Cognitive

• Assumptions

  • thought processes can be and should be studied scientifically
  • introspection is too unscientific and that well controlled laboratory studies can investigate what we are thinking
  • the mind works like a computer (input, process, produces, output)
• Invisible Gorilla Experiment - Aim + Procedure

  • to see how much individuals could be unaware of in their visual field

  1. 228 observers shown films - asked to record what they see
  2. 2 types of video
  3. 1/2 observers watched where a woman holding an umbrella, 1/2 watched a man in a black gorilla suit
  4. observer asked if they saw anything unusual
  5. 192 results included in final analysis
• Invisible Gorilla Experiment - Results + conclusion

  1. 54% noticed the unexpected event (gorilla / umbrella)
  2. more observers noticed in the opaque condition

  • we miss much of what we see in our visual field due to inattention
  • evaluation - criticised for its lack of ecological validity ( not realistic to everyday life)
• Role of schema

  • a cognitive representation of our ideas about a person or situation ( formed through experience, unique to each individual, we see our own version of reality)
• Theoretical + computer models

  • used to explain and make inferences about mental processes
  • use the theoretical model to make distinct steps in a thought process
• Multi store model of memory

  • shows how a memory goes from sensory input to long - term memory
• Information processing model

  • draws similarities between the human mind and the computational
  • believe that the mind can function like a computer
• Similarities and differences of the computer and mind

  • similarities - processes information, input ( data/ senses), output (printout/ behaviour), memory
  • computer - metallic/plastic, limited memory
  • mind - organic, unlimited memory
• Theoretical model

  • use of it is part of this assumption that the human mind is like a computer
  • input ---> processing ---> output
• Emergence of cognitive neuroscience

  • main focus to look for a biological basis to thought processes
  • use of scanning machines have advanced too
• Evaluation

  • + produced some good descriptions of what processes occur
  • - use of lab experiments means that the research lacks validity as the thought processes measured could be argued to be artificial
  • - approach is criticised for its comparison of people and computers as this sees people as mechanistic and lacks free will