Cog Psych: CH 1-3

studied byStudied by 1 Person
0.0(0)
Get a hint
hint

Cognition

1/126

Studying Progress

New cards
126
Still learning
0
Almost done
0
Mastered
0
126 Terms
New cards

Cognition

Cognition includes various mental processes that we use to interpret the world and to engage with others

New cards
New cards

Cognitive Psychology

The objective, scientific study of mental processes, including learning memory, reasoning, decision-making, attention, perception, and language

New cards
New cards

Plato, Socrates, Descartes

Nature, The contents of the mind are inborn; knowledge is inborn

New cards
New cards

Aristotle, Locke

Nurture, People have to learn about the world

New cards
New cards

Structuralism

Wundt, Thitchener

New cards
New cards

Introspection

To look within yourself; self-reflection, became the source of argumentation and contention

New cards
New cards

What Powerful school ruled the 20th century, used introspection and forbade study of mind/thinking?

Behaviorism

New cards
New cards

Behaviorists who equated human thinking to studying animal behavior

John Watson, B.F. Skinner

New cards
New cards

Who caused the end of Behaviorism in psychology and believed language is inborn?

Noam Chomsky

New cards
New cards

Physiological psychology/Neuroscience

Elementary medical techniques (EEG) and case studies of patients with brain damage led to a notion of “localization of function”

New cards
New cards

Localization of function

Different places in the brain have different jobs

New cards
New cards

Cognitive Neuroscience

The combination of physiological studies of localizations of function of operations in a living human

New cards
New cards

Function

Skills or ability

New cards
New cards

Medical technology (Neuro-imaging)

allows for the extensive study of cognitive functions in a living human

New cards
New cards

Theoretical Cognition

Theory is related to understanding or explaining things

New cards
New cards

Applied Cognition

Applied refers to using out knowledge in the real world

New cards
New cards

What is the reason for research?

To understand why things are the way they are

New cards
New cards

Variable

Anything that can have different values, that varies, is a variable

New cards
New cards

Some variables that can be manipulated

Type of stimuli shown, Complexity of stimuli

New cards
New cards

Variables that can be collected as data

Decision, Reaction time, Recall, Patterns of activation on neuro-imaging, looking time

New cards
New cards

Descriptive Research

Documents or records things as they are (no stimulating/manipulating)

New cards
New cards

Advantage of descriptive research

Report things as they exist: authentic, natural, trustworthy

New cards
New cards

Disadvantage of descriptive research

Never answers the cause or reason why something occurs

New cards
New cards

Naturalistic Observation

Observing behavior in the environment in which they occur, Jane Goodall’s Chimps

New cards
New cards

Case Studies

Writing down a detailed story about an individual because it is a unique case

New cards
New cards

Correlational Studies

Broad collection of studies (Ex Post Facto/Quasi-experimental), correlation coefficcient -1 to +1

New cards
New cards

Ex Post Facto

Collect research after the fact

New cards
New cards

Quasi-experimental Studies

Not experimental but looks like it

New cards
New cards

Caveat about correlation

Correlation is causation - INCORRECT STATEMENT

New cards
New cards

Ethical Constraints of Correlational Research

Not going to force person to do action, but find the data to figure out if there is a correlation, while aware of the limits

New cards
New cards

Practical Constraints of Correlational Research

Can not force a person into said situation, but can find the relation through data

New cards
New cards

Experimental Research

Variables are deliberately manipulated to see what happens

New cards
New cards

Independent variable (IV)

Thing that is changed

New cards
New cards

Dependent variable (DV)

Data that get collected, results of the study

New cards
New cards

Advantages of experimental research

If done correctly can find out what causes what

New cards
New cards

Disadvantage to experimental research

Inauthentic, odd, strange, subject will behave different than. how they naturally would

New cards
New cards

Extraneous Variables

not IV or DV, can confuse the interpretation of a study and influence the DV, needs to be controlled, e.g. age, gender, environment, species

New cards
New cards

Participant Bias (expectancy effects)

Participants have beliefs that can affect their reactions or performance

New cards
New cards

Single-blind control

Only the participants are unaware of some important information that might influence the results of the study, researchers may lie about study for this reason

New cards
New cards

Experimenter bias

Researchers are committed to getting a certain pattern of data, which can inappropriately impact the results

New cards
New cards

Double-blind control

The participants and the researchers (who directly deal with the participants) are unaware of important information

New cards
New cards

Parts of the limbic system

Hippocampus and amygdala

New cards
New cards

What is the most recent part of our brain to evolve?

