network model;
- each concept is represented by a node, nodes are linked by pathways
- memory retrieval -> spreading activation from one node to connecting nodes
- Example: Activating “animal” spreads to “dog” and “cat.”

hub and spoke model:
- combines a central hub (amodal representation) with modality specific spokes
- hub = Central organizer (located in anterior temporal lobes).
- spokes = sensory and motor information
- Patients with semantic dementia show impairments due to hub damage.

Question 21

dual-process theory (Kahneman, 2003)

Answer 21

system 1:
- automatic and fast processing
- use of heuristics
- effortless
- affected by emotion
- implicit processing

system 2:
- slow and serial processing
- use of rules and algorithms
- effortful
- explicit processing
- deliberation and controlled processing

Question 22

bounded rationality (Simon, 1957)

Answer 22

We aim to make rational judgments and decisions, but our cognitive limitations and environmental factors constrain us.

We make decisions that are rational within the bounds of our cognitive abilities and environmental context.

Question 23

heuristics and biases

Answer 23

=heuristics are mental shortcuts used to simplify decision making. They are tools that help us to make quick judgements and decisions but can lead to biases

Question 24

representativeness heuristic and the Representativeness heuristic conjunction fallacy

Answer 24

represenativeness heuristic = tendency to judge an item/ person belonging to a category based on how representative it is of that category.

consequence = We often ignore base rate information in favor of more descriptive content

conjuction fallacy = people often judge the tendency of two events occuring together as more likely than one event alone.

contemporary explanation= The fallacy arises when the conjunction aligns with a hypothesis that confirms one’s pre-existing beliefs (confirmation bias).

original explanation = esults from an increased perceived probability of one of the conjuncts. (judged probability)

Question 25

base rate neglect and causality heuristic

Answer 25

base rate neglect = occurs when people ignore statistical info(base rates) in favour of more easily recalled or more descriptive examples.

causality heuristic = If people are encouraged to use stereotypical information, base rate neglect is more likely.

People are more likely to use base-rate information when they are motivated (e.g., in high-stakes scenarios like medicine).

Question 26

availability heuristic

Answer 26

= the twndency to judge the likelihood or frequency of an event based on how easily they can be retrieved from the long-term memory.

• influenced by: media coverage, emotional response (affect heuristic) and direct experience of event.

example: people think there are more words that start with K as these are retrived more than words that have K as there third letter

Question 27

positives of heuristics

Answer 27

= they are adaptive and help overcome cognitive limitations(bounded rationality)

• in many cases they lead to correct judgements

Part of the adaptive toolbox, where individuals can use specific heuristics to improve decision-making, such as:

Recognition Heuristic: Choose the most recognizable option as the best choice. (less likely to be used when additional inforamtion is given)

Take-the-Best (TTB) Strategy: Choose the best option based on available information and stop after finding a cue that discriminates between options. Cues are searched in order of what you recognise and know. All others are ignored.
- intelligience can influence, why are they choosing it? is it more complex than this?

Question 28

bounded rationality

Answer 28

= leads us to rely on heuristics when we make judgements and decisions

Tversky and Kahneman emphasized the problematic aspects of heuristics(biases and failure to process all info given), while Gigerenzer highlighted the value of heuristics in real-world decision-making.(faster processing of info, without constraining us)

Question 29

decision making under risk

Answer 29

prospect theory;
assumtion 1 = people make decisions starting from a reference point
assumption 2 = people are loss averse, more sensitive to losses than to gains and will try to avoid them

framing affect:
= The way a decision or problem is framed (e.g., the wording or context) can influence people’s decisions, even when the content is the same.

sunk cost effect:
The tendency to continue with a course of action because resources (e.g., money, time) have already been invested, even if it’s suboptimal.

Question 30

evaluation of prspect theory

Answer 30

Strengths:
Can be applied to many decision-making situations (e.g., financial decisions, consumer behavior).

Weaknesses:
Oversimplifies decision-making and doesn’t take emotional factors into account.

