Cognition, Consciousness, and Language PDF

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Cognition, Consciousness, and Language...

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Chapter Summary: pg. 171

Ch. 4 – Cognition, Consciousness, and Language 4.1 Cognition   

Study of cognition looks at how brains process & react to the incredible information overload presented to us by the world Not a uniquely human trait – we’re the most advanced species on the planet in terms of complex thought Frontal lobe is disproportionately large in our subspecies o Comparison to our recent anthropological ancestors demonstrates that our skull is shaped to accommodate this enlarge lobe H. neander-

H. Information Processing Model thalensis  1950s: much of science & engineering turned toward the production of computers & AI sapiens o Certain steps were req’d in order to use a computer to store & process info 1. Information must be encoded in a language that the computer understands 2. Information must be stored in such a way that it can be found later 3. The computer must be able to retrieve that information when req’d  Psychologists took computer model of information processing & applied it to the human brain o Theorized that the brain is somewhat like a computer 1. It must encode information into a series of chemical & electrical signals 2. It must be able to store information such that it can be retrieved when needed 3. There must be a process by which the brain is able to retrieve information  The manner in which information is encoded, stored, and retrieved has been a consistent source of debate o Dual-coding theory (Paivio): both verbal association & visual images are used to process & store information  Prominent theory  E.g., the word “dad” can recall some info; the picture of “dad” can recall that same info  The fact that we can code this information 2 different ways builds redundancy & increases the change that the information can be retrieved & used effectively when cued  However, human brain isn’t a computer o Human brain doesn’t just handle info in the form of facts  It also handles emotions, sensations (i.e., smell & taste), and memories o Encoding, storage, and retrieval are often flavored by context & emotion  The information processing model has 4 key components (pillars): 1. Thinking requires sensation, encoding, and storage of stimuli 2. Stimuli must be analyzed by the brain (rather than responded to automatically) to be useful in decision making 3. Decisions made in 1 situation can be extrapolated & adjusted to help solve new problems (situational modification) 4. Problem solving is dependent on the person’s cognitive level and on the context & complexity of the problem

Cognitive Development  Cognitive development: the development of one’s ability to think & solve problems across the life span  Limited by the pace of brain maturation during childhood  Early cognitive development o Includes:  Learning control of one’s own body  Learning how to interact with & manipulate the env’t o Characterized by mastering the physical env’t o Abstract thinking is a new challenge once physical tasks are mastered  Abstract though can be lost in some mental disorders  Social skills develop during the lifetime

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The development of the ability to think abstractly is developed throughout childhood o Dependent upon increases in working memory & mental capacities o As the brain develops, the ability to process information in an abstract manner also develops Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development o Jean Piaget – one of the most influential figures in developmental psychology  Insisted that there are qualitative differences b/w the way that children & adults think  Divided the life span into 4 stages of cognitive development: 1. Sensorimotor 2. Preoperational 3. Concrete operational 4. Formal operational  Believed that passage through each of these stages was a continuous & sequential process  Completion of each stage prepares the individual for the stage that follows  Infants learn mainly through instinctual interaction with the env’t  E.g., infants possess a grasping reflex o Through experience with this reflex, the infant learns that it’s possible to grasp objects  Schema (pl. schemata): organized patterns of behaviour & thought  Can include a: o Concept (What is a dog?) o Behaviour (What do you do when someone asks you your name?) o Sequence of events (What do you normally do in a sit-down restaurant?)  As a child proceeds through the stages, new information has to be placed into the different schemata  Theorized that new information is processed via adaptation  According to Piaget, adaptation to information comes about by 2 complementary processes: 1. Assimilation: the process of classifying new information into existing schemata 2. Accommodation: the process by which existing schemata are modified to encompass new information  If new information doesn’t fit neatly into existing schemata, accommodation occurs o Piaget’s stages of development: 1. Sensorimotor Stage (birth to ~ 2 years of age)  A child learns to manipulate his/her env’t in order to meet physical needs  2 different types of circular reactions (repetitive natures): a) Primary circular reactions: the repetition of a body movement that originally occurred by chance (e.g., sucking the thumb)  Usually the behaviour is repeated bc the child finds it soothing b) Secondary circular reactions: occur when manipulation is focused on something outside the body (e.g., repeatedly throwing toys from a high chair)  These behaviours are often repeated bc the child gets a response from the env’t (e.g., a parent picking up the dropped toy)  Key milestone that ends this stage: the development of object permanence o Object permanence: the understanding that objects continue to exist even when out of view  Idea behind “peek-a-boo”  Marks the beginning of representational thought – the child has begun to create mental representations of external objects & events 2. Preoperational Stage (~ 2 to 7 years of age)  Characterized by:

