the cognitive area Flashcards
according to the cognitive area, what is behaviour due to?
inner mental processes which are abstract
what behaviours interest cognitive psychologists?
memory, perception, attention, problem solving and language
what does cognitive psychology compare the mind to?
a computer:
INPUT through our senses
PROCESSING using our knowledge and previous experience
RESPONSE (action or chosen inaction
define memory
the ability to retain info and demonstrate retention through behaviour. It saves us time when processing information and helps us make sense of the situations we are in
what can memory be influenced by?
information received at the time of event, after the event, and our schemas + expectations
what are schemas?
simplified, generalised packets of information about an object or event based on previous information and experiences
what are the patterns of distortion and reconstructive memory?
ASSIMILATION - in Bartlett’s study, the story was changed to fit with participants expectations (seal hunting became fishing)
LEVELLING - story became shorter with each retelling as participants omitted info that they did not see as important
SHARPENING - pts changed the order of the story to make sense of it and added extra detail + emotions
what is reconstructive memory?
the process where our memories change based on the info in our schemas
strengths of the cognitive area?
- improves our understanding of human behaviour. this approach explains the extent to which our behaviour is affected by the way the brain processes sensory information
- real world applications (Loftus and Palmer w police training, Grant with revision)
- scientific methodology (tends to use lab experiments, high level of control means can establish cause and effect, increases validity
weaknesses of cognitive area?
- low ecological validity
- reductionist as it ignores influence of emotion and biology (LoftusPalmer, may have been other effects eg adrenaline)
- validity (interested in inner mental processes which lead to behaviour, so relies on inferences which are hard to prove with evidence)
what is eyewitness testimony?
the use of eyewitnesses to give evidence in court
issues with eyewitness testimony?
- DEVLIN COMMITTEE said 74% defendants found guilty despite there being no other evidence other than eyewitness testimony against them
- THE INNOCENCE PROJECT used dna evidence to exonerate 208 people wrongfully convicted due to eyewitness testimony being major evidence in most cases
what are leading questions?
questions which, by their form or content, suggest the answer that is desired
aims of Loftus and Palmer?
- to investigate the effects of leading questions on the accuracy of eyewitness testimony
- to investigate if using different verbs to describe a collision would affect estimates of the speed the cars were travelling when the crash took place
sample characteristics of Loftus n Palmer 1?
- 45 students from University of Washington (volunteers)
- pts split evenly across conditions, taking part in only one (independent measures)
procedure of Loftus and Palmer 1?
- pts watched 7 clips of traffic accidents, which were segments from films by the Evergreen Safety Council and Seattle Police. Segments were between 5-30 secs, and 4/7 were staged crashes
- after watching clip, pts given a questionnaire which first asked the to ‘give an account of the accident you have just seen
- pts then asked specific qs, including critical q: ‘how fast were the cars going when they _____ eachother?’
- verbs used changed depending on condition. 5 verbs: smashed collided bumped hit and contacted
- pts gave speed estimate in mph
results of LoftusPalmer 1?
mean estimate speeds:
smashed 40.8
collided 39.3
bumped 38.1
hit 34
contacted 31.8
differences in speed estimates statistically significant
explain findings of LoftusPalmer experiment 1?
RESPONSE BIAS: pts consciously changes their response based on the verb used to give the answer they think researcher wants
DISTORTION: verb in q caused a change in pts memory of the event
sample characteristics of LoftusPalmer 2?
- 150 students from University of Washington (volunteers)
- pts split evenly across conditions, only taking part in one (independent measures)
procedure of LoftusPalmer 2?
- pts watched a 1 min film clip which included a 4 sec scene of a car accident. They were asked ‘about how fast were the cars going when they ***** into each other?’
- three conditions: no critical q, q was how fast when they smashed, q was how fast when they hit
- pts then left for one week
- pts returned and then were asked the closed q of ‘did you see any broken glass, yes or no?’ (no broken glass in vid)
results of LoftusPalmer 2?
response to broken glass q:
- smashed: 16 yes, 34 no
- hit: 7 yes, 43 no
- control: 6 yes, 44 no
pts in the smashed condition were significantly more likely to say they had seen broken glass
the difference between hit and control condition was not significant
conclusions of LoftusPalmer 2?
