Cognitive Approach

• State the three assumptions of the cognitive approach

  1, Internal mental processes can be and should be studied scientifically - inferences are made about what is going on inside people’s minds on the basis of their behaviour 2, How our brains process the world affects how we behave 3, The mind works like a computer
• What is inference?

  Going beyond the immediate evidence to make assumptions about mental processes that cannot be directly observed
• State the two theoretical models put forward by the cognitive approach

  The computer analogy and the information-processing model
• What is the information processing model?

  x Information flows through the cognitive system in 3 stages which influences our behaviour: 1, Input (senses) 2, Process (cognitive processes) 3, Output (behaviour)
• What is the computer model?

  The belief that the mind works like a computer in the way it processes information (the ‘computer analogy’)
• Define a schema

  A mental framework gained from experience which helps us to predict what happens in the world around us
• State two advantages of schemas

  1, They help us to process a lot of information quickly and act as a mental short cut 2, Help us to predict what will happen in our world based on our experiences
• State two disadvantages of schemas

  1, They may distort our interpretations of sensory information leading to perceptual errors 2, Can cause biased recall based on what we expect to happen
• Define cognitive neuroscience

  The study of the brain to investigate the neurological basis of cognitive processes
• Describe the early history of the link between brain structures and cognition

  1860s --> Paul Broca identifying how damage to an area in frontal lobe can lead to damage to speech production = Broca’s area
• What advanced which allowed the establishment of cognitive neuroscience?

  Brain scanning techniques e.g. fMRI and PET scans
• What is a practical application of cognitive neuroscience?

  Brain scanning techniques used to locate different types of memory in different areas of the brain - allowed for development of effective treatment for people with memory problems
• What is an example of a study which has used cognitive neuroscience to reveal different types of memory in different parts of the brain?

  Tulving et al. (1994) --> used PET scan to show how episodic and semantic memory are located on opposite sides of the pre-frontal cortex
• State 2 real-life applications of the cognitive approach

  x Used to treat psychopathological disorders (OCD, depression) x Artificial intelligence