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a) Symbolic thinking: the ability to pretend, play make-believe, and have an imagination b) Egocentrism: the inability to imagine what another person may think or feel c) Centration: the tendency to focus on only 1 aspect of a phenomenon  In ability to understand the concept of conservation  E.g., a child can be presented with 2 identical quantities of pizza – on 1 plate a single large slice, on the other is exact same quantity in 2 slices  Child in this stage will be unable to tell that the quantities are equal & will focus mainly on the # of slices on the plate rather than the actual quantity 3. Concrete Operational Stage (~ 7 to 11 years of age)  Children can understand conservation  Can consider the perspective of others  Able to engage in logical thought as long as they’re working with concrete objects or information that’s directly available  Haven’t yet developed the ability to think abstractly 4. Formal Operational Stage (~ 11 years of age)  Marked by the ability to think logically about abstract ideas  Generally coincides with adolescence o Marked by the ability to reason about abstract concepts & problem solve  Difference b/w this type of thought & concrete operations is illustrated by Piaget’s pendulum expt  Children given a pendulum in which they could vary the length of the string, the weight of the pendulum, the force of the push, and the initial angle of the swing  Asked to find out what determined the frequency of the swing o Children in concrete operational stage manipulated the variables at random & even distorted the data to fit preconceived hypotheses o Adolescents able to hold all variables but 1 constant at a given time, proceeding methodically to discover that only the length of the string affects the frequency Role of Culture in Cognitive Development o One’s culture will determine what one is expected to learn  Some cultures place a higher value on social learning (incl. cultural traditions & roles)  Other cultures will value knowledge o One’s culture will influence the rate of cognitive development as children are treated v differently from culture to culture o Lev Vygotsky – a prominent educational psychologist  Proposed that the engine driving cognitive development is the child’s internalization of his/her culture (incl. interpersonal & societal rules, symbols, and language)  As a child develops, her skills & abilities are still in formative stages  With help from adults or other children, those skills can develop further o That help may come in the form of instruction from a teacher or watching another child perform the skill Cognitive Changes in Late Adulthood o Reaction time increases steadily in early adulthood o Time-based prospective memory (the ability to remember to perform a task at a specific time in the future) declines with age o IQ changes have been found to be misleading

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Early R into field of intelligence & aging indicated that a substantial decline in IQ occurs b/w the ages of 30 & 40  In order to further elucidate what specific changes were occurring, intelligence itself was separated into 2 subtypes: 1. Fluid intelligence: problem solving skills o Peaked in early adulthood 2. Crystallized intelligence: use of learned skills & knowledge o Peaked in middle adulthood  Both types have been shown to decline with age Decline in intellectual abilities has been linked with how long an older adult retains the ability to function in activities of daily living (eating, bathing, toileting, dressing, and ambulation)  This decline isn’t uniform  Certain characteristics have been found to be protective against intellectual decline o Include :  Higher level of education  More frequent performance of intellectual activities  Socializing  A stimulating env’t Intellectual decline isn’t always benign  Some types (esp. those resulting in dementia) are v common & indicate a progressive loss of function beyond that of old age  Dementia: often begins with impaired memory, but later progresses to impaired judgment & confusion o As it progresses, personality changes are v common o Common causes of dementia: 1. Alzheimer’s disease (most common; accounts for ~60-80% of all dementia cases) 2. Vascular (multi-infarct) dementia  Caused by high blood pressure & repeated microscopic clots in the brain o People with dementia often require full-time supportive care in order to carry out activities of daily living  Causes tremendous stress on families 

