The Cognitive Approach Flashcards
What are the 4 parts of the cognitive approach?
- The study of internal mental processes
- Theoretical and computer models to explain mental processes
- The role of schema
- The emergence of cognitive neuroscience
What is an inference and what part of the cognitive approach does it come under?
- Going beyond the immediate evidence to make assumptions about mental processes that cannot be directly observed
- The study of internal mental processes
What is the information processing approach and what part of the cognitive approach does it come under?
- Input - Process- Output
- Theoretical and computer models to explain mental processes
What does schema mean and what part of the cognitive approach does it come under?
- A mental cognitive structure which contains knowledge about an object, person, activity or roles based on experience
- These beliefs and expectations help us make sense of the world
- The role of schema
What are the 3 methods of cognitive neuroscience and what part of the cognitive approach do they come under?
- Post-mortems
- fMRI
- EEG
- The emergence of cognitive neuroscience
What are post-mortem examinations and what was the cognitive process that was identified using this method?
(The emergence of cognitive neuroscience)
- Examining the physical brain of someone who, when they were alive, displayed a particular behaviour which indicated abnormal behaviour in the brain
- Broca’s area was identified
What are fMRI’s?
(The emergence of cognitive neuroscience)
- Scanning the brain to measure blood flow
- Allows sections of the brain that are particularly active during different tasks to be identified
What are EEG’s and what was the cognitive process that was identified using this method?
(The emergence of cognitive neuroscience)
- Metal discs are placed on the brain which measure electrical activity
- Epilepsy was identified
If the point is:
A strength of the cognitive approach is that there’s evidence to support the role of cognitive factors in behaviour.
What is the evidence and link?
Evidence- For example, The Temple Wisconsin study of depression. A sample of university students, none of who suffered with depression, were assessed every few months for several years. The results for the first 2 years suggested that those who were prone to negative thinking were more likely to become depressed. 17% of those with high scores on negative thinking went on to experience a period of severe depression compared to 1% of those with low scores.
Link- This means that the approach has evidence to validate its claims and assumptions, unlike other approaches, such as the psychodynamic approach.
If the point is:
A weakness of the cognitive approach is that internal cognitive processes cannot be directly observed, only inferred from behaviour.
What is the evidence and link?
Evidence- For example, when investigating the working memory model as an explanation of short term memory, Bunge et al found that there was significantly more activity in the brain when 2 tasks were being performed than when 1 task was being performed.
Link- Whilst the existence of a central executive requiring more brain activity may be inferred from this, it has not actually been directly measured and so these conclusions may not be valid.
If the point is:
A strength of the cognitive approach is that it has led to significant practical applications that have helped society.
What is the evidence, explanation and link?
Evidence- It has helped with eye witness testimony by suggesting factors that damage eye witness testimony, such as leading questions, as well as more effective ways to question witnesses, such as mentally reinstating context.
Explanation- This is now accepted by the police and courtrooms and can be seen to improve our criminal justice system
Link- This means that the cognitive approach has proved to be valuable to society and helps society function.
If the point is:
A weakness of the cognitive approach is that it suffers from cognitive reductionism.
What is the explanation, evidence and link?
Explanation- As the approach focuses exclusively on thought processes, it neglects proven factors that influence behaviour such as unconscious processing and emotional factors.
Evidence- For instance, although cognitions may often dictate feelings and behaviours, sometimes feelings can dictate our thinking patterns as well.
Link- This means that although the approach provides valuable insights, it offers an incomplete explanation of behaviour
What are the evaluations of the cognitive approach?
+ There’s evidence to support the role of cognitive factors in behaviour
– Internal cognitive processes cannot be directly observed, only inferred from behaviour
+ It has led to significant practical applications that have helped society
– It suffers from cognitive reductionism
