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PSYC 270: MID1
Study Guide- Concepts for MCQ, FIB, and Matching
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Basic Concept: Psychology | The scientific study of the mind and behaviour |
| Basic Concept: Cognitive Psychology | An objective, empirical discipline that studies the mind using an experimental approach. (Empirical Investigation of Cognition) |
| Cognition | The collection of mental processes and activities |
| *Basic Concept: Cognitive Science | An interdisciplinary approach to the scientific study of the mind... Using all available scientific techniques and including all relative scientific disciplines. |
| Dualism | The mind is made of something qualitatively different from the physical (the mind is not the brain) - Brain is physical matter (tissue containing a vast web of neurons) - Your mind has beliefs, desires, emotions, sensations, and other thoughts |
| Problems with Dualism | Materialist (CogSci) The mind is a label for what the brain does |
| Guiding Assumptions: Cognitive Psychology | (1) Mental processes exist (2) Mental processes can be scientifically studied (3) Humans are active information processors |
| Seven Mental Processes in Cognition | (1) Perception (2) Attention (3) Learning (4) Memory (5) Language (6) Reasoning (7) Judgment & Decision Making |
| **Independent Variable | Manipulated by researchers to cause a change |
| **Dependent Variable | Result of introducing the independent variable --The effect researchers measure |
| Graphing Variable Data | (x,y) Independent Variable = x Dependent Variable = y |
| Reliability | Measuring result consistency --Consistent = high reliability |
| Validity | How much the result satisfies the research objectives --Good way to obtain better accuracy |
| Accuracy | How correct the measure is --Measure to obtain the truest answer ---Includes measurement of errors |
| Channel Capacity | Any channel- any physical device that transmits messages or information- has a limited capacity --Neurons and the structure of the brain have limited capacity to process information |
| **Encoding | The act of taking in information and converting it into a usable mental form --Mental representation |
| Lexical Decision Task | A timed task in which people decide whether letter strings are words |
| Lexical Decision Task: Process Model | A theory about the mental processes that take place when a task is performed |
| Limitations of Strict Information Processing | -Solid evidence exists for parallel processing -Context effects and top-down processing -Not useful for studying complex cognition (e.g., problem solving tasks) |
| **Parallel Processing | Multiple mental processes can operate simultaneously |
| **Top-Down Processing | A.K.A. Conceptually-driven processing When existing context or knowledge influences earlier or simpler forms of mental processes |
| **Bottom-Up Processing | A.K.A. Data-driven processing Building perceptions from sensory input |
| **Methods of Investigating the Brain | -Lesions -Direct Stimulation -Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) -Electroencephalograms (EEG) -Structural Imaging -Metabolic Measures |
| Sensation | The reception of stimulation from the environment, and its initial encoding into the nervous system. |
| Perception | The process of interpreting and understanding sensory information --Both conscious and unconscious --Ex. Object recognition |
| Photoreceptors | -Rods -Cones |
| Compression | Transformation of information that both analyzes and summarizes the original sensory input --Applies to all senses ---Summarized record of stimulus |
| Visual Pathways | (1) Visual field (2) Retina (3) Optic nerve (4) Optic Chiasm --Contralateral/Ipsilateral demonstrated (5a) Superior Colliculus --Quick visual attentional system (5b) Lateral geniculate nucleus of the thalamus (6b) Visual Cortex --Occipital lobes |
| Saccades | Eyes sweep from one point to another in fast (jerky) movements |
| Fixations | The pause during which the eye is almost stationary and is taking in visual information |
| Visual Attention | The act of attending to some stimulus with our visual system |
| Visual Sensory Memory -Visual Sensory Register (Sperling) | A.K.A. Iconic memory -Temporary visual buffer that holds information for breif periods of time --(250-500 ms) |
| Aspects of Cognition | -Perception -Attention -Learning -Memory -Language -Reasoning -Judgment & Decision Making |
| *Assumption: Materialism | Assumption of Cognitive Science; Matter and energy are all that exist. - All the things that the “mind” does can be seen as natural functions of the machinery of the brain |
| *Assumption: Reductionism | Assumption of Cognitive Science; The attempt to understand a complex event or system by breaking it down into its components. Complex systems = sum of their parts |
| *Assumption: Empiricism | Assumption of Cognitive Science; Emphasizes the role of experience and evidence, especially sensory experience, in the formation of ideas. -Scientific Method |
| *Basics of Science | Science makes assumptions about the world |
| *Scientific Assumptions (3) | 1. Events are not merely random; there are patterns 2. These patterns have underlying causes/mechanisms 3. We can discover these causes |
