cognitive psych & learning

decision making: attempting to select the best alternative among several options

bounded rationality: the idea that in decision-making, rationality of individuals is limited by…

  • the information they have

  • the cognitive limitations of their mind

  • the finite amount of time they have to make a decision

heuristic: shortcut used to reduce the amount of thinking needed to make decisions

availability heuristic: tendency to make a decision based on information that comes most easily to mind

representativeness heuristic: tendency to place people or objects in a category if they are similar to the concept that is the prototype

  • leads to faulty reasoning if base rate is not taken into account

bias: systematic pattern of deviation from norm or rationality in judgement, whereby inferences about others and situations may be drawn in an illogical fashion

framing: how information is presented affects how that info is perceived and influences decisions

the paradox of choice: when too many options are available, especially when all of them are attractive, we experience conflict, indecision, and a form of cognitive paralysis

  • maximizers vs. satisfiers (i.e. “good enough” choice)

memory: learning that has been kept over time, information which has been stored and can be recalled (in most cases)

memory conceptualized as types, stages, and processes →

  • types: explicit and implicit memory

  • stages: sensory, short-term, and long-term memory

  • processes: encoding, storage, and retrieval

memorization: process in which information is encoded, stored, and retrieved

  • encoding: processing of information to allow its storage (ex: transformation into neural code usable by the brain)

enabled by visual and auditory attention (focusing mental resources on information)

  • filter theory: explains how we selectively attend to the most important information

  • change blindness: failure to identify significant visual changes in environment

  • selective attention allows the filtering of unwanted information

  • storage: retention of encoded representations over time

types of memory stages (atkinson and shiffrin 1968): sensory storage, short-term storage, long-term storage

each memory stage is characterized by:

  • distint encoded inputs

  • ability to maintain information for a given length of time

  • capacity

sensory memory: less then 1 sec for iconic memory, 4-5 secs for echoic memory, large capacity

short-term memory: up to 30 secs without rehearsal, 5-9 chunks

digit-span test: assesses attention and short-term memory, recalling 7 units correspond to an average short-term memory

“magic number” 7 (G. Miller 1956): typical memory capacity of 7 units, memory span

working memory: processing system which permits to maintain information in short-term storage by actively manipulating it and rendering it available for its current use

  • potential for indefinite retaining of information if manipulated indefinitely

chunking: using working memory to organize information into meaningful units to facilitate retrieval

long-term memory: a long time (perhaps permanently), essentially unlimited capacity

able to →

  • retain a potential unlimited amount of information for a relative unlimited period of time

  • when compared with short-term memory, long-term storage retains the information for longer period of time, has much more retention capacity, and depends on an in-depth (vs. shallow) encoding of information

encoding for long-term storage allowed via:

  • maintenance rehearsal: shallow encoding by using working-memory processes to repeat auditory information

  • elaborative rehearsal: in-depth encoding and long-term storage by using working-memory processes to think about how new information relates to ourselves or our prior knowledge (semantic information)

consolidation of memories: process through which immediate memories turn into enduring memories through long-term storage

reconsolidation of memories: once activated, memories need to be consolidated again for long-term storage

  • process potentially affected by new circumstances (ex: possible difference b/w reconsolidated memories and original versions)

  • alter long-term storage of problematic memories, resorting to the classical conditioning technique of extinction during the reconsolidation period

accessing memories:

retrieval: act of recalling or remembering information that has been stored when needed

retrieval cue: facilitates the recovering of information stored in long term storage

encoding specificity principle: cues present during encoding will facilitate the access to memories when present during retrieval attempt

  • context-dependent memory: congruence b/w environment when encoding and retrieving

  • state-dependent memory: congruence b/w physiological states when encoding and retrieving

  • mood-dependent memory effects: easier retrieval when same mood when encoding and retrieving

  • mood-congruence effect: easier retrieval when similar mood when encoding and retrieving

mnemonics: memory aids that require elaborative rehearsal

method of loci: sequential pieces of information to be remembered are first associated with sequential locations in a very familiar room or location

first letter techniques and acronyms

issues with memories retrieval:

forgetting: inability to access a memory from long-term storage

interference:

  • retroactive → when newer memories prevent access to older ones

  • proactive → when older memories prevent access to newer ones

blocking: tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon

due to interference from similar words (ex: auditory, semantic encoding) which are repeatedly experienced

absentmindedness: inattentive or shallow encoding of events

distortion: inaccurate representation of the past

memory bias: alteration of memories over time consistent w/ current beliefs

flashbulb memories: vivid memories of circumstances when encoding of emotionally intense event occurred

flashbulb memories: vivid memories of circumstances when encoding of emotionally intense event occured

misattribution: misremembering aspects related to a memory

suggestibility: when people are given misleading information, this information affects their memory for an event (ex:eyewitness account)

false memories: confusion b/w real/experienced and imagined memory

persistence: continual recurrence of unwanted memories from long-term storage

  • post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

  • erasing memories as a potential solution investigated by researchers; however, leads to a number of ethical issues

learning: the process of acquiring, through experience, new and relatively enduring information or behaviours

types of learning →

  • non-associative learning (learning information about an external stimulus)

