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Cognitive psychology - semester 1 Flashcards

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1
Q

Cognitive psychology definition

A

The branch of psychology that explores the operation of mental processes related to perceiving, attending, thinking, language, and memory, mainly through inferences from behaviour. (APA Dictionary of Psychology).

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2
Q

What are the 5 core area of cognitive psychology?

A

Perception, attention, memory, language and thinking & reasoning

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3
Q

What is perception?

A

Receive and interpret sensory information

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4
Q

What is attention?

A

Selectively focusing

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5
Q

What is memory?

A

Store and retrieve information

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6
Q

What is language?

A

Producing and comprehending communication symbols

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7
Q

What is thinking and reasoning?

A

Logic, reasoning, mental manipulation information to solve problems and make decisions

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8
Q

What is the stroop task?

A

Congurt - matching word and colour
Incongrut - different word to colour

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9
Q

What are the 4 main research methods?

A

Experimentation
Information processing
Serial processing
Parallel processing

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10
Q

What is experimentation (measuring cognitions)?

A

Manipulate variable and observe the effects on cognitive process. Then measure how quickly participants respond to stimuli, accuracy measure, assessing their accuracy of their responses.

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11
Q

What are the 2 types of information processing (measuring cognition)?

A

Bottom up processing
Top down processing

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12
Q

What is bottom up processing (information processing)?

A

Trying to make sense without context, not knowing what is expected is it a number, a letter etc. Driven purely by sensory input.

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13
Q

What is top-down processing (information processing)?

A

Making sense of something in context. Working out a symbol in a sequence. Context + sensory

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14
Q

What is serial processing (measuring cognition)?

A

Must solve a problem step by step, cannot solve it all at once (e.g. solve the following equation 33 + 45 – 6 = ?)

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15
Q

What is parallel processing (measuring cognition)?

A

Having to do lots of things at once. Must process information all at once (e.g. driving, must do lots at once - assessing dangers, changing gears, looking at maps, etc)

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16
Q

What is cognitive neuroscience?

A

Examines biological basis of cognitive process by exploring brain activity/change in brain activity while doing a task.
This is sometimes done after brain injury. See how their brain reacts during a task compared to someone without a brain injury.

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17
Q

What is computational modelling?

A

Generate computer models that simulate human cognitive process. It attempts to replicate how the mind process information. E.g. modelling attention control.

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18
Q

What is the ecological approach?

A

Studying cognition in the real world rather than in a controlled lab. This can be done through observation and naturalistic experiments. E.g. how or study people perceiving objects in a busy environment. It’s harder to control and you cannot ensure everyone has the same conditions.

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19
Q

What are the 3 stages of memory?

A

Sensory memory
Short-term memory
Long-term memory

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20
Q

Who came up with the multi-store model?

A

Atkinson & Shiffrin (1968)

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21
Q

What is sensory memory?

A

Decay quickly <1 second
Modality specific
Closely tied to the sensory systems

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22
Q

What is short-term memory?

A

Limited capacity
Can hold a limited amount of information
Lasts 15 to 30 seconds
If no attention, information is forgotten

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23
Q

What is long term memory?

A

Unlimited capacity over long period

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24
Q

What makes memory go from sensory to short-term?

A

Attention

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25
Q

What makes memory go from short-term to long term memory?

A

Rehearsal

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26
Q

What are the 4 types of sensory memory?

A

Iconic memory
Echoic memory
Haptic memory
Haptic memory
Others: taste

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27
Q

What is iconic memory?

A

Visual information –> mental pictures

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28
Q

What is echoic memory?

A

Auditory information

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29
Q

What is haptic memory?

A

touch

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30
Q

What are the two main subsections of long term memory?

A

Explicit memory (declarative)
Implicit memory (nondeclarative)

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31
Q

What are the two types of explicit memory?

A

Episodic memory
Sematic memory

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32
Q

What are the two types of implicit memory?

A

Procedural memory
Classical conditioning

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33
Q

What is explicit memory?

A

I remember that

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34
Q

What is implicit memory?

A

I know how

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35
Q

What is episodic memory?

A

Personal events - birthday parties, weddings, trips etc…

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36
Q

What is semantic memory?

A

General knowledge - grammar, history, geography etc….

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37
Q

What is procedural memory?

A

Skills

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38
Q

What is priming/conditioning?

A

Emotions - when you begin to associate something with an emotion, children learn to associate happiness with sweets etc

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39
Q

What is memory?

A

Memory is the capacity to process, retain and retrieve skills and knowledge

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40
Q

What are the three critical phases for memory?

A

Encoding, storage, retrieval

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41
Q

What is encoding?

A

Receiving, processing and combining information

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42
Q

What is visual encoding?

A

Images and visual sensory information

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43
Q

What is semantic encoding?

A

Meaning (not just relying on sensory input but also making sense of the information

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44
Q

Who came up with the processing theory?

A

Craik & Lockhart, (1972)

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45
Q

What is shallow processing?

A

Focused on surface level features

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46
Q

What is deep processing?

A

Encoding based on meaning

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47
Q

What are encoding strategies?

A

Rehearsing
Chunking

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48
Q

What is chunking?

A

Grouping information into smaller units e.g. 123456789 vs 123 456 789

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49
Q

When does memory span increase and decrease?

A

Memory increases with child development
Memory decreases with ageing

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50
Q

What is storage of memory?

A

Retention of encoded representations over periods of time

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51
Q

What is concept (storage of memory)?

A

Unit of symbolic knowledge. You don’t remember the dog you remember it’s characteristics - you remember rules to improve memory

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52
Q

What is category (storage of memory)?

A

Rule used to organise concepts

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53
Q

What are schemas (storage of memory)?

A

Framework used to organise concepts. They are based on experience - we can recognise something as a dog even if we haven’t seen that breed before due to past information on dogs and their features

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54
Q

Where can social biases come from?

A

Schemas

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55
Q

What is retrieval?

A

actively accessing stored information from memory. Bringing stored memory back into your active memory

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56
Q

What are the two categories of retrieval?