- post event info such as that which comes from a leading question can lead to distortions in memory
- info from the original event and post event info integrate and we reconstruct a memory using both
- we cannot tell which source different parts of the memory come from and therefore cannot tell if our memory is accurate
strengths of LoftusPalmer?
- quantitative data easy to analyse (speed estimates in mph)
- useful (training police to not use leading qs)
- lab experiment = high levels of control (same vids, length of vid etc), easy to replicate to test reliability
weaknesses of LoftusPalmer?
- ethics = pts watches vids of car crashes, 3 real, issues with protection
- lab experiment = low ecological validity
- reductionist as ignores influences of biology on cognition
what are the stages of memory?
- ENCODING = changing what we experience into something that makes sense to us
- STORAGE = keeping the information for later use
- RETRIEVAL = retrieving the information from storage
what might influence retrieval?
it has been suggested that characteristics of the environment are encoded as part of memory and so can act as cues to enhance retrieval
this is referred to as the context-dependent memory effect
what did Godden and Baddeley do?
- studied effects of context on memory using deep sea divers
- divers had to learn list of words either underwater or on land, then recalled in matched or mismatched conditions
difference between recall and recognition?
recall is actively remembering and giving the answer
recognition is being able to choose what is familiar when given options
aim of Grant?
- to investigate context dependent memory effects on both recall and recognition
sample of Grant? and how was it obtained?
8 researchers each recruited 5 pts to give total sample of 40
pts asked to take part by researchers and each p took part in 1 of 4 conditions
of the 39 final pts, 17 were female and 22 were male (outlier removed)
age range of 17-56 and mean age of 23.4
how were pts assigned to conditions in Grant?
each experimenter randomly allocated one of their five pts to each condition
lead researcher then allocated the remaining p a condition so that all conditions had equal numbers of pts
what material to learn was given to pts in grant?
pts given 2 page article about psychoimmunology, chosen bc researchers thought it was interesting and understandable
could only read the article once but could highlight and underline. no limit on time.
what noise was played through headphones in grant?
background noise- a recording of a university cafeteria at lunchtime
silent condition = no noise through headphones
what were the memory tests like in Grant?
the recognition test consisted of 16 MCQs with 4 options to choose from. these used the same or similar phrasing to article
the recall test consisted of 10 SAQs. Answers to these could be single words or short phrases
procedure of grant?
- pts were read standardised instructions, describing the study as a class project. Was emphasised that participation was voluntary
- all pts put headphones on (both silent and noisy conditions)
- pts read article about psychoimmunology. once finished they had a 2 min break not wearing headphones
- pts then put earphones back on and were given similar instructions to those at the start.
- SAQs completed first so that the options in the MCQ would not affect memory
- MCQs then completed, pts debriefed
findings of Grant?
mean number of correct answers /16 on MCQs:
- noisy/noisy 14.3
- silent/noisy 12.7
- silent/silent 14.3
- noisy/silent 12.7
no effect of noise on performance
no significant diff in time spent so researchers didnt think this had effect on performance
in both matching conditions results showed a context dependency effect
this was true of both recall and recognition tasks
conclusions of Grant?
the Context Dependent Memory Effect applies for newly learned material in recall and recognition tasks
learning and remembering in the same environment leads to enhanced performance on memory tasks
strengths of Grant?
- independent measures design prevents order effects and demand characteristics
- quantitative data = score on MCQ = easy to analyse and compare
- lab experiment - high control = replicable = can test reliability
weaknesses of Grant?
- opportunity sample = potential bias
- lab experiment = lower ecological validity
similarities of LoftusPalmer and Grant?
- Lab Experiment
- Independent Measures Design
- Quantitative Data
differences of LoftusPalmer and Grant?
- sample (LP all students, G had age range of 17-56 so more representative)
- validity (LP had concurrent validity as there were 2 experiments both of which gave similar results, G did not have concurrent validity as only one experiment)
- sampling method (LP volunteer, G opportunity)
how does grant change our understanding of individual diversity?
shows how memory is affected by external environmental factors
how does grant (not) change our understanding of social diversity?
revision strategies
students / friends and family of students used in the study - socioeconomic bias?
how does grant (not) change our understanding of cultural diversity?
America = not applicable to other cultures
