3.1 Cognitive processes
Cognitive psychology
 Includes: perception, thinking, problem solving,
memory, language, and attention.
 Cognition refers to such processes.
 And cognition is based on one’s mental representation
 A mental representation is every individual’s unique
view of the world – due to one’s experiences.
For example: what is right and wrong, gender roles,
prejudice, view on education…
Cognitive principles
1. Mental processes guide behaviour
2. The mind can be studied
scientifically
3. Cognitive processes are
influenced by social and cultural
factors
1. Mental processes guide behaviour
(people are active information processors)
 The mind as a complex machine
Bottom-up processing (from the sensory system)
2. Processed in the mind by top-down processing (prestored information)
3. Finally – output (behaviour)
 A link between what we think – and how we act
1.
1. Mental processes guide behaviour
(people are active information processors)
 For example stereotyping (stereotype threat)
 Our memory can be false due to the nature of
reconstructing our memory
 Our perception can deceive us – what we think is
objectively experienced may just be our brain’s
interpretation (context, frequency or recency
influence) Example, the Ames room
 Visual illusion + be a thinker on p. 69
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCV2Ba5wrcs Ames room
(Philip Zimbardo)
2. The mind can be studied scientifically
 Experiments are commonly used – however now
both in labs and in our daily lives
 Today cognitive psychologists use case studies, brain
scans, verbal protocols…
anyone who would dare to try it??
Memory tests
 Go to http://nanok.com/stm/ to test your Short term
memory
3. Cognitive processes are influenced
by social and cultural factors
(memory, perception…)
 Schema theory (Bartlett)memory is subject to
distortions
 War of the ghost story
 Schema is a mental representation of knowledge
Moving On…
Activity – save until later
 War of the ghost story
 Read it twice
Moving on to Memory models
How does our memory work?
Look like?
 Structured? How is it
divided?
How do we know? Do we
know?
Individual Work
Write an answer to the following learning outcome:
Evaluate two models or theories of one cognitive
process with reference to research studies
1. The Multi-store model of memory p. 72-73
2. The working memory model (4) p. 73-76
More research can be found in other books such as :
Oxford revision guides (store in C313)
The internet
Note! First you have to describe them before evaluating
them in your answer!