A
  • Recognition: identifying previously learned information when it’s presented again.
  • Recall: Retrieving information without cues.
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57
Q

What is serial position effect?

A

Serial position effect is the fact that you recall items in the order in which the occurred.

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58
Q

What is the primacy effect?

A

people are more likely to remember the first few items compared to middle items due to the fact that they have been encoded.

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59
Q

What is the recency effect?

A

people are more likely to remember the last few items compared to the middle items since they are recent and fresh in the memory. Less likely to show the recency effect if the memory is asked to be retrieved after a while.

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60
Q

What is forgetting?

A

The memory is no longer available or cannot be retrieved

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61
Q

What is blocking?

A

Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon. When you know something, but you cannot think of the word. (Talking about movies and forgetting an actor’s name)

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62
Q

What is absentmindedness?

A

shallow encoding. When you are paying little attention. Often takes place if you’re trying to multitask.

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63
Q

What is amnesia?

A

inability to retrieve information from long-term memory. Often results from injuries.

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64
Q

What is decay?

A

forgetting due to a gradual loss of the substate of memory. In principle you can remember something forever but only if you keep using it.

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65
Q

What is interference?

A

Due to the fact that the new information and old information are similar they will compete within your memory. What you have already learnt will interfere with the new information or vice versa.

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66
Q

What are the two types of interference?

A

Proactive interference - old information interfering with new information
Retroactive interference - new information interfering with old information

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67
Q

What are the three things we learn?

A

Skills
Knowledge
Emotional response

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68
Q

What is learning?

A

Learning is the acquisition of knowledge, attitudes and values, emotional responses and motor skills as the result of experiences.

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69
Q

What are the three main subtypes of learning?

A

Observational
Non-associative
Associative

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70
Q

What is observational learning?

A

Learning by watching others and replicating them. Also known as social learning.

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71
Q

What are some ways we learn through observation?

A
  • Attention: the observer pays attention to the behaviour
  • Retention: the observer stores the behaviour in their memory
  • Reproduction/Initiation: the observer must acquire the skills needed to reproduce the behaviour.
  • Motivation: the observer finds a reason to reproduce the behaviour
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72
Q

What are the two types of non-associative learning?

A

Habituation
Sensitization

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73
Q

What is habituation?

A

You gradually stop responding to a signal that you experience over and over again.

Learning to NOT respond after repeated exposure to a stimulus.

Adaption to meaningless information

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74
Q

What is sensitization?

A

An increase in behavioral response after exposure to a stimulus
Threatening or painful –> sensitization
Imagine you to move to a new apartment near a busy street. At first, the sound of traffic might be really noticeable and distracting. But over time, as you hear it every day you start to tune it out.

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75
Q

What is associative learning?

A

Learning that occurs by forming associations between different stimuli

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76
Q

What are the two types of associative learning?

A

Classical conditioning
Operant conditioning

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77
Q

What is classical conditioning?

A

Learn to associate two stimuli that occur in a sequence.
Relatively passive and automatic

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78
Q

What is operant conditioning?

A

‘Organisms tend to repeat those responses that are followed by favourable consequences’

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79
Q

What is reinforcement?

A

Positive reinforcement: Presenting a stimulus increases the probability of
repeating a behaviour

Negative reinforcement: Removing a stimulus increases the probability of
repeating a behaviour

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80
Q

What is punishment?

A

Positive punishment: Presenting a stimulus decreases the probability of
repeating a behaviour

Negative punishment: Removing a stimulus decreases the probability of
repeating a behaviour.

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81
Q

What is the premark principle?

A

A more-valued activity –> a less valued activity
A non preferred task –> a preferred task
Do your homework then you can play outside

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82
Q

What are examples of primary and secondary reinforcers?

A

Primary - food/water
Secondary - playing , money etc

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83
Q

What is the law of exercise?

A

Learning through repetition

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84
Q

What are the three areas of psychology of language?

A

language production, language comprehension and language acquisition.

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85
Q

What is language production?

A

The production of spoken, written or signed language.

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86
Q

What is language comprehension?

A

Understanding what other people speak or write.

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87
Q

What is language acquisition?

A

Learn to understand, produce, and use language to communicate.

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88
Q

What is pragmatics?

A

the study of how context influences the interpretation of language. It involves understanding language in relation to its use in communication.

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89
Q

What is semantics?

A

the study of meaning in language. It focuses on how words, phrases and sentences convey meaning.

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90
Q

What is syntax?

A

the study of meaning in language. It focuses on how words, phrases and sentences convey meaning.

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91
Q

What is morphology?

A

the study of the structure of words. Morphemes: the smallest units of meaning in language. – whole words, e.g. CAT or parts of words e.g. the prefix ‘un’ in ‘unhappy’

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92
Q

What is phonology?

A

The study of the sound system of language. It involves the rules that govern how sounds are organised and used in language. Phonemes: The smallest units of sound that can distinguish meaning in language. E.g. the sounds p and b in pat and bat are different phonemes.

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93
Q

What is nurture?

A
  • Operant learning Skinner (1957, 1985)
  • Infants learn language from experience and environment
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94
Q

What is imitation, association,
and reinforcement?

A
  • Imitation: speaking the way others speak
  • Association: linking certain sounds to certain people, objects or feelings
  • Reinforcement: getting awarded for their successful attempts at language (e.g. smiles, hugs, etc)
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95
Q

What is the Language acquisition device (LAD; Chomsky, 1955)?

A
  • A built-in language device helps humans acquire language.
  • Infants with limited exposure learn language faster.
  • Babies go through the same developmental stages regardless of the language they speak.
  • E.g. word order/make questions.
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96
Q

Who came up with bilingualism classification and what is it based on?

A

Bialystok & Hakuta, 1994 - when L2 is learnt

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97
Q

What is simultaneous bilingual?

A

learning two languages at the same time.

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98
Q

What is early sequential bilingual?

A

leaning L1 first and learning L2 relatively early in childhood.

