Paper 1 ERQ Flashcards
(9 cards)
Bias in Thinking and Decision Making
Intro:
- People are prone to errors in thinking and decision-making due to the way we process information [trends in how we make these errors -> cognitive biases]
- Often occur as we are cognitive misers
- The Dual Processing Model explains this as a tendency to choose System 1 over System 2 thinking
- System 1 -> faster but more prone to being incorrect
- Eg. of cognitive biases are anchoring bias and the peak-end rule
- Anchoring bias -> estimates fall around a given value (the anchor) even if the value is implausible or highly unlikely [uncertain of how to make a decision -> use the anchor as a reference point]
- The peak-end rule -> tend to remember things either at the peak of the experience or at the end [we have difficulties remembering the average experience over time -> decisions based on the most salient information]
Englich and Mussweiler [Anchoring]:
L: researcher only had a sample of one gender, construct validity is also an issue because anchoring bias cannot be fully measured [operationalized], sample is also a problem because they used law students [not representative]
S: lab [extraneous variables]
Kahneman [Peak-End-Rule]:
L: low ecological validity, sample bias [uni students]
S: controlled [within-subjects], laboratory [replicable]
Conclusion:
Although both studies have the problem of low ecological validity, they were also supported by other research suggesting these biases do occur in real life. We need to recognize our errors and thinking as it will help us to live better lives. Unfortunately, we are prone to making incorrect illogical judgments.
Technology Negative
Intro:
- Today’s teens are “digital natives.” [living in a world of technology -> phone that wakes people up, most spend a good part of day looking at a screen]
- Social media like Snapchat is part of how teens interact with others
- Question psychologists have is to what extent does technology have a negative effect on cognitive processes? The answer is that it is complicated
Mueller and Oppenheimer:
L: Content not related to course material [ecological validity], sample [students are used to test taking]
S: Experiment is applicable to student practices [ecological validity]
Sparrow:
L: Learning facts is not common [ecological validity], ‘level of effort’ cannot be measured
S: Independent samples design, standerdized procedure [replicable]
Conclusion:
- The problem with research on digital natives is that there is a lot of bias in the research
- It is assumed that we need to memorize things like in the past, but this is no longer true [difficult to say “negative” or “positive.”]
- Also, research must be done under natural conditions
- Problem -> computer use is self-reported, people often lie so that they people don’t think that they are addicted to computers
- More research will be needed to determine if the effects are overall good or bad.
Reliability of Memory
Intro:
Although we all seem to trust our memories, many psychologists argue that our memories are less reliable than we think. Some memories, such as procedural memories, seem to be reliable. We never forget how to ride a bike or how to swim. However, episodic and semantic memories, both of which are encoded by the hippocampus, are open to memory distortion.
Kulkofsky:
L: correlational design, self-report data might be subject to bias
S: cross cultural approach [generalizability], large and diverse sample
Loftus and Pickerell:
L: only 25% had false memories [no indication of why], small sample size, potential demand characteristics, ethical concernes
S: slightly longitudinal [ecological validity]
Conclusion:
In conclusion, episodic memories are not always reliable. However, if there is an emotional response and a personal relevance to the event, people are more likely to have a reliable memory. This may be the result of biological factors such as the activity of the amygdala.
Cog Ethics
Intro:
Ethical considerations are an important part of the design of any study. The cognitive approach studies cognitive processes such as memory. Manipulating people’s memories – or challenging their memories – may have a negative effect on their self-esteem or self-confidence. And yet, we have learned a lot about how memories are formed and how they affect our behavior by carrying out experiments. Deception is often used in experiments on false memories. Challenging the accuracy of people’s memories may lead to undue stress. And in order to study memory distortion, often researchers use longitudinal research, where participants must have the right to withdraw.
Loftus and Pickerell and Loftus and Palmer:
- Researcher has to justify that the deception was necessary and that no harm would come to the individual as a result [eg. to avoid demand characteristics; to help the research (expectancy effect) or not help (screw you effect)]
- In Loftus and Pickerell case -> unlikely to have led to undue stress; however, the act of watching a video of a car crash might [but participants were informed about the videos prior to giving their consent and the videos were taken from drivers education films and were not in any way traumatic
- If surprised, this would have been potentially undue stress or harm
Conclusion:
Ethical considerations are an important part of psychology. Following ethics not only protects participants, but it helps to develop trust between participants and the field of psychology. Without participants, we cannot do research. When ethical considerations are not followed, there needs to be a justification that should be reviewed by an ethics panel. Deception, for example, must be justified and its potential effect on participants should be discussed. Debriefing, anonymity, and the right to withdraw are important ways to protect participants when they feel that this deception was not justified or that the study is stressful for them.
