Chapter 4 - Cognition, Consciousness, and Language

cognition

how our brains process and react to information presented to us

dual-coding theory

both verbal association and visual images are used to process and store information

information processing model has four key pillars

1) thinking requires sensation, encoding, and storage of stimuli
2) stimulus needs to be analyzed by the brain to be useful information
3) decisions in one situation can be used and adjusted to help solve new problems
4) problem solving is dependent on person's cognitive level as well as the situation and problem

cognitive development

development of one's ability to think and solve problems across their life span

Jean Piaget

cognitive model that suggests that there are qualitative differences between the way children and adults think; explained by dividing life span into 4 phases and passage through all these is continuous

schema

concept or a sequence of events

adaptation (Piaget)

occurs through assimilation and accommodation

assimilation

classifying new information into existing schema

accommodation

existing schemata are modified to encompass this new information

sensorimotor stage

from birth to two years of age, child learns to manipulate their environment to get their physical needs and uses sensory input with motor actions; demonstrates circular reactions

circular reactions

behavior exhibited within the sensorimotor stage, known for their repetitive nature

primary circular reactions

repetitions of body movements that originally occurred by chance

secondary circular reactions

when manipulation is focused on something outside the body

object performance

understanding that objects continue to exist even when out of view
key milestone to end sensorimotor stage

representational thought

child begins to create mental representations of external objects and events

preoperational stage

lasts from two to seven years of age, characterized by symbolic thinking and egocentrism

symbolic thinking

ability to pretend, play make believe, and have an imagination

egocentrism

inability to imagine what another person may think or feel

conservation

understanding that a physical amount remains the same, even if the amount changes shape

centration

tendency to focus on only one aspect of a phenomenon while ignoring other important pieces

concrete operational stage

seven to eleven years of age, children can understand conservation and consider the perspective of others, can use logical thought with information/objects directly available, cannot think abstractly

formal operational stage

begins at age eleven, marked by children's ability to think logically about abstract ideas, hypothetical reasoning is an important characteristic of this stage

hypothetical reasoning

ability to mentally manipulate variables in a number of ways

Lev Vygotsky

proposed that the engine driving cognitive development is the child's internalization of his or her culture

fluid intelligence

solving new or novel problems using creative methods

crystallized intelligence

solving problems using acquired knowledge

dementia

general loss of cognitive function

delirium

rapid fluctuation of cognitive function that is reversible and caused by medical causes

mental state

tendency to approach similar problems in the same

functional fixedness

inability to consider how to use an object in a nontraditional manner

trial-and-error

less sophisticated type of problem solving in which various solutions are attempted until one is found successful

algorithm

formula or procedure for solving a certain type of problem

deductive top-down reasoning

starts from a set of general rules and draws conclusions

inductive bottom down reasoning

creates a theory via generalizations

heuristics

"rules of thumb"

availability heuristic

basing the likelihood of an event on how easily examples of that event come to mind

representativeness heuristic

categorizing items on the basis of whether they fit the prototypical, stereotypical, or representative image of the category

base rate fallacy

using prototypical or stereotypical factors while ignoring actual numerical information

discomfort principle

evidence obtained from testing demonstrated that the solution does not work

confirmation bias

tendency to focus on information that fits into an individual's beliefs while rejecting information that goes against them

overconfidence

tendency to erroneously interpret ones decisions/knowledge/beliefs as infallible

belief perseverance

inability to reject a particular belief despite clear evidence to the contrary

intuition

ability to act on perceptions that may not be supported by available evidence

recognition primed decision model

access information without awareness after gaining extensive experience

emotion

subjective experience of a person in a certain situation

multiple intelligence

linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalist

interpersonal intelligence

ability to detect and navigate the moods and motivations of others

intrapersonal intelligence

centers around being mindful of one's own emotions, strengths, and weakness

analytical intelligence

ability to evaluate and reason

creative intelligence

ability to solve problems in novel ways

practical intelligence

dealing with everyday problems at home or at work

emotional intelligence

addresses our emotional awareness in four components 1) express and perceive emotion 2) comprehend and analyze out own emotions 3) regulate our emotions 4) awarness of how emotions shape our thoughts and decisions

