introduction to cognitive psychology

Question 1

what is cognitive psychology?

Answer 1

the study of how the mind encodes, represents, and processes information, focusing on mental processes like attention, memory, language and problem-solving

Question 2

what are the core concepts of cognitive psychology?

Answer 2

human behaviour is driven by latent mental processes like the mind

sensation, perception, attention, learning, memory, language, motivation, emotion and sub-processes

Question 3

how do cognitive psychologists study cognition

Answer 3

through behavioural experiments, observation, and developing models to explain and predict behaviour

Question 4

what is meant by ‘mental representation’ in cognitive psychology

Answer 4

stored representations of experiences that can be accessed without direct sensory input, including memories, simulations, and imagine scenarios

Question 5

what is the difference between perceptual and cognitive representations

Answer 5

perceptual representations are based on real-time sensory input, while cognitive representation are stored knowledge that can be accessed even without sensory input

Question 6

what was Sir Frederick Bartlett’s contribution to the study of memory?

Answer 6

He introduced the concept of “repeated reproduction” to study how memories change over time, using the story “The War of the Ghosts.”

Question 7

What did Bartlett discover about memory through his experiments?

Answer 7

Memory tends to simplify, rationalise, and omit details over time, leaving behind a general gist of the original information.

Question 8

what is the “Method of Loci” and how does it relate to cognitive psychology?

Answer 8

a memory technique that uses visualisations of familiar places to encode and recall information, illustrating how spatial and visual representations aid memory

Question 9

how do mental representations form a hierarchy?

Answer 9

1. basic sensory-motor representations (perceptual and procedural)
2. non-verbal episodic and semantic representations (including basic non-narrative event memory and mental imagery)
3. verbal level (verbal narrative which entails advanced episodic memory and conceptual labels like words)

Question 10

what is the importance of models in cognitive psychology?

Answer 10

models help explain and predict behaviour by providing a structure way to understand how the mind processes information

Question 11

what is selective attention in cognitive psychology?

Answer 11

The process by which the brain filters and focuses on specific stimuli while ignoring others, allowing us to manage information overload.

Question 12

How did Bartlett’s experiment with “The War of the Ghosts” demonstrate changes in memory over time?

Answer 12

Participants’ retellings of the story became shorter, more coherent, and adapted to their cultural understanding, demonstrating how memories are reconstructed rather than simply recalled.

Question 13

explain the ‘semantic network model’ by Collins and Quillian (1969)

Answer 13

a model that represents knowledge in the form of a network, where concepts are nodes linked by associative pathways, illustrating how related concepts are stored and retrieved

Question 14

what is the significance of ‘mental models’ in cognitive psychology

Answer 14

mental models are internal representations of external reality, helping individuals understand, predict, and manipulate their environment by simulating scenarious

Question 15

how does the ‘Method of Loci’ work and why is it effective?

Answer 15

by associating items to be remembered with specific locations in a familiar environment, it leverages spatial memory to enhance recall, demonstrating the link between visual and cognitive representations

Question 16

how is the Method of Loci related to oral traditions?

Answer 16

Indigenous oral traditions, which often used techniques like the Method of Loci, preserve knowledge through structured, repetitive, and ritualised forms to protect against degradation over generations.

Question 17

what is the difference between implicit and explicit mental representations?

Answer 17

Implicit representations are unconscious and automatic, guiding behaviour without awareness, while explicit representations are conscious and can be verbalised or deliberately retrieved.

Question 18

what is the difference between imagistic and linguistic mental representations?

Answer 18

imagistic representations are visual or sensory in nature while linguistic representations are verbal and symbolic

Question 19

what is the difference between spatial and syntactic mental representations?

Answer 19

spatial representations focus on the physical or visual arrangement of elements in space while syntactic representations involve rule-based organisation

Question 20

how does the behaviourist perspective of cognition differ from the cognitive perspective

Answer 20

the behaviourist perspective focuses only on observable behaviours and external stimuli, rejecting thoughts and mental processes, while the cognitive perspective focuses on internal mental processes, such as how information is encoded, stored and processed

Question 21

what led to the decline of behaviourism and the rise of cognitive psychology

Answer 21

The inability of behaviourism to explain phenomena like language acquisition, problem-solving, and other internal processes spurred interest in studying the mind’s internal workings, leading to the cognitive revolution.

Question 22

what does covert attention refer to

Answer 22

looking out the side of the eye

Question 23

what is overt attention

Answer 23

moving the eyes to look at something