a01 cognitive approach

What does the cognitive approach focus on

How our mental processes (thoughts + perceptions + attention) affect behaviour

When was cognitive approach established?

1950s onwards

What type of approach is cognitive and why

Scientific approach

Examining thoughts and mental processes

What does cognitive approach focus on

Scientific investigation of internal mental processes

What do cognitive psychologists do as they cant directly study thoughts and processes?

Make indirect inferences

aconclsuion bases on indirect evidence

What’s another assumption of cognitive approach about te structure of the brain + what do cognitive psychologists do?

The structure of the brain does not reveal its function

Cognitive psychologists must rely on analogies and metaphors to explain the functions of the human brain

The role of ——- is very important in cognitive psychology

The role of scheme is very important in cognitive psycholgy

What is a schema?

A schema is a mental or neural representation of the world that is stored within the brain.

What does schema help with?

Helps to organise and interpret information

they allow us to take shortcuts in the processing of information.

What do cognitive psychologists use to help understand internal mental processes

Models are used by cognitive psychologist to help understand internal mental processes

Mental processes are private and cant be directly observed so What do cognitive psychologists do instead

Due to mentala processes being private and unable to be directly observed , cognitive psychologists study them indirectly by making inferences (best guesses) about what is going on inside peoples minds based on behaviour

What was the original model cognitive psychologists use?

Computer model was used to represent the processes taking place in human mind

This was because when the cognitive approach first came to prominence , the first digital computers were being developed

How is a computer used as a model?

Human mind receives information - manipulates information in some way + outputs data

In a computer - ( receives inputs + central processor + process outputs)

How are models often represented as and how are these usueful?

Appear as series of boxes and arrows to show flow of information through cognitive system

Mean that abstract processes can be represented as concrete images to make invisible processes visible

What do cognitive psychologists do with their ppt (3)

Collects info from ppt about how they think and how brain processes info

Uses data - create simplified model of what might be happening in actual brain

Psychologist makes an inference using model to describe what they think is going on (Educated guess)

What is an example of a model psychologists take inference from and what’s the issue?

Working memory model - baddeley and hitch

Imposssible to prove model is correct despite research supporting

What is one part of the WMM that includes a lot of inferences but what’s th issue

Central executive

It’s based on inferences but inferences are usueful as they allow models of brain to be created

But some have been shown to be wrong when innovative tech is created and used to test brain more carefully

What is revealed about inferences when new techniques show older models are wrong

See inferences were educated guesses + assumptions based on educated guess were wrong

What is another example of a model that shows inference and what happened as more studies were conducted?

MSM

Included STM that was inferences based on available evidence at the time

As more studies conducted as brain scanning techniques improved it was shown there are sepeperate stores for PL and VIsual STM - shows inferences being shown to be wrong

What can cognitive processing be affected by?

A persons belief and expectations - may be referred to as schema

What is a schema and what do they act as

Packages of ideas and information developed through experience

Act as mental framework for the interpretation of incoming information received by the cognitive system

What is an example of schema in babies

Babis are born with simple motor schema for innate behaviours such as sucking or grasping

What happens to our schema as we get older

Our scream becomes more detailed and sophisticated

Adults have developed mental representations for everything from the concept of psychology to a schema for what happens in a restaurant

What do schemas enable us to processs

Lots of information quickly and is useful as a mental shortcut that prevent us being overwhelmed by environmental stimuli

What is an issue with schema

May distort our interpretations of information leading to perceptual errors