THE COGNITIVE APPROACH


~BASIC ASSUMPTIONS~

  • Mental processes are ‘private’ and cannot be observed

  • Between stimulus and response, there are complex mental processes


~SCHEMAS~

  • A schema is a ‘packet of information’ that helps us organise and interpret information

  • Babies are born with simple motor schema for innate behaviours (e.g. grasping and sucking)

  • Schemas develop and evolve with experience. They become more detailed and sophisticated

  • They are useful by helping us take shortcuts in thinking

  • However, they can lead to faulty conclusions and unhelpful behaviours


~BUGELSKI & ALAMPAY (1962) - THE RAT MAN~

  • Two groups shown a sequence of pictures, either of different faces or different animals. Both were then shown an ambiguous figure.

  • Participants who saw a sequence of faces were more likely to perceive the figure as a man, whereas participants who were shown a sequence of animals were more likely to perceive the figure as a rat


~THEORETICAL AND COMPUTER MODELS~

  • One important theoretical model is the information processing approach, which suggests that information flows through the cognitive system in a sequence of stages

  • Cognitive processes include the input, storage and retrieval of information (similar to a computer)

  • Such computational models of the mind have proved useful in the development of artificial intelligence


~THE EMERGENCE OF COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE~

  • Scientific study of the influence of brain structure on mental processes

  • Advances in brain scanning technology means scientists have been able to describe the neurological basis of mental processing

  • Useful on establishing the neurological basis of some disorders




EVALUATION


→ IT ACCOUNTS FOR THE INFLUENCE OF BOTH NATURE & NURTURE ON BEHAVIOUR

  • One strength of this approach is that it can be praised for applying both nature and nurture to explanations of behaviour.

  • Nature is shown as we are born with the ability to perform mental processes (e.g. schemas). Nurture is shown as these mental processes can be shaped by the environment.

  • Research today argues that behaviour can best be explained using both nature and nurture together.

  • Therefore, as this approach focuses on the influence of both nature and nurture, it increases the ecological validity of the approach.


→ IT IS MACHINE REDUCTIONIST

  • Another strength of the cognitive approach is that it is reductionist, which is praised for forming the basis of scientific research.

  • This is due to the fact that often the investigations use scientific testing.

  • For example, the cognitive approach breaks human behaviour down to computer models.

  • These findings increase the scientific credibility of the approach, as results supporting these conclusions were produced as a result of a scientific investigation.


→ IT IS SOFTLY DETERMINISTIC

  • One limitation of the cognitive approach, is that it is deterministic.

  • For example, this approach believes that behaviour is caused by internal mental processes that have been formed in the past.

  • This approach can be criticised as it ignores the influence of conscious decision-making processes on behaviour.

  • This leads to a lack in ecological validity.


→ IT IS NOMOTHETIC

  • Another limitation of the cognitive approach, is that it overlooks the richness of human experience.

  • In this approach, research has been conducted into the multi-store model for memory.

  • The lab studies used to conduct this research lack external validity, which makes it difficult to generalise the findings outside of the research environment.