Cognitive Psychology Chpt. 1-4
Representationalist
One who adheres to the perspective in psychology that concepts can be represented in the mind
Behaviorist
One who adheres to the perspective in psychology that focuses on observable behaviors
Biological Perspective
Perspective in psychology that describes cognition according to the mechanisms of the brain
Controlled Processing
Processing due to an intention that consumes cognitive resources
Automatic Processing
Processing that is not controlled and does not tax cognitive resources
Proximal Stimulus
Stimulus as it is represented in the mind
Distal Stimulus
Stimulus in the environment
Neuron
The basic cell of the brain
Dependent Variable
The behavior that is measured in a research study
Theory of Unconscious Inference
The idea that we make unconscious inferences about the world when we perceive it
Ventral Pathway
The pathway in the brain that processes "what" information about the environment
Dorsal Pathway
The pathway in the brain that processes "where" information about the environment
Parsimony
The principle of preferring simple explanations over more complex ones
Determinism
The principle that behaviors have underlying causes and that understanding involves identification of what these causes are and how they are related to the behavior of interest
Empiricism
The principle that the key to understanding new things is through systematic observation
Testability
The principle that theories must be stated in ways that allow them to be evaluated through observation
Primary Auditory Cortex (A1)
The receiving area of auditory information in the cortex of the brain
Primary Visual Cortex (V1)
The receiving area of visual information in the cortex of the brain
Bottom-Up Processing
Understanding the environment through basic feature identification and processing
Top-Down Processing
Understanding the environment through global knowledge of the environment and its principles
Learning Objectives (2)
* 2.1 How is the examination of brain activity involved in the study of cognition * 2.2 How do case studies of individuals with cognitive deficits inform us about the connection between cognition and brain function * 2.3 What can be learned about cognition through measurements of neuron activity in the brain * 2.4 Can all behavior be explained in terms of brain activity
Measures in Cognitive Neuroscience
* Advances in technology have allowed researchers to record different types of brain activity * Single-cell recording - Typically used with laboratory animals - E.g.: Rizzolatti et al., 1996 - E.g.: Quiroga et al., 2005 * [LO 2.4: Can all behavior be explained in terms of brain activity?] * Electroencephalography (EEG) - Detects changes in electrical signals - Electrodes on the scalp - Event-related potentials (ERP) - E.g.: Düzel et al., 1997 - E.g.: Barron et al., 2011 * Magnetoencephalography (MEG) - Records electrical signals from neurons - Place head in or near an electrical scanner * Electrical stimulation/inhibition of neurons - Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) - Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) * Brain imaging techniques - Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) - Positron emission tomography (PET) - Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) • E.g.: Segaert et al. 2012
Instructor's Notes (Chapter 4)
* Attention can be difficult to define because it overlaps with many other cognitive processes. One proposed definition is the focus of our consciousness to the exclusion of other things. Attention has been described as a filter, a spotlight, a limited mental capacity, and as feature glue. Arousal states, the difficulty of a task, and our interest in a task can all affect the capacity of our mental resources. Automatic processing can interfere with an attentional task, as it does with the Stroop task. However, according to Treisman's model and Schneider and Shiffrin's model, automatic processes can also aid in cognitive tasks by either preparing our attention or requiring less attention as tasks become more automatic.
Dendrites
Extensions from neurons that receive chemical messages (neurotransmitters) from other neurons
Inattentional Blindness (Also Change Blindness)
Failure to notice a change in the environment
Instructor's Notes (Chapter 1)
* Chapter 1: Introduction to Cognitive Psychology * * Cognitive psychology is the study of how our minds receive, store, and use information. This includes theory and research about perception, attention, memory, language use, decision making, and problem-solving. The primary development of cognitive psychology began, in part, as a reaction to the behaviorist tradition within psychology, but is also a reflection of developments within other disciplines, including biology, linguistics, and computer science. Explanations of cognitive processes have been developed within three general approaches: representationalist, embodied, and biologically motivated. * Three main types of research design are employed in research in cognition: case studies, correlational studies, and experiments. There is a range of behaviors studied by cognitive psychologists. Some common measures are accuracy for a task as well as the speed to complete a task. There are also behaviors specific to an area of cognitive psychology such as measurement of brain activity in cognitive neuroscience. ----------------------------------------------- * Learning Objectives: * 1.1 What is cognitive psychology 1.2 How have psychologists approached the study of cognition 1.3 What types of research methods are useful in the study of cognition 1.4 What behaviors do psychologists observe to study cognition -------------------------------------------
Instructor's Notes (Chapter 2)
* Chapter 2: Cognitive Neuroscience * * A number of brain activity recording techniques are used by cognitive neuroscientists to better understand how brain activity is tied to cognition. All rely in some way on neuron activity; some measuring electrical signals from neurons, and others recording images of neuron activity in larger areas of the brain. Individuals who have suffered a brain lesion can help us connect cognitive deficits to specific areas of the brain. By examining area(s) of the lesion, and which cognitive deficits the individuals have, researchers can make hypotheses about the primary function of different areas of the brain. Much of the early knowledge of localization of function in the brain came from such clinical case studies. From clinical case studies, researchers can connect specific brain areas with cognitive abilities. However, measurements of brain activity also allow researcher to provide better tests of hypotheses about brain function because experiments can be conducted with brain activity as the dependent measures.
