IB Psychology SL/HL - Cognitive Approach

Accomodation

Taking new information and altering previously held information to fit in new information

Anchoring bias

The tendency to rely too heavily on the first piece of information offered (“the anchor”) when making decisions

Assimilation

Using an existing schema to handle new object or situation

Central executive

A system that allocates resources between the visuospatial sketchpad and the phonological loop. In this sense, it is the “manager” for the other two systems

Cognitive bias

A systematic error in thinking that occurs when people are processing and interpreting information in the world around them and affects the decisions and judgements that they make

Cognitive disfluency

Metacognitive experience of difficulty associated with completing a mental task

Cognitive psychology

A branch of Psychology that is concerned with the processes underlying our mental activity. It focuses on mental (cognitive) processes and what happens in our mind when we process information

Decision-making

It is defined as the process of identifying and choosing alternatives based on the values and preferences of the decision-maker

Declarative memory

(knowing what) Memory of facts and events and refers to those memories that can be consciously recalled

Dual systems theory

Proposed by Daniel Kahneman as an extension to the information-processing approach by differentiating between two independent systems, system 1 and system 2

System 1 (Dual Systems theory)

Thinking is fast, automatic, holistic and intuitive based on heuristics

System 2 (Dual Systems theory)

Thinking is slower, more analytical, logical, rule-based and conscious

Emotion

An intense emotional state that arises subjectively rather than through conscious effort and is often accompanied by psychological changes

Emotion

An intense emotional state that arises subjectively rather than through conscious effort and is often accompanied by psychological changes

Episodic bufferq

the component of WMM that integrates information from the other components and links this information to long-term memory structure

Episodic memory

Contains memory of specific events that have occurred at a given time and in a given place

Ethics

Ethics refers to the correct rules of conduct necessary when carrying out research. We have a moral responsibility to protect research participants from harm

Flashbulb memory

It is a highly detailed, exceptionally vivid snapshot of the moment when a surprising and emotionally arousing event has happened

Heuristics

mental shortcuts that involve focusing on one aspect of a complex problem and ignoring others

Illusory correlation bias

When a person perceives a relationship between two variables that are not in fact correlated

Long term memory (LTM)

Long Term Memory is described as a place for storing large amounts of information for indefinite periods of time

Memory

The faculty of the brain by which data or information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when needed. It is the retention of information over time for the purpose of influencing future action

Metacognition

Awareness and understanding of one's own thought processes

Models of memory

A conceptual framework of how memory would work in the brain

MSM

Multistore Model of Memory (MSM) Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) suggested that memory consists of a number of separate locations in which information is stored

Phonological loop

holds sound information and is further subdivided into the phonological store. (“the inner ear”) and the articulatory rehearsal component (“the inner voice”)

Primacy effect

The beginning; you remember it because that is where you started

Procedural memory

(Knowing how) is the conscious memory of skills and how to do things

Recency effect

the end of the list; you remember the end the best.

Reconstructive memory

A theory of memory recall in which the act of remembering is influenced by various other cognitive processes including perception, imagination, semantic memory and beliefs amongst others. 

In other words, memory is reconstructed. In terms of reliability, memory can be reconstructed reliably or most likely, unreliably. If a memory has been reconstructed unreliably – it would be a ‘false memory’ or ‘distorted’

Repeated reproduction

Participants heard the story and were told to reproduce it after a short time and then do so again repeatedly over a period of days, weeks, months or even years

Schema

A mental representation of an individual's pre-existing knowledge about the world and experiences in the world

Schema theory

It is the theory of how humans process incoming information, relate it to existing knowledge and use it

Semantic memory

Contains general knowledge of facts and people, for example concepts and schemas and it is not linked to time and place

Sensory memory (SM)

Sensory memory store or the sensory register does not process information. Its function is to detect information and hold it until it is either transferred further into the short-term memory store or lost. Sensory memory consists of several sub-components, one for each modality: visual information, auditory, olfactory, and so on. Most of the research, however, has focussed on iconic memory (for visual inputs) and echoic memory (for auditory inputs) 

Serial reproduction

Participants had to recall the story and repeat it to another person

Short term memory (STM)

It does not process information- it just detects it from the environment and holds it until it is either transferred to STM or lost

Stereotype

Stereotyping is a form of generalisation where one judges an individual based on group membership or physical attributes

Thinking

It is the process of using knowledge and information to make plans, interpret the world, and make predictions about the world in general. There are several components of thinking – these include problem-solving, creativity, reasoning, and decision making

Visuospatial sketchpad

(“the inner eye”) holds visual and spatial information

Working Memory Model (WMM)

The term working memory refers to your temporary mental workplace where you hold information in your short term. Working Memory consists of a central executive that coordinates two subsystems: the visual sketchpad and the phonological loop