  • associative learning (whenever a person/animal forms an association among various stimuli and/or responses)

  • learning by watching others

non-associative learning:

  • habituation: lengthy or repeated exposure to a stimulus which eventually leads to a decreased individual response

  • sensitization: lengthy or repeated exposure to a stimulus which eventually leads to an increased individual response

associative learning:

behaviorism: focused on observable behaviors as opposed to unobservable internal mental processes (pavlov, watson, skinner)

learning through classical conditioning (type of associative learning)→

pavlov: medical degree, studied digestive system of dogs for over 20 years, nobel prize in physiology, experiments on coditioning

classical conditioning: a form of learning in which reflex responses are associated with new stimuli, based on what happens before the response

begins with →

  • a stimilis called UNCONDITIONED stimulus (US) that reliably triggers a response, the UNCONDITIONED response

  • a NEUTRAL stimulus (NS) that triggers NO response

the unconditioned stimulus is paired with the neutral stimulus and results in the unconditioned responses, this is repeated many times until →

the associated between the two stimuli is made, this is the state of acquisition

→

the old neutral stimulus has become a CONDITIONED stimilus because it now elicits the conditioned response

unconditioned stimulus (US) → unconditioned response (UR)

US is associated with the Conditioned Stimulus (CS) → Conditioned response (CR) which is similar to the UR

John B Watson and the Little Albert experiment (1920): applied the principles of CC to humans, conditioned emotional responses

  • conditioned a 9-month old baby to associate rats (CS) and a loud noise (US) and fear them (CR)

  • baby showed no natural fear to rat but showed natural fear to loud noice, during conditioning the loud noise was associated with the rat → leading baby to show conditoned fear response to rat

  • phobia may begin as conditioned emotional responses (CER)

  • CERs can spread to other stimuli

  • conditioned fears respond to desensitization

  • many of our likes, dislikes, and fears are acquired as CERs

  • widely exploited by advertisers who pair their products with positive images and music

acquisition: process of acquiring a new response, when CR strength increases (ideally, US immediately after CS, optimal delay between both from 1/2 to 5 secs)

extinction: disappearance of the CR when the US no longer follows the CS

spontaneous recovery: return of a learned response after apparent extinction

stimulus generalization: tendency to respond to stimuli similar to but not identical to a CS

stimulus discrimination: ability to respond differently to various stimuli

learning through operant conditioning (type of associative learning)→

operant (or instrumental) conditioning: a form of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a REINFORCER of diminished if followed by a PUNISHER

  • based on what happens AFTER the response

  • involves associating one’s own behavior with consequences

Law of Effect: basic principle according to which the probability of a response is altered by the effect it has

operant reinforcer: event that follows a response and increases its probability of occurring again

  • positive reinforcement: strengthens responses by PRESENTING a REWARDING stimulus after a desired event

  • negative reinforcement: strengthens the response by REMOVING AN UNPLEASANT stimulus after a desired event

  • primary reinforcers: an innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need

  • secondary (or conditioned) reinforcers: a stimulus that gains its reinforcing power via its association with a primary reinforcer

reinforcement schedule: a pattern that defines how a desired response will be reinforced

  • continuous reinforcement: the desired response is reinforced every time it occurs

  • partial (intermittent) reinforcement: responses are sometimes reinforced and sometimes not reinforced

partial-reinforcement effect: finding that operant responses reinforced on partial schedules are more resistant to extinction

punisher: event that follows a responses and decreases its probability of occurring again

  • positive punishment: DECREASES responses by PRESENTING AN AVERSIVE stimulus after an undesired event

  • negative punishment: decreases the response by REMOVING A DESIRABLE or PLEASANT stimulus after an undesired event

stimulus is presented: positive reinforcement → increases likelihood of behavior

stimulus is presented: positive punishment → decreases the likelihood of behavior

stimulus is removed: negative reinforcement → increases the likelihood of behavior

stimulus is removed: negative punishment → decreases the likelihood of behavior

OC and child education: praising (or punishing) a child immediately after the (un-)desired event

OC and superstitions: supserstitious behaviors are repeated because they appear to produce reinforcement, even though they are actually unnecessary

OC and gambling: gambling as partial reinforcement, most resistant to extinction

OC and health-related behavior: relaxation obtained through smoking as positive reinforcement that increases smoking

limitations of behaviorist views:

  • an animal’s capacity for conditioning is limited by its biology, so not all associations are learned equally

  • learning not solely about conditioning and association, rewards and punishments

  • learning can occur through observing others’ behavior, not always need to do something to learn

  • human cognitions (thoughts, perspectives, expectations, etc.) and social context are critical for learning

learning by watching others:

  • observational learning (OL): the acquisition or modification of a behavior after exposure to at least one performance of that behavior

  • modeling: the imitation of behavior through OL

  • vicarious conditioning: learning the consequences of an action by watching others being rewarded or punished for performing the action

(the emotional attitudes we develop towards foods, political parties, ethnic groups, etc. are probably conditioned vicariously)