Yo,
It's all on cognitive and research methods... there will be a revision session prior to the FA2 where I'll try and cover as much as possible!
KOP!
Thursday 26 November 2015
Saturday 14 November 2015
Working Memory Model - Baddeley and Hitch (1974)
Yo,
Baddeley and Hitch suggested that memory is comprised of different systems and these systems are involved when we use our memory (hence the term 'working memory'). There model had 3 systems: the central executive, the phonological loop, and the visuospatial sketchpad (VSSP).
The Central Executive:
This is a limited capacity (see overload below) system for general processing of information in memory. It was originally seen as a homunculus (a very small human) that guides the activity of the 2 slave systems (so called because they are not independent of the central executive) and how they function. It was also thought to be modality free - it can handle information in different forms (i.e. visual, sound, touch).
The Phonological Loop:
This is one of the slave systems that deals with the temporary storage of verbal information. Inside the phonological loop are 2 components - the rehearsal system and phonological store. The store can only hold a small amount of verbal information (which we will test in the lesson) for a few seconds, this duration can be increased by the rehearsal system (the inner voice, just like rehearsal in the MSM).
The Visuospatial sketchpad (VSSP):
This slave system deals with verbal AND spatial (i.e. the location or position of something) information. The VSSP can either process information directly (by looking at it) or getting visual information from LTM (i.e. remembering a friend's face). The VSSP maintains visual information, it allows up to observe the world and understand it by relying on visual information in LTM. There is a limited capacity to the VSSP, which we will investigate in the lesson.
Overload:
Working memory is seen as limited capacity because it can affected by distraction (someone talking to you whilst trying to remember a number), overload (trying to remember a list that is too long), and overwork (trying to perform complicated calculations in your mind). This has been demonstrated in dual task experiments (expt's that involved completing tasks that use either the same slave system, or 2 different slave systems) - ppts are asked to do 2 verbal tasks at the same time (i.e. repeat a string of numbers out loud whilst answering true or false questions)
BUT the WMM does explain why people can do well at dual task experiments. When asked to do a verbal and a spatial task at the same time, ppts performance is not as poor.
Baddeley and Hitch suggested that memory is comprised of different systems and these systems are involved when we use our memory (hence the term 'working memory'). There model had 3 systems: the central executive, the phonological loop, and the visuospatial sketchpad (VSSP).
The Central Executive:
This is a limited capacity (see overload below) system for general processing of information in memory. It was originally seen as a homunculus (a very small human) that guides the activity of the 2 slave systems (so called because they are not independent of the central executive) and how they function. It was also thought to be modality free - it can handle information in different forms (i.e. visual, sound, touch).
The Phonological Loop:
This is one of the slave systems that deals with the temporary storage of verbal information. Inside the phonological loop are 2 components - the rehearsal system and phonological store. The store can only hold a small amount of verbal information (which we will test in the lesson) for a few seconds, this duration can be increased by the rehearsal system (the inner voice, just like rehearsal in the MSM).
The Visuospatial sketchpad (VSSP):
This slave system deals with verbal AND spatial (i.e. the location or position of something) information. The VSSP can either process information directly (by looking at it) or getting visual information from LTM (i.e. remembering a friend's face). The VSSP maintains visual information, it allows up to observe the world and understand it by relying on visual information in LTM. There is a limited capacity to the VSSP, which we will investigate in the lesson.
Overload:
Working memory is seen as limited capacity because it can affected by distraction (someone talking to you whilst trying to remember a number), overload (trying to remember a list that is too long), and overwork (trying to perform complicated calculations in your mind). This has been demonstrated in dual task experiments (expt's that involved completing tasks that use either the same slave system, or 2 different slave systems) - ppts are asked to do 2 verbal tasks at the same time (i.e. repeat a string of numbers out loud whilst answering true or false questions)
BUT the WMM does explain why people can do well at dual task experiments. When asked to do a verbal and a spatial task at the same time, ppts performance is not as poor.
Experiments - some key definitions
Yo,
Add these definitions into your white RM booklets:
experiment - investigations where a variable is manipulated or altered, and its effect can be measured, while maintaining control over other variables that might affect the situation
lab experiment - an experiment conducted in a controlled environment
field experiment - a piece of research that takes place in the setting where the behaviour would naturally occur
operationalisation - defining the variables specifically so they are directly measured and tested
independent variable - the variable manipulated (changed) by the researcher to show a difference between the conditions
dependent variable - the variable that is measured or the results of the experiment
Remember to have examples for each key term - this is worth a mark in any 'define' exam question
KOP!
Add these definitions into your white RM booklets:
experiment - investigations where a variable is manipulated or altered, and its effect can be measured, while maintaining control over other variables that might affect the situation
lab experiment - an experiment conducted in a controlled environment
field experiment - a piece of research that takes place in the setting where the behaviour would naturally occur
operationalisation - defining the variables specifically so they are directly measured and tested
independent variable - the variable manipulated (changed) by the researcher to show a difference between the conditions
dependent variable - the variable that is measured or the results of the experiment
Remember to have examples for each key term - this is worth a mark in any 'define' exam question
KOP!
Tuesday 10 November 2015
Episodic and Semantic memory
Yo,
Here is the information you need to know about this theory of memory. Make sure you understand what the two types are memory are - come up with some examples. Also, how the two types of memory are related. The evidence from studies will form our evaluation - you do not NEED notes on them but I would suggest thinking about how they might be useful for evaluation.
Here is the information you need to know about this theory of memory. Make sure you understand what the two types are memory are - come up with some examples. Also, how the two types of memory are related. The evidence from studies will form our evaluation - you do not NEED notes on them but I would suggest thinking about how they might be useful for evaluation.
KOP!
Phrenology - a potted history
Yo,
Franz
Joseph Gall was born in Baden ,
Germany March 9, 1758 . Gall studied
medicine in Vienna , Austria
Gall
believed that there was a relationship between the size and shape of the skull
and mental faculties and character. Although the ideas of phrenology were
different, it gained wide acceptance. Gall began his lectures on phrenology in
1796. In 1802 the government and Roman Catholic Church ordered him to stop his
lectures. He was forced to leave Vienna France Paris
Many
people condemned Gall because he could not provide real scientific proof of his
theory. Phrenology was also considered a money making fraud. Gall’s
phrenological theories were best accepted in England United States
Phrenology
was based on head reading and character analyses as well as looking at the
interactions between the faculties of the brain. Most phrenologists would
run their bare finger tips over a head to distinguish any elevations or indentations.
Gall thought they should use their palms when doing the readings. Gall believed
the bumps on the skull represented specific personality characteristics.
The invention of
the psychograph came from the study of Phrenology. The psychograph was invented
by Lavery and White. It was a machine that could do a phrenological reading
complete with a printout. Many people who had the phrenological readings were
satisfied and felt that the results were extremely accurate.- the brain
is the organ of the mind
- the brain
is a collection of organs representing the characteristics of the person
- these
functions are located in specific parts of the brain
- the size of
each organ is representative of its power
- the shape
and size of the skull relate to the shape and size of the underlying
organs and is representative of the individual's mental faculties.
Since
the mid-19th century, phrenology has been remembered as a very controversial
science. This was even true during the height of phrenology. Today, the ideas
behind Phrenology have been absorbed into many other disciplines making some
aspects still alive today. The idea of phrenology lived on in other sciences of
measuring and comparing human heads- most notoriously the attention to cranial
size, forehead shape etc. used by late 19th and early 20th century racial
anthropologists to confirm their belief that Europeans were superior to other
humans. Phrenology was also used to determine whether or not someone was a
criminal. Could you imagine deciding this just by the shape and size of a
persons head?
Ironically,
most of phrenology's basic premises have been justified. For example, the idea
that many functions are localized in the brain is now a common idea. There is
much research being done on the localization of brain activity. Also,
areas of the brain that are more frequently used may become enlarged with
use. This is what phrenologists believed to be true. Modern brain imaging
techniques, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI) make the
localization of functions something that we can witness and are not just
guessing at. To this day there are still self-appointed experts who work, talk,
teach and write on the "scientific" aspects of phrenology. Many of
the past phrenologists were not able to pass down the ideas to the next
generation because it had been already discredited. Despite the fact that
phrenology had been widely discredited, the British Phrenological Society was
only disbanded in 1967.
The
idea that different areas of the brain are associated with different functions
has been tested and supported through today's research. Phrenologists also said
that the areas used the most would become enlarged which has also been found to
be true. Gall's area for speech and verbal memory was located very closely to
today's Broca's and Wernicke's speech areas.
KOP!
Friday 6 November 2015
Thematic Anaysis - evaluation
Yo,
So the evaluation is very similar to qualitative data, we touched on some of the strengths and weaknesses in the lesson. Here are some evaluation points based on thematic analysis:
So the evaluation is very similar to qualitative data, we touched on some of the strengths and weaknesses in the lesson. Here are some evaluation points based on thematic analysis:
KOP!
Multi Store Model of Memory - Atkinson and Shiffrin, 1968
Yo,
Cognitive assumptions:
This is the first model of memory that we will look at. Atkinson and Shiffrin focused on the structural features of memory and the control processes involved in forming memories. The thought the structural features were like the hardware of a computer - 'installed' in the brain and the control processes were like computer programs. The control processes are involved in encoding, rehearsing, and retrieving memories.
According to the model, information passes into the sensory memory (a.k.a, sensory register), if the information is attended to then it passes into the short-term memory. Rehearsal is a control process that keeps information in the short-term memory store. From short-term memory, information can be transferred to long-term memory for permanent storage.
Identify what parts of the diagram are structural features, and what parts are control processes.
Details about each store (key terms for this theory will be at the bottom of the post, use the online textbook for definitions):
Sensory memory -
We experience our world through a number of senses, and it is believed we have a sensory memory for each sense. For example, we have a different memory store for visual sensations and auditory sensations. Information in this store decays very rapidly and can only be held for a few hundred milliseconds (i.e. 500ms = half a second).
Short-term memory -
Duration: when information is attended to then it enters this store. Information in this store is thought to remain there for 15 to 30 seconds, and is thought to decay unless it is maintained via rehearsal.
Capacity: Atkinson and Shiffrin assumed the capacity was for 5 to 8 items. However, Miller (1956) refined this to 'the magical number 7 plus or mins 2'. So the short term store as a series of 5 to 9 slots that can hold information.
Encoding: short-term memory holds information in auditory (sound) form. For example, you may see a car but in short-term memory it is held as the word 'car'.
Retrieval: information is retrieved from the short-term memory using a quick scan of the information in the store. Rehearsal keeps information in the short-term store, if there is too much to rehearse then information with the least rehearsal will decay. For example, if you are asked to remember a list of words, the words that you say to yourself the least are less likely to be remembered.
Long-term memory -
Retrieval: long-term memories exist for all sensory information. For example, you can remember the taste of coffee, the sight of a picture, the sound of a friends voice BUT there are multiple copies of each memory. There evidence for this is the 'tip of the tongue' phenomenon - where you know there is a memory for something in there but can't access it; you see a familiar face, where you met that person, what their voice sounds like, but you cannot retrieve their name even though you know it.
Encoding: information can be stored in long-term memory by rehearsal, or linking new information to old information. For example, repeating a phone number over and over again can store it in long-term memory (rehearsal), OR if you know know how to evaluate one study in psychology you can evaluate another because you can relate both to GRAVE.
Duration: potentially the duration is unlimited. Long-term memory can hold certain types of information for the whole of a person's lifetime without deterioration. Other types of information may deteriorate over time.
Capacity: again, potentially infinite, with the potential to hold thousands of images in long-term memory.
Transferring information from short-term to long-term:
The information that enters the sensory register can only be processed in the short-term memory once a verbal label has been applied to it from long-term memory. For example, if you see a monkey (sensory memory), you cannot process it in short-term memory until long-term memory has provided the label 'monkey'. Transfer from short-term memory to long-term memory can occur because of rehearsal, but this may leave a weak memory. A mnemoic (i.e. SCOUT) can provide a stronger trace as the 5 evaluation points are linked by a familiar word or pattern.
Key terms:
control processes, attended information, rehearsal, mnemonic
KOP!
Cognitive assumptions:
- Cognitive psychology focuses on information processing: such as vision, perception, hearing, memory, reasoning, problem solving, making judgements etc.
- The idea that the brain might process information like a computer
We will be doing some experiments to test some of these features, and they will form part of the evaluation, along with some supporting evidence.
This is the first model of memory that we will look at. Atkinson and Shiffrin focused on the structural features of memory and the control processes involved in forming memories. The thought the structural features were like the hardware of a computer - 'installed' in the brain and the control processes were like computer programs. The control processes are involved in encoding, rehearsing, and retrieving memories.
According to the model, information passes into the sensory memory (a.k.a, sensory register), if the information is attended to then it passes into the short-term memory. Rehearsal is a control process that keeps information in the short-term memory store. From short-term memory, information can be transferred to long-term memory for permanent storage.
Identify what parts of the diagram are structural features, and what parts are control processes.
Details about each store (key terms for this theory will be at the bottom of the post, use the online textbook for definitions):
Sensory memory -
We experience our world through a number of senses, and it is believed we have a sensory memory for each sense. For example, we have a different memory store for visual sensations and auditory sensations. Information in this store decays very rapidly and can only be held for a few hundred milliseconds (i.e. 500ms = half a second).
Short-term memory -
Duration: when information is attended to then it enters this store. Information in this store is thought to remain there for 15 to 30 seconds, and is thought to decay unless it is maintained via rehearsal.
Capacity: Atkinson and Shiffrin assumed the capacity was for 5 to 8 items. However, Miller (1956) refined this to 'the magical number 7 plus or mins 2'. So the short term store as a series of 5 to 9 slots that can hold information.
Encoding: short-term memory holds information in auditory (sound) form. For example, you may see a car but in short-term memory it is held as the word 'car'.
Retrieval: information is retrieved from the short-term memory using a quick scan of the information in the store. Rehearsal keeps information in the short-term store, if there is too much to rehearse then information with the least rehearsal will decay. For example, if you are asked to remember a list of words, the words that you say to yourself the least are less likely to be remembered.
Long-term memory -
Retrieval: long-term memories exist for all sensory information. For example, you can remember the taste of coffee, the sight of a picture, the sound of a friends voice BUT there are multiple copies of each memory. There evidence for this is the 'tip of the tongue' phenomenon - where you know there is a memory for something in there but can't access it; you see a familiar face, where you met that person, what their voice sounds like, but you cannot retrieve their name even though you know it.
Encoding: information can be stored in long-term memory by rehearsal, or linking new information to old information. For example, repeating a phone number over and over again can store it in long-term memory (rehearsal), OR if you know know how to evaluate one study in psychology you can evaluate another because you can relate both to GRAVE.
Duration: potentially the duration is unlimited. Long-term memory can hold certain types of information for the whole of a person's lifetime without deterioration. Other types of information may deteriorate over time.
Capacity: again, potentially infinite, with the potential to hold thousands of images in long-term memory.
Transferring information from short-term to long-term:
The information that enters the sensory register can only be processed in the short-term memory once a verbal label has been applied to it from long-term memory. For example, if you see a monkey (sensory memory), you cannot process it in short-term memory until long-term memory has provided the label 'monkey'. Transfer from short-term memory to long-term memory can occur because of rehearsal, but this may leave a weak memory. A mnemoic (i.e. SCOUT) can provide a stronger trace as the 5 evaluation points are linked by a familiar word or pattern.
Key terms:
control processes, attended information, rehearsal, mnemonic
KOP!
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