Neocortex

New cards
New cards

Sulci and fissures (wrinkles and deep grooves) in the brain

allows for more tissue for function

New cards
New cards

Neocortex

Involved in memory, awareness, attention, language, reasoning, intelligence, perception, and movement

New cards
New cards

Cortical

adjective for cortex

New cards
New cards

Somatosensory and motor cortex

In humans, much of the area is devoted to the head, face, mouth, and hands. Less is devoted to larger body parts. the ratio is varied in humans

New cards
New cards

Somatosensory

Gives you feeling if you are being touched and where

New cards
New cards

Motor skill

Gives you the ability to move your body

New cards
New cards

Localization of function

Functions are abilities (movement, language, vision, memory, etc) found in predictable and permanent areas of the brain

New cards
New cards

Are there anatomical modules or centers?

No coginitive functions can be found in multiple areas of the brain, flexibly depending on the task. Areas overlap

New cards
New cards

Association areas

flexibly allow the cortex to interpret, coordinate, and link info and functions from multiple areas, activity can change from moment to moment

New cards
New cards

Tissue in association areas, Humans vs. Other species

Humans have a higher percentage devoted to association areas, others species lower on the phylogenetic scale have less

New cards
New cards

What does neuroimaging research show of accomplished people in the arts and sciences?

They have increased activity in association cortices (plural of cortex), compared to people in non-creative areas

New cards
New cards

Techniques to study human brain

Clinical/Medical case studies, Recording, Neuroimaging

New cards
New cards

CT Scans

Shows the structure of the brain

New cards
New cards

What are the white areas in CT Scans?

brain tissue; functional tissue

New cards
New cards

What are the black areas in CT Scans?

Missing brain tissue; fluid

New cards
New cards

PET scans

shows activity in the brain

New cards
New cards

What are the red/orange areas in PET scans?

Intense activity

New cards
New cards

What are the blue areas in PET scans?

no activity/less activity

New cards
New cards

MRI

shows the structure of the brain

New cards
New cards

fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging)

structure and activity, anatomical detail and specific are where activity takes place

New cards
New cards

Lateralization of function

Lateral means side, so the sides of the brain and their respective functions

New cards
New cards

Left hemisphere

Analytic thought; logic, math, language(Broca, Wernicke), Right (opposite) side motor skills, Right (opposite) side ear audition

New cards
New cards

Right hemisphere

Emotional thought, Intuitions, Creativity, music, art, Left (opposite) side motor skills, Left (opposite) side ear audition

New cards
New cards

What is the purpose of the corpus Callosum?

This is the tissue that allows both sides to communicate; information is shared across hemispheres

New cards
New cards

Lateralization of function map

Only true for right-handed, almost all right handed people are left dominant for language, left handed people are not predictable, they are not on the opposite side to righties

New cards
New cards

What is true about being left handed?

Left handedness is associated with a high risk of a learning disability

New cards
New cards

Dominance

Refers to the hemisphere that is stronger for a function. The left hemisphere is “dominant for language” and the right side is dominant for music and art but has some linguistic skills

New cards
New cards

What is a misconception of dominance?

People are not left brained or right brained, they use both

New cards
New cards

How many lobes are in the hemispheres?

Each hemisphere has four distinct lobes

New cards
New cards

What is and where is excutive function?

Located in the frontal lobes, it is involved in planning, organizing, decision-making, regulates impulses, emotion, consideration of consequences

New cards
New cards

What disorders have executive dysfunctions?

ADHD, ASD, traumatic brain injury, dementia (trouble with the lobe)

New cards
New cards

What is the main cause of chronic traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE)

Prevalent in football who constantly hitting their head for a long period of time

New cards
New cards

Where is language?

Broca’s area, Wernicke’s area, Language Association area

New cards
New cards

Why can people hear better through there right ear?

The right ear is directly connected to the left hemisphere where the language function is found

New cards
New cards

Where is memory located?

Several places in the cortex, lower down or “older” parts of the brain

New cards
New cards

What are the two parts of the limbic system?

Hippocampus and amygdala

New cards
New cards

What does the limbic system do?

Humans use the limbic system for learning and memory

New cards
New cards

What is bigger in people who rely on memory?

Hippocampus

New cards
New cards

What happens in the hippocampus?

Short term memory transform into long term memory

New cards
New cards

What mental disability effects the performance of the hippocampus?

PTSD, post traumatic stress disorder, can affect the memory span

New cards
New cards

What is the function of the amygdala

vigilance, respond (to others or situations) with empathy or aggression, used for some classical conditioning

New cards