Learning and Cognition (2nd part Term 1)

What are the six concepts?

Bias, Perspective, Measurement, Causality, Responsibility, Change

Environmental Determinism

sociocultural approach that argues that our behaviour is a result of our environment and culture

Soft Determinism

Suggests that although behaviour may be influenced by internal or external factors, we still have control over our actions

Determinism

idea that all thoughts and feelings are caused by specific factors

What does determinism challenge?

the idea that we have free will

Biological determinism

Argues that behaviour is shaped by genetics, brain structure and neurochemistry

What is Operant Conditioning?

Argues that behaviours are modified in response to a reward or punishment

Thordike’s Law of Effect

Any behaviour followed by a positive consequence will likely be repeated

Positive reinforcement

presentation of a reward to encourage continuation of a behaviour

Negative reinforcement

removal of an aversive stimulus (punishment) to encourage continuation of a behaviour

Positive Punishment

Presentation of an aversion stimulus (Punishment) to discourage continuation of a behaviour

Negative Punishment

Removal of a reward to discourage continuation of behaviour

classical conditioning

Type of learning in which an initially neutral stimulus is paired with a stimulus that elicits a reflex response - an unconditional stimulus

What is an unconditional stimulus

a stimulus that prompts a natural, unlearned response

What is a neutral stimulus?

A stimulus that does not lead to any natural response

What is a conditional stimulus?

A stimulus that used to be neutral. It became associated with a response because it was connected to an unconditional stimulus

What is a conditional response?

response learned by pairing a neutral and unconditional stimulus

What is the cognitive approach?

the mind can be conceptualised as a set of mental processes that are carried out by the brain

What is the idea that we are Cognitive Misers?

The idea that we make mental shortcuts because of three factors - lack of knowledge, lack of motivation, and lack of time/resources

What is the dual processing model?

The theory that the brain uses two systems - system 1, which is fast and bases decisions on past experiences, and system 2, which is logical but takes effort and concentration

Characteristics of System 1 (Dual Process Theory)

Fast and Automatic, quick but emotional reactions, focuses on what it sees and ignores absent evidence, bases experiences on past experiences. Prone to errors and takes short cuts called heuristics

Characteristics of System 2 (Dual Process Theory)

Analytical and logical, requires concentration and planning, works through abstract concepts and is more reliable but slower and energy intensive

Strengths Dual Process Theory

Biological evidence, tests are reliable, explains for biases and human behaviours,

Limitations of Dual Process Theory

Can be seen as oversimplified, doesn’t explain how one system overrides another, some thinking errors can’t be explained

What is confirmation bias?

the tendency for humans to only view information that supports their beliefs, and ignore contradicting information

Why do we use confirmation bias?

to lower cognitive load, avoid cognitive dissonance and provide self-validation

What is Anchoring Bias?

the tendency for humans to rely too heavily on the first piece of information when making decisions.

Why do we use anchoring bias?

Helps simplify complex decisions, its a mental shortcut, and once an anchor is planted, humans rationalise around it

What are Schemas? (Schema Theory)

Mental representations that inform a person about what to expect from a variety of experiences - mental templates based on passed experiences

How is new information added to existing schema?

Assimilation - process of integrating new information into existing schema

Accommodation - new information cannot be added to an existing schema, so a new schema is created

What are cognitive scripts?

mental roadmaps that contain the basic actions that make up a complex one

Why do we use schema?

to predict what to expect in familiar situations, interpret new information, and fill gaps in memory or understanding

What is Social Cognitive Learning Theory?

Suggests that behaviour is learned from the environment through processes of modelling and reinforcement.

What is Vicarious Reinforcement?

Learning through observation of others, where imitation of behaviour will occur if it leads to desirable consequences

4 Conditions for Social Learning Theory

Attention, Retention, Motivation, Potential/Reproduction

Factors that may affect Social Learning

Model must stand out compared to other models, Model behaviour must be consistent, Model is respected, Observer sees similarities between them and model

What is short term memory?

limited capacity memory

What is long term memory?

If information is rehearsed, it is transferred to long term memory, and can potentially be stored there forever

What is Semantic memory?

factual knowledge, includes common knowledge and facts

What is episodic memory?

Autobiographical memories - memories of experiences, along with context and emotions

What is procedural memory?

memories of how to do something; not usually consciously accessed

Why is the hippocampus important?

important in the transfer of short term memories to long term memories; important in the retention of spatial memories

evidence of multi-store memory model

Case study of HM, hippocampus was partially removed, still able to access procedural memories, showed that short term and long term memories are separate

What is the sequence within the multi-store memory model?

sensory memory - short term/working memory - long term memory (semantic, episodic, procedural)

What is the primacy effect?

occurs when items at the start of a list are remembered better than items at the end, due to practice/encoding

What is the recency effect?

occurs when more items at the end of a serial list are remembered due to recency

Strengths of Multi-Store memory model

Historical significance, conceptualisation of memory stores, and good presentation of basic mechanics

Weaknesses of multi-store memory model

Rehearsal not as important as suggested, does not explain how information is actually transferred, oversimplifies types of memories, does not consider information encoding or elaborate rehearsal

What is the levels of processing theory?

suggests that memory retention depends on how information is processed. information is processed at a deeper level, such as focusing on meaning or making connections to prior knowledge, and information is less likely to be remembered if processed at a shallow level

Strengths of Levels of Processing Theory

makes distinction between different types of information

Weaknesses of Levels of Processing Theory

Does not account for how to measure depth

What is the working memory model?

suggests that STM consists of multiple different stores, controlled by a central executive

What is the role of the central executive in the Working Memory Model?

attention control, responsible fro monitoring operation of STM systems. Decides what information should be given attention to

What is the role of the Phonological Loop in the Working Memory Model?

holds auditory information, both written and spoken has limited capacity

What are the two components of the Phonological Loop? (WMM)

Phonological store: like an ‘inner ear’ and holds speech based information

Articulatory control system: like and ‘inner voice’ and rehearses information from the phonological store

What is the role of the visuospatial sketchpad in the Working Memory Model?

stores visual and spacial information. has limited capacity

Evidence for the Visuospatial Sketchpad

PET brain scans show that there appears to be more activity in the left half of the brain when carrying out visual tasks

What is the role of the Episodic Buffer in the Working Memory Model?

‘Backup Store’ fed by other systems. Holds information temporarily and combines different types of information with time, e.g. a movie scene

What is the method of Loci?

‘memory palace’ technique to improve memory, works by associating information with specific familiar locations.

Evidence for Method of Loci

Anecdotal: technique used at ‘memory championships.’ empirical: Moll and Sykes created VR memory palace, led to increased memory

What is cultural Bias?

Refers to the tendency of psychological theories to favour certain groups/cultures. Can lead to inaccurate and incomplete understandings of human behaviour

What is enculturation?

process of learning rules, values, and expectations of one’s culture. Can be formal/informal, conscious/unconscious

What is an Emic approach?

refers to the ‘insiders’ perspective when studying memory within a culture

What is an etic approach?

refers to an ‘outsiders’ approach, when studying different cultures, and trying to find universal truths

What is transactive memory?

Psychological theory describing how groups collectively encode, store and retrieve information, in order to reduce cognitive load

What are agonists?

substances that mimc the actions of a neurotransmitter to produce a response when bound to a receptor

What is an antagonist?

Blocks receptor sites in order to prevent neurotransmitters from functioning

What are dendrites?

receiving part of the neuron

What is synaptic transmission?

neurotransmitters attach to the dendrites of another neuron