Question 31

historical context of mnemonics

Answer 31

Techniques for improving memory have been used for over 2500 years, developed by the ancient Greeks and still in use today.

Mnemons were individuals (often in legal or religious fields) whose job was to remember large amounts of information.

Example: The Peruvians used quipus, a set of knots tied on cords, to represent numbers and categories like livestock or soldiers. These knots served as retrieval cues.

Question 32

the three factors of mneunomic devices

Answer 32

1. organisation
   - more effective than unorganised info
   - the key to long term retention is connecting new info with exsisting knowledge
   - organised info-even if not told to explicitly mmeorise it is remebered better
2. elaboration
   - Enriching the information with additional details, making connections to prior knowledge, and presenting it in a meaningful or non-meaningful way.
   - This makes the information easier to retrieve later by standing out.
3. mental imagery
   - This is a form of elaboration and enhances memory, especially when the imagery is interactive.
   -Using bizarre mental imagery, where objects or concepts are vividly visualised, is a very effective technique.

Question 33

memorization techniques

method of loci

Answer 33

Imagine walking through a familiar environment (e.g., your home) and assigning the items you need to remember to specific locations along the route.

Question 34

memorization technique

peg word method

Answer 34

A method where you pre-memorise a set of “peg” words (e.g., 1 = bun, 2 = shoe) and link the items you need to remember to these pegs.

Question 35

memorisation techniques

the link method

Answer 35

Involves forming associations between items that need to be remembered by creating a visual or narrative link between them.

• if you forget one image, you won’t be able to remember the following images

Question 36

effectiveness of mneumonic techniques

Answer 36

Participants show enhanced recall when using mnemonic techniques such as the method of loci and the peg-word method. (immediate and delayed)

Simple techniques, like rehearsing and repetition, have shown results for immediate recall but not delayed recall.

The use of bizarre imagery was especially effective, making items easier to recall.

Question 37

exceptional memory

Answer 37

Memory Athletes:
- Exceptional memory involves a combination of the right mnemonic devices and intensive practice.
- There are no inherent differences in the brain anatomy between memory athletes and non-memory athletes.
- However, distinct brain activation patterns occur during memorisation in memory athletes.
- Exceptional memories are not born, but rather made through consistent practice and using effective mnemonic techniques.

Changes in Brain Networks and Function:
fMRI findings show changes in the distribution of functional brain activity and network dynamics after mnemonic training.
These changes are similar to those found in memory athletes, suggesting that intensive mnemonic training leads to brain changes that improve memory capacity.

Question 38

what is alcohol?

Answer 38

= organic compound with one or more hydroxyl groups attatched to a carbon atom of an alkyl group.

• ethanol is the alcohol that is found in beverages

Question 39

Evidence for damage: prenatal alcohol exposure

foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD)

Answer 39

alcohol gives damage to the developing brain and includes:
- neurogenesis and myelination
- brain structural differences and alcohol-induced apoptosis
- impaired plasticity (difficulty reorganising neuronal connections)

difficulties with diagnosis:
- lack of physical signs
- relies on self-report from mother
- Alcohol consumption patterns and their impact on FASD remain unclear.
- Other environmental factors such as maternal nutrition, smoking, and medical care may also contribute.

cognitive impacts:
- reduced intellectual abilities (lower IQ)
- Attention decifits (early onset ADHD, encoding issues)
- executive functions (behavioural and emotional self regulation, task-switching, ability to plan)

Question 39

postnatal alcohol exposure

Answer 39

= reduced dendritic spiking in neurons, impaired hippocampal development and structural brain changes
- poorer cognitive functions including memory, attention and learning.

Question 40

alcohol and inhibition

Answer 40

• GABA is an inhihitory neurotransmitter
• alcohol mimics GABA activating GABA receptors which reduces neuronal excitation and enhances inhibitory neural receptors.
• ## leads to reduced anxiety and feeling calm, but requires increased alcohol to maintain this effect over time.

