CA - Cognitive Processing

Thinking & Decison Making

thinking= cognitive process of using information to make decisions, interpretations, plans ect.

The Dual Process Model

The Dual Processing Model argues that there are two ways in which we make decisions.  First, there is what Stanovich & West (2001) call System 1 thinking; this system is reliant on past information and schema with the goal of making a quick and effortless decision based on limited information.  System 2 thinking, however, is much more effortful and requires more conscious reasoning.

System 1 (Intuitive)

System 1 is automatic and ‘intuitive’ thinking that doesn’t require excessive processing. It often employs heuristics. This ‘fast’ mode of thinking allows us to make sense of the very complex world around us and go about our day-to-day lives. But it’s prone to errors when our assumptions do not match the reality of our lives. System 1 thinking actually enforces a greater certitude which may result in errors having greater consequences. 

fast, inaccurate, requires little focus, uses Heuristics, responds to availabe information given from surroundings

System 2 (Rational)

It’s thought to require more effort. It starts by intaking all the possible ways one could interpret the situation and gradually eliminating possibility based on sensory information until we arrive at a solution. Rational thinking allows us to analyze the world around us through active and conscious thinking. Through this we have to think about what is happening, why it’s happening, what might happen next, and how we could influence the solution.

slow, more accurate, requires thinking and concentration

Heuristics

Lewis (2008) describes them as mental shortcuts based on focusing on one aspect of a complex problem and using that to solve it. It’s also parcially based off of past events

Cognitive Misers

We want to use as little energy as possible to think. Thsu we often use system 1 also because it’s faster and requires less energy.

Ego Depletion

When we stry to do something too difficult or for too long. → We then decide to use System 1 thinking becuase it’s fast.

Cognitive load

If there is a too much much going on in our mind and can’t allocate energy into solving a problem (=Cognitive load is too high). We then use system 1 to make faster desisions.

Law of least effort

If there are mutiple ways of achieving the same goal, we’re going to choose the option which takes the least effort. It’s basiclaly a combination of Cognitive Misers, Ego depletion, and Cognitive load.

Study

Englisch & Mussweiler (2001)

Englisch & Mussweiler (2001) A,P,R,F

Aim: To investigate if anchoring bias (where sentencing requests by prosecutors serve as anchors) could play a significant role in the determination of the length of a sentence in a courtroom.

Procedure:

Fake case of rape was created withn the aid of experienced trial judges. 24 senior law students made up a control group which looked over the materials and determined a sentences. The mean sentence the gave the case was 17.21 months (SD 10.09 months).

19 young trial judges (15 men, 4 women) mean age 29.37 and mean experience 9.34 months. Then they gathered their experimental perticpants and presented all of them with the case and penal codes. They were given 15 minutes to read over and form opinions on the case. The participants had been randomly put into one of two conditions. After looking over the case, the particpants were igven a questionnaire and were told that the prosecuter of the case either suggested (in condition 1) a 2 month sentence or (condition 2) a 34 month sentence. The questions on the questionnaire were the same for all. they read.

• Do you think the sentence was too low, adequate, or too high?

• What sentence would you recommend?

• How certain are you about your sentencing decision? (a scale of 1 – 9)

• How realistic do you think this case is? (a scale of 1 – 9)

Results: Low anchor = 18.78 months (SD 9.11). High anchor= 28.7 months (SD 6.53).

Findings: One explanation is that the anchoring effect occurs because people begin their judgment with the anchor and then adjust step-by-step until they reach the desired answer. In the above example, participants in the high anchor condition might begin at 140 and realize this is far too high so adjust by reducing the number until they get to something that seems reasonable. The same would work for the low anchor condition, but they adjust upwards.

Matching Bias

A cognitive shortcut that tends to focus attention on evidence containing the letters and numbers mentioned in the rule. In the example above, "even number" and "red." In other words, we rely on intuitive thinking (system 1) rather than trying to employ more rational thinking (system 2).

