AO1

• The computer model refers to the process of using computer analogies as a representation of human cognition
• Based on this computer analogy, cognitive psychology is interested in how the brain inputs, stores and retrieves information. This has lead to models which shows information flowing through the cognitive system such as the multi-store model of memory.
• Cognitive psychology has been influenced by developments in computer science and analogies are often made between how a computer works and how we process information
• Assumptions- The main assumption of the cognitive approach is that information received from our senses is processed by the brain and that this processing directs how we behave
• Mental processes are information processing completed by the brain, and the brain’s processing can be compared to that of a computer.
• Internal mental processes cannot be observed directly but we can infer what a person is thinking based on how they act.
• The emergence of cognitive neuroscience

  Cognitive and biological psychology can be integrated into a field of study called Cognitive Neuroscience as a way of understanding human behaviour. CN aims to find out how cognition is produced by the interaction of neural mechanisms, brain structure, and brain chemistry. This is done using brain imaging techniques such as fMRI and PET scans. Examples of brain mapping: see Braver et al (1997)
• Schemas are ‘packages’ of ideas and knowledge about a certain person, place, object or time. They are generated through experience, becoming more sophisticated through time. They also act as mental frameworks, providing us with ‘mental shortcuts’ so we can process large volumes of data quickly and efficiently, thus avoiding sensory overload.
• Internal mental processes cannot be observed directly but we can infer what a person is thinking based on how they act.