Cog Methods
Intro:
- The cognitive approach studies how we process information
- One cognitive process that is studied in this approach is memory
- Research method: Experiment [or Questionaire]
- Several key strengths: IVi is manipulated, other variables are controlled [a cause-and-effect relationship can be determined], highly standardized [replicable]
- The data is usually quantitative and can be statistically analyzed for significance
- Participants are randomly allocated to groups to avoid the characteristics of the individuals influencing the results
Loftus and Palmer:
L: ethics, artificiality [demand characteristics]
Glanzer and Cunitz:
L: aritficiality, sample
S: sample size, independent samples
General:
- Control over variables
- Cause and effect relationship
Emotion and Memory
Intro:
Flashbulb Memory Theory argues that when a memory is created of an event that is both emotional and of personal importance, it is more likely to be vivid, accurate, and not distorted by post-event information. Brown and Kulik’s model of flashbulb memory argues that our prior knowledge (schema) helps us to decide whether something is important or not. Then, two factors play a role in the creation of the flashbulb memory - an emotional reaction (surprise) and overt rehearsal. Brown and Kulik also suggested that there are biological mechanisms that are responsible for the creation of these highly personal memories.
Kulkofsky:
L: correlational design, self-report data might be subject to bias
S: cross cultural approach [generalizability], large and diverse sample
McGaugh and Cahill:
L: possible cultural bias, story told [low ecological validity]
S: use of control group [internal validity], experimental design [cause-and-effect relationship]
Conclusion:
Although there is cognitive and biological support for the theory of Flashbulb memories, it appears that emotional memories may also be distorted. It is possible that the students in Neisser and Harsh’s study did not experience high levels of emotion - or that it was not personal enough to result in overt rehearsal. One of the problems with the theory is that is not possible to reliably measure one’s level of emotion at a given time - or measure their level of overt rehearsal. Also, flashbulb memory may be culturally biased. Research has shown that the focus on the individual during a national tragedy may be more common in individualistic cultures than in collectivistic ones. Still, there is research that shows that the adrenaline and the amygdala play a role in the creation of emotional memories, regardless of their level of accuracy.
Two Memory Models
Intro:
Memory is a complex cognitive process. It involves the encoding, storage, and retrieval of information. As the process is complex, models are used to explain how memory works. An early model of memory was proposed by Atkinson & Shiffrin, called the Multi-Store model. This model was the first to distinguish between short-term and long-term memory stores. A later model is schema theory, which argues that memories are not “stored” as whole memories, but are reconstructed. These two models explain different aspects of memory and have different evidence and limitations. The Multi-store model explains that all memory is taken in through our senses. This information enters our sensory store, where if we pay attention to it, it will pass to short-term memory. Short-term memory is limited in duration and capacity. According to Miller, STM can hold only 7 plus or minus 2 pieces of information. Short-term memory lasts for six to twelve seconds. When information in the short-term memory is rehearsed, it enters the long-term memory store in a process called “encoding.” When we recall information, it is retrieved from LTM and moved back into STM.
Milner:
L: model does not address all the different types of memory [eg. in the HM study, it was found that procedural memory was not affected by the removal of the hippocampus], emotion, or distortion
S: explains distortion / decay, backed up by biological support
Warrington and Schlaice:
L: . not clear how the various components of the model interact [eg. how the central executive “allocates” sensory information to the different STM stores], not clear how the episodic buffer integrates information, difficult to measure STM capacity with regard to the different STM stores, cannot explain memory distortion, no mention of emotion
S: research supports its claims and it explains behaviors [eg. multi-tasking], helped to explain the complexity of memory processing types of stimuli], can explain multitasking
Conclusion: The MSM explains that if memories are not rehearsed, then the memories are lost or “decay.” Schema theory does not clearly explain why memories are forgotten. Finally, as seen above, the MSM has biological support– whereas schema does not have clear biological support. The two models together give us a good understanding of how memory may work. Both models have different limitations, but both models fail to address different types of memory and the role emotion plays in the creation of memories.
One Memory Model
The Multi-store model explains that all memory is taken in through our senses. This information enters our sensory store, where if we pay attention to it, it will pass to short-term memory. Short-term memory is limited in duration and capacity. According to Miller, STM can hold only 7 plus or minus 2 pieces of information. Short-term memory lasts for six to twelve seconds. When information in the short-term memory is rehearsed, it enters the long-term memory store in a process called “encoding.” When we recall information, it is retrieved from LTM and moved back into STM.
Milner:
L: ethical considerations
S: longitudinal, method triangulation
Glanzer and Cunitz:
L: aritficiality, sample
S: sample size, independent samples
Model:
L: model does not address all the different types of memory [eg. in the HM study, it was found that procedural memory was not affected by the removal of the hippocampus], emotion, or distortion
S: explains distortion / decay, backed up by biological support
