The Cognitive Level of Analysis

Homework/Brief DIscussion How would you rate your memory? Does this number vary from day to day? Morning to evening?

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The Cognitive Level of analysis: The human mind is quite sophisticated. It can manipulate abstract symbols like words and images. These mental representations can refer to objects, ideas, and people in the real world; people use them when they think, make plans, imagine, or daydream. You have an idea of how you look somewhere in your mind – a self-representation. You also have ideas about how other people are.

The Cognitive Level of analysis: Mental representations are organized in categories, and the mind contains all sorts of mental representations stored in memory. Cognitive schemas – pre-stored mental representations. Mental representations – how we store images and ideas in memory. Researchers believe that what we already know (cognitive schemas) affects the way we interpret events and store knowledge in out memory.

What is Cognitive Psychology? Study of mental processes Study of the way in which the brain processes information It concerns the way we take in information from the outside world, how we make sense of that information and what use we make of it.

What are “mental processes”? Definition: "the process of thinking"; "the cognitive operation of remembering" (Stanford, 2010) Ex. Functions or processes such as perception, introspection, memory, creativity, imagination, conception, belief, reasoning, and emotion— in other words, all the different things that we can do with our minds.

Cognitive Psychology: The study of mental representations and processes.

\ Objective 1.1: Outline principles that define the cognitive level of analysis

Principles that define the cognitive level of analysis 1. Our physiological processes (such as the physical brain, neurotransmission, etc.) give rise to cognitive processes (such as language, memory, decision making, perception, learning, etc.) 2. Models of mental processes can be proposed and investigated scientifically 3. Cognitive processes are influenced by social and cultural factors

1. Our physiological processes give rise to cognitive processes. What do we already know about the role of physiological processes in language, memory, etc., that can help us to outline this principle?

1. Our physiological processes give rise to cognitive processes. In other words, specific parts of the brain can directly correlate to cognitive processes. Damage to the frontal lobe can directly affect the cognitive process of decision making

1. Our physiological processes give rise to cognitive processes. Damage to the hippocampus can directly affect the cognitive process of short term memory

1. Our physiological processes give rise to cognitive processes. Damage to Broca’s area can directly affect the cognitive process of language production

1. Our physiological processes give rise to cognitive processes. In summation, all of our mental processes are physiological based. Thus, we can better understand cognitive processes by understanding the physiological processes that give rise to cognitive processes.

2. Models of mental processes can be proposed and investigated scientifically Cognitive processes are difficult to study. They often occur rapidly, and inside the mind so they cannot be observed directly. It is only the responses that participants make when given some cognitive task to perform that can tell us about cognitive processes. These tasks usually take place under tightly controlled lab experiments where the main aim is to isolate a particular component of the cognitive process for the study. (This can be used to assist you with objective 1.2)

2. Models of mental processes can be proposed (through theory) and investigated scientifically (through lab experiments) Theories and models can be proposed to better understand cognitive processes. Examples: The Stroop Effect (cognitive process of attention) The Multi-Store Memory Model (cognitive process of memory) The Two-Factor Theory (cognitive process of emotions) Critical Period Hypothesis (cognitive process of language) Social Learning Theory (cognitive process of learning)

2. Models of mental processes can be proposed (through theory) and investigated scientifically (through lab experiments) By creating models of cognitive processes, we are able to isolate theses processes (through laboratory experiments) to see how various environmental factors influence them. In summation, models of cognitive theories allow us to empirically investigate the cognitive products of our physiological processes.

Principle 3: Cognitive processes are influenced by social and cultural factors That is, our memories, learning, language, perception, decisions, etc. can be influenced by our culture and by environmental factors. What does this mean?

Principle 3: Cognitive processes are influenced by social and cultural factors Frederic Bartlett coined the term “cultural schema” to refer to the process of social and or cultural norms playing a role in how we process and categorize our memories. This is true with all cognitive processes (social learning, culturally based language acquisition, socially learned fears, etc.)

Principle 3: Cognitive processes are influenced by social and cultural factors What do we already know about the role of the environment in learning, language, etc.?

Principle 3: Cognitive processes are influenced by social and cultural factors From the case of genie, we already know that social deprivation/enrichment can influence our acquisition of language and our capacity for learning. In summation, our cognitive processes are environmentally dependent.

Review: State and outline principle one of the cognitive level of analysis. State and outline principle two of the cognitive level of analysis. State and outline principle three of the cognitive level of analysis.