| Plato and Aristotle | Ancient Greek Philosophy |
| Plato's Contribution | Locus of the mind is in the brain -"Wax Tablet" analogy |
| Aristotle's Contribution | Doctrine of Association |
| Doctrine of Association | The human mind is composed of ideas (elements of the environment) that are organized by associations (links between ideas). |
| Aristotle's Laws of Association | (1) Similarity: conceptually related (2) Contiguity: similar in space and time -- classical conditioning (3) Contrast: opposites (4) Frequency: linked more often; repetition |
| Evidence against Dualism Theory | Lack of divisibility (brain is not separate from mind) -Phineas Gage -Localization of function |
| *Wilhem Wundt | Developed Introspection Method -- Established Cognitive Psychology as its own science (1879) |
| *Introspection | A method in which one looks carefully inward, reporting on inner sensations and experiences |
| *Edaward Titchener | Developed Structuralism |
| *School of Thought: Structuralism | Using Introspection to discover the structure of the mind (elements), what's in the mind and in what quantity. -- but not why things are in the mind |
| *Hermann Von Ebbinghaus | Father of Memory Research |
| Method: Memory Research (Hermann Von Ebbinghaus) | Learn a list of CVC trigrams to mastery, set it aside, relearn the list. |
| CVC trigrams (Hermann Von Ebbinghaus) | Consonant-Vowel-Consonant words - Listed form |
| Savings Score (Hermann Von Ebbinghaus) | The number of trials that had been saved in memory between the first and second sessions. |
| *William James | Developed Functionalism Developed "Stream of Thought" |
| *School of Thought: Functionalism | The study of functions that make consciousness, not based on structure. |
| Stream of Thought | The contents of human consciousness are better likened to a stream than a collection of discrete elements or ideas |
| *John Watson | Founder of Behaviourism |
| *Behaviourism | Scientific study of observable behaviour -"Anti-mentalistic" - Based on Stimulus/Response associations --Classical Conditioning --Reinforcement Principles |
| *B.F. Skinner | Radical Behaviourist - Hardcore believer that Stimulus/Response relationships can explain all human behaviour |
| *Challenges to Behaviourism | (1) Attention and Vigilance --Errors in executing learned behaviour (WW2) (2) Language Debate --Children's "Lexical Explosion" --Generative Capacity ^^ Criticism by Noam Chompsky (linguist) (3) Misbehaviour of Organisms --Not performing a learned |
| Seven THEMES of Cognition | - Attention - Data-Driven versus Conceptually Driven Processing - Representation - Implicit versus Explicit Memory - Metacognition - Brain - Embodiment |
| Theme of Cognition: Attention | - Sensation and perception dependent - Limited in quantity - Memory |
| Theme of Cognition: Data driven vs conceptual driven | - Bottom-up vs top-down processing |
| Theme of Cognition: Representation | - Knowing what something is based on stimuli memory through senses or concepts -- Image associated/association |
| Theme of Cognition: Implicit versus Explicit Memory | - Natural/preprogrammed features remembering not necessarily conscious Vs - Deliberately retrieving information |
| Theme of Cognition: Metacognition | - Ability to think about thinking |
| Theme of Cognition: Brain | - Organ - Localization of function |
| Theme of Cognition: Embodiment/ Embodied cognition | - Everything learned is physically encoded/printed in brain -- Hands on learning (DO THINGS) |
| **Science in everyday life | - Skeptical - Self-correcting science - Science is uncertain (tentative) -- No proof, just evidence |
| **Standard theory of Human Cognition | - Modal Model of Memory - Encoding (SLIDE 28) |
| ** Three Components of Standard Theory/Model | (1) Sensory Memory (2) Short-term Memory (3) Long-term Memory |
| Information Processing: Claims about Cognition | (1) Human information processing proceeds in stages (2) Higher level processing can be broken down into more elemental operations. (3) The brain is limited in processing capacity |
| Assumptions: Strict Information Processing | (1) Sequential stages of processing --Processing stages occur in a fixed sequence, with no overlap (2) Independent and Non-overlapping Stages --Stages of processing are independent of one another, and do not overlap in time |
| Context effects | Related concepts or existing knowledge can speed-up processing |
| **Ten Structures of a Neuron | -Cell body (Soma) -Nucleus -Dendrites -Axon hillock -Axon -Myelin sheath -Axon terminals/terminal button -Synapse -Synaptic Vesicles -Neurotransmitters |
| **Neural Communication Process | Electrochemical |
| **Function of a Neuron: Action Potential | - Electrical impulse that travels down the axon, triggering/stimulating the release of neurotransmitters --All-or-none principle |
| **Function of a Neuron: Resting Potential and Voltage | (-70mV) Internal potential relative to the outside of the cell |
| Excitatory Threshold Voltage | (-55mV) |
| **Function of a Neuron: Depolarization and Voltage | Excitatory function - Adds positively charged ions -Neuron charge pushed up to (+30mV) or (+50mV) |
| **Function of a Neuron: Repolarization and Voltage | Addition of negatively charged ions until resting potential (-70mV) achieved |