Memory-cueing hypothesis

Griggs & cox (1982) propose that when the context of the problem is familiar, then participants make decisions based on relevant past experience, rather than on the card's logical status

Biases in T & DM

Anchoring Bias

Peak-End Rule

Framing Effect

Anchoring Bias

The tendency of people to rely too heavily on the first piece of information given when making decisions. During decision making, anchoring bias occurs when an individual bases their subsequent judgments on an initial piece of information.

Anchoring Bias: Study

English & Mussweiler (2001)

Aim:

Procedure:

Results:

Findings:

Peak-End Rule

Heuristic device used to make judgements based on an events peak and end. There is no regard if teh evnt is pleasant or unpleasant.

(Other informtion/memories are not forgotten, instead excluded)

Peak-End Rule: Study

Study: Kahneman et al (1993)

Aim:

Procedure:

Results:

Findings:

Framing Effect

Prospect theory postulated by Kahneman and Tversky () → how to people choose between alternatives with known risks.

One METHOD is FE where ppl make decisions based on how options are ‘framed‘ or ‘presented‘.

People prefer pos language. Prefer certain win with pos lang. but possible loss with neg. lang.

Framing Effect: Study

Study: Tversky & Kahneman.

Aim:

Procedure:

Results:

Findings:

Heuristics

Availabitity heuristic

Representative heuristic

Availability heuristics

Making short cuts based on available information and recent information insted of thinking deeper.

Representative heuristic

Assumption that any object (or person) sharing characteristics with the members of a particular category is also a member of that category

MSM(M)

Multi-store Model of Memory

Who proposed MSM?

Attkinson & Shiffrin (1971)

They proposed that Memory was stored in 3 locations using 2 processes

3 locations

Sensory Memory

Short Term Memory (STM)

Long Term Memory (LTM)

2 processes

Attention & Rehearsal (maintenance and elaboration)

Maintenance Rehearsal

Repeating items over and over to maintain them in short-term memory, as in repeating a telephone number until it has been dialed (see rehearsal).

Elaborative rehearsal

A technique to help the short-term memory store thoughts or ideas and pass them into the long-term memory. It works by relating new concepts to old concepts that are already in the long-term memory so that these new concepts stick.

MSM

Proposed by Attkinson & Shiffrin (1971). Proposes the first basic structure of how memories are stored. ——read the SAQ

Key Study / Case Study

Glanzer & Cunitz (1966)

Milner (1966) - HM

Glanzer & Cunitz

Aim: Support teh existence of separate memory structures like STM and LTM

Procedure: Army men. 5 lists per participant. Each list 15 words, a few seconds between words shown. Afterwards there would be immidiate recall, or with delay and speaking numbers aloud backwards.

Results: In all tests participants were able to recall words at teh beginning of the list well. But with delay, participants then favoured these beginning words and had a herder time remmbering the latter words.

Findings: Primacy and recency effects.

begin of list - LTM, end of list -STM

Milner (1966)

Aim: To learn more about HM and the effects of the removal of a lot of his temporal lobe.

Procedure: Longitudinal study, unobtrusive, method triangulation. → Psychometric testing (IQ), Cognitive testing (memory recall), Observation of behaviour (interviews), MRI

Results: he was able to perform quite well in STM games and his IQ was above average.

Hm could not aquire now episodic memory (events) nor attain new semantic knowledge (abt the world). Although he could learn new skills (procedural knowledge) and he had a cognitive map and he had a good working memory

Findings: That the hippocampus is likely the area of teh brian responsible for the encoding of STM to LTM.

Neither of these are stored in the hippocampus

Memory systems in the brain are highly complex and specialized.

Covert rehearsal

Reheaersing somethingby playing it back in your mind (to yourself).

Proposed by

Jean Piaget (1926)

Definition: Schema Theory

Suggests that people’s memories are actively processed information. People learn by using schemas which are cccomidated or assimilated. ST proposes that memories are distoreted when they move to LTM as they are stored in a knowledge framwork based on schemas - prior knowledge. The basic assumption of schema theory is that an individual’s prior experiences will influence how they remember new information.

Schema (Definition)

A concept or framework that organizes and interprets information

Script (Definition)

Schema about an event or situation (eg. dinner date or Ilkka’s History Class).