Independent Variable
A factor in an experiment that is manipulated by the researcher (e.g., randomly assigning subjects to a group in the experiment)
Scientific method
A method of gaining knowledge in a field that relies on observations of phenomena that allows for tests of hypotheses about those phenomena
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)
A method of temporarily stimulating or suppressing neurons using a magnetic field
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS)
A method of temporarily stimulating or suppressing neurons using an electrical current
Embodied Cognition
A perspective in psychology that cognition focuses on bodily interaction with the environment
Gestalt Psychology
A perspective in psychology that focuses on how organizational principles allow us to perceive and understand the environment
Stroop Task
A research procedure where subjects are asked to name the color of printed words where some words are color words that conflict with the print color showing inter-ference in the naming task
Shadowing Task
A research procedure where subjects are asked to repeat (i.e., shadow) a message heard over headphones
Dual-Task Method
A research procedure where subjects are given two tasks to perform at once—to compare with performance on one task alone—to examine interference due to the second task
Experimental Study
A research study that examines causal relationships between variables
Correlational Study
A research study that examines relationships between measured variables
Case Study
A research study that focuses on intensive analyses of a single individual or more broadly on a single observation unit
Synapse
A space between neurons where neurotransmitters are released and received
Sensory System
A system that receives and processes input from stimuli in the environment
Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
A technique that images neuron activity in the brain through radioactive markers in the bloodstream
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
A technique to image the internal portions of the body using the magnetic fields present in the cells
Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (FMRI)
An MRI technique that images brain activity during a task
Cocktail Party Effect
An effect of attention where one's focus changes abruptly due to a salient stimulus (such as one's name) in the environment
Axon
An extension from the neuron nucleus where an electrical impulse in the neuron occurs
Principle of Pragnanz
An organizational principle that allows for the simplest interpretation of the environment
Chapter 4
Attention
Geons
Basic three-dimensional pieces of objects
Affordances
Behaviors that are possible in a given environment
PowerPoint (Chapter 2)
Cognitive Neuroscience
Simon Effect
Interference in response due to inconsistency between the response and the stimulus
Magnetoencephalography (MEG)
A brain recording technique that records activity of large sections of neurons from different areas of the scalp using a large magnet that is placed over the head
Journal Articles (Chapter 1)
* Journal Article 1.1: Greenwald, A. G. (2012). There is nothing so theoretical as a good method. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 7(2), 99-108. * Abstract * * This article documents two facts that are provocative in juxtaposition. First: There is multidecade durability of theory controversies in psychology, demonstrated here in the subdisciplines of cognitive and social psychology. Second: There is a much greater frequency of Nobel science awards for contributions to method than for contributions to theory, shown here in an analysis of the last two decades of Nobel awards in physics, chemistry, and medicine. The available documentation of Nobel awards reveals two forms of method-theory synergy: (a) existing theories were often essential in enabling development of awarded methods, and (b) award-receiving methods often generated previously inconceivable data, which in turn inspired previously inconceivable theories. It is easy to find illustrations of these same synergies also in psychology. Perhaps greater recognition of the value of method in advancing theory can help to achieve resolutions of psychology's persistent theory controversies. http://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/yUMvxeSp72ieM/full ---------------------------------------------------------- * Journal Article 1.2: De Houwer, J. (2011). Why the cognitive approach in psychology would profit from a functional approach and vice versa. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 6(2), 202-209. * Abstract * * Cognitively oriented psychologists often define behavioral effects in terms of mental constructs (e.g., classical conditioning as a change in behavior that is due to the formation of associations in memory) and thus effectively treat those effects as proxies for mental constructs. This practice can, however, hamper scientific progress. I argue that if psychologists would consistently define behavioral effects only in terms of the causal impact of elements in the environment (e.g., classical conditioning as a change in behavior that is due to the pairing of stimuli), they would adopt a functional approach that not only reveals the environmental causes of behavior but also optimizes cognitive research. The cognitive approach in turn strengthens the functional approach by facilitating the discovery of new causal relations between the environment and behavior. I thus propose a functional-cognitive framework for research in psychology that capitalizes on the mutually supportive nature of the functional and cognitive approaches in psychology. https://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/ntBEiuUtKUmTU/full
Journal Articles (Chapter 2)
* Journal Article 2.1: Gonsalves, B. D., & Cohen, N. J. (2010). Brain imaging, cognitive processes, and brain networks. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 5(6), 744-752. - Abstract: The recent, rapid expansion of the application of neuroimaging techniques to a broad variety of questions about the structure and function of mind and brain has led to much necessary and often critical introspection about what these techniques can actually tell us about cognitive processes. In this article, we attempt to place neuroimaging within the broader context of the cognitive neuroscience approach, which emphasizes the benefits of converging methodologies for understanding cognition and how it is supported by the functioning of the brain. Our arguments for what neuroimaging has to offer are supported by two specific examples from research on memory that, we believe, show how neuroimaging data have provided unique insights not only into brain organization, but also into the organization of the mind. * https://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/ayTRtoMRE0Bog/full * --------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Journal Article 2.2: Ranganath, C. (2010). Binding items and contexts: The cognitive neuroscience of episodic memory. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 19(3), 131-137. - Abstract: In order to remember a past event, the brain must not only encode the specific aspects of an event but also bind them in a manner that can later specify the spatiotemporal context in which event occurred. Here, I describe recent research aimed at characterizing the functional organization of two brain regions--the medial temporal lobes and the prefrontal cortex--that allow us to accomplish this task. Converging evidence indicates that different regions of the medial temporal lobes may form representations of items, contexts, and item-context bindings and that areas in the prefrontal cortex may implement working-memory control processes that allow us to build meaningful relationships between items that are encountered over time. The results are compatible with an emerging model that generates novel predictions at both the behavioral and neural levels. * http://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/vLpDfQ78ym96E/full * --------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Journal Article 2.3: Poldrack, R. A. (2010). Mapping mental function to brain structure: How can cognitive neuroimaging succeed? Perspectives on Psychological Science, 5(6), 753-761. - Abstract: The goal of cognitive neuroscience is to identify the mapping between brain function and mental processing. In this article, I examine the strategies that have been used to identify such mappings and argue that they may be fundamentally unable to identify selective structure-function mappings. To understand the functional anatomy of mental processes, it will be necessary for researchers to move from the brain-mapping strategies that the field has employed toward a search for selective associations. This will require a greater focus on the structure of cognitive processes, which can be achieved through the development of formal ontologies that describe the structure of mental processes. In this article, I outline the Cognitive Atlas Project, which is developing such ontologies, and show how this knowledge could be used in conjunction with data-mining approaches to more directly relate mental processes and brain function. * http://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/A6coiQk/c4Jxo/full * --------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Journal Article 2.4: Varma, S., McCandliss, B. D., & Schwartz, D. L. (2016). Scientific and pragmatic challenges for bridging education and neuroscience. Educational Researcher, 37(3), 140-152. - Abstract: Educational neuroscience is an emerging effort to integrate neuroscience methods, particularly functional neuroimaging, with behavioral methods to address issues of learning and instruction. This article consolidates common concerns about connecting education and neuroscience. One set of concerns is scientific: in-principle differences in methods, data, theory, and philosophy. The other set of concerns is pragmatic: considerations of costs, timing, locus of control, and likely payoffs. The authors first articulate the concerns and then revisit them, reinterpreting them as potential opportunities. They also provide instances of neuroscience findings and methods that are relevant to education. The goal is to offer education researchers a window into contemporary neuroscience to prepare them to think more specifically about the prospects of educational neuroscience. * http://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/default+domain/GrsTvSSu7A4gbyEyD2MZ/full * ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Journal Articles (Chapter 3)
* Journal Article 3.1: Knoblich, G., & Flach, R. (2001). Predicting the effects of actions: Interactions of perception and action. Psychological Science, 12(6), 467-472.* http://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/default+domain/y3KiucAh2N8sz7I3SQNY/full * Abstract: Many theories in cognitive psychology assume that perception and action systems are clearly separated from the cognitive system. Other theories suggest that important cognitive functions reside in the interactions between these systems. One consequence of the latter claim is that the action system may contribute to predicting the future consequences of currently perceived actions. In particular, such predictions might be more accurate when one observes one's own actions than when one observes another person's actions, because in the former case the system that plans the action is the same system that contributes to predicting the action's effects. In the present study, participants (n= 104) watched video clips displaying either themselves or somebody else throwing a dart at a target board and predicted the dart's landing position. The predictions were more accurate when participants watched themselves acting. This result provides evidence for the claim that perceptual input can be linked with the action system to predict future outcomes of actions. * Journal Article 3.2: Wokke, M. E., Vandenbroucke, A. R. E., Scholte, H. S., & Lamme, V. A. F. (2012). Confuse your illusion: Feedback to early visual cortex contributes to perceptual completion. Psychological Science, 24(1), 63-71. * https://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/CVk6TWkBUAVBM/full * Abstract: A striking example of the constructive nature of visual perception is how the human visual system completes contours of occluded objects. To date, it is unclear whether perceptual completion emerges during early stages of visual processing or whether higher-level mechanisms are necessary. To answer this question, we used transcranial magnetic stimulation to disrupt signaling in V1/V2 and in the lateral occipital (LO) area at different moments in time while participants performed a discrimination task involving a Kanizsa-type illusory figure. Results show that both V1/V2 and higher-level visual area LO are critically involved in perceptual completion. However, these areas seem to be involved in an inverse hierarchical fashion, in which the critical time window for V1/V2 follows that for LO. These results are in line with the growing evidence that feedback to V1/V2 contributes to perceptual completion. -------------------------------------------------- * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOHayh06LJ4 * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkOb9FR5Lgk *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkX2bUathc0 * http://openpsyc.blogspot.com/2014/06/bottom-up-vs-top-down-processing.html * http://www.bbc.com/future/bespoke/story/20150130-how-your-eyes-trick-your-mind/index.html
Chapter 3
* Perception *
Instructor's Notes (Chapter 3)
* Perception is the cognitive process through which we interpret the stimuli in the world around us. Sensory systems do the job of turning sensations into perceptions that help us understand what we are encountering in the world. In some cases, perception happens automatically, without our control, but there are also situations where we control perception. Perceptual illusions occur through our natural processes of perception. They help illustrate the way perception typically occurs in cases where illusions do not result. * The purpose of perception is to interpret the world around us. However, the means by which this occurs is varied and described in different ways by the different approaches researchers take in studying perception. Gestalt is perceiving the whole, compared to the computational approach where the parts are added together to achieve perception of the whole stimulus. According to the perception/action approach, perception is conducted as a means to achieve goal-directed behaviors. Thus, perception and action are intricately tied together.