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Heredity, Environment, and Biologic Factors  Cognition can be affected by a wide variety of conditions o May include:  Actual problems with the brain itself (organic brain disorders)  Genetic & chromosomal conditions  Metabolic derangements  Long-term drug use  The env’t can affect both cognitive development & day-to-day cognition  Parenting styles may influence cognitive development by reward, punishment, or indifference for an emerging skill  Genetics can predispose to a state that may make cognitive development difficult  Intellectual disabilities in children can be caused by: 1. Chemical exposures  Alcohol use during pregnancy can cause fetal alcohol syndrome  Results in slowed cognitive development & distinct craniofacial features

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2. Illness  Infections in the brain may result in electrical abnormalities & slowed development 3. Injury  Trauma to the brain can result in reduced cognition (occurs with shaken baby syndrome) 4. Trauma during birth  Complications during birth (esp. those causing reduced oxygen delivery to the brain) may affect cognition Not all cognitive decline in adulthood is slow o If there’s been a rapid decline in cognition, this may be the result of delirium  Delirium: rapid fluctuation in cognitive function that’s reversible & caused by medical (nonpsychological) causes  Can be caused by a variety of issues o Including:  Electrolyte & pH disturbances  Malnutrition  Low blood sugar  Infection  A drug reaction  Alcohol withdrawal  Pain

4.2 Problem Solving & Decision Making 

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Process of problem solving: 1. Must frame the problem – create a mental image or schematic of the issue  When we get “stuck” on a problem, it’s most often bc the manner in which we have framed the problem is inefficient or not useful 2. Generate potential solutions & begin to test them  These potential solutions may be derived from a mental set (the tendency to approach similar problems in the same way) 3. Evaluate the results  Considering other potential solutions that may have been easier or more effective in some way Problem solving can be impeded by: 1. An inappropriate mental set 2. Functional fixedness: the inability to consider how to use an object in a non-traditional manner  Demonstrated by Duncker’s candle problem  In a room: box of matches, some tacks, and a candle  Mount candle on wall so that no wax drops onto floor

Types of Problem Solving 1. Trial-and-Error o Various solutions are tried until 1 is found that seems to work o Less sophisticated type of problem solving o Usually only effective when there are relatively few possible solutions 2. Algorithms

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A formula or procedure for solving a certain type of problem Can be mathematical or a set of instructions  Designed to automatically produce the desired solution 3. Deductive (top-down) Reasoning o Starts from a set of general rules & draws conclusions from the information given o E.g., a logic puzzles  Applications of deductive reasoning  Have to synthesize a list of logical rules to come up with the single possible solution to the problem  Only 1 possible solution can be deduced based on the information given o The key to success on the MCAT – esp. in the CARS section  A deduction is a solution that must be true based on the info given  This is why As on the MCAT that merely might be true (but don’t have to be) are never the correct answer 4. Inductive (bottom-up) Reasoning o Seeks to create a theory via generalizations o Starts with specific instances, then draws a conclusion from them o o

Decision Making  A number of tools can speed up or simplify the process o Useful from a time & complexity standpoint, but they can lead us to short-sighted or problematic solutions  These tools include: 1. Heuristics  Simplified principles used to make decisions  Colloquially called rules of thumb  Types: a) Availability heuristic: used when we try to decide how likely something is o When using this heuristic, we make our decisions based on how easily similar instances can be imagined o The use of this heuristic often leads us to a correct decision, but not always o Detail Qs on MCAT often have wrong answer choices that are stated in the passage, but that fail to answer the Q posed  According to this heuristic, students who don’t truly problem solve on MCAT Qs will be tempted by these familiar-sounding answers merely bc they can recall that statement being mentioned in the passage b) Representativeness heuristic: involves categorizing items on the basis of whether they fit the prototypical, stereotypical, or representative image of the category o E.g., consider a standard coin that’s flipped 10 times in a row & lands on heads every time  Probability of the coin landing on heads the next time must still be 50%, but most individuals will either overestimate the probability based on the pattern that’s been established, or underestimate the probability with the logic that the # of heads & tails must “even out” o The use of this heuristic can sometimes lead us astray o Base rate fallacy: using prototypical or stereotypical factors while ignoring actual numerical information  While they can lead us astray, they’re essential to speedy & effective decision making  Often used by experts in a given field o E.g., Chess – must be able to think several moves ahead