Question 40

alcohol myopia theory

Answer 40

= a state of mental short-sightedness

• alcohol narrows attention, resulting in increased inhibition, but can also lead to disinhibition resulting in uncharacteristic behaviours.
• fewer contextual details available for storage

Question 41

alcohol and memory

Answer 41

• short trm memory is typically spared
• episodic memory is impaired

two stage process:
1. encoding -> storing information (STM ->LTM)
2. retrieval -> reinstating previously stored information

Alcohol disrupts hippocampal functioning, impairing the encoding and retrieval of information to/from the neocortex.

Question 42

Alcohol induced memory blackouts

Answer 42

anterogade amnesia = inability to form new memories after drinking
- blackout occurs when blood alcohol content spikes rapidly, shutting down normal cognitive processes

fragmentary blackouts = partial recollection, memory can be retrieved over time with cues

en bloc black outs = complete inability to recall events, even with cues

higher likelihood in students with BMI, gender and drinking speed having a role.

Question 43

state dependent memory and alcohol

Answer 43

• Alcohol before encoding impairs retrieval compared to sober conditions.
  Alcohol immediately post-encoding can enhance recollection.
  Alcohol during retrieval typically has little effect.
  Alcohol generally impairs encoding, which in turn impairs retrieval of information.

Question 44

human information processing

Answer 44

sensory memory = initial stage where sensory info is briefly stored

working memory = holds and manipulates memories for a short period

long term= stores memories for long time until retrieval

Question 45

types of cognitive biases

attentional bias

Answer 45

= focusing on more threat inducing or negative stimuli than neutral ones

assessment:
dot probe task = two stimuli are presented at the same time(negative vs neutral), the speed of attention allocation of the dot that represents one stimulus is measured, shorter latencies when the dot replaces negative stimuli
- can also use eye tracking data while participants view different stimuli.

findings:
Strong attentional bias is observed in people with anxiety disorders, especially when stimuli are presented below conscious awareness. People with depression tend to show less sensitivity to positive stimuli.

limittaions of task:
Reaction time measures have issues with validity and reliability as they cannot differentiate between disengagement and engagement with stimuli.

Question 46

interpretive bias

Answer 46

= the tendecy to interpret ambigious situations/stimuli as threatning

assessment:
homophone task = presentation of words that sound the same but have different spellings and meanings- threatning vs non-threatning (die vs dye)
ambigigious scenarios = measure the number of threatning interpretations of a ambigious scenario

findings:
Increased trait anxiety leads to more interpretations of threatening homophones, while depression shows weaker evidence for this bias. This bias is stronger in anxious individuals in situations involving social and intellectual evaluation.

Question 47

memory bias

Answer 47

= tendency to recall negative memories/info in comparison to positive or neutral ones

explicit = conscious recollection of negative memories
implicit = unconcious recall of negative memories

findings:
People with anxiety and depression are more likely to recall negative events compared to neutral or positive ones, reinforcing negative thought patterns.
- no implicit memory bias for people with anxiety.

Question 48

cognitive biases in anxiety and depression summary

Answer 48

Role in Anxiety:

tend to focus on and interpret stimuli in a threatening way, leading to a continuous reinforcement of negative thinking patterns.
- anticipate future threat, external focus

Role in depression:

People with depression have a memory bias, recalling more negative events, which can reinforce feelings of sadness and hopelessness.
- internal focus
- elaborate on past failures

Question 49

theoretical explantions of cognitive biases

Answer 49

1. combined cognitive bias hypothesis:
   - Cognitive biases are interconnected. An increase in one bias (e.g., attentional bias) can lead to the increase of others (e.g., interpretive bias, memory bias).
   - can occur through training
2. cognitive vulnerability hypothesis
   - Mental health disorders such as anxiety and depression develop due to a combination of dispositional vulnerabilities (e.g., negative cognitive biases) and negative life events.
   Findings: Negative interpretive biases at age 9-14 years predict depressive symptoms later, particularly for those who experience multiple negative life events.