Outline
* Sensory Systems: How Sensations Become Perceptions * • The initial place for our perceptions is the sensations we bring in from the outside world • Stimuli can be sensed by your sensory organs even if you are not currently perceiving them • *Sensory system:* processes the sensations coming into each sense; organ that allows us to understand and interpret the sensations we receive o Within each sense organ, receptor cells receive the environmental stimuli (sound waves, light waves, pressure on the skin, or chemicals in food or the air) o The receptor cells do the job of turning the environmental stimuli into neural signals the brain can receive and interpret o The receptor cells then send this information to the appropriate areas of the brain through a nerve cell that connects to the neurons in different brain areas • Sensory systems for the visual system: sense organ (eye) > receptor cells (rods and cones in the retina) > nerve conduit to the brain (occipital lobe) > brain area where the information is being processed (occipital lobe with extensions to other areas) o Same (or similar) structure for other senses • The primary job of the sensory system is to receive stimulus energy from the environmental stimulus and recode that stimulus, called the *distal stimulus*, into something the brain can interpret and process • Once the distal stimulus has been represented in our minds, it becomes a *proximal stimulus* which the brain attempts to interpret and act on *Approaches to the Study of Perception* • *Computational approach*: researchers consider how different cues in the stimuli can be used to interpret the environment o Considers how we use features of objects and scenes to interpret and understand them o The features or cues in the environment help us turn the distal stimulus into the proximal stimulus in our minds o *Bottom-up processing:* perception is conducted starting with the most basic units or features of a stimulus and adding the parts together to understand and identify a coherent whole object Ponzo illusion activity: the cat on the bottom looks smaller even though they are the same size; this is due to the linear perspective of the train tracks • Shows how we use the linear perspective cues in the scenes to misinterpret the size of the objects on the tracks o *Top-down processing:* perceiving objects using our knowledge of objects; rely on our knowledge of the world to interpret those cues Examining object perception using cues such as linear perspective and retinal image size led to the *theory of unconscious inference* which suggests that we make unconscious inferences about the world when we perceive it We use our top-down processing unconsciously to perceive and interpret the environment • *Gestalt approach:* researchers have considered how organizational principles of the world allow us to interpret the stimuli in our environment; top-down processing is a key component o "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts" o *Similarity:* we tend to group objects or features of a scene based on their similarity o *Proximity:* we tend to group objects or features of a scene based on their proximity to one another o *Good continuation:* our understanding that objects continue, even if parts of them are occluded o *Closure:* allows us to view incomplete objects as a whole o *Principle of Pragnanz:* we perceive scenes as simply as possible o *Configural superiority effect:* larger arrays of stimuli containing basic feature elements and more complex stimuli are easier to perceive than smaller basic arrays and stimuli o The *Gestalt approach* grew out of idea that perception is more than just interpreting cues in the environment; more than just the sum of the parts of a scene • *Perception/action approach:* researchers consider the goals of action achieved through more direct perception; focus more on what perception is for o Affordances: possible behaviors in a given environment Example: the perception of a chair may result from knowing that a chair can be used to sit or stand on. o Perception and action are intricately linked (must consider them together to understand each one) o Examines perception according to how it aids in performing behaviors o Roots in ecological psychology (suggested by James Gibson) o Judgments about the environment can also be influenced by our current bodily state o The brain evidence is controversial *Ventral pathway:* the "what" brain pathway responsible for recognition of an object is located in the lower occipital lobe and leads to the temporal lobe where language functions are controlled *Dorsal pathway:* the "where" brain pathway responsible for locating an object is in the upper occipital lobe and leads to the parietal lobe where the motor cortex resides * Comparison of Approaches to Perception: Motion Perception * • Computational perception researchers have looked at how visual cues help to detect motion and the speed of motion in the environment; changes occurring in the retinal images over time are one cue • Gestalt researchers focus more on the apparent motion as seen in a visual illusion known as the phi phenomenon; we organize the stimuli moving on and off as moving in the way we know an object moves in a scene • The perception/action approach considers movement in terms of goals for our own action • The perception of motion likely involves a combination of processes
Outline (Chapter 4)
* Views of Attention * • Attention as an information filter: attention works to filter out the irrelevant stimuli in the environment such that only aspect(s) of the environment left in our consciousness is what we choose to pay attention to o Our attention is limited by the amount of information we can focus on at a particular time o There is a "bottleneck" in our processing that filters out everything except the information we are attending to o The filter acts as an early processor of the information to only let in what is relevant to one's current task or focus o Support for this model is found in research using a *shadow task:* subjects are asked to repeat a message played over headphones to one ear, while a competing message is played in the other ear--subjects must focus their attention on the target message they have been asked to repeat Subjects often cannot accurately report the content of the competing message o *Cocktail party effect:* when you suddenly hear your name over the loud noises at a party (salient stimulus can get through the filter to capture attention) o Treisman suggested a modified filter model--an early process partial filter allows some information to pass through but only after it has been attenuated; some of the information is being passed through the filter but at a lower volume than the most relevant information. (This is known as the attenuation theory of attention) • Attention as a limited resource o Attention as a spotlight: attention is viewed as the spotlight for our consciousness that is focused on some aspect of the environment that currently has our attention The spotlight can be moved around the environment as our attention shifts to different things o Attention as a *mental capacity:* attention has a limited capacity due to the limited amount of cognitive resources available for a task Attention depends on the amount of mental effort required for a task in relation to the cognitive resources currently available for the task Later capacity models focused more on how interference from multiple tasks can tax attentional resources and cause decreased performance on one or both tasks Kahmeman proposed that attention is a limited cognitive resource that can be allocated to different tasks based on our intention; tasks that are more difficult than others require more attention and we allocate more attention to those tasks • Also suggests that arousal can influence our mental resource capacity *Dual-task method:* subjects are asked to complete two tasks at once to compare with performance on these tasks when they are performed alone • Attention as a feature binder: separate stages of processing contribute to focused attention o First stage: automatic identification and processing of the features within a scene of an environment; not aware of the identification of these features o Second stage: involves conscious, focused attention to combine the features of the scene and allows us to understand and think about what we are focused on in the scene; attention is the glue that binds the features of the objects together Consistent with current understanding of brain activity and processing * How Attention Affects Our Perceptions * • Additional effects of attention: detecting changes in the environment, attentional boosts to performance based on congruencies between targets and responses, and deficits in our attention due to interferences from automatic processing • The gorilla in the room: *inattentional blindness* o Our inability to notice a major change in our environment due to attention focused on other aspects of the environment o Also called * change blindness* * Incompatibilities Tax Attention* • *Simon effect:* interference