Psychology CHAPTER Sensation and Perception 3. Module 7 Sensation.
AP PSYCHOLOGY Review for the AP Exam Chapter 5- · PDF fileAP PSYCHOLOGY Review for the AP...
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Sensation*a process by which our sensory receptors and nervous
system receive and represent stimulus energyPerception
*a process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events
Bottom-Up Processing*analysis that begins with the sense receptors and works up to
the brain’s integration of sensory informationTop-Down Processing
*information processing guided by higher-level mental processes
*as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations
The implications of this top to bottom flow if information is that information coming into the system (perceptually) can be influenced by what the individual already knows about the information that is coming into the system
Sensation- Basic Principles
Psychophysics*study of the relationship between physical characteristics
of stimuli and our psychological experience of them*Light- brightness*Sound- volume*Pressure- weight*Taste- sweetness
TRANSDUCTION: transformation of one form of energy into another-- especially the transformation of stimulus information into nerve signals by the sense organs. Without transduction, ripe tomatoes would not appear red (or pinkish gray--in the case of many tomatoes purchased in the grocery store).
SENSORY ADAPTATION--loss of responsiveness in receptor cells after stimulation has remained unchanged for a while, as when a
swimmer becomes adapted to the temperature of the water.
Absolute Threshold*minimum stimulation needed to detect a
particular stimulus*usually defined as the stimulus needed for
detection 50% of the timeDifference Threshold
*minimum difference between two stimuli that a subject can detect 50% of the time
*just noticeable difference (JND)*increases with magnitude
Sensation- Thresholds
Signal Detection Theory*predicts how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus
(signal) amid background stimulation (noise)*assumes that there is no single absolute threshold*detection depends partly on person’s
• experience• expectations• motivation• level of fatigue
Weber’s Law- to perceive a difference between two stimuli, they must differ by a constant proportion
– light intensity- 8%
– weight- 2%
– tone frequency- 0.3%
Vision- Stabilized Images on the RetinaOur perceptions are organized by the meanings our minds impose.
Transduction- conversion of one form of energy to anotherWavelength- the distance from the peak of one wave to
the peak of the nextHue- dimension of color determined by wavelength of lightIntensity- amount of energy in a wave determined by
amplitude– brightness– loudness
Vision- Physical Properties of Waves
Short wavelength=high frequency(bluish colors, high-pitched sounds)
Long wavelength=low frequency(reddish colors, low-pitched sounds)
Great amplitude(bright colors, loud sounds)
Small amplitude(dull colors, soft sounds)
Wave amplitude determines the
intensity of colors and sounds.
Amplitude: greatness of magnitude….(physics) the maximum displacement of a periodic wave
VisionPupil- adjustable opening in the center of the
eye
Iris- a ring of muscle that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening
Lens- transparent structure behind pupil that changes shape to focus images on the retina
VisionAccommodation --the process by which the eye’s lens changes
shape to help focus near or far objects on the retina– change in shape of lens– focus near objects
Retina --the light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information – inner surface of eye– light sensitive– contains rods and cones– layers of neurons– beginning of visual information processing
VisionAcuity- the sharpness of visionNearsightedness --condition in which nearby objects are seen
more clearly than distant objects because distant objects in front of retina– nearby objects seen more clearly– lens focuses image of distant objects in front of retina
Farsightedness --condition in which faraway objects are seen more clearly than near objects because the image of near objects is focused behind retina– faraway objects seen more clearly– lens focuses near objects behind retina
Vision
Light rays from distant objects focus in front…when image reaches the
back, the rays spread out creating a blur.
Light rays from near objects focus behind the retina
creating a blur.
Farsighted Nearsighted Normal
Vision Vision Vision
Optic nerve- nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain
Blind Spot- point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a “blind spot” because there are no receptor cells located there
Fovea- central point in the retina, around which the eye’s cones cluster
Retina’s Reaction to Light- Receptors
Retina’s Reaction to Light- Receptors
Cones
– near center of retina (fovea)
– fine detail and color vision
– daylight or well-lit conditions
Rods
– peripheral retina
– detect black, white and gray
– twilight or low light
**Rods are more sensitive to light than the cones which is
why the world looks colorless at night.