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99
Q

What is late bilingual ?

A

leaning L2 in adolescence onwards

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100
Q

What is productive/balanced bilingual?

A

speakers can produce and understand both languages.

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101
Q

What is dominant bilingual?

A

speakers are stronger in one language than the other.

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102
Q

What is receptive bilingual ?

A

speakers can understand both languages but have more limited production abilities.

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103
Q

What is the critical period for phonological learning?

A

Early age - 0-6

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104
Q

What are the three stages of language production?

A
  1. Conceptualization  to decide what to say.
  2. Formulation  to formulate the thought into a linguistic plan (meaning and form)
  3. Articulation  to execute the plan through the muscles.
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105
Q

What is language comprehension?

A
  • Recognising and interpreting sounds or symbols
  • Understanding the meanings of words
  • Decoding structure of sentences and understanding grammatical rules
  • Interpreting the meaning of words and sentences
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106
Q

What is pragmatic understanding?

A

if a person says it is getting late, while at a party they might be implying they want to leave.
- Social and culture context

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107
Q

What is the one factor theory of intelligence?

A

(Binet)
- The first intelligence scale
- Wanted to find which children needed extra support and which children were gifted.
- Intelligence is the ability to judge well, to comprehend well and to reason well.

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108
Q

What is the G factor and S factors theory/

A

(Spearman, 1961)
- General mental capacity is at the core of different mental abilities
- Specific factor  S-factors: allow a person to excel on particular task.
- Combination of ‘G’ and ‘S’ factors  individual’s specific intelligence level
- He found that just because someone was good at one area does not mean that they will be good in all areas (s factors)
- G factor is a foundation of your cognitive intelligence
- S factors reflect your specilised cognitive intelligence

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109
Q

What is the fluid & crystallized intelligence theory?

A
  • Cattell, 1963
  • Splits the G factor into two different kinds – fluid and ceystlisazed
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110
Q

What is the group factor theory?

A
  • Intelligence is a cluster of abilities.
  • Propose seven primary mental abilities each is a relatively independent element.
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111
Q

What is the multiple intelligence theory?

A

Gardner, 2011
Intelligence is not a single entity but a combination of different types of intelligence

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112
Q

What is the intelligence quotient (IQ)?

A
  • A standardised measure designed to assess human intelligence.
  • It quantifies cognitive abilities relative to the general population, providing a score that is intended to represent an individual’s intellectual potential.
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113
Q

What is the Binet-Simon scale?

A
  • First IQ test introduced in early 20th century.
  • Identify children needing special educational assistance.
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114
Q

What is the Stanford Binet intelligence scale?

A
  • Measures five factors of cognitive ability
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115
Q

What is the Wechsler adult intelligence scale?

A
  • Asses different aspects of intelligence in adults
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116
Q

What is the Wechsler Intelligence scale for children?

A
  • Designed for children.
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117
Q

What is the raven’s progressive matrices?

A
  • Non-verbal test focusing on abstract reasoning.
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118
Q

What is emotional intelligence (EQ)?

A
  • Emotion can guide problem solving and decision making.
  • Emotion can guide attention and shapes what we remember.
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119
Q

What is educational placement?

A
  • Identifying students who may need special education services or gifted programs.
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120
Q

What is psychological assessment?

A
  • Assisting in diagnosing intellectual disabilities or cognitive impairments
121
Q

What is employment screening?

A
  • Some organisations use IQ tests as part of their hiring process.
122
Q

What is research (application of IQ/EQ tests)?

A
  • Studying cognitive development, intelligence trends, and the impact of various factors on intelligence
123
Q

What are limitations of IQ?

A

Cultural bias
Stereotype threat
Not a complete measure of intelligence
Narrow scope

124
Q

How does genetics cause individual differences in intelligence?

A
  • Intelligence has a genetic component, meaning it can be passed down from parents to children.
125
Q

What are three environmental factors which cause individual difference in intelligence?

A

Early childhood
- The environment a child is exposed to in the early years is crucial.

Education
- Formal education is a key factor in developing intelligence.

Social Interaction
- Engaging with others, whether family, peers, or mentors, helps develop language, empathy, and social intelligence.

126
Q

What is consciousness?

A

Consciousness is the subjective awareness of our internal and
external environments. It shapes perception, informs decision-making, and
drives purposeful action.

127
Q

What is perceptual interpretation?

A

allows us to interpret and assign meaning to what we perceive, helping us navigate the world in alignment with our goals.

128
Q

What is temporal continuity?

A

consciousness connects our experiences across time, creating a stable sense of self and a coherent life narrative.

129
Q

What is mental simulation?

A

allows us to imagine possible scenarios to respond effectively without direct experience.

130
Q

What is ‘I think therefore I am’?

A
  • Descartes argued that our thoughts are the only certainty – everything else could be an illusion.
  • The existence of conscious thought itself is evidence that we have a soul
131
Q

What is mind body dualism?

A
  • The mind (spiritual realm) is separate from the body (physical realm)
  • Since we can be certain only of the mind, it must be fundamentally different from the body.
132
Q

What is human exceptionality?

A
  • Consciousness requires a soul, which he believed only humans possess.
  • Rational thought is necessary for a soul—if a being cannot think, it cannot possess a soul.
133
Q

What is ‘What is it like a bat’? by Nagel?

A
  • Understanding another’s conscious experience requires empathetic imagination.
  • Our empathetic imagination is limited by our own perspective, as it is heavily shaped by personal experience.
  • We may imagine certain aspects of being a bat (like hanging upside down), but we cannot fully understand others (such as echolocation)
  • Consciousness cannot exist without subjectivity.
134
Q

What is view from nowhere?

A
  • Objectively (i.e., science) lacks a subjectivity and thus cannot fully capture the essence of consciousness.
135
Q

What is the inverted spectrum problem?

A
  • It is possible to share colour vocabulary with inverted perceptual experience – there is no way to say our perceptual experience is identical across individuals.
136
Q

What is reductive materialism?