in response due to inconsistency between the response and the stimulus o The first mechanism, attentional movement hypothesis, suggests that the shift in attention to a target on the left or right of one's attentional focus biases one to want to respond on the side of the attention shift (right or left); a response from the other side from the target must overcome this bias, requiring extra time o The other mechanism suggests that the bias in response side is due to a correspondence to an object of reference in the scene, rather than the current focus of attention * Effects of Automatic Processes on Attention: The Stroop Task * • *Stroop task:* task that measures one's ability to inhibit automatic processes and focus attention on a conflicting task; naming color of ink that words (colors) are written in o Conflicting information (or incongruent information, i.e., "red" written in blue ink) requires more attention o With practice, subjects can get better (or faster at naming colors) * Automatic and Controlled Processing: A Cognitive Dichotomy * • Tasks that are automatic require little attention and do not tax our cognitive resources, so researchers are interested in how a process becomes automatic o Practice seems to be a factor • Schneider and Shiffrin define an automatic process as one that is initialed from a specific output (internal or external) and activated without control or attention; controlled processes are activated based on one's intentions and require attentional resources o Experiments support the use of both controlled and automatic processing in attention tasks • According to Logan's theory, automaticity occurs through the encoding and retrieval of multiple experiences with a task; controlled attention is required initially for the encoding and retrieval of information about the task in memory
Can All Mental Processes Be Explained in Terms of Brain Activity?
* We are not sure. - Libet, 1985 - Schurger et al., 2012 - Mitchell et al., 2008
Introduction
* [LO 2.1: How is the examination of brain activity involved in the study of cognition?] * We have learned a great deal about the brain from patients with brain damage * This illustrates the connection between brain function and cognitive abilities * Recently, brain recording techniques have shed even more light on how brain function relates to cognition
Clinical Case Studies
* [LO 2.2: How do case studies of individuals with cognitive deficits inform us about the connection between cognition and brain function?] * Neuroscientists have learned a lot about which brain areas contribute to different cognitive abilities through the examination of clinical patients - Phineas Gage - Patient H. M. * Broca's area * Wernicke's area * Phineas Gage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flRamGBSoP4 * Broca's and Wernicke's area: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5k8JwC1L9_k * Oliver Sacks - Object identification * Object agnosia - Results from damage to the inferior temporal lobe - Deficit is likely related to language abilities * Patient H. M. - Surgery to diminish epileptic seizures - Localization of memory function * Advantages - Have revealed connections between brain function and cognitive abilities - Provide clues about the brain areas most important for different types of cognitive tasks * Disadvantages - The brain is not controlled by researchers • The damage may be spread across multiple brain areas • May be difficult for researchers to determine the specific areas connected to the cognitive deficits • Researchers are limited to the damaged areas
Electroencephalography (EEG)
A brain recording technique that records the activity of large sections of neurons from different areas of the scalp
Structure of the Nervous System
* [LO 2.3: What can be learned about cognition through measurements of neuron activity in the brain?] * Advances in technology have allowed researchers to record the brain activity present in clinical and nonclinical subjects - Test hypotheses about brain activity in relation to cognition * How these recording techniques rely on some understanding of the brain and nervous system * We must review the relevant physiology first * The neuron - The basic cells of the brain - Activity is both chemical and electrical - Neurotransmitters and electrical signals * Dendrites - Any of the threadlike extensions of the cytoplasm of a neuron; they typically branch into treelike processes, and compose most of the receptive surface of a neuron. * Axon - Process of a nerve cell along which impulses travel away from the cell body. It branches at its termination, forming synapses at other nerve cells or effector organs. * Synapse - The junction between the processes of two neurons or between a neuron and an effector organ, where neural impulses are transmitted by chemical means. * Resting state of a neuron - Negative internal charge * Action potential - Creates the electrical signal in the neuron * During an action potential, ions redistribute through channels in the axon's membrane - Controls the flow of potassium (K+), sodium (Na+), and chlorine (Cl-) ions - Sodium flows in, and when the action potential is over, K+ flows out and the sodium channels close * This activity redistributes the ions back to the resting negative state inside the axon * The excitatory message then reaches the terminals and a neurotransmitter is released into the synapse * Each neuron is connected to other neurons in an organized network - Patterns of firing translate into specific thoughts or behaviors - Excitatory vs. inhibitory * The brain - Organized in networks according to their cognitive functions - Different areas of the brain are specialized for different functions • Localization of function • Lateralization of function - Newer brain recording techniques have allowed researchers to go beyond the basic knowledge of localization and lateralization of function to map out more specific brain areas * Many complex cognitive tasks are a function of distributed processing - Brain areas work together in systems to process different kinds of information * There is localization of function for cognitive processes, but for most functions, multiple areas are organized into processing system for various abilities
Chpt. 1 Outline
------------------------------------------- * What Is Cognitive Psychology? * * Cognition involves thinking and other mental processes but also includes - Our perception of the world around us through our senses - The attentional process that allows us to focus on a particular stimulus - How memory operates to allow us to remember information and intentions - Our language processes that help us communicate our thoughts and ideas - Decision making - Brain activity that controls all of the processes described above * Cognitive psychology bridges cognition with other areas of psychology, philosophy, linguistics, cognitive sciences, and neuroscience ------------------------------------------- * Development of Cognitive Psychology * * Aristotle: memory metaphor: memory is like a wax tablet with memories formed in the tablet-like molds in hot wax * Apply scientific methods from other fields at the time to the study of the mind * Ebbinghaus: studies the processes of memory by testing his own memory (mapped out forgetting curve) * The study of cognition fell out of favor in psychology with the rise in popularity of the behaviorist perspective: focus on observable behaviors (thought that introspection was biased) * Noam Chomsky - Suggested that children have the mental capacity to learn the rules of language spoken around them without explicit feedback on the language they produce - This was a strong counter to B.F. Skinner's behaviorist proposal * Psychologists began to realize that the study of cognitive processes is an important part of understanding behavior--that understanding the processes behind the overt behaviors would advance our understanding of the mind and behavior in important ways * Computer development - Presented an information-processing model as a way of thinking about cognitive processes - New metaphor for the mind (brain as a biological computer, cognitive processes as the software) * Ulric Neisser - Tied together memory, perception, attention, and language--as a unified field - Coined the term "cognitive psychology" ------------------------------------------- * Current Approaches to the Study of Cognition * * These approaches represent some of the ways that researchers think about how cognition works which influences how they design their research studies - Representationalism • Knowledge about the world is represented in our minds such that cognitive processes can "operate" on the representations • Arose from the computer and information-processing models of cognition • Researchers think of information as being stored in the mind and available for processing as we interpret, analyze, and alter this information in our thinking. • Connects well with the biological perspective - Embodied cognition • Examines cognition as an interaction between humans (and other animals) and their environment • Our visual sense