**Nocturnal animals such as mice, toads, rats and bats have retinas made up almost entirely of rods.
Vision- ReceptorsReceptors in the Human Eye
Cones Rods
Number
Location in retina
Sensitivity in dim light
Color sensitive? Yes
Low
Center
6 million
No
High
Periphery
120 million
Visual Information ProcessingFeature Detectors
– neurons in the visual cortex respond to specific features
– shape– angle– movement
Stimulus
Cell’s responses
Illusory Contours
Subjective Contours
Visual Information Processing
Parallel Processing– simultaneous processing
of several dimensions through multiple pathways (color, motion, form, depth)
Trichromatic (three color) Theory
– Young (1802) and Helmholtz (1850)
– three different retinal color receptors
• red
• green
• blue
You see colors according to their response to the wavelengths of light striking the retina---short-preferring (blue), middle-preferring (green), and long-preferring (red).
Visual Information ProcessingOpponent-Process Theory-
opposing retinal processes enable color vision
“ON” “OFF”red greengreen red blue yellow yellow blueblack whitewhite black
Visual Information Processing
Color ConstancyPerceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object
Audition
Audition• the sense of
hearingFrequency
• the number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time
Pitch• a tone’s highness or
lowness• depends on
frequency
Outer Ear– Auditory Canal– Eardrum
Middle Ear --chamber between eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea’s oval window
Inner Ear --innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs– oval window– Cochlea-- coiled,
bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear
– basilar membrane
– hair cells
Audition- The Ear
AuditionPlace Theory
– the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea’s membrane is stimulated
Frequency Theory
– the theory that the rate of nerve impulses traveling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of a tone, thus enabling us to sense its pitch
How We Locate Sounds
Older people tend to hear low frequencies well but suffer hearing loss for high frequencies
1time
10times
100times1000
times 32 64 128 256 512 1024 2048 4096 8192 16384Frequency of tone in waves per second
Low Pitch High
Amplitude required forperception relative to 20-29 year-old group
20-29 years
30-39 years40-49 years
50-59 years
Over 60 years
Conduction Hearing Loss– hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that
conducts sound waves to the cochleaNerve Hearing Loss
– hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea’s receptor cells or to the auditory nerve
Touch
Skin Sensations– pressure
• only skin sensation with identifiable receptors
– warmth– cold– pain
PainGate-Control Theory
– theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological “gate” that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain
– “gate” opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up small nerve fibers
– “gate” closed by activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain
Sometimes a child can be afflicted with a disorder known as CIPA -- congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis, She can feel touch, her brain doesn't receive signals that she's experiencing pain, and she hardly sweats.When Gabby was 4 months old, she was biting her fingers until they bled. By the time she was 2, her teeth had to be removed so she wouldn't hurt herself.
When she was a toddler, Gabby scratched her cornea and was given eye gel, The thick gel had a reflux reaction to rub your eye, Because one eye became so infected, it had to be removed
Taste
Taste Sensations
– sweet
– sour
– salty
– bitter
Sensory Interaction
– the principle that one sense may influence another
– as when the smell of food influences its taste
Age, Sex and Sense of Smell
Women
Men
10-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70-79 80-89 90-99Age Group
4
3
2
0
Numberof correct
answers
Women and young adults have best sense of smell
Body Position and MovementKinesthesis
– the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts
Vestibular Sense
– the sense of body movement and position
– including the sense of balance
Perception
Selective Attentionfocus of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus
….means that at any moment
we focus our awareness on only a limited aspect of all that we are capable of
experiencing.