A
  • All phenomena in the unaversive can be reduced to their physical properties.
  • Consciousness is thought to be produced by physical processes in the brain
137
Q

What is meant by consciousness is an emergent property?

A
  • Consciousness arises from interactions of simpler subsystems – neurons work together to form networks.
  • E.g. a single bee is limited, but a together they form a complex, organised system (i.e. the hive)
138
Q

What is the evolution of consciousness?

A

Random movement: greater access to food
Perception at a distance (vision): greater food and predator detection competency
Strategic thinking: internally simulating events and goals
Active movement: moving towards food via the sense only when hungry (internal signaling)
Internal representations (memory): goal states maintained with distraction
Language: complex thinking and abstraction

139
Q

What is delayed ratification?

A

putting off a current award for a future award

140
Q

What is meant by consciousness is a controlled hallucination?

A
  • Consciousness constructs our experience to elicit optimal behavioural outcome – it is not a one-to-one mapping of physical reality.
141
Q

What is consciousness experience?

A
  • Active, not passive: prioritises what it deems important.
  • Dynamic: flexibility shifts to new perspectives
  • Subjective: shaped by individual qualities and experiences
  • Contextual : interprets perception based on contextual clues
  • Integrative: unifies sensory information into a coherent experience
142
Q

What is meant by consciousness is an epiphenonmenon?

A
  • An epiphenomenon is a phenomenon that accompanies another phenomenon but does not influence it.
  • Brain processes elicit behaviour, and consciousness is simply a byproduct of these processes – like how car exhaust is a byproduct of engine function.
  • If consciousness is merely a by-product, then conscious choices may not influence our actions.
143
Q

What is the definition of the unconscious mind?

A

The unconscious mind includes mental processes that occur without conscious awareness, influencing our perceptions, behaviours, and responses without intentionality or direct control.

144
Q

What are the two key functions of unconscious mind?

A
  • Automatic processing
  • Hidden Influences
145
Q

What is automatic processing?

A

Handles routine tasks and automatic functions, like regulating breathing, heart rate, and habitual behaviours.

146
Q

What is hidden influences?

A

Shapes our decisions, attitudes, and preferences without us realizing it. This includes biases (automatic tendencies that influence how we perceive others) and heuristics (mental shortcuts that help us make quick decisions).
- Unconscious processes are like an invisible hand guiding much of our conscious life.

147
Q

What is a blindsight?

A
  • Blindsight reflects the ability to appropriately interact in the visual environment without conscious awareness of it
148
Q

What is the example of Patient PS in terms of blindsight?

A
  • Patient PS was unaware of everything on the left side of her visual field (hemi spatial neglect)
  • She was shown two houses and asked, which she’d prefer to live in?
  • Without knowing why, PS always picked the non-burning house.
149
Q

What is locked in syndrome?

A
  • Consciousness awareness and other cognitive functions can remain intact with little to no behavioural output.
  • Caused by damage to the brainstem (usually the pons) – the brain is intact, but the corticospinal tract is severed.
  • It can be revealed via eye movements, and otherwise normal EEG, and fMRI activity – like wake-sleep cycles.
150
Q

What has been shown in terms of consciousness during a coma?

A
  • Assessed patients diagnosed as being in a vegetative state and put them in an fMRI scanner.
  • Had them answer ‘yes’ by thinking of paying tennis and ‘no’ by imagining navigating their home.
  • 4 out of 23 patients were able to accurately answer intimate details about themselves.
151
Q

How do you measure consciousness?

A
  • As you know, there are fundamental problems with measuring consciousness, but this doesn’t stop scientists from doing it.
  • The most common method for study consciousness in human is by simply asking them—the introspection method.
  • The study of consciousness in animals often evaluates related phenomenon—like sense of self and agency.
152
Q

What is the mirror mark test?

A

Place a mark on the animal such that the mark is only visible to the animal in the mirror

If the animal reacts to the mark, it indicates the animal has a sense of self – dolphins, primates, and elephants pass the test.

A limitation of this test is it doesn’t account for other sense of modalities and motivation.

153
Q

What is introspection?

A

Most common method for studying consciousness - by simply asking them

154
Q

What is a disadvantage to introspection?

A
  • A limitation of the introspection method is that our self-assessments are often wrong.
  • It is frequently reported that different colour smarties taste different.
  • All smarties taste the same except for orange.
155
Q

What is physiological empathy?

A
  • You feel more empathy for people of the same race as yourself.
156
Q

What is sleep?

A

Sleep is a naturally recurring state of altered consciousness characterised by…
- Reduced sensory activity.
- Total paralysis or suppression of voluntary muscle activity
- Distinct phases that serve various restorative and cognitive functions

157
Q

What are the three main reasons we sleep?

A

Physical restoration: tissue growth/repair, immune function, removal of waste
Survival advantage: energy conservation, predator avoidance and environment
Cognition function: memory, decision making and problem solving

158
Q

What causes electrical activity in the brain and how is it measured

A
  • Whenever neurons fire, they generate electrical activity.
  • Global electrical activity at different frequencies, measured using EEG, reflects the activation of different brain networks.
159
Q

What are the different wakeful states?

A
  • Focused states are characterised by beta-waves (13-30 Hz)
  • Relaxed states are characterised by alpha-waves (8-12 Hz)
160
Q

What are the 4 stages of sleep?

A
  1. Transition to sleep
  2. Light sleep
    3/4. Deep sleep
161
Q

What are the main attributes of sleep stage 1?

A

some muscle tone maintained (occasional hypnic jerks) and slow, rolling eye movements.

162
Q

What is the function of sleep stage 1?

A

Transitional stage between wakefulness and sleep

163
Q

How long does sleep stage 1 last?

A

Typically between 1 and 7 minuted

164
Q

What are the attributes to sleep stage 2?

A

further muscle tone loss, eye movements stop, and heart rate, breathing, and body temperature drop.

165
Q

What are the 2 main functions of sleep stage 2?

