cognitive approach

introduction

The cognitive approach assumes that behaviour can be explained by our thought processes and that our mind works like a computer with sense inputs that create behavioural outputs. Our mental processes can be conscious or unconscious to us.

Basic assumptions:

  • Schema

  • Information processing model

  • Neuroscience

Cognitive means ‘knowing’. Cognitive processed are the way knowledge is gained, used and retained.

Simon and Chabris’s gorillas in our midst experiment

Aim: Investigate change blindness/inattentional blindness for complex objects and events in dynamic scenes

Procedure: 

  • Lab experiment

  • Conditions: transparent/umbrella, transparent/gorilla, opaque/umbrella, opaque/gorilla as well as white/easy, white/hard, black/easy, black/hard

  • 4 video tapes, 75 secs long, black and white team passes ball and at 44-48 secs, 5 sec unexpected event happens either opaque or transparent to video

  • 228 volunteers, 36 removed, put into 16 groups of 12 individuals and asked to count passes before asked about event

Results:

  • 54% saw event

  • 67% saw in opaque, only 42% for transparent

  • 64% for easy condition

  • 65% saw umbrella woman compared to 44% for gorilla

Conclusion: inattentional blindness happens when engaged in another task, extent is based on the difficulty of task

Evaluation:

  • Collected qualitative data for comparison

  • Ethical — informed consent and debriefing

  • Large sample size but sampling bias due to mostly being students, not representative

schema

Schema is the cognitive framework that helps us organise and interpret info. It is based on our previous experience and allows for quick and effective interpretation.

  • Schema prevents us from being overwhelmed by vast amounts of info about the environment

  • Though, it can lead to distortion, as we select and interpret environmental stimuli using schemas which might not be relevant

  • This could cause inaccuracies in areas such as eyewitness testimony and also explains some errors we make when perceiving optical illusions