Change Blindness
Perceptual Organization- GestaltVisual Capture tendency for vision to dominate the other senses
Gestalt--an organized whole tendency to integrate pieces of information into
meaningful wholes
Escher
Perceptual Organization- GestaltGrouping
the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups
Grouping Principles
– proximity- group nearby figures together
– similarity- group figures that are similar
– continuity- perceive continuous patterns
– closure- fill in gaps
– connectedness- spots, lines and areas are seen as unit when connected
___ ___ ___ - ___ ___ - ___ ___ ___ ___
___ ___ ___ - ___ ___ ___ - ___ ___ ___ ___
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ - ___ ___ ___ ___
Perceptual Organization
Figure and Ground--organization of the visual field into objects (figures) that stand out from their surroundings (ground)
Perceptual Organization-Depth PerceptionDepth Perception
– ability to see objects in three dimensions
– allows us to judge distanceBinocular cues
– retinal disparity• images from the two
eyes differ • closer the object, the
larger the disparity– convergence
• neuromuscular cue• two eyes move inward
for near objects
Visual Cliff
Perceptual Organization-Depth PerceptionMonocular Cues
– relative size **• smaller image is more distant
– interposition• closer object blocks distant object
– relative clarity• hazy object seen as more distant
– texture coarse --> closefine --> distant
– relative height **• higher objects seen as more distant
– relative motion• closer objects seem to move faster
– linear perspective• parallel lines converge with distance
– relative brightness• closer objects appear brighter
Perceptual Organization: Depth Perception
Illusory Depth
Photographer Walter Wick cut out pieces of paper shaped to imitate
stair positions and colored them to simulate light and shadow.
Perceptual ConstancyPerceptual Constancy
perceiving objects as unchanging despite changes in retinal image
• color
• shape
• size
Ponzo Illusion
Perceptual Organization-Brightness Contrast
Perceptual Constancy: We know that the shadow doesn’t change the color of tile B to the same as tile A, even when it looks that way.
Sensory Restriction-Blakemore & Cooper, 1970
Kittens raised without exposure to horizontal lines later had difficulty perceiving horizontal bars.
Perceptual InterpretationPerceptual Adaptation
– (vision) ability to adjust to an artificially displaced visual field
• prism glassesPerceptual Set
– a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another
Perceptual Set-Schemas
What you see in the center is influenced by perceptual set
Perception and the Human FactorHuman Factors Psychology explores how people and machines interact
explores how machine and physical environments can be adapted to human behaviors
Perceptual Set- Human Factors
Actualdescent
path
Pilot’s perceiveddescent path
Altitude looksthis much higher
20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2Distance from runway (miles)
10
8
6
4
2
0
Altitude(thousands
of feet)
Consciousness
*our awareness of ourselves and our environments*the process by which the brain creates a model of internal and external experience.
STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS
Some occur spontaneously
Some are physiologically induced
Some are psychologically induced
Daydreaming Drowsiness Dreaming
Hallucinations OrgasmFood or oxygen starvation
Sensory deprivation
Hypnosis Meditation
CORE CONCEPT: Consciousness can take many forms, while other mental processes occur simultaneously outside our awareness.
Consciousness is not good at multitasking: So, if you try to drive while talking on the cell phone, you have to shift your attention back and forth between tasks.
The NONCONSCIOUS MIND
*Preconscious: defined as memories of events (i.e. a wedding) and facts (i.e. Lansing is the capital of Michigan) that have once been the focus of attention
*Unconscious: defined as many levels of processing that occur without awareness, including brain systems and others that can have subtle influences on behavior.
PRIMING: a technique that has an influence on answers people give without their being conscious that they were influenced.
There are many possible answers to this question, but I increased the probability that you would chose the word, DEFINE, by using it twice in the previous slide.
Sleep and DreamsBiological Rhythms
periodic physiological fluctuations
Circadian Rhythm the biological clock
regular bodily rhythms that occur on a 24-hour cycle, such as of wakefulness and body temperature
Daydreaming
*mildly, altered state of consciousness
*attention inward to memories, expectations, and desires often with vivid mental imagery
REM (Rapid Eye Movement) Sleep *recurring sleep stage
*vivid dreams
“paradoxical sleep”
muscles are generally relaxed, but other body systems are active
Brain Waves and Sleep Stages
Alpha Waves slow waves of a
relaxed, awake brain
Delta Waves large, slow waves
of deep sleep
Hallucinations false sensory
experiences
How much sleep we need depend on several factors:
*genetics--different for each species
*circadian rhythms
*personal characteristics and habits
*exercise influences the need for sleep (however, strenuous physical activity increase the amount of slow-wave stage 4 sleep)
*Exercise increases endorphins and activity in your system. It is best to exercise in the early morning or late afternoon.
