INTRODUCTION TO COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY (PSYC 2003 YA)
Fall/Winter 2013/2014 – Classroom: BB1021 – Mon & Weds 1:00PM – 2:30PM
Instructor: Mike Moland, Ph.D. e-mail: mikemoland@shaw.ca
Graduate Assistant: Nicole Poirier e-mail: npoirie1@lakeheadu.ca
TEXT: Reisberg, D. (2012). Cognition: Exploring the Science of the Mind. 5th ed. New
York London: Norton
COURSE D ESCRIPTION: The goal of this course is to acquaint the student with the history,
philosophy, and research surrounding selected issues in the psychology of cognition. The
issues selected include: (1) learning, (2) visual perception, (3) memory and knowledge, (4)
imagery, (5) attention, (6) problem solving and reasoning, (7) decision making, and (8)
speech and language. For each of these, we will discuss the problems confronting
researchers, what we know about the topics, and what we have yet to understand.
COURSE COMPONENTS
Midterm Test 1
Experimental Report
December Exam
Midterm Test 2
Concept Illustration Assignment
Final Exam
Date
October 16, 2013
December 2, 2013
T.B.A.
February 19, 2014
April 2, 2014
T.B.A.
Weight
15%
10%
25%
15%
10%
25%
EXAM FORMAT
Midterms will comprise 50 multiple-choice items (1 mark each), 6 of 8 short answer questions (5 marks each), and 2 of 3 long answer
questions (10 marks each). The December and Final exams will consist of 100 multiple-choice items (1 mark each), 10 out of 12 short
answer questions (5 marks each), and 2 of 3 long answer questions (10 marks each). Space will be provided on the exam for all answers.
Multiple choice and short answer questions will be selected from the lectures, text book, and video material. All exams are noncumulative. I will e-mail the PowerPoint slides to all students in the class after each chapter has been covered. Those who miss class
during video presentations will not be given the video material – no exceptions.
THE EXPERIMENTAL R EPORT
The report should be a summary of two experiments, with each experiment selected from a different refereed journal publication. The
journal articles must be experimental reports of research involving human cognition and must be linked by a common experimental
question (e.g., short-term memory, speech impairments, etc.). A practical method for starting the report is to choose an article from the
reference section of Reisberg (pp. A19-A59) and to select other articles via a literature search. The experiments must not come from
review articles, or correlational studies. Assignments MUST include a printed copy of each journal article with their report.
The report will contain an introduction that summarizes the experimental question and identifies the specific operational definitions used
to describe psychological concepts in the experiments. The report will include a separate summary of the experiment described in each
of the journal articles (or the most representative experiment, if there is more than one experiment in the article). The paper should end
with a discussion that summarizes and interprets the results. All journal articles must be cleared with the G.A. before the reports are
prepared and submitted (students may send the articles to the G.A. via e-mailed .pdf attachments for review). Students are not permitted
to use the same articles selected by other students. Articles should be relatively current (i.e., year 2003-2013).
The report must use APA style of referencing, and the description of each experiment must include: (1) clear identification of the
independent and dependent variables employed in the experiment, and (2) reference to details specific to the experiment (i.e., number of
subjects, type of test material). Approximately, two-thirds of the report grade will be based on the experimental descriptions and the
remaining third will reflect how well the experiments are integrated by the introduction and discussion. The experimental descriptions'
mark will be based on the clear identification of the independent and dependent variable in three parts of the experiment: 1) the
experimental hypothesis, 2) the experimental method, and 3) the experimental results. Please consult the G.A. for further details.
CONCEPT ILLUSTRATION ASSIGNMENT
To encourage you to apply what you are learning in the course to everyday life, you will be required to find 4 “real life” examples of
terms discussed in class. The examples MUST come from the Thunder Bay Chronicle Journal newspaper, not from online sources.
Comics or articles in the newspaper can be used. Once your concept has been approved, no other student may use the same article. To
get your concept approved, bring it to class for me to review and sign (after class), or scan in and e-mail the comics with a description
explaining why you think the concept you've selected matches the comic or article well – then bring it to our next class for me to sign off
on it. If a comic or article has NOT been signed off by me – you will receive a grade of “0” for that illustration. If the newspaper article
explicitly identifies the concept (e.g., “Joe’s injury has produced anterograde amnesia”) you are not allowed to use it. You should cut
out the comic or article from the paper and paste it onto an 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper. One page per concept – 5 pages in total (including
title page). Each page should include a description of where you found the illustration (e.g., Date, title, author, and page of the Chronicle
Journal), and a brief description explaining why the illustration is suitable. No assignments will be accepted after April 2, 2014.
Assignments MUST be stapled and handed in - in class on the due dates. You may only use the approved concepts below.
CONCEPT ILLUSTRATION ASSIGNMENT (CHOOSE FROM 4 CONCEPTS BELOW)
Priming
Perseveration
Anterograde Amnesia
Agnosia
Confirmation Bias
Misinformation Effect
Encoding Specificity
Action Slip
Retrograde Amnesia
Availability Heuristic
Context Reinstatement
Intrusion Error
Garden-path Sentence
Base-rate Information
Anchoring
Illusory Correlation
Functional Fixedness
Source Confusion
State-dependent Memory
Representativeness Heuristic
DEADLINES
All assignments are due AT THE BEGINNING OF CLASS on the due dates. Late assignments will NOT be accepted. In
fact, I STRONGLY recommend that you hand in your assignment early - just in case some unforeseen event (e.g., you lose
your assignment and you have no backup saved, you are in a car accident, you are suddenly bedridden due to a virus, etc).
