Cognitive Approach

• The cognitive approach focuses on how people process information through their minds rather than just observing behavior.
• The cognitive approach is the most influential theory of learning.
• The cognitive approach emphasizes that we are not passive recipients of stimuli but active processors of information.
• The cognitive approach has been criticized for being too abstract and lacking empirical evidence.
• The cognitive approach argues that internal mental processes can, and should, be studied scientifically, and therefore looks at areas neglected by behaviourists - e.g. memory, perception, and thinking.
• Private cognitive processes cannot be observed directly, so inferences must be made about what is going on in a person's mind based on their behaviour.
• Another way to study internal processes is through the use of theoretical models (e.g. the MSM, WMM) and computer models (e.g. artificial intelligence).
• A schema is a pack of information/mental framework of beliefs and expectations, formed from experience, that influence cognitive processing and interpretation of information.
• Schema theory suggests that schemas are used as shortcuts when interpreting new experiences or events.
• Schemas may become distorted over time due to repeated exposure to certain types of information.
• Cognitive dissonance refers to an uncomfortable feeling caused by holding two conflicting ideas simultaneously.
• Babies are born with simple motor schema for innate behaviours, for example sucking and grasping.
• Schema enable us to process lots of information quickly, however these may also distort our interpretations of sensory information, leading to perceptual errors.
• Internal mental processes are private operations of the mind such as attention and perception that mediate between stimulus and response.
• A schema is a mental framework of beliefs and expectations that influence cognitive processing. They are developed from experience.
• Inference is the process whereby cognitive psychologists draw conclusions about the way mental processes operate on the basis of observed behaviour.
• Attention is selective and influenced by prior knowledge and goals.
• Cognitive neuroscience is the scientific study of those biological structures that underpin cognitive processes.
• As we get older, our schema become more detailed and sophisticated. They are useful to prevent us from being overwhelmed by environmental stimuli.
• One important theoretical model is the information processing approach, which suggests that information flows through the cognitive system in a sequence of stages. These include input, storage, retrieval, and the multi-store model.

  This information approach is based on the way that computers function but a computer model would involve actually programming a computer to see if such instructions produce a similar output to humans. If they do then we can suggest that similar processes are going on inside the human mind. Such computational models have proved useful in the development of AI.
• 𝘾𝙊𝙂𝙉𝙄𝙏𝙄𝙑𝙀 𝙉𝙀𝙐𝙍𝙊𝙎𝘾𝙄𝙀𝙉𝘾𝙀:

  • studies how brain structures are linked to mental processes
  • 1860s: Paul Broca identifies how damage to the frontal lobe can cause speech impairments
  • recent brain imaging techniques (fMRI and PET scans) allow scientists to observe and describe the neurological basis of mental processes
  • helps us to understand the basis of neurological disorders such as OCD (parahippocampal gyrus)
  • brain-mapping technique of 'brain fingerprinting' may help to analyse the brainwave patterns of eyewitnesses to determine whether they are lying in court
• 𝙀𝙑𝘼𝙇𝙐𝘼𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉𝙎:

  1. Scientific methods
  2. Lack of external validity
  3. Real-world application
  4. Machine reductionism
  5. Soft determinism
• 𝟭. 𝗦𝗖𝗜𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗙𝗜𝗖 𝗠𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗗𝗦:

  Cognitive psychologists employ highly controlled and rigorous methods of study so that researchers are able to infer cognitive processes at work. This has involved the use of lab studies to produce reliable, objective data. In addition, the emergence of cognitive neuroscience has enabled the two fields of biology and cognitive psychology to come together to enhance the scientific basis of a study.

  This means that the study of the mind has a credible scientific basis.
• 𝟮. 𝗟𝗔𝗖𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗘𝗫𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗩𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗬:

  As cognitive psychology relies on the inference of mental processes, rather than the direct observation of behaviour, it can occasionally suffer from being too abstract and theoretical in nature. Similarly, research studies of mental processes are often carried out using artificial stimuli (such as remembering word lists) that may not represent everyday experiences.

  Therefore, research on cognitive processes may lack external validity.
• 𝟯. 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗟-𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗟𝗗 𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡:

  The cognitive approach is probably the most dominant approach in psychology today and has been applied to a wide range of practical and theoretical contexts. For example, cognitive psychology has made an important contribution in the field of AI and the development of robots. These are exciting advances that may revolutionise how we live in the future. Cognitive principles have also been applied to the treatment of depression and improved the reliability of eyewitness testimony.

  This supports the value of the cognitive approach.
• 𝟰. 𝗠𝗔𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗘 𝗥𝗘𝗗𝗨𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗜𝗦𝗠:

  There are similarities between the human mind and the operations of a 'thinking machine' such as a computer. However, such machine reductionism ignores the influence of human emotion and motivation on the cognitive system, and how this may affect our ability to process information. For instance, research has found that human memory may be affected by emotional factors, such as anxiety affecting eyewitness testimony.

  This suggests that machine reductionism may weaken the validity of the cognitive approach.
• 𝟱. 𝗦𝗢𝗙𝗧 𝗗𝗘𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗠𝗜𝗡𝗜𝗦𝗠:

  The cognitive approach is founded on soft determinsim, i.e. the view that human behaviour may be determined by internal and external factors but we can also exert our free will at times. The hard determinsim view says all our behaviour is determined by factors other than our will, such as conditioning and genes.
• The information processing approach compares the mind to a computer in the way that both encode, store, and retrieve information.
• The cognitive approach developed in the 1950s as a response to the behaviourists' failure to acknowledge mental processes. The development of the first computers gave cognitive psychologists a metaphor for describing mental processes.
• Buckner and Peterson (1996) observed that episodic and semantic memories may be located in opposite sides of the prefrontal cortex, whilst Braver (1997) suggested that the central executive may reside in a similar area.