PAPER 2 - Approaches - Cognitive

Question 1

What is the cognitive approach?

Answer 1

The term ‘cognitive’ means ‘mental processes’, so this approach focuses on how our mental processes (e.g. thoughts, perceptions, attention) affect behaviour.

Question 2

What are internal mental processes?

Answer 2

‘Private’ operations of the mind such as perception and attention that mediate between stimulus and response.

Question 3

How do cognitive psychologists study internal mental processes?

Answer 3

They study them indirectly by making inferences about what is going on mentally on the basis of their behaviour.

Question 4

What is a schema?

Answer 4

A mental framework of beliefs and expectations that influence cognitive processing. They are developed from experience.