doesn't simply create representations of objects and scenes from the world for us to interpret and process - Biological perspective • Builds a different metaphor for the mind, not based on a computer but rather how the brain works • Propose theories based on networks of connections loosely analogous to networks of neurons • Connectionist models ------------------------------------------- * Research and Cognitive Psychology * * The scientific method - Four core principles • Empiricism: the key to understanding new things is systematic observation • Determinism: behaviors have underlying causes and "understanding" involves identification of what these causes are and how they are related to the behavior • Testability: theories must be stated in ways that allow them to be evaluated through observation • Parsimony: prefer the simple explanations over more complex ones - Variables • Dependent (or response) variable: the behavior of interest, what we want to explain • Independent (or explanatory) variable: the variable you have control over and manipulate ------------------------------------------- * Research Methodologies * * Need to design research studies to test the predictions derived from the theory - Case studies: focus on intensive analyses of a single individual or on a single observation unit • Example: H.M. who had memory impairments; researchers used his special case for research • Advantage: intensive observations allow researchers to identify many of the variables that may be relevant and to speculate about the relationship between those variables • Disadvantage: centers on describing and explaining the behavior of a single, often unique, exemplar; difficult to make generalizations - Correlational studies: systematically observe groups and record many variables at once while collecting these observations with minimal impact on the variables of interest • Observing things as they naturally occur • Cannot determine the causal relationship between variables • Advantage: observation of many variables at once within relatively natural contexts • Disadvantage: should not make cause and effect generalizations based on these methods. Correlation does not always equal causation - Experimental studies: intentionally involve the manipulation of variable (both independent and control), focused investigation of the impact of a relatively small set of variables • Compare two groups by keeping most things constant and manipulating a few variables • Ensure the only difference between the two groups was the independent variable so that a difference found in the dependent variable can be explained by the independent variable (and not an outside explanation) • Advantage: researchers can be more confident about testing cause and effect relationships between variables. • Disadvantage: must be careful about generalizing conclusions drawn from experiments. ------------------------------------------- * Commonly Use Measures within Cognitive Psychology * * Not all cognitive processes have obvious, directly observable outcomes or behaviors * We are interested in more than just the final outcome; interested in the mental processes as they occur * Accuracy - Researchers measure how often participants supply a correct answer or how many times they supply an incorrect answer - Used in research designs where there are right and wrong responses * Response time - Measure how long it takes to respond to a stimulus (e.g., button pressing, verbal responses, etc.) - Eye-movement measures: how long we look at something reflects underlying mental processes * Beyond accuracy and response time - Cognitive neuroscience (i.e., EEG, fMRI) - New technology combined with old techniques helps gain insight into mental processing - Keep in mind • These measures are often indirect measurements • We are measuring something we assume to be correlated with the cognitive processes, not the processes themselves • We must critically evaluate the assumed connection between the behavior measured and the cognitive process being tested -------------------------------------------
PowerPoint (Chapter 1)
------------------------------------------- * What Is Cognitive Psychology? * [LO1-1: What is cognitive psychology? How did it develop as a field?] * The study of cognition - Used in everyday tasks - Involves thinking and other mental processes * Includes the following: - Perception - Attention - Memory - Language - Decision making - Brain activity ------------------------------------------- * Development of Cognitive Psychology * [LO 1.1: What is cognitive psychology? How did it develop as a field?] * Evolved from early philosophy - E.g.: Aristotle * Wilhelm Wundt - Studied conscious experience * Hermann Ebbinghaus - Studied memory processes * Wasn't always favored - Behaviorism • B. F. Skinner vs. Noam Chomsky * Wundt concentrated on three areas of mental functioning; thoughts, images, and feelings. These are the basic areas studied today in cognitive psychology. This means that the study of perceptual processes can be traced back to Wundt. * Skinner argued that children learn language based on behaviorist reinforcement principles by associating words with meanings. Correct utterances are positively reinforced when the child realizes the communicative value of words and phrases. * Noam Chomsky is the world's most famous linguist to date. In the spirit of cognitive revolution in the 1950s, Chomsky argued that children would never acquire the tools needed for processing an infinite number of sentences if the language acquisition mechanism was dependent on language input alone. He proposed the theory of Universal Grammar: an idea of innate, biological, grammatical categories, such as a noun category and a verb category that facilitate the entire language development in children and overall language processing in adults. * The development of the computer influenced the return of cognitive psychology. - Information-processing model * Ulric Neisser - Coined the term cognitive psychology * Cognitive psychology has important ties to other fields. - Biology - Philosophy ------------------------------------------- * Current Approaches to Cognitive Psychology * [LO 1.2: How have psychologists approached the study of cognition?] * Representationalism - Arose from information-processing models of cognition - Knowledge about the world is represented in our minds such that cognitive processes can "operate" on the representations * Embodied cognition - Cognition involves the way we interact with the world * Biological perspective - Examines the brain activity associated with different cognitive processes ------------------------------------------- * Research in Cognitive Psychology * [LO 1.3: What types of research methods are useful in the study of cognition?] * The scientific method - Grounded on four principles • Empiricism: systematic observation • Determinism: behaviors have underlying causes • Testability: theories must be evaluated through observation • Parsimony: simple explanations vs. more complex ones * Dependent variable - The behavior of interest - Measured * Independent variable - The variable one has control over and can manipulate - Causes changes in the dependent variable * Research begins with predictions about the relationship between these variables ------------------------------------------- * Research Methodologies * [LO 1.3: What types of research methods are useful in the study of cognition?] * Case studies - Focuses on intensive analyses of a single individual or more broadly on a single observation - Teaches us a great deal by using aberrant cases • E.g.: patient H.M. = * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7akPs8ptg4 * - Advantages • Researchers can gather a large amount of intensive observations - Disadvantages • Describes a unique exemplar and thus isn't always generalizable * Correlational studies - Allows one to systematically observe groups - May include indirect measures - Requires minimal impact - Advantages • Allows the observation of many variables at once in natural contexts - Disadvantages • Does not imply causal inference * Experimental studies - Simplifies the context surrounding behaviors of interest - Involves the manipulation of variables - Uses independent and dependent variables • Can have more than one of each - Provides more confidence • Infers cause and effect [LO 1.4: What behaviors do psychologists observe to study cognition?] *Priming, theory: The implicit memory effect in which exposure to one stimulus (i.e., perceptual pattern) influences the response to another stimulus. Further, priming works best when the two stimuli are in the same modality. For example, visual priming works best with visual cues and verbal priming works best with verbal cues. But priming also occurs between modalities, or between related words such as "doctor" and "nurse" * Common measures - Accuracy • Involves right or wrong responses • Could involve the number and kinds of errors ~ E.g.: false memories - Response time • How long it takes to respond to a stimulus ~ E.g.: Donders • Priming • Eye movement studies ------------------------------------------- * Beyond Accuracy and Response Time * * While those are the two most popular, there are others * Some research focuses on the tradeoff between speed and accuracy * Other research involves duration, velocity, or direction of movement * Recent advances allow for brain visualization * Electroencephalography (EEG) * Function magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) * Both allow researchers to visualize brain activity - Can be combined with accuracy and/or response time ------------------------------------------- * Brain Visualization * * Brain imaging techniques like fMRI allow researchers to observe areas of the brain as they function during experiments. ------------------------------------------- * Be Critical Thinkers! * * All of these are indirect measurements - We assume these are correlated with cognitive processes * But, correlation does not imply causation - Always critically evaluate assumed connections between measured behavior and the inferred cognitive processes