When events do not folllow our scripts we get angry, confused, annoyed, or all three.

Assimilation

When you add information to an existing schema

Accomidation

When you replace schemas.

Sharpening

Information is changed to fit into pre-existing schema, details are changed and added.

Leveling

When information is considered insignificant'/irrelevant, it is omitted.

Study:

Bartlett “War of the Ghosts” (1932)

Bartlett “War of the Ghosts” (1932)

Aim: To

Procedure:

Results:

Findings

WMM

Working Memory Model

Who proposed WMM?

Baddley & Hitch (1974)

Why did they propose the WMM?

In response to Attkinson & Shiffrin’s MSM. They were of the opinion that STM was much more complex than just one store. Instead STM is made up of multiple different stores.

When you do two things at the same time (psychology term)

Dual task Technique

What does WMM argue?

That there are different stores for different kinds of STM. If we try to do two tasks that are not in the same store we can multi-task without problem, but run into issues when they’re in the same store

Draw out the WMM

Central Executive

“Big boss” of the other ‘subsystems’ in teh WMM. Monitors and coordinates operations and decides on how and when any given SS is used.

Modality free, but has a limited capacity (reason why we can’t do as many things at teh same time)

Controls attention:

Automatic Level

Supervisory Attention Level

Automatic level

Are based on habits that rely on schemas to function. E.g. riding my bike to school everyday. I don’t need to be constantly thinking about it, I know my usual route and is controlled by the stimuli in the environment.

Supervisory Attention Level

Deals with planning and decision making when new problems arise (which can’t be solved with teh automatic level) Considers all routs and chooses most favourable one

The Phonological Loop

Auditory component of WMM. Two components:

The auditory control system “inner voice“

The phonological store “inner ear“

The auditory control system “inner voice“

The phonological store “inner ear“

Articulatory supression

The visuospacial sketchpad

Visual component of the STM as proposed in WMM. Helps us remember important visual information and where it is.

The episodic buffer

Experiment supporting WMM

Landry and Bartling (2011)

Landry and Bartling (2011) Aim, procedure, Findings/results

Case study supporting WMM

Warrington and Shallice (1972)

Warrington and Shallice (1972) Aim, Procedure, Findings/results

Evaluation of WMM

How did researchers used to think memory was coded.

Early researchers into emmory believed that memories were coded in physical parts of our brain in Engrams.

How did researchers study memory before modern technologies?

By doing post-mortem studies, stimulating differnet parts of the brian during operations, and animal experiments

How do we understand memory today?

It’s a process but it’s structured like more of a network where memories are stored in different “stores“ or areas but information still flowes throughout the system.

Cognitive Approach

An approach to psychology emphasizing the mental processes

The 3 levels in my lil department store (and stores within) + That rando shack outside which I’m not yet sure abt.

L2: Explicit memory (Concious) = Shown through recollection

Semantic memory (fatcual knowledge), Episodic memory (autobiographical moment)

L1: Implicit memory (Unconcious) = Shown through performance

Procedural memory (habits, skills, actions)

P1: Facial recognision

Disease which causes ppl to have an impared facial recognition ability:

The disability which is the result of damage to the fusiform gyrus is called prosopagnosia.

What are Cognitive processes

It is the mental process of aquiring knew knowledge and understanding.

It’s gained through thoughts, experiences, senses

Cognitive Processes

1. Attention

2. Problem-solving

3. Recall

4. Decision making

5. Perception

6. Thinking

7. Language

Encoding:

Sensory memory: Modality specific (which sense)

STM: Auditory

LTM: Semantic (meaning)

Capacity

Sensory Memory: 1 or 2 (v little)

STM: 7 ±2

LTM: Infinte

Duration:

Sensory Memory: 0.5-1 seconds

STM: 30sec

LTM: Forever (possibly)

Episodic memory:

Events, autobiographical in some ways.

What people think of when someone says ‘memory‘.

Semantic memory

General knowlegde of the world

Procedural memory

Habits. Our sometimes unexplainable knowledge on how to do things.

Bottom-up processing

Perception shaped by stimuli

Top-Down processing

Backround changes the interpretaion of what we precived