*Eating activates the digestive system. It is best to eat prior to 6 or 7:00 pm.
*Alcohol depresses activity in the brain that control our self-monitoring behaviors. While it will initially induce relaxation, overuse will interfere with REM sleep and cause insomnia and infrequent sleep patterns.
What interferes with sleep?
Dreams
*sequence of images, emotions, and thoughts passing through a sleeping person’s mind
*hallucinatory imagery
*discontinuities
*incongruities
*delusional acceptance of the content
*difficulties remembering
Sigmund Freud--The Interpretation of Dreams (1900) wish fulfillment discharge otherwise unacceptable feelings
Manifest Content remembered story line
Latent Content underlying meaning
As Information Processing
helps facilitate memories
REM Rebound
REM sleep increases following REM sleep deprivation
ACTIVATION-SYNTHESIS THEORY
Dreams result when the sleeping brain tries to make sense of its own spontaneous bursts of activity.
In this view, dreams originate when their own periodic neural discharges emitted by the brain stem. When the energy sweeps over the cerebral cortex,
the sleeper experiences impressions of sensation, memory, motivation, emotion and movement. (Hobson, McCarley 1977)
Sleep DisordersInsomnia
*persistent problems in falling or staying asleepNarcolepsy
*uncontrollable sleep attacksSleep Apnea
*temporary cessation of breathing, as much as several hundred times a night …..(it’s normal to cease breathing a few times an hour during the night)
*momentary reawakeningsNightmares
Occur in REM sleep during the early morning hoursNight Terrors occur within 2 or 3 hours of falling asleep, usually during
Stage 4 high arousal-- appearance of being terrified
Hypnosis
Hypnosis
a social interaction in which one person (the hypnotist) suggests to another (the subject) that certain perceptions, feelings, thoughts, or behaviors will spontaneously occur
Posthypnotic Amnesia
supposed inability to recall what one experienced during hypnosis
induced by the hypnotist’s suggestion
Dissociation
a split in consciousness
allows some thoughts and behaviors to occur simultaneously with others
Hidden Observer
Hilgard’s term describing a hypnotized subject’s awareness of experiences, such as pain, that go unreported during hypnosis
Uses of hypnosis:
*Research--can induce temporary mental conditions (anxiety, hallucinations, depression)
*Treatment--phobias, eliminating unwanted behaviors (smoking, eating)
*Anesthesia--medical & dental practices (not everyone can do this)
Drugs and Consciousness
Psychoactive Drug a chemical substance that alters perceptions and mood
Physical Dependence physiological need for a drug marked by unpleasant withdrawal symptoms
Psychological Dependence a psychological need to use a drug for example, to relieve negative emotions
Tolerance diminishing effect
with regular use
Withdrawal discomfort and
distress that follow discontinued use
Depressants drugs that reduce neural activity, inhibits the
transmission of messages in CNS slow body functions
alcohol, barbiturates, opiates, benzodiazepines
Stimulants drugs that excite neural activity in CNS Dangers include frightening hallucinations, paranoid
delusions; children born to users at at increased risk for cognitive problems, emotional difficulties and behavior-control disorders.
speed up body functions, increase concentration, reduce behavior in ADHD. caffeine, nicotine, amphetamines, cocaine, methamphetamine,
MDMA (ecstacy),
Psychoactive DrugsHallucinogens psychedelic (mind-manifesting) drugs that distort
perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input
Most hallucinogens work at the receptor sites for the neurotransmitter serotonin LSD, mescaline, psilocybin, PCP, cannabis
Opiates opium and its derivatives (morphine and heroin) opiates depress neural activity, temporarily lessening
pain and anxiety Similar to body’s pain relieving chemicals, the
endorphines Opium, morphine, heroin, codeine, methadone
Psychoactive Drugs
Barbiturates drugs that depress the activity of the CNS, reducing
anxiety but impairing memory and judgement
Side effect of reducing REM sleep time; withdrawal from barbituates results in REM rebound and