A

Sleep spindle: short bursts of rapid brain activity that reinforce motor skills you practice while awake
K-complex: large slow-wave bursts in response to external stimuli, helping you stay asleep

166
Q

How long does sleep stage 2 last?

A

Typically lasts 10-25 minutes

167
Q

What are the attributes of sleep stages 3 and 4?

A
  • Reduced muscle tone (but not absent).
  • Heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure drop to their lowest levels.
  • Delta waves (0.4-4 Hz).
168
Q

How long does sleep stages 3 and 4 last?

A

Typically lasts 20-40 minutes

169
Q

What are the primary functions of sleep stages 3 and 4?

A
  • Tissue Repair/Growth and Hormone Regulation.
  • Declarative Memory Consolidation: reinforces fact-based knowledge.
  • Immune Activation: defence against illness and cancer.
  • Brain Detoxification: clear waste like beta-amyloid and restore energy stores to
    astrocytes.
170
Q

What are the main attributes of REM sleep?

A
  • Rapid eye movements and loss of muscle tone (paralysis)
  • Brain activity resembles wakefulness (beta waves) combined imagery-associated theta waves.
  • Vivid dreams: this is when most dreams occur, detailed narrative and emotional content.
171
Q

How long does REM sleep typically last ?

A

10-60 minutes

172
Q

What is the primary function of REM sleep?

A

Mental stimulation

173
Q

What is circadian rhythm?

A

Circadian rhythm is an internal clock that regulates when we wake up and go to sleep

173
Q

What are some functions of REM sleep?

A
  • Problem solving: Forms new associations and aids in pattern recognition.
  • Emotional regulation: Helps process and dull the intensity of motional memories, particularly negative experiences.
  • Integration: Integrates memories, emotions, and contextual elements to develop adaptive responses
174
Q

What is the wake sleep cycle?

A
  1. CLK proteins stimulate the production of PER proteins.
  2. As PER proteins accumulate, they inhibit CLK proteins, promoting sleep.
  3. With reduced CLK proteins, PER production decreases, allowing CLK to accumulate again, promoting wakefulness.
    - Zeitgebers (external time cues) like light, hunger noise, and temperate influence the wake-sleep cycle by affecting the production of CLK and PER proteins.
175
Q

What does REM sleep deprivation cause?

A
  • Impaired problem solving causes difficulties with creativity, decision making and pattern finding
  • Reduced meaning integration leads to emotional dysregulation, trouble interpreting emotional significance, and increased risk-taking.
176
Q

What does deep sleep deprivation cause?

A
  • Severe health risks: Causes difficulties with creativity, decision making and pattern finding.
  • Memory impairment: leads to memory deficits and learning difficulties.
177
Q

What are sleep disorders?

A
  • Definition: sleep disorders are a group of conditions that disrupt normal sleep patterns, affecting the quality, timing, and duration of sleep
  • Sleep disorders typically arise from particular brain areas regulating wakefulness and sleep being overly active or underactive.
178
Q

What is non-REM parasomnia?

A

Disorders that occur during non-REM sleep, often involving abnormal movements or behaviours (e.g., confusional arousal, sleepwalking, and night terrors).

179
Q

What is REM parasomnia?

A

Disorders that occur during REM sleep, often muscle paralysis but awareness or extremely vivid dreams (e.g., sleep paralysis and nightmare disorder).

180
Q

What is dsysomnia?

A

Disorders affecting the quality, timing, or amount of sleep (e.g., narcolepsy, insomnia, and hypersomnia).

181
Q

What is sleepwalking?

A

: Characterised by walking and performing other complex behaviours in a state of partial arousal during deep sleep.

182
Q

What did SPECT scans during sleepwalking show?

A

 Increased activity in the cerebellum (motor coordination) and PCC (sensory processing) activity relative to sleeping.
 Reduced activity in frontal and parietal regions (responsible for conscious awareness, decision making, etc) compared to wakefulness.

183
Q

What are altered states of consciousness?

A

any condition of awareness that is significantly differ from a person’s normal waking consciousness

184
Q

What can altered states of consciousness be caused by?

A

Sleep, drugs, meditation and hypnosis

185
Q

What can altered states produced new perspectival knowledge enhance?

A

 Creative problem solving
 Emotional regulation and self-awareness
 Breaking unproductive patterns and gaining a sense of purpose

186
Q

What are drugs?

A

drugs are any substance that influences motor, sensory, or cognitive experience.
- They are primarily categorised as either hallucinogens, stimulants or depressants based on their physiological effect

187
Q

What is the enjoyability of drugs typically due to?

A

Neurotransmitters such as….
 Dopamine: feelings of reward and motivation
 Serotonin: feelings of happiness and well-being
 Endorphins: pain relief
 Oxytocin: feelings of love and bonding

188
Q

What are stimulants?

A

stimulants are substances that speed up brain processes – they produce heightened alertness, focus, confidence or energy

189
Q

What are notable stimulants?

A

caffeine, nicotine, amphetamine, and cocaine.

190
Q

What can stimulants lead to?

A

anxiety, seizures, and heart arrhythmia/tachycardia.

191
Q

What are depressants?

A

Depressants are substances that slow down brain and body
processes – they produce relaxation and dull sensory experience.

192
Q

What are notable depressants?

A

Xanax, Valium, and alcohol (2nd phase)

193
Q

What can depressants lead to?

A

coma, respiratory depression, and cardiac arrest.

194
Q

What are hallucinogens/psychedelics?

A

Hallucinogens are substances that produce changes in perception – seeing, hearing, or feeling things that aren’t there.

195
Q

What are notable hallucinogens?

A

LSD, psilocybin (magic mushrooms), Ayahuasca, mescaline (Peyote);

196
Q

What can hallucinogens cause?

A

Hallucinogen-persisting perception disorder: reexperience the drug sometime later

Bad trips: frightening and disturbing hallucinations.

197
Q

What is state dependent memory?

A
  • State-dependent memory reflects the phenomenon that remembering is better if the mental state is the same as at the time of encoding (e.g. drunk/sober)
198
Q

What was Yerkes-Dodson law?

