Cognitive Assumptions Flashcards
Component 1 (20 cards)
What is the cognitive approach in psychology concerned with?
Internal mental processes
Who is a famous figure in cognitive psychology?
Elizabeth Loftus
What does the human mind work like, according to cognitive psychologists?
A computer
How does cognitive psychology suggest that we make sense of our environment? What does this let us do?
By processing and storing information which influences our behaviour
What is a popular theory in cognitive psychology?
Multi-store model of memory
What is the multi-store model of memory?
Information is input through our senses
Then moves to short-term memory and long-term memory
When we need to recall the information, it is output
What are the 3 cognitive assumptions?
- Internal mental processes
- Schemas
- Computer analogy
What does the internal mental processes assumption believe?
Humans are information processors. These processes help us to interpret and respond to the environment appropriately
What is the internal mental process?
(4 points)
Perception
Attention
Memory
Language
What is the perception part of the internal mental process?
Noticing an object or event
What is the attention part of the internal mental process?
Paying attention to the object/event
What is the memory part of the internal mental process?
Searching through our memory store to see if there is a match with something already experienced or seen
What is the language part of the internal mental process?
Using knowledge of language to name the event/object
How do psychologists study internal mental processes?
Using introspection
What is introspection?
(IMP)
When a participant describes how a task or stimulus makes them feel
What is Griffiths’ study in 1994 about?
(What was used, method, conclusion)
(IMP)
Asked participants to use introspection when playing a fruit machine. Participants were asked to verbalise what they were thinking. Griffiths found that gamblers made more irrational verbalisations than non-gamblers
What are schemas?
Act like a mental shortcut. Organised packs of information that are stored in memory
What happens to the schemas when we experience new things?
They expand and link concepts together, helping us to interpret and react to the environment and predict what might happen next
What are schemas built through?
Experiences and interactions with the world
What is a problem with schemas?
May not always be accurate as they are based off of human experience