intelligence quotient (IQ)

underlying variable of intelligence that is often measured via standardize test

Stanford-Binet IQ test

IQ test created based off Binet's theory

consciousness

ones level of awareness of both the world and ones own experiences within the world

alertness

state of consciousness in which we are awake and able to think

physiological arousal

physiological reactions such as increased heart rate, breathing rate, BP and so on

reticular formation

neural structure in the brain stem that functions to keep the cortex alert and awake

EEG

records an average of the electrical patterns within different portions of the brain; four characteristics 1) beta 2) alpha 3) theta 4) delta waves

beta waves

high frequency and occur when a person is alert or arranging to a mental task

alpha waves

occur when we are awake but in a relaxed state with our eyes closed, somewhat slower than beta waves

stage 1 of sleep

detected on EEG by theta waves, irregular waveforms and with slower frequencies and higher voltage

theta waves

seen in stage 1 and 2 of sleep

stage 2 of sleep

characterized by theta waves and sleep spindles and K complexes

sleep spindles

bursts of high frequency waves

K complexes

singular high-amplitude waves

stage 3 of sleep

slow-wave sleep, delta waves seen and EEG appears a lot slower

delta waves

slow, low-frequency, high voltage sleep waves

non rapid eye movement sleep

stages 1-3 of sleep cycle

rapid eye movement sleep (REM)

arousal levels reach that of wakefulness but muscles are paralyzed, stage in which dreaming is most likely to occur and memory consolidation occurs

sleep cycle

single complete progression through the sleep stages, increases from 50 min to 90 min across life from child to adult

circadian rhythm

internally generated rhythms that regulate sleep and waking

melatonin

serotonin-derived hormone from the pineal gland

cortisol

steroid hormone produced in the adrenal cortex

corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF)

increase of light triggers the release of this hormone from the hypothalamus to signal the release of ACTH

adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)

released from the anterior pituitary which triggers the release of cortisol

activation-synthesis theory

dreams are caused by wide-spread, random activation of neural activity

problems solving theory

dreams are a way of attempting to solve problems

cognitive process dream theory

dreams are the sleeping counter part to our stream of consciousness

Neurocognitive models of dreaming

unifies the biological and psychological perspectives on dreaming by correlating the subjective, cognitive experience of dreaming with measurable physiological changes

dyssomnias

refer to disorders that make it difficult to asleep, stay awake or avoid sleep

parasomnias

abnormal behaviors or breathing during sleep

insomina

difficulty falling asleep, may be related to depression, anxiety, medications, or disruption of sleep cycles

narcolepsy

lack of voluntary control over onset of sleep

cataplexy

loss of muscle control and intrusion of REM sleep during waking hours

sleep paralysis

sensation of being unable to move despite being awake

hypnagogic and hypnopompic hallucination

hallucinations when going to sleep or waking

sleep apnea

inability to breathe during sleep

night terrors

intense anxiety that occurs during slow-wave sleep

sleepwalking

walking in sleep, occurs during slow wave sleep

sleep deprivation

irritability, mood disturbances, decreased performance, and slowed reaction time as a result of lack of sleep

hypnosis

person appears to be in control of his or her reactions/functions but is in a highly suggestible state

hypnotic induction

relaxing the subject to increase their level of concentration

depressants

reduce the nervous system activity

alcohol

increases activity of GABA receptor (a Cl receptor that causes hyperpolarization)

hyperpolarization in the brain

causes Brian inhibition

alcohol myopia

short-sighted view of the world and inability to recognize the consequences of actions while under the influence

Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome

brain disorder caused by a thiamine (vitamin B3) deficiency, characterized by severe memory impairment with changes in mental state and loss of motor skills

sedative

depress central nervous system activity, feeling of calm/relaxation/drowsiness

two types of sedatives

barbiturates and benzodiazepines -- both highly addictive