A

the idea there is a ‘sweet spot’ of anxiety in producing optimal performance.
- For complex tasks (like academics) optimal performance occurs between low and high anxiety.
- Test performance follows this pattern – too little anxiety impairs motivation; too much anxiety hurts competency.

199
Q

What is thinking?

A

Thinking is the mental process of generating thoughts and
ideas through internal dialogue, visual imagery, and abstract symbol
manipulation.

200
Q

What are two types of thinking?

A
  • Visual Imagery: The ability to create mental images or picture-like representations in the mind.
  • Symbolic Thinking: Understanding and manipulating abstract symbols, such as numbers, language, or signs, which represent ideas without relying on sensory properties.
201
Q

What is aphantasia + pro + con?

A

Inability to voluntarily generate visual imagery.
- Pro: Less intrusive memories, potentially less prone to PTSD.
- Con: Reduced episodic memory and empathy.

202
Q

What is hypephantasia + pro + con?

A

Exceptionally vivid and lifelike mental imagery.
- Pro: Enhanced episodic memory and visual creativity.
- Con: Increases false memories and intrusive imagery.

203
Q

What is computational capacity?

A

Only the focus of attention is vividly represented, while peripheral details are minimized

204
Q

What is sensory region activation?

A

Less V1 activity than actual perception, leading to ‘fuzzy’ representations.

205
Q

What is symbolic thinking?

A
  • Symbolic representations are aspects of our thinking that do not rely on reconstructing sensory experiences
206
Q

Why is symbolic thinking important?

A

Enables abstract thinking
Facilitates communication
Supports chunking

207
Q

What is a metaphor?

A

a figure of speech in which abstract concepts are understood through comparison with concrete, sensory-based experiences.
 E.g., “grasping an idea,” “having a warm personality.”
 Metaphors can activate brain areas associated with sensory experiences.

208
Q

What is gesturing?

A
  • Gesturing is the use of bodily movements to convey the meaning of abstract concepts.
     E.g., difficulty explaining how to tie a shoe without using hand gestures.
     When participants’ hands were restrained, their explanations became less clear, and their speech was more disfluent.
209
Q

What are concepts networks?

A

Symbolic representations are conceptualized as nodes in neural networks, which are linked to various types of relevant information

210
Q

What are semantic links? (concept networks)

A

Associations with other conceptual ideas or meanings (e.g. trust linked to love)

211
Q

What are sensory links? (concept networks)

A

Connections based on sensory experiences (e.g. fur linked to dog)

212
Q

What does the strength of each link (concept networks) depend on?

A
  • The strength of each link depends on how typical or frequent the association is, and these links can change dynamically based on context
213
Q

What is spreading activation?

A
  • Spreading activation refers to the process where the activation of a node in a conceptual network automatically spreads to related nodes – like a ripple effect.
  • For example, when a concept like “doctor” is activated, it spreads activation to related nodes like “nurse,” “hospital,” and “stethoscope. “
214
Q

What is DRM paradigm?

A

False memories
Participants often mistakenly recall a related word (e.g., “sleep”) after hearing a list of semantically related words (e.g., “bed,” “rest,” “dream”).
This occurs because the related, non-presented word receives automatic activation, creating an illusion of familiarity.

215
Q

What is reasoning?

A

Reasoning is the cognitive process of using symbolic representation and logic to draw valid conclusions from information

216
Q

What are the key qualities of reasoning?

A
  • Deliberate and effortful: Involves logical analysis, critical thinking, and conscious evaluation of evidence.
  • Rule-based Processing: Relies on applying formal rules of logic and structured thinking.
217
Q

What is deductive reasoning?

A

Deductive reasoning is a logical process in which a conclusion is reached based on the alignment of multiple premises that are assumed to be true.

Example
 Premise 1: All mammals are warm-blooded.
 Premise 2: Whales are mammals.
 Conclusion: Therefore, whales are warm-blooded.

218
Q

What are important criteria in order for deductive reasoning to work?

A

Valid - the conclusion must logically follow from the premises
Sound - The argument is valid, and the premises are actually true

219
Q

What is chaos theory?

A

Even if we live in a deterministic universe, it doesn’t matter
since there are too many variables to reliably make predictions.

220
Q

What are limits of deductive reasoning?

A
  • Multivariate Problems: scenarios with multiple interacting variables.
     Interdependence: Variables influence each other, making it difficult to
    isolate the impact of any single factor.
     High dimensionality: As the number of variables increases, the number of
    interactions grow exponentially.
221
Q

What is inductive reasoning?

A

Inductive reasoning is a type of logical thinking that involves drawing general conclusions from specific observations – determining what is likely.

Example:
 Premise 1: Every swan I’ve seen is white.
 Conclusion: All swans are probably white.

222
Q

What are important criteria for inductive reasoning?

A

Strength: If the premises make the conclusion highly likely.
Cogent: The argument is strong, and the premises are actually true.

223
Q

What is abductive reasoning?

A

Abductive reasoning is a type of logical inference that seeks the best explanation from an observation.
Observation: The car won’t start, and the lights were left on overnight.
Possible Explanations: The battery is dead, there’s no fuel, the engine is broken, etc.
Conclusion: The most likely explanation is that the battery is dead.

224
Q

What is important criteria for abductive reasoning?

A

Plausibility: Capacity to generate plausible explanations (divergent thinking).
Best Explanation: Capacity to find the best possible conclusion (convergent thinking).

225
Q

What are limits of inductive and abductive reasoning?

A

our perception of how likely something is to occur often does not match its actual likelihood in the real world
- Instead, our judgements are influenced by the quality and accessibility of information in memory

226
Q

What is availability heuristic?

A

Our brains use the ease of recall as a proxy for the frequency of events
E.g. if you frequently read about plane crashes you might think flying is dangerous.

227
Q

What is vividness bias?

A

The tendency to give more influence to information that is vivid,
emotionally intense, or highly detailed.
 E.g., A graphic image of someone being attacked by a shark is likely to linger in memory more effectively, disproportionately influencing your perception of the
risk.

