PSY 0010 notes Cognition page 1 Cognitive psych experience mental processes must be studied to understand human behavior and o memory problem solving 50s 60s computer model of human cognition o brain hardware o mind software o active info processing Cognition Thinking o mental representation structures in our minds stand for something else allows us to think of non present things abstract ideas Analogical visual representation o imagery visual representation of image not present Tolman s rats cognitive maps mental rotation mental scanning of visual images Symbolic verbal representation o mostly dominant form of thinking o concepts mental grouping of people objects events formal artificial concept abstract concept defined by rules natural concepts objects and events from everyday life o natural concepts as categories organized by what s in common 3 models of concepts 1 defining attribute model list of features necessary to determine if an object 2 prototype model simple example represents category if new objects are is a member of a category similar grouped with category 3 exemplars model not single prototype but many exemplars stored in category Schemas and scripts schema cluster of concepts that provides framework for thinking objects events ideas o allows you to recognize school as school script kind of schema o cluster of knowledge about sequences of specific events and actions expected to occur in specific setting Organization of concepts concept hierarchies increased abstraction from specific to general associative networks chains of association between related concepts Parallel distributive processing associations involve simultaneous activation of many concepts nodes organized by similarity hierarchy Making decisions and judgments PSY 0010 notes Cognition page 2 process of considering alternatives choosing dual process model of cognition o conscious explicit processing effortful reasoning rational strategic implementation of rules and logical steps of inference and action in an intentional manner relatively slow if doesn t follow logical rules not sound evolutionarily newer frontal cortex o deductive logical reasoning from general to specific understanding formal rules of logic i e syllogism can be logically correct but wrong conclusion if premises are false o inductive scientific reasoning specific to general i e hypothesis testing Problem solving identify problem select strategy o algorithms o can also can be misapplied not for complex subjective problems work backwards means end analysis big problem into smaller ones search for analogies to similar problems mental set tendency to address new problem with strategy that worked for previous problems without considering specifics of new problem o functional fixedness see object only having one use o self imposed limitations assume non present issues PSY 0010 notes Cognition page 3 Piaget s Stages of Cognitive Development Period when child s thinking and behavior reflect a particular type of schema Maturational process o universal o invariant sequence rate of progression varies o specific cognitive abilities during each stage Stage one sensorimotor birth to 2 years understanding of world through senses physical exploration key achievements o object permanence knowing object exists even when not directly perceivable achieved in multiple steps good grasp by end of 2 years o causality one physical event reliably follows another o delayed deferred imitation can imitate things it saw earlier when that thing is no longer presence o self identification Stage two preoperational 2 7 years use of mental representations and language symbolic activities one things stands for another transductive reasoning reasoning from appearances egocentrism inability to see world from others perspective o NOT selfishness self centeredness etc but INABILITY to Stage three concrete operational LITERALLY see world 7 11 years mental operations and use of concepts o ability to do mental work in mind not just picture something o conservation despite change in appearance amounts remain the achievements same opposite of transductive reasoning o reversibility operations can be undone o decentering overcoming egocentrism limitations o concrete problem solving only not able to perform mental operations in abstract situations Formal operations 11 adult abstract reasoning and logical operations PSY 0010 notes Cognition page 4 o manipulating ideas developing theories o deductive logical reasoning o inductive scientific reasoning David Elkind adolescent egocentrism o na ve idealism overestimation of ideas o imaginary audience o personal fable exaggerated sense of personal uniqueness and indestructibility it can t happen to me mindset Social Influences on Cognitive Development Lev Vygotsky Cognitive development depends upon social interactions o zone of proximal development phase of learning in which children are ready to learn a skill and benefit from instruction o scaffolding parents caregivers provide initial guidance Revisions to Piaget gradually remove structure development is more gradual than stage like some achievements occur earlier o object permanence as early as 4 5 months o na ve physics by 4 5 months o theory of mind begins in infancy idea that other people know things that I don t know vice versa begins in first 2 years o perspective taking appears by 4 years not all reach formal operations