1. Cognitive Psychology

2. What is Cognitive Psychology?
The cognitive approach to help us to understand how mental processes shape our behaviour
Cognition means knowing: how we come to know the world around us
The human mind is compared with a computer – we are information processors
Cognitive processors actively organise and manipulate information that we receive – humans do not merely passively respond to their environment
Key areas: perception; memory; language and thought; attention

3. What use is Cognitive Psychology?
Humans have very powerful mental capacities, e.g.,
Abstract reasoning
Language
Memory
Cognitive psychology can help us understand and help people who have not developed their cognitive abilities in the normal way (autism/Baron-Cohen)
How memory works (Loftus) – Eye witness Testimony

4. Disadvantages of the Cognitive Approach
Cognitive psychology has a narrow focus on mental processes. It does not automatically take account of individual, social or biological factors in behaviour
Many of the theories produced by cognitive psychologists are hard to test because mental processes are hidden from view
Is the brain like a computer – or infinitely more complex?
Does not always take into account the emotional life of humans – free will and conscious experience

5. A typical cognitive type question
Is perception learned or innate?
Draw a typical child’s picture of a house
What aspects of the drawing do you think are ‘culturally-bound’?

6. Cognitive Psychology - Sensation vs. Perception
Our senses encode information accurately (sensation)
Then our mind interprets it according to what makes most sense (perception)

19. In this illustration, the stairs should turn upside down during a steady gaze. The wall with the floating glass sphere will shift from the foreground to the background (or vice-versa)

20. Stare at the picture (on the left) for about 45 seconds
Stare at the picture (on the left) for about 45 seconds. Then, stare at the white section of this image (the right section). You should see the Queen again. Keep your concentration, and for those 45 seconds, don't take your eyes off the picture.

21. Do you think that these lines are parallel. They are
Do you think that these lines are parallel? They are! But it doesn't look like it does it? We suppose that's what makes it an illusion!!!

22. Ghostly black patches appear at the white intersections
Ghostly black patches appear at the white intersections. The illusion was noted by Hermann (1870) while reading a book on sound by Tyndall (1869).

23. Another typical question is how does memory work?

24. Some people have amazing memory

25. You will be learning about 2 different theories of memory
I am going to tell you a story