228
Q

What is decision making?

A

decision making is the process of selecting the best option from a set of alternatives to achieve a specific outcome

229
Q

What are the three key elements of decision making?

A
  1. Alternatives: Identifying multiple possible choices.
  2. Evaluation: Weighing the benefits and risks of each option.
  3. Selection: Choosing the most suitable option based on evaluation
230
Q

What are cognitive limitations?

A
  • Human working memory can only manage 4 ± 1 chunks at a time—equivalent to 40-50 KB.
  • Only 1-2% of neurons are actively firing at any given moment due to energy constraints.
231
Q

What is combinatorial explosion?

A
  • Anticipating all possible outcomes for even simple decisions quickly leads to an impossible number of possibilities.
  • Example: A 40-move chess game has ~10^120 possible positions—far more than the atoms in the known universe.
232
Q

What is bounded rationality?

A

is the idea that human decision-making is constrained by cognitive limitations, time, and the availability of information.

233
Q

What is satisficing?

A

Humans seek solutions that are “good enough” rather than optimal, aiming to make quick decisions that reduce cognitive effort.

234
Q

What is the intuitive system (dual processing theory - system 1)?

A
  • Fast and Automatic: Operates quickly, with little effort or conscious thought.
  • Unconscious: Relies on reflexes, emotional reactions, intuition, and habits.
  • Heuristic-Based: Makes use of mental shortcuts.
  • Examples: Judging mood, driving on autopilot, thin-slicing judgments
235
Q

What is the reasoning system (dual processing theory - system 2)?

A
  • Slow and Deliberate: Operates more slowly and requires conscious effort.
  • Conscious and Logical: Focuses on rational thinking, analysing, and evaluating.
  • Rule-Based: Processes information systematically, often solving problems step by-step.
  • Examples: Solving a math problem, writing an essay, planning a trip.
236
Q

What is intuition?

A

intuition is the ability to make decisions quickly based on unconscious pattern recognition informed by prior experiences – type of system 1 thinking (dual processing system

237
Q

What are the three stages of intuition?

A
  1. Schemas: Prior experiences form mental frameworks (e.g., brushing your teeth).
  2. Pattern Recognition: Similar situations activate schemas, guiding appropriate actions automatically.
  3. Physiological Sensation: Bodily cues (e.g., a gut feeling, increased heart rate) signal potential courses of action.
238
Q

Why does intuition matter?

A
  • Cognitive Efficiency: Offloads mental effort, freeing capacity for deliberate thinking (e.g., System 2).
239
Q

What are limitations of intuition?

A

: Intuition can fail when schemas are outdated, biased, or underdeveloped.

240
Q

What are heuristics?

A

Heuristics are specific mental shortcuts that work to simplify decision-making – a type of system 1 thinking

241
Q

What are representative heuristics?

A

The representative heuristic is where people judge the likelihood of an event or situation based on how similar it is to a prototypical example.

242
Q

What is base rate neglect?

A

Ignoring the statistical likelihood of categories.

243
Q

What is conjunction fallacy?

A

Believing that a specific condition is more probable than a general one.

244
Q

What is Gambler’s fallacy?

A

if an event occurs more frequently than normal in the past, we mistakenly believe it’s less likely in the future

245
Q

What is anchoring heuristic?

A

Anchoring heuristic is a mental shortcut that causes people to make decisions or estimates based on an initial value (i.e., the anchor), even if the value is arbitrary.

246
Q

What is familiarly heurisic?

A

The familiarity heuristic refers to the tendency to favour familiar options over unfamiliar ones. Evolved as a survival mechanism, since familiar environments, foods, or people were less likely to pose threats

247
Q

What is the mere exposure effect?

A

Repeated exposure to stimulus (e.g., objects, faces, or ideas) makes it more likeable over time

248
Q

What affect does the familiarly heuristic have on dating behaviour?

A

people may unconsciously prefer partners who remind them of previous romantic interests or family members due to a sense of familiarity

249
Q

What is fluency heurisic?

A

people favour things that are easily processed
 Example simple brand names and minimalist design logos (e.g. apple, Nike)

250
Q

What is authority heuristic?

A

: people trust things endorsed by credible figures
 Example: celebrity endorsements or ‘9 out of 10 recommended’

251
Q

What is social proof heuristic?

A

people are influenced by what others are doing
 Example: testimonials and user-generated content (e.g. google reviews)

252
Q

What is scarcity heurstic?

A

people place higher value on products perceived to be rare or limited
 ‘Limited time offer’ or ‘only a few left in stock’

253
Q

What is affect heurisic?

A

the affect heuristic refers to the tendency to make decisions based on emotional reactions
- If something makes you feel good, you are more likely to think favourably about it and vice versa.

254
Q

What is the good doctor effect?

A

A doctor’s likability influences their perceived competence and expertise, regardless of health outcomes.

255
Q

What is the halo and horns effect?

A

Positive or negative traits of a person influence how we perceive them in unrelated areas.

256
Q

What is misattribution of arousal?

A

Arousal from one source (e.g., fear) can influence feelings and behaviours related to another source (e.g., attraction).

257
Q

What are affective heuristics?

A

Participants related on emotional shortcuts to interpret how they felt, even when those feelings were misattributed.

258
Q

What are humans key priorities when making decisions?

A
  • Avoiding harm: humans prioritise avoiding losses over receiving gains
  • Preserving ego: decisions aim to maintain pride, avoid embarrassment, or gain validation
259
Q

What is reference dependence?

A

People evaluate outcomes relative to a reference point, such as their past experiences or comparisons to others.

260
Q

What is loss aversion?

A

Losses feel twice as bad as equivalent gains feel good.

261
Q

What are framing effects?

A

Decisions are influenced by how information is presented, even when the facts are the same.

262
Q

What is confirmation bias?

A

Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek, interpret, and remember information in a way that supports your existing beliefs, while ignoring or discounting evidence that contradicts.

