Workings Of The Mind Flashcards
(14 cards)
Describe why people have an adaptive unconscious
allows us to process vast amounts of information quickly and efficiently without conscious effort. It developed as a survival mechanism, enabling humans to make rapid decisions in complex environments
Describe the properties of the unconscious and how they differ from those of consciousness
Unconscious- automatic and fast, can handle multiple tasks at once, heavily influenced by emotions, operates below awareness, implicit, involuntary, large capacity
Conscious- deliberate and slow requires thought and effort, operates with awareness explicit, can only handle a limited number of tasks at a time, relies on more logic and critical thinking rather than emotions, voluntary, limited capacity
Explain the difference between the adaptive unconscious and the Freudian unconscious
-The adaptive unconscious is a modern, scientifically supported concept that focuses on efficient, automatic mental processes.
-The Freudian unconscious is rooted in psychoanalysis and emphasizes hidden desires, repression, and internal conflict.
What is the strop effect
It shows that reading can become automatic; you can’t ignore the word/can’t stop processing words
Color naming is controlled- identifying colors requires more conscious effort because it’s not as deeply ingrained as reading
Understand the difference between an automatic behavior, a reflex, and an instinct
Automatic behavior- behaviors that were once conscious but became unconscious through repetition and practice (once learning to read it becomes automatic)
Reflexes- quick, immediate responses to specific stimuli (pulling away from something hot)
Instincts- complex patterns of behavior triggered by specific (hibernation)
Consider the distinction between the consciousness as president and consciousness as press secretary
models of the mind
As President- consciousness is the decision-maker, the unconscious gathers information and implements decisions, consciousness has limited capacity but it makes the important choices
As Press Secretary- unconscious processes gather information, make decisions, and implement them, consciousness merely announces decisions already made by unconscious processes, the consciousness believes their making the decisions but it’s an illusion
Compare and contrast insight vs. analysis as methods of problem solving
Analysis- a way of problem solving when you apply logic ( trial and error)
Insight- not trial and error, when the solution comes to you (an unconscious way of solving)
Consider what the cocktail effect tells us about unconscious processing
the unconscious mind plays an active role in filtering and prioritizing information
Describe the mere exposure effect
Merely being exposed to something/someone tends to lead to liking
Consider whether confabulation is a conscious or an unconscious process and explain what it tells us
about our conscious experience
A conscious process; where we create reasonable explanations for our behavior, whether they’re accurate or not
Compare and contrast the James-Lange theory of emotion with the two-factor theory of emotion
James-Lange believed a stimulus triggers a bodily reaction, and we interpret this bodily reaction as an emotion.
The two-factor theory believes physiological arousal (increased heart rate, blood pressure) is needed and then cognitive labeling of that arousal based on context. When our bodies react, we look for plausible explanations in our environment to label the emotion
Understand the distinction between the subjective threshold and the objective threshold and how
this distinction pertains to subliminal perception
When you process information enough that your unconscious can use the information it’s the objective threshold (has an influence on cognition or behavior). The subjective threshold is the amount of time it takes for you to be consciously aware that you perceive something.
Subliminal perception occurs when a stimulus is presented below the subjective threshold but above the objective threshold—meaning the person does not consciously perceive it, but it still affects their thoughts or behaviors.
Explain how implicit learning is different from explicit leaning and how implicit learning occurs
Implicit learning- happens naturally and unconsciously through experience and exposure (patterns, habits, skills, and intuition)
Explicit learning- conscious and requires active attention and deliberately involves instruction or study (facts, rules, structured information
