approaches in psychology - cognitive approach.

Question 1

What is meant by “cognitive approach”?

Answer 1

Attempt to study internal mental processes such as thought, perception and attention and how it affects behaviour.
[focus on how people perceive, store, manipulate and interpret information]

Question 2

What is meant by “internal mental processes”?

Answer 2

Operations that occur in the mind but can be studied scientifically.

Question 3

What is meant by “schema”?

Answer 3

A cognitive/mental framework developed from experience which includes a set of beliefs or expectations which help organise and interpret information in the brain.

Question 4

What is meant by “inference”?

Answer 4

The act of drawing a conclusion from evidence and reasoning meaning we take clues from observable behaviour to suggest what is going on in the unobservable mind.

Question 5

What is meant by “cognitive neuroscience”?

Answer 5

Scientific study of brain structure and mental processes.

Question 6

What are the assumptions of the cognitive approach?

Answer 6

• internal mental processes should be studied scientifically such as precautions and memory.
• seeks to explain how this affects behaviour.
• mental processes cannot be directly observed.
• as an alternative inferences are made meaning a conclusion is reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning.

Question 7

Describe the cognitive model.

Answer 7

[study processes indirectly by making inferences about what is going on inside people’s minds on the basis of their behaviour]

stimulus ⟶ thinking ⟶ response behaviour.

Question 8

What experiment supports the cognitive approach?

Answer 8

Jacob’s experiment in 1887.

Question 9

What happened in Jacob’s experiment?

Answer 9

1. gave participants a list of numbers/letters.
   
   2. length of lists were increased until participants were unable to recall the numbers.

Question 10

What was the aim of Jacob’s experiment?

Answer 10

Test the capacity of short-term memory.

Question 11

What were the findings of Jacob’s experiment?

Answer 11

Participants were only able to recall on average 9 numbers and 7 letters.

Question 12

What are the models that support the cognitive approach?

Answer 12

• theoretical models.
• computer models.

Question 13

What do the models help us understand about the cognitive approach?

Answer 13

• help us explain human behaviour.
• help us make inferences about mental processes.
• help us understand the brain.

Question 14

What are the theoretical models?

Answer 14

A simplified, usually pictorial representations of particular mental processes based on current research evidence.

Question 15

What is an example of a theoretical model?

Answer 15

The multi-store model of memory.

Question 16

What are theoretical models used for?

Answer 16

To show information flowing through the cognitive system in a series of stages.

Question 17

What do computer models state?

Answer 17

• human cognition can be explained or represented using a computer analogy.
• with a computer you have to input data which goes to a central processing unit
  ↳ the brain (the CPU) takes in data through sensory memory.
• computer has to encode this data (a series of digits/symbols etc).
  ↳ memory encodes data too such as visual/auditory.
• data then stored and retrieved when needed in both computers and brain/memory.

Question 18

What is the purpose of schemas?

Answer 18

• allow us to fill in gaps of information and inform our expectations.
• enables us to behave appropriately in a situation.
• allows us to take quick mental shortcuts when interpreting the huge amounts of information we have to deal with everyday.