Assignments MUST be completed using a word processor. E-mailed assignments will not be accepted. If you are unable
to finish an assignment – submit what you’ve completed on the due date in class and a mark will be issued to you.
TENTATIVE OUTLINE – INTRODUCTION TO COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY – 2003 YA – 2012/2013
Date
September 2013
October 2013
November 2013
December 2013
January 2014
February 2014
March 2014
April 2014
9
11
16
18
23
25
30
2
7
9
14
16
21
23
28
30
4
6
11
13
18
20
25
27
2
--6
8
13
15
20
22
27
29
3
5
10
12
17
19
24
26
3
5
10
12
17
19
24
26
31
2
---
Chapter
1
1
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
--
1–3
4
4
4
5
5
5
6
6
6
7
7
7
7
4–7
8
8
8
8
9
9
10
10
11
11
11
8 - 11
--12
12
12
13
13
13
13
14
14
14
15
15
12-15
Topics
Introduction to course, course outline
The Science of the Mind – Lecture - Working memory - Digit span - Candid Cam – Children’s memory
The Science of the Mind – Lecture – Clive Wearing video – The Brain: Amnesia and the Hippocampus video
The Neural Basis for Cognition – Lecture – Phantoms of the Brain: Capgras video
The Neural Basis for Cognition – Lecture – Phantoms of the Brain: Prosopagnosia video
The Neural Basis for Cognition – Lecture – Phantoms of the Brain: Prosopagnosia video
The Neural Basis for Cognition – Lecture – Brain Story: Akinetopsia video
Recognizing Objects in the Real World – Lecture – Brain Story – Visual Agnosia video
Recognizing Objects in the Real World – Lecture – Brain Story – Prosopagnosia video
Recognizing Objects in the Real World – Lecture – Scientific American Frontiers: Never Forget A Face video
Thanksgiving – Holiday!! No class! 
Midterm Test 1
Paying Attention – Lecture - Dichotic Listening Demonstration. Inattentional Blindness video
Paying Attention – Lecture - Stroop Effect Demonstration – Scientific American Frontiers: Tough Choices video
Paying Attention – Lecture - Brain Story – Visual Neglect & Change Blindness videos – Derren Brown video
The Acquisition of Memories and the Working-Memory System - Lecture - Scientific A.F.: Why Kids Don’t Get It
The Acquisition of Memories and the Working-Memory System - Lecture - Scientific A.F.: Memory Marathon
The Acquisition of Memories and the Working-Memory System - Lecture – How Do Savants Store Information?
Interconnections Between Acquisition and Retrieval - Lecture - Scientific American Frontiers - Don’t Forget video
Interconnections Between Acquisition and Retrieval – Demonstration - Recall vs. Recognition - Amnesia
Interconnections Between Acquisition and Retrieval – Source Memory – Illusion of truth – Implicit Memory
Remembering Complex Events – Lecture – Video – Children’s Memory - “From the Mouths of Babes”
Remembering Complex Events – Lecture – Evaluating Human Memories – Ronald Cotton – American Justice
Remembering Complex Events – Lecture – Scientific American Frontiers - When Memory Lies
Remembering Complex Events – Scientific A.F. - True or False? *Experimental Report Due*
December Exam – T.B.A.
Associative Theories of Long-term Memory - Lecture - Artificial Intelligence - Scientific A.F. - Leonardo Loveable
Associative Theories of Long-term Memory - Artificial Intelligence – Watson computer - Jeopardy video.
Associative Theories of Long-term Memory - Lecture
Associative Theories of Long-term Memory - Lecture
Concepts and Generic Knowledge - Categorization Concepts and Generic Knowledge – Prototypes, exemplars
Concepts and Generic Knowledge - Video - How Mad Are You? Part I (prototypes & exemplars used in diagnoses)
Language – Lecture – Phonemes - Segmentation - Video - The Mind - Infant Phoneme Discrimination
Language – Frontline: Prisoners of Silence video
Visual Knowledge – Lecture – Demonstration – Visual Memory
Visual Knowledge – Lecture – Mental Imagery – Mental Rotation
Visual Knowledge – Lecture – Mental Imagery – Mental Imagery
Midterm Test 2
February Break! Family Day! No class. 
February Break! Family Day! No class. 
Judgment: Drawing Conclusions From Evidence – Lecture – Video – Availability Heuristic
Judgment: Drawing Conclusions From Evidence – Video – Secrets of the Psychics
Judgment: Drawing Conclusions From Evidence – Illusory Correlation
Reasoning: Thinking Through the Implications of What you Know – Logic: The Structure of Reason video
Reasoning: Thinking Through the Implications of What you Know – Confirmation Bias – Belief Perseverance
Reasoning: Thinking Through the Implications of What you Know – Decision Making
Reasoning: Thinking Through the Implications of What you Know – Video - How Mad Are You? Part II
Solving Problems – Demonstration – Problem Solving
Solving Problems – Analogies – Good Dog: Stanley Coren and Strategies for Solving Problematic Dog Behaviours
Solving Problems - Functional Fixedness - Creativity
Conscious Thought, Unconscious Thought – Lecture - Brain Story – What is Consciousness? Video
Conscious Thought, Unconscious Thought – Lecture - *Concept Illustration Due*
Final Exam – Date – T.B.A.