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On any particular turn, there may be 15 or 20 possible moves, each perhaps with multiple consequences – analyzing every possibility would take too long  There are heuristics that can quickly rule out some of the possible moves (i.e., kind must be protected) Provide a more efficient (although sometimes inaccurate) method for problem solving 

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2. Biases  Disconfirmation principle: when a potential solution to a problem fails during testing, this solution should be discarded  The evidence obtained from testing demonstrated that the solution doesn’t work  The presence of a confirmation bias may prevent an individual from eliminating this solution  The following can seriously impede a person’s analysis of available evidence: a) Confirmation bias: the tendency to focus on information that fits an individual’s beliefs, while rejecting information that goes against them o Contributes to failure to follow disconfirmation principle & overconfidence b) Overconfidence: a tendency to erroneously interpret one’s decisions, knowledge, and beliefs as infallible c) Belief perseverance: the inability to reject a particular belief despite clear evidence to the contrary 3. Intuition  The ability to act on perceptions that may not be supported by available evidence  Often developed by experience  E.g., an ER physician, over the course of seeing 1000s of patients with chest pain, may develop a keen sense of which patients are actually having a heart attack w/o even looking at an EKG or a patient’s vital signs o Recognition-primed decision model: can more accurately describe this kind of intuition  Doctor’s brain is actually sorting through a wide variety of info to match a pattern  Over time, the doctor has gained an extensive level of experience that their able to access w/o awareness 4. Emotion  The subjective experience of a person in a certain situation  How a person feels often influences how a person thinks & makes decisions  Plays the following roles in decision making: a) Emotion experienced while the decision is being made b) Emotions that a person expects to feel from a particular decision Intellectual Functioning  A highly studied area of psychology  Theorists have proposed models for some aspects of intelligence 1. Theory of Multiple Intelligences – Howard Gardner  One of the most all-encompassing definitions  7 defined types of intelligence: a) Linguistic b) Logical-mathematical c) Musical d) Visual-spatial e) Bodily-kinesthetic f) Interpersonal g) Intrapersonal  Gardner argues that Western culture values the 1st 2 abilities over the others (linguistic & logical-mathematical)

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They’re the 2 abilities tested on traditional intelligence quotient (IQ) tests

2. Variations in Intellectual Ability  A # of tests & studies have historically attempted to quantify intelligence  Founding concept behind these tests: Spearman’s “g factor”, or general intelligence factor o Theory behind existence of a g factor is based on the observation that performance on different cognitive tasks is in many cases positively correlated  Indicates an underlying factor or variable is playing a role  This underlying variable of intelligence is often measured with standardized tests that generate an intelligence quotient (IQ) for the test taker  IQ tests largely pioneered by Alfred Binet in early 20th century  Professor at Stanford Univ. took Binet’s work & created the Stanford-Binet IQ test

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mental age × 100 chronological age

Original formula:

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Later iterations of the test use different methodologies to arrive at a score Distribution of IQ scores for children 5 to 14 years of age:

o Mean = 100; SD = 15 Still popular, but has been found to have variable levels of success in assessing intelligence with different ages & cultural groups o In practice, a variety of intelligence assessments can be found in use around the world Some theorists have argued for intelligence as a hereditary trait  Most notable: Galton in his novel Hereditary Genius In reality – variations of intellectual ability can be attributed to many determinants  Including: a) Genes  Intellectual ability doesn’t appear to run in families  May be due to both genetics & the ...