EXAM 3 Flashcards
Approaches to studying the mind– plato
memory works like a wax tablet
Recording information by engraving into soft wax
Information is engraved into physical tissue into the brain
Approaches to studying the mind– Aristotle
earning theory based on association
Both based their ideas on intuition, personal insight, logic and reasoning
Major concerns
Can lead to inaccurate conclusions
We can be biased by our intuitions and personal insights
Benefits of scientific approach
Based on observation rather than beliefs/intuitions
Involves care, systematic observation and comparison
Evaluate the reliability of findings
Evaluate the generalizability of findings
To what extent to our findings generalize to situations and samples beyond the data right in front of us
Seek to challenge ideas and disprove theories
Observational methods
Self reports
Case study– in depth examination of one or a few individuals
Naturalistic observation– provides insight on how everyday look
Experiments– dominant method in cog psych
Experiments are preferred because they allow for causal inferences– can infer whether a factors or interest causes an observed outcome
Key characteristics of an experiment
Manipulation of a factor of interest
Researcher changes/varies something
Random assignment of participants to conditions
(if comparing different groups)
Control of extraneous factors that are not of interest
Quasi experiments
When it is not possible, practical, or ethical to have random assignment of participants to comparison conditions
Ex– sex, ethnicity, age, drugs, trauma
When you can’t assign people to groups
Limitations– need to be more cautious in making causal inferences
Non-experimental methods
Sometimes have to be used out of necessity
Can be good for generating hypotheses
Can be used to see if experimental results generalize
Experimental moths
Good for testing hypothesis
Can infer provable causation
Converging evidence
Seeing if different methods are pointing to the same conclusion
Cycle of science form hypothesis
Running study again and again to see if you keep getting the same results
Continue asking followup questions, forming new hypotheses
Change blindness
inability to notice changes in our environment when we’re not actively focusing on them
(like in a show when you don’t notice the director made a mistake)
It’s like our attention acts like a spotlight, making us unaware of alterations in what we’re not focusing on.
Role of attention in perception
to notice and understand something around us, it’s not just about our senses picking it up. Our mind needs to be paying attention and open to receiving that information. Without paying attention, even if our senses detect something, we might not actually perceive or become aware of it
Attention
directing of our mental resources of the mind
Why we focus on some things and not others
Dichotic listening task
participants where stereo headphones (signal coming in one ear can be different of signal coming in other ear) and get one message in one ear that is the– intended message and another message in the other ear– unintended message they are supposed to tune out
Dichotic listening task conclusion
when people focus on one thing (like a voice in one ear), they only catch basic details (like whether it’s speech or noise) from the other ear. They don’t really process its meaning or details—it’s like it’s blocked from meaninful processing.
All or none processing theory
Info is either being focused on and undergoes full processing of meaning or if it is being ignored it undergoes no processing for meaning
Theory came from Cherry’s dichotic listening task
Focusing of Attention
Researchers seek to understand what happens when we try to focus on one task or one stream of info
Divided Attention
Researchers seek to understand what happens when we try to do multiple tasks or take in multiple streams at once
Multi-Tasking
Issue of whether and to what degree performance in one or more of the tasks is completed
Performance Tradeoffs
When tasks compete or interfere with one another
Dividing attention is easier when
Some tasks have different or distinct resource requirements
if one task needs visual focus and another needs verbal thinking, it’s simpler to do both at the same time because they aren’t competing for the exact same mental abilities
When tasks have overlapping resource requirements
They compete for resources
Allport et al. (1972)
when the tasks required distinct mental abilities (like listening and memorizing visual information), participants made fewer errors. Having tasks that demanded different types of mental resources reduced interference between them, making it easier for individuals to perform both tasks simultaneously without getting confused or making mistakes.
Pashler (1989)
Performance tradeoffs of pressing buttons for different tones and vocally naming digits shown on a screen
Participants tended to respond faster when pressing buttons for tones compared to vocally naming digits on a screen. However, when it came to accuracy, vocal naming of digits tended to yield more precise responses compared to button pressing for tones.