Journal Articles (Chapter 4)
-------------------------------------------------- * Journal Article 4.1: Johnsrude, I. S., Mackey, A., Hakyemez, H., Alexander, E., Trang, H. P., & Carlyon, R. P. (2013). Swinging at a cocktail party: Voice familiarity aids speech perception in the presence of a competing voice. Psychological Science, 24(10), 1995-2004. * http://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/ETyMfg0kpFatg/full * Abstract: People often have to listen to someone speak in the presence of competing voices. Much is known about the acoustic cues used to overcome this challenge, but almost nothing is known about the utility of cues derived from experience with particular voices--cues that may be particularly important for older people and others with impaired hearing. Here, we use a version of the coordinate-response-measure procedure to show that people can exploit knowledge of a highly familiar voice (their spouse's) not only to track it better in the presence of an interfering stranger's voice, but also, crucially, to ignore it so as to comprehend a stranger's voice more effectively. Although performance declines with increasing age when the target voice is novel, there is no decline when the target voice belongs to the listener's spouse. This finding indicates that older listeners can exploit their familiarity with a speaker's voice to mitigate the effects of sensory and cognitive decline. * Journal Article 4.2: Lee, Y. -C., Lee, J. D., & Boyle, L. N. (2007). Visual attention in driving: The effects of cognitive load and visual disruption. Human Factors: The Journal of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 49(4), 721-733. * http://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/default+domain/2KVkKXbPpASBMXBjSSy6/full * Abstract: This study investigates the effect of cognitive load on guidance of visual attention. Previous studies have shown that cognitive load can undermine driving performance, particularly drivers' ability to detect safety-critical events. Cognitive load combined with the loss of exogenous cues, which can occur when the driver briefly glances away from the roadway, may be particularly detrimental. In each of two experiments, twelve participants engaged in an auditory task while performing a change detection task. A change blindness paradigm was implemented to mask exogenous cues by periodically blanking the screen in a driving simulator while a change occurred. Performance measures included participants' sensitivity to vehicle changes and confidence in detecting them. Cognitive load uniformly diminished participants' sensitivity and confidence, independent of safety relevance or lack of exogenous cues. Periodic blanking, which simulated glances away from the roadway, undermined change detection to a greater degree than did cognitive load; however, drivers' confidence in their ability to detect changes was diminished more by cognitive load than by periodic blanking. Cognitive load and short glances away from the road are additive in their tendency to increase the likelihood of drivers missing safety-critical events. This study demonstrates the need to consider the combined consequence of cognitive load and brief glances away from the road in the design of emerging in-vehicle devices and the need to provide drivers with better feedback regarding these consequences. * Journal Article 4.3: Yantis, S. (2008). The neural basis of selective attention: Cortical sources and targets of attentional modulation. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 17(2), 86-90. * https://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/mK1t.j7ksRrxY/full * Abstract: Selective attention is an intrinsic component of perceptual representation in a visual system that is hierarchically organized. Modulatory signals originate in brain regions that represent behavioral goals; these signals specify which perceptual objects are to be represented by sensory neurons that are subject to contextual modulation. Attention can be deployed to spatial locations, features, or objects, and corresponding modulatory signals must be targeted within these domains. Open questions include how nonspatial perceptual domains are modulated by attention and how abstract goals are transformed into targeted modulatory signals. * Journal Article 4.4: Loh, K. K., & Kanai, R. (2015). How has the internet reshaped human cognition? The Neuroscientist, 22(5), 506-520. * https://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/default+domain/VnBTMPgNj52zIDGRMfzy/full * Abstract: Throughout our evolutionary history, our cognitive systems have been altered by the advent of technological inventions such as primitive tools, spoken language, writing, and arithmetic systems. Thirty years ago, the Internet surfaced as the latest technological invention poised to deeply reshape human cognition. With its multifaceted affordances, the Internet environment has profoundly transformed our thoughts and behaviors. Growing up with Internet technologies, "Digital Natives" gravitate toward "shallow" information processing behaviors characterized by rapid attention shifting and reduced deliberations. They engage in increased multitasking behaviors that are linked to increased distractibility and poor executive control abilities. Digital natives also exhibit higher prevalence of Internet-related addictive behaviors that reflect altered reward-processing and self-control mechanisms. Recent neuroimaging investigations have suggested associations between these Internet-related cognitive impacts and structural changes in the brain. Against mounting apprehension over the Internet's consequences on our cognitive systems, several researchers have lamented that these concerns were often exaggerated beyond existing scientific evidence. In the present review, we aim to provide an objective overview of the Internet's impacts on our cognitive systems. We critically discuss current empirical evidence about how the Internet environment has altered the cognitive behaviors and structures involved in information processing, executive control, and reward-processing. -------------------------------------------------- * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3iPrBrGSJM * * http://www.mempowered.com/problems/slips * * http://www.gocognitive.net/demo/selective-attention-auditory-demonstration * * http://www.gocognitive.net/interviews/alym-amlani-psychology-magic *
PowerPoint (Chapter 4)
-------------------------------------------------- [ LO 4.1: When somebody tells you to pay attention what does he or she mean? How do we define attention? ] * Views of Attention * * A filter of information * A spotlight focused on an aspect of the environment * A glue that binds features of the environment together -------------------------------------------------- * Attention as an Information Filter * * Broadbent (1958) - Our attention is limited by the amount of information we can focus on at a particular time - There is a "bottleneck" in our processing that filters out everything except the information we are attending to - Acts as an early processor of information to only let in what is relevant to one's current task * This idea is supported by shadowing tasks * Sometimes competing information does get through - The cocktail party effect * Conway, Cowan, and Bunting (2001) * Treisman (1960, 1961, 1964) - Proposed modifications to the filter model [LO 4.2: What descriptions of attention have helped researchers study attention? ] -------------------------------------------------- * Attention as a Limited Resource * * Attention as a spotlight - LaBerge (1983) * Attention as a mental capacity - Kahneman (1973) - Dual-task method • Strayer and Johnston (2001) -------------------------------------------------- * Attention as a Feature Binder * [ LO 4.3: How do researchers study what someone is and is not paying attention to? ] * Treisman (1977, 1980) - Feature integration theory of attention - Two stages * Consistent with brain localization of function - Components of the theory match with activity in the occipital, parietal, and temporal