Cognitive AO3

How can schemas be useful?

-easy identification of dangerous situations

-schema expectancy helps in adapting to ambiguous situations

-process info quickly

-mental shortcut to prevent being overwhelmed by environment

How might schemas not be useful?

-it affects the accuracy of memory for instance EWT

-it distorts the perception of reality

-negative self schema links to depression

-stereotyping

Why are objective measures a strength of the approach?

empirical method so replicable and can be standardised

How can objective measures be seen as a limitation?

It makes the approach lack ecological validity

How is a reliance on inference a limitation?

The data is subjective so as a result is not falsifiable, furthermore stimuli used is article so there is a lack of external validity

Why is machine reduction problematic?

It undermines the complexity of the human brain, as a result, studies based on it lack internal validity

Moreover, it ignores the impact of emotions and motivation on the cognitive system (EWT and anxiety)

How is the use of computer models a strength?

It allows testing of ideas that aren’t allowed on humans for ethical reasons

Why is the use of computer models a limitation?

Issues of extrapolation are present as there are many differences between informational processing in computer and in humans

What is the cognitive approach’s stance on free will and determinism and why is this a strength?

It favours soft determinism, an interactionist stance means that it is a more comprehensive explanation of behavior which combines both internal and external influences

What can the interactionist idea of the cognitive approach explain that the other approaches can’t?

Individual differences