263
Q

What is selective information gathering?

A

People focus on information that reinforces their views
 e.g., reading news articles that align with your beliefs.

264
Q

What is biased interpretation?

A

Neutral information is interpreted to support existing beliefs
 e.g., interpreting vague horoscopes predictions as uniquely relevant.

265
Q

What is memory bias?

A

People have a better memory for information that aligns with their beliefs
 e.g., in psychic readings, people remember the hits and forget the misses

266
Q

Why does confirmation bias exist?

A
  • Ego-preserving: Protects self-esteem by avoiding the discomfort of being wrong—keeps you confident.
  • Intellectual Stability: Provides a sense of consistency—avoids paralysis by analysis.
267
Q

What is cognitive dissonance?

A

Is an ego-preserving bias
the tendency to adjust beliefs to resolve the discomfort of holding contradictory thoughts
 E.g. ‘Smoking isn’t that unhealthy; I do other healthy things, so its ok’

268
Q

What is a self-serving bias?

A

Is an ego protecting bias. People attribute their success to internal factors and failures to external factors
 E.g. ‘I got and A because I’m smart; I got a D because the test was unfair

269
Q

What is self-handicapping?

A

Is an ego protecting bias. using excuses or obstacles to explain potential shortcomings
 E.g. ‘I didn’t study for the test, so failing doesn’t mean I’m bad at the subject’

270
Q

What is illusion of superiority?

A

Is an ego preserving bias. Believing you are better than average in various domains
 E.g. believing you’re an above average driver, even if you’ve been in accidents

271
Q

What is a problem?

A

A problem occurs when there is an obstacle between the initial state and the goal state

272
Q

What are problems characterised by?

A

 Initial state: where you are now
 Goal state: where you want to be
 Subgoals: intermediate steps
 Operators: The actions that get you there

273
Q

What is problem solving?

A
  • Problem solving is finding a way to reach the goal state.
274
Q

What are two types of problems?

A

Well defined: Clear initial state, goal state, and operators.
 Ill defined: Unclear initial state, goal state, and/or operators

275
Q

What are types of problem solving?

A

Reproductive thinking: Following a known pattern.
Productive thinking: Insight and creativity.

276
Q

What is trial and error?

A
  • Definition: A random choice is made of the relevant task dimensions, and if it produces a positive outcome, we stick with it.
277
Q

What is the law of effect?

A

If a behaviour leads to a satisfying state, it becomes a pattern that is likely to be repeated in similar scenarios.

278
Q

What is pattern detection?

A
  • Pattern detection is extremely important as it enables learning, supports social interaction, and drives the development of language
279
Q

What are artificial grammars?

A
  • Participants memorized letter strings, some with hidden patterns.
  • They remembered strings with patterns better because they unconsciously detected the grammar and used it to perform the task
280
Q

What is the cerebellum for?

A
  • The cerebellum is vital for pattern detection and unconscious learning.
  • During human evolution, the cerebellum expanded more than any other brain region and contains 80% of the brain’s neurons
281
Q

What is apophenia?

A
  • Apophenia is the tendency to perceive meaningful patterns or connections in random or unrelated data.
  • This occurs because our brain is wired to recognize patterns as a survival and problem-solving mechanism.
282
Q

What is pareiodlia?

A
  • Pareidolia is a specific type of apophenia, where individuals see familiar patterns, such as faces, in abstract or random objects.
  • This happens because our brains are specifically wired to detect faces, a skill essential for social interaction and survival
283
Q

What is insight?

A
  • Insight is the emergence of a clear understanding of a problem; it is typically preceded by a period of incubation.
  • Insight depends on a reframing of the problem to determine what is relevant.
  • Insight can evoke an ‘a-ha!’ experience; an emotional reaction that occurs at a moment of a sudden solution
284
Q

What is framing?

A
  • The process of defining the basis of a problem in a way that serves to influence how the problem is evaluated.
  • Context often informs the frames that we should be using.
  • Finding the correct frame can make the solutions immediately clear
  • Different frames make us view things differently
285
Q

What is mental set entrenchement?

A

Mental set entrenchment occurs when our mental frames limit our ability to find a solution to a problem.
- While prior learning and context can help us solve problems, they can also hinder us when the problem deviates from familiar patterns. For example, the nine-dot problem is often framed as “connect the dots,” which can restrict our thinking.
- Overcoming mental set entrenchment is done through restructuring—the process of viewing a problem from a new perspective, allowing for creative solutions.

286
Q

What is functional fixedness?

A

functional fixedness occurs when one fails to see any object in any other way than how it is typically used

287
Q

What is creativity?

A

Creativity is the ability to generate novel ideas, solutions, and products by combining existing knowledge, experience, and resources.

288
Q

What is divergent thinking?

A

The ability to generate many ideas.

289
Q

What is convergent thinking?

A

The ability to evaluate and refine ideas to determine the most relevant or practical ones.

290
Q

What is associative distance?

A

The ability to connect two ideas that are far apart in conceptual space.

291
Q

What is schizotypy?

A

A personality trait characterized by subclinical traits associated with schizophrenia.

292
Q

What is hyper-associative thinking?

A

The capacity to make a high number of connections between ideas, reflecting an extreme capacity for divergent thinking.

293
Q

What does the executive control network do?

A

Evaluates and refines ideas (i.e., convergent thinking).

294
Q

What does the default mode network do?

A

Generates ideas through unconstrained thought (i.e., divergent thinking)

295
Q

What does the salience network do?

A

Coordinates and shifts activity between these networks.

296
Q

What does the left hemisphere do (processing associations)?

A

 Processes close semantic associations (e.g., Swiss-cake-cottage) (cheese is the linking word)
 Supports language and logical structure

297
Q

What does the right hemisphere do (processing associations)?

A

 Processes remote semantic associations (e.g., wise-work-tower) (clock is the linking word)
 Supports insight, creativity, and humour
- Remote associations require novelty; as associations become more familiar or conventical, they shift to left hemisphere processing

Psychology (3 decks)

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