lobes * Zaretskaya et al. (2013) - Local vs. global feature movement * Figure 4.9 Displays Used in the Zaretskaya et al. (2013) Study Participants indicated by button press whether they saw local movement with each dot moving on its own (left panel) or global movement with the dots moving together around the whole screen (right panel). * Figure 4.10 Brain Activity Data From the Zaretskaya et al. (2013) Study Activity shown represents the activity present in the global conditions that was not present in the local conditions for three subjects. -------------------------------------------------- * How Attention Affects Our Perceptions * * Inattentional blindness - Change blindness * Simons and Chabris (1999) * Simons and Levin (1998) * Inattentional blindness: Psychological lack of attention that is not associated with any vision defects or deficits. * Change blindness: A perceptual phenomenon that occurs when a change in a visual stimulus is introduced and the observer does not notice it. For example, observers often fail to notice major differences introduced into an image while it flickers off and on again. -------------------------------------------------- * Incompatibilities Tax Attention * [ LO 4.4: What factors in the environment have been found to influence our attention abilities? ] * The Simon effect - Interference in response due to inconsistency between the response and the stimulus * Simon (1969) * Simon and Rudell (1967) * Simon and Wolf (1963) [ LO 4.3: How do researchers study what someone is and is not paying attention to? ] * Occurs due to one of two mechanisms - Attentional-movement hypothesis - Referential-coding hypothesis -------------------------------------------------- * Effects of Automatic Processes on Attention * * The Stroop task - Stroop (1935) - Assesses the role of the interference of automatic processing - Congruent vs. incongruent conditions * How could you modify this? * Stroop Test: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kM7xmhtMQ14 * * Figure 4.13 Example of the Stroop Task Name the color of ink for the words in each column. Which column takes longer? In the Stroop task, naming the font color is faster when the word matches the font color (Column A) than when the word does not match the color (Column B). -------------------------------------------------- * Automatic and Controlled Processing * [ LO 4.5: How does our automatic processing affect what we pay attention to? ] * Automatic processing - Processing that is not controlled and does not tax cognitive resources * Controlled processing - Processing due to an intention that consumes cognitive resources * How do you get from controlled to automatic? - Practice * What are some examples of tasks that started out as controlled and after a while became automatic? * Schneider and Shiffrin (1977) - Consistent mapping condition • i.e., letter targets and number distractors - Varied mapping condition • i.e., letter targets and distractors * This task became easier with practice --------------------------------------------------
Perceptions
-------------------------------------------------- * How Sensations Become Perceptions * [ LO 3.1: What is perception? ] * Sense organs make up the first part of our sensory systems - Ears - Eyes - Nose - Tongue - Skin *Work automatically to bring in sensations from the environment * Sensory systems * There are four parts of a sensory system: - Sense organ - Receptor cells - Nerve conduit - Brain area * Each sense has a different kind of sensory receptor * Different brain areas are specialized for different functions - Audition - Tactile sensation - Gustation - Olfaction - Vision [LO 3.3: How do our sensory systems affect our perception of the world?] * Receives stimulus energy from the environment and recodes it into a language the brain can understand - Distal stimulus - Proximal stimulus * Distal stimulus: Objects and events out in the world about you. * Proximal stimulus: The patterns of stimuli from these objects and events that actually reach your senses (eyes, ears, etc.) -------------------------------------------------- * Approaches to the Study of Perception * * Computational approaches - Bottom-up processing • Perception starts with the most basic units or features of a stimulus and adds the parts together to understand and identify a coherent whole object • E.g.: reading [LO 3.3: How do our sensory systems affect our perception of the world?] * Theory of unconscious inference: Implies that human vision is incomplete and that details are inferred by the unconscious mind to create a complete picture. Some of the assumptions that the brain makes from the eye's perception regard motion and depth perception. * Computational approaches - Top-down processing • We perceive objects using our knowledge of the world • Uses basic feature cues in the environment to perceive • Retinal images vs. linear perspective * Theory of unconscious inference * Gestalt approaches - Suggests that the interpretation of a scene involves applying principles of how the world is organized - Top-down processing * Perception is accomplished by applying a set of organizational principles - Perception of a scene is "more than the sum of its parts" [LO 3.4: Do we control our perceptions or can we perceive automatically?] * Top-down processing is also known as conceptually-driven processing, since your perceptions are influenced by expectations, existing beliefs, and cognitions. It suggests that we form our perceptions starting with a larger object, concept, or idea before working our way toward more detailed information. * Organizational principles of Gestalt perception - Similarity - Proximity - Good continuation - Closure - Pragnanz (simplicity) [ LO 3.5: Why do we sometimes perceive things incorrectly?] * Photo 3.5 This figure illustrates the principle of similarity; an observer typically describes the scene with similar objects grouped ("some pencils," "some pens"). * Photo 3.7 This photo illustrates the principle of good continuation; we see the line as a single rope held at both ends instead of as two separate ropes. * Photo 3.9 Do you see a blue vase or two white faces? This drawing illustrates the figure-ground organization of scenes. -------------------------------------------------- * Perception/Action Approaches * [ LO 3.6: What does it mean for something to be more than the sum of its parts? ] * Gestalt approaches focus more on the "what" of perception * Perception/action approaches focus more on the "what for" aspect of perception * Affordances of an environment * Perception and action are intricately linked * Rooted in ecological psychology [ LO 3.5: Why do we sometimes perceive things incorrectly? ] * How do we perform goal-direct perceptual behavior? - Optic flow * Perception/action approach is broader than the ecological view of perception, but perceiving an object may still involve representations of that object in the mind * Perception/action approaches often blend elements of the ecological view and the representationalist view * Research on perception/action approaches has considered how they are tied together - E.g.: different room configurations (photo 3.12 in text) - E.g.: Witt et al. (2012)/Ebbinghaus illusion - E.g.: Malek and Wagman (2008) * Ebbinghaus: In the best-known version of the illusion, two circles of identical size are placed near to each other, and one is surrounded by large circles while the other is surrounded by small circles. As a result of the juxtaposition of circles, the central circle surrounded by large circles appears smaller than the central circle surrounded by small circles. * Is there brain activity evidence for a connection between perception and action? - We aren't sure - E.g.: Milner and Goodale (2008) * Ventral pathway/stream * Dorsal pathway/stream * Ganel et al., 2008 * McIntosh and Lashley, 2008 * Borchers et al., 2010 [ LO 3.7: How does perception aid in action?] * Mirror neurons - Rizzolatti et al., 1996 in monkeys - Calvo-Merino et al., 2005 in humans * Mirror neurons are active in humans when they view movements that they know how to perform, suggesting a link in brain activity between perception and action -------------------------------------------------- * Comparison of Approaches to Perception * * Motion perception - Computational perception approach - Gestalt approach - Perception/action approach * The perception of motion likely involves a combination of processes * Multiple approaches to the study of motion perception can aid in creating a full understanding of how it is accomplished --------------------------------------------------
Outline (2)