| **Function of a Neuron: Synaptic Transmission | -Action potential travels to terminal button, stimulating vesicles to move and fuse with the membrane -Neurotransmitters are released into the synapse -Neurotransmitters bind to post-synaptic receptor sites |
| Receptor Sites | Locations on a neuron that uniquely recognize and bind to particular neurotransmitters |
| **Function of a Neuron: Hyperpolarization | Inhibitory function -Adds negatively charged ions past resting potential - Dips below (-70mV) |
| **Graded Postsynaptic Potentials | - Excitatory or Inhibitory - Increases (EPSP) or decreases (IPSP) the likelihood that the post-synaptic neuron will fire again |
| Neurotransmitters after receptor release | -Reuptake -Inactivation |
| Function of a Neuron: Refractory Period | After hyperpolarization Return to resting potential with addition of positive ions |
| Neural Plasticity | The ability of the nervous system to change and reform |
| 5 Functions of Neural Plasticity | -Growth of dendrites and axons -Neurogenesis -Synaptogenesis -Pruning -Myelination |
| Long Term Potentiation (LTP) | Process by which connections between neurons are strengthened --More receptors --Biological changes in neurochemicals and receptors |
| **Brain Parts: The Cerebrum (4) | -Some limbic system structures -Basal Ganglia -Olfactory Bulb -Cerebral Cortex |
| **Brain Part Functions: Cerebral Cortex | -Responsible for analyzing sensory experiences and higher level brain functions --E.g., language; metacognition; reasoning |
| **Subcortical Structures: Corpus Callosum | -Integration of information between hemispheres |
| **Subcortical Structures: Amygdala | -Processing emotions |
| **Subcortical Structures: Thalamus | -Sensory relay station --All except smell |
| **Subcortical Structures: Hippocampus | -Consciously accessible -Declarative memory --Retrieval and formation of memory |
| **Cerebral Cortex Lobes | - Frontal lobes - Temporal lobes -Occipital lobes -Parietal lobes |
| **Prefrontal Cortex | -Frontal lobes -Personality, planning, decision making, self awareness |
| ** Broca's Area | -Frontal lobe (Dominant hemisphere) -Language production |
| **Motor Cortex | -Frontal lobes -Voluntary movement -Area size dedicated to function reflects precision of motor control needed |
| **Central Sulcus | Divides the frontal lobes from the rest of the cerebral cortex |
| **Somatosensory Cortex | Sensations of touch, pain, pleasure |
| **Frontal Lobes | -Higher-level functions -Complex human behaviour, social skills, goal-oriented actions |
| **Parietal Lobes | -Spatial perception and tracking -Relays information to motor cortex |
| **Temporal Lobes | -Hearing -Memory Storage -Object and facial recognition |
| **Types of Memory | -Autobiographical (Episodic) -Semantic |
| **Wernicke's Area | Language comprehension |
| **Occipital Lobes | -Visual processes -Visual cortex |
| Dissociation | A disruption in one component of mental functioning but no impairment of another --episodic and somatic memory, amnesia |
| Long-term Potentiation | Process by which connections between neurons are strengthened |
| Consolidation | Process of making memories more permanent |
| Contralateral | The receptive and control centers for one side of the body are in the opposite hemisphere of the brain |
| Ipsilateral | Same side receptive and control centers in a brain hemisphere |
| **Cerebral Lateralization & Specialization | Different functions or actions within the brain tend to rely more heavily on one hemisphere or the other or tend to be performed differently in the two hemispheres -- Hemispheric Specialization is not absolute |
| **Lesion | Change in structure of a tissue/organ due to injury |
| **Direct Stimulation | Direct application of electrical current to the surface of the cerebral cortex |
| **Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) | Electromagnetic pulse delivered to a specific part of the brain --Strong pulse inhibits function --Weak pulse can increase function |
| **Electroencephalograms (EEG) | Electrodes on a person's scalp pick up brain waves --Good temporal resolution --Poor spatial resolution |
| **Structural Imaging | -Computerized Tomography (CT) -Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) |
| **Positron Emission Tomography (PET) | Metabolic Measure -Increased blood flow to active areas of the brain --Radioactive isotope |
| **Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) | Metabolic Measure -Blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) -Both structure AND activity is seen |
| Neural Net Model | Connectionist Model Parallel distributed processing (PDP) model |
| Change Blindness | Failure to notice changes in visual stimuli when those changes occur during a saccade |
| Visual attention: Capacity Problem | -Selects only relevant information -Filters out irrelevant information |
| Inattentional Blindness | Failure to see an object we are looking at directly because attention is directed elsewhere |
| ***Connectionism | Theoretical and computational approach used to understand how cognition operates in the brain |
| ***Connectionism: Connections | -Pathways within and between units -Massively interconnected |
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