Cognitive Psychology Review

Cognitive Psych Final Study Plan

• There are 80 multiple-choice questions in total

Before Midterm

• Focus areas include attention, perception, working memory, LTM, and encoding
• There are 14 questions

Language and Concepts

• Focus areas include language acquisition, structure, the mental lexicon, and categories
• There are 40 questions

Problem Solving

• Focus areas include algorithms, heuristics, insight, and obstacles
• There are 12 questions

Reasoning & Decision-Making

• Focus areas include deductive vs inductive reasoning, biases, heuristics, and utility theory
• There are 14 questions

History - Behaviorism

• Behaviorism focuses on observable behavior and not mental processes
• Watson and Skinner championed behaviorism
• A major contribution was the introduction of operational definitions, which clearly define variables in measurable terms
• Emphasis was placed on carefully controlled experiments, shaping modern research methodology
• Behaviorists rejected introspection and favored stimulus-response models

Visual Perception

• Visual Agnosia impairs object recognition, but visual guidance of action is intact
• Optic Ataxia impairs visually guided movement, but object recognition is intact
• Agnosia is defined as "no knowledge" or not being able to recognize
• Ataxia is defined as a "lack of coordination" or not being able to interact properly

Selfridge's Pandemonium Model (1959)

• This is a feature detection model of letter recognition
• Image demons receive the raw input
• Feature demons look for specific features, including horizontal lines
• Cognitive demons represent letters that match specific feature combinations
• Decision demons make the final decision

Selective Attention

• Early selection filtering happens before semantic processing. Key researcher was Broadbent (1958)
• Late selection filtering happens after semantic processing. Key researchers were Deutsch & Deutsch
• Early selection involves only physical characteristics (e.g., voice pitch) getting through
• Late selection involves all input that is processed for meaning, but only relevant information reaching conscious awareness

Short-Term & Working Memory

• Short-Term Memory (STM) holds limited information (~7 ± 2 items) for a short duration (about 15–30 seconds)
• STM is a passive storage for holding info.
• Working Memory (WM) is an active system for holding and manipulating information
• WM is used in tasks like mental math, reasoning, and reading comprehension

Baddeley's Working Memory Model

• Imagine a manager (central executive) with 3 assistants
• The phonological loop handles verbal/auditory info (e.g., repeating a phone number)
• The visuospatial sketchpad handles visual and spatial info (e.g., imagining a route on a map)
• The episodic buffer integrates information across domains and links to long-term memory
• The central executive allocates attention, manages tasks, and switches between tasks

N-back Task

• N-back tests working memory capacity
• You must respond if a stimulus matches the one from “n” steps earlier
• Involves both storage and updating, which taps central executive function

Episodic vs. Semantic Memory

• Episodic memory involves personal events with time and place tagged
• "I remember my 10th birthday" is an example of episodic memory
• Semantic memory involves factual/general knowledge that is decontextualized
• "Ottawa is the capital of Canada" is an example of semantic memory
• Both are part of explicit (declarative) LTM

Memory Interference

• Proactive interference means old information interferes with new information
• An example of proactive interference is calling your new partner your ex's name
• Retroactive interference means new information interferes with old information
• An example of retroactive interference is forgetting an old password after setting a new one
• PROactive means previous info is interfering

Encoding & Retrieval

• Best retrieval happens when the cognitive processes at encoding and retrieval match, also called transfer-appropriate processing
• For example, if you learn by rhyming, you recall better when tested on rhymes
• Memory is at its best when context/environment at encoding matches retrieval. This is referred to as the encoding specificity effect
• Studying in the library and being tested in the library is an example of encoding specificity effect
• Encoding specificity effect includes internal states (like mood or intoxication) at encoding and retrieval

Paivio’s Dual-Coding Theory (1965)

• Two systems for representing knowledge: verbal (propositional) and imagery (analog/visual)
• Concrete words (like apple) are easier to remember because dual-coded visually (can picture it) and verbally (can name it)
• Abstract words (like justice) activate the verbal system, making them harder to remember

Paivio’s Paired-Associate Study

• Participants were given word pairs from these categories
• Concrete-concrete pairs like dog-table had strongest memory strength
• Concrete-abstract pairs like dog-truth had medium memory strength
• Abstract-concrete pairs like freedom-chair had medium memory strength
• Abstract-abstract pairs like hope-justice had weakest memory strength

Analog Code vs. Propositional Code

• Analog code mental images are like pictures in the mind.
• Rotating a 3D object in your head shows the use of analog code
• Propositional code information is stored in an abstract, language-like form
• "The cat is under the table" is an example of propositional code

Mental Rotation Task (Shepard & Metzler)

• Participants mentally rotated 3D objects in mental rotation task.
• The more rotation needed, the longer it took suggesting images are spatial and continuous, and supports analog code
• Mental images behave like real ones

Propositional Knowledge Hypothesis

• All information in memory is stored abstractly as propositions and not pictures
• Imagery is epiphenomenal or like a by-product and not necessary for cognition
• Just because we "see" a rabbit in our mind does not mean that it is stored that way

Animal Communication

• Holophrase is when a single sound or gesture = a full idea, such as vervet monkeys using one call for "eagle"
• Features are specific to context (e.g., danger calls)
• Not generative with limited combinations
• No displacement, so they talk about the "here and now," and not abstract/future things

Human Language Features

• Rule-governed has grammar rules (includes recursion) like clauses inside clauses
• Generative means it can produce infinite sentences from finite elements
• Displacement can talk about past/future, not just present
• Arbitrary has no inherent connection between a word and what it represents
• Dynamic language evolves over time (e.g., slang, new words)
• Socially shared language is used within communities and learned socially

Structure of Language

• Form = How it is built
• Phonology refers to sounds of speech (phonemes) which are smallest sound units like /k/, /t/
• Morphology refers to word structure (morphemes) which are smallest meaningful units
• Free morpheme can stand alone,like "cat"
• Bound morpheme must attach, like "-s" in "cats"
• Cats has 2 morphemes, "cat" (free) and "-s" (bound)
• Syntax involves grammar and rules for sentence structure
• Content is semantics which refers to meaning of words/sentences
• Use is pragmatics which involves the social rules of language (e.g., taking turns, sarcasm, tone)

Syntax & Grammar Acquisition

• Genie was isolated and did not learn language during critical period
• Genie could learn vocabulary but not grammar/syntax
• Supports the critical period hypothesis - that grammar acquisition has a developmental window

Slips of the Tongue (Speech Errors)

• Phoneme/Sound Exchange involves swapping sounds in words and is the most common error type (e.g. You have hissed all my mystery lectures instead of missed.)
• Typical Features of Phoneme/Sound Exchange errors stay within the same phrase
• Single pair of phonemes swaps one sound with another
• Positional constraint errors occur between words that are similar in position within a phrase
• Lexical bias effect, real words are substituted for other real words, rather than creating non-words (e.g. You have baked my cake instead of my cookies.)
• Morpheme Exchange involves swapping morphemes which are meaningful parts of words (e.g. He's a lisping lion becoming He's a lissing lion, swapping the “I” and “s”)
• Semantic/Word Substitution means word can be substituted based on meaning (e.g. Saying "I need a spoon" instead of "I need a fork.")
• Semantic/Word Substitution is based on semantic similarity

Mixed Errors

• Combination errors are words that are semantically and phonetically similar to the target word (e.g. Saying “I need to find my wallet” but accidentally saying “I need to find my wicket".

The Dell Interactive Model of Speech Production

• 3 Layers, Semantic Layer, Conceptual information (e.g., the idea of a dog).
• 3 Layers, Lexical Layer, The word forms (e.g., "dog" as the lemma).
• 3 Layers, Phonological Layer, The actual sounds of words (e.g., /d/ /o/ /g/ for "dog").
• Spreading activation means activation spreads across all layers when we produce language which is like a network of connected ideas and sounds
• Random noise in the network can cause errors
• Semantic noise, a related word is mistaken. (e.g., saying "dog" instead of "cat" because they're semantically related).
• Phonological noise, sounds get mixed up like calling a "cat" a "cag."

Lexical Semantics - Key Concepts

• Semantic memory is a storehouse of general world knowledge (e.g., facts, concepts, word meanings)
• Mental lexicon is an internal dictionary that stores word meanings, pronunciation, usage, etc.
• Sense is a dictionary-like definition (bachelor = unmarried man)
• Reference is the real-world examples the word refers to (my neighbor John is a bachelor)
• Definition Hypothesis is an early theory for storing words like dictionary entries (with necessary and sufficient features)
• The Definition Hypothesis does not explain fuzzy concepts well (e.g., is a tomato a vegetable or fruit?)

Semantic Network Models

• Collins & Quillian (1969)
• Hierarchical Network involves concepts as nodes
• Related concepts are linked (e.g., bird → animal → living thing)
• Properties are inherited up the hierarchy tested using the sentence verification task (“A canary is a bird" = faster response than “A canary is an animal”)
• Longer distance implies longer reaction time because activation must travel up network
• Collins & Loftus (1975) – Spreading Activation Model involves a looser structure with no strict hierarchy
• Activation spreads from a node to connected concepts
• Connections strength & distance affects activation speed
• Spreading activation is automatic, fast, and unconscious
• Spreading activation gets weaker the further it travels
• Semantic priming is faster recognition of related words (e.g., doctor → nurse = faster than doctor → chair)
• Mediated priming means indirect associations (e.g., lion → stripes → tiger)

Distributional Semantics

• “You shall know a word by the company it keeps"
• Words that appear in similar contexts likely have similar meanings
• “coffee” and “tea” often occur near “drink,” “hot,” “cup”

Concepts and Categories

• Superordinate Level: Broad categories (e.g., animal)
• Basic Level: More specific and commonly used (e.g., dog). This level is the most natural and efficient for categorization
• Subordinate Level: Very specific categories (e.g., poodle)

Family Resemblance & Typicality Effect

• Family Resemblance: Members of category share overlapping features rather than having a single set of defining features
• Typicality Effect: Some members of a category are seen as more “typical” and are processed or recalled more quickly than atypical examples

Exemplar vs. Prototype Theory

• Prototype Theory: Form an idealized “average” representation (prototype) of a category and categorizing new items by comparing them to prototype.
• Exemplar Theory: Store the multiple specific examples (exemplars) of a category and categorizing a new item comparing it to stored instances.

Instance Theory

• Instance theory of memory: Many cognitive abilities can be explained by the processes of cued-recall
• Our memory works by storing instances and that performance in various tasks reflects the efficiency of retrieving these instances when needed

Schemas and Scripts

• Schemas are organized knowledge structures that represent generic concepts
• Scripts are a type of schema that describes the typical sequence of events in a specific context

Chomsky’s Approach: Nativist Theory

• Transformational Grammar explains how endless sentences are generated using a finite set of rules
• Deep Structure vs. Surface Structure - deepest meaning of content versus the literal built structures
• Innateness Hypothesis & Poverty of the Stimulus describes grammar as partially innate
• Language Acquisition Device (LAD) refers to theoretical brain components proposed to explain how kids learn language quickly and naturally

Usage-Based Grammar

• Language is learned through experience and interaction and is not hardwired
• Learning language is accomplished by intention reading, pattern finding, an joint attention
• Corrective feedback plays a role in grammar improvement

Ambiguity

• Sentences may have multiple syntactic interpretations that lead to Syntax ambiguities
• Lexical Ambiguity is when a single word has multiple meaning

Sentence Comprehension

• Incremental Interpretation: We interpret language as we hear it, not waiting for the full sentence (garden-path sentences)
• Online Language Processing Measures: Time in a sentence can reveal the way the message is being processees through self paced readings and even tools like eye tracking
• Models of Sentence Processing: Serial Model: One interpretation at a time, revised if needed, Interactive Model: Multiple interpretations considered in parallel, Good Enough Model: Partial interpretations unless forced to fully analyze

Brain and Language – Types of Aphasia & Symptoms

• Broca’s area (left frontal lobe) handles speech production and grammar, causes Broca's aphasia when damaged
• Wernicke’s area (left temporal lobe) handles speech comprehension, causes Wernicke's aphasia when damaged
• Arcuate Fasciculus is a bundle of nerve fibers connection the parts in the brain handling speech. Causes Conduction aphasia when damaged
• Broca’s aphasia expressive causes trouble producing speech and symptoms like agrammatism (poor grammar use), telegraphic speech (short, content-heavy), and Speech that is slow and effortful
• Wernicke’s aphasia Receptive causes trouble understanding language and symptoms like fluent but nonsensical speech, semantic paraphasias substitutions, and phonemic paraphasias (sound-based errors)
• Conduction aphasia causes Difficulty with repeating spoken language.

How Humans Read

• Shallow Orthography is easy to parse because the letter and sounds tend to be 1:1
• Deep Orthography has less 1:1 sound and sound-letter correlation
• Two Methods of Reading - Direct Routing requires recognizing a whole word on contact
• Two Methods of Reading - Indirect Routing involves decoding how that word is read before identifying it