------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Introduction: Knowledge from Cognitive Deficits * * Neuroscientists have learned a lot about which brain areas contribute to different cognitive abilities through the examination of clinical patients ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Clinical Case Studies in Cognitive Neuroscience* * Phineas Gage: Survived railroad accident with severe damage to the front part of his brain o Less able to control emotions and his decision-making abilities suffered o Learned that the frontal lobe is important in emotional regulation and decision making * "Tan": unable to speak for many years o Brain was examined after death o Paul Broca found damage to the left frontal lobe (near the front of the temporal lobe)--this area was named Broca's area o Damage to this area creates a disorder where a person has difficulty producing speech o Karl Wernicke discovered Wernicke's areas (in the left temporal lobe, close to the front of the occipital lobe) and damage to this area causes a deficit in language comprehension and meaningful language production o For both Broca and Wernicke, clinical case studies aided their knowledge about brain areas and their function * Oliver Sacks and object identification o Patient who had difficulty distinguishing between living and nonliving objects (object agnosia) o Typically have damage to the lower temporal cortex (suggesting that the deficit is related to language abilities) * H.M.: could not remember his life before the damage occurred and could not remember episodes of his life that occurred after the damage (lost all ability to create new memories) o Brain damage to the hippocampus o Learned about the importance of the hippocampus in memory abilities; also learned that the hippocampus is not necessary for forming and retrieving all types of memories * Clinical case studies provide clues to the brain areas most important for different types of cognitive tasks * Disadvantage: the brain damage is not controlled by researchers and the damage may be spread across multiple brain areas; they are limited to those damaged areas in patients available to study ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Structure of the Nervous System * * The brain is composed of billions of microscopic *neuron* cells o Chemicals called neurotransmitters are first brought into the cell by the *dendrites* at the top end of the neuron o Neurotransmitters provide signals to the cell that are either excitatory or inhibitory, the cell body of the neuron takes in these signals and determines if there is enough of a signal for the neuron to fire ••• If so, an action potential occurs that creates an electrical signal that travels down the neuron's *axon* o Once the electrical signal reaches the end of the axon, the terminal buttons release neurotransmitters into the *synapse* to be collected by other neurons nearby o The process begins again * Action potential o Occurs within the axon of the cell o Before the neuron fires, the inside of the axon contains a resting state negative charge o The action potential redistributes these ions through channels in the axon's membrane that control the flow of potassium, sodium, and chlorine ions in and out of the cell o When the signal comes down the axon, the axon opens specific channels to allow sodium to flow into the axon o Once the action potential is complete, other channels open in the axon to allow potassium to flow out of the cell and the sodium channels to close o The message then reaches the terminals and a neurotransmitter is released into the synapse * Information is processed and stored in the brain through the pattern of firing across multiple neurons within the network * The brain is composed of the networks which are organized according to their cognitive function (this is known as localization of function) o *Lateralization:* the two hemispheres of the brain contribute to different types of tasks o Early research suggests that different areas of the brain specialized different functions o We still section the brain into four parts but more recent research has suggested that many complex cognitive tasks are a function of distributed processing in the brain o Brain areas work together in systems to process different kinds of information o There is localization of function for cognitive processes, but for most functions multiple areas are organized into processing systems ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Measures in Cognitive Neuroscience * * Many of the brain imagining techniques used today are able to record brain activity in humans as they perform various cognitive tasks, but not all techniques rely on activity of the neuronal cells in the brain o *Single-cell recording:* a recording needle is inserted into a neuron in an area of the brain the researcher is interested in ••• Requires surgical insertion ••• Typically used with laboratory animals ••• The mirror neuron was discovered using this technique (a type of neuron that is active when motor actions are performed and when watching the motor act being performed). o *Electroencephalography (EEG):* a set of electrodes is placed on the head to record the electrical signals from groups of neurons in different areas of the brain ••• Researchers use EEG recordings to examine an event-related potential (ERP), which is a change in activity related to a specific event like the presentation of a stimulus ••• Can determine if there is an effect of that stimulus presentation on neuron activity and in what general area of the brain the effect occurs o *Magnetoencephalography (MEG):* involves placing the head in or near an electrical scanner that can detect electrical activity with better location accuracy than an EEG ••• MEG recordings can occur during a task such that changes in activity can be detected that correspond to the presentation of cognitive stimuli ••• Limited to recording on the outer cortex and cannot provide a good measure of activity occurring below the cortex o Electrical stimulation/inhibition of neurons ••• Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS): researchers use a magnetic field to excite or inhibit neuron activity to investigate functioning in specific areas or processing systems in the brain ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Brain Imagining Techniques * * Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI):* a magnetic field is generated to create an image using recordings of the signal coming from the positive hydrogen atoms within the cells of the body o Used medically to gain clear images of interior structures of the body and brain o Allows comparison across individuals and identification of damage, or the presence of tumors * Positron emission tomography (PET):* blood flow is detected through the ingestion of a small amount of a radioactive substance which is absorbed into the blood and flows to the brain; the radioactivity in the blood is then measured in a PET scan to determine which areas of the brain are more active than others during a task o Can measure blood flow to different areas of the brain; areas of great volume of blood flow indicate the area most active during a cognitive task o Color indicates the level of activity occurring in different areas * Functional magnetic resonance imagining (fMRI):* records brain activity with a scan of the magnetic properties of the blood flowing through the brain; shows blood flow activity to specific areas of the brain in color on the scan o Subtraction method: baseline recording (activity recorded before the task) is subtracted from the activity recorded during the task ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Recording Activity in the Living Brain * * Two categories of brain recording techniques o Recordings of electrical activity of neurons ••• Show when areas of the brain are active electrically during tasks and cognitive processes o Brain imaging ••• Used frequently in neuroscience studies * Advantage: allows cognitive neuroscientists to gain important knowledge about the connection between brain function and cognitive processes * Disadvantage: not all cognitive tasks are easily adapted to the brain recording techniques; difficult to obtain the machines ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Can All Mental Processes Be Explained in Terms of Brain Activity? * * Don't know the answer just yet, but some evidence from EEGs and other techniques provide support in this direction
PowerPoint (Chapter 3)
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Chapter 2
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Flash Cards (Chapter 2)
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Learning Objectives
3.1 What is perception 3.2 How do our sensory systems affect our perception of the world 3.3 Do we control our perceptions or can we perceive automatically 3.4 Why do we sometimes perceive things incorrectly 3.5 What does it mean for something to be more than the sum of its parts 3.6 How does perception aid in action
Learning Objectives (Chapter 4)
4.1 When somebody tells you to pay attention what does he or she mean? How do we define attention 4.2 What descriptions of attention have helped researchers study attention 4.3 How do researchers study what someone is and is not paying attention to 4.4 What factors in the environment have been found to influence our attention abilities 4.5 How does our automatic processing affect what we pay attention to
Single-Cell Recording
A brain activity recording technique that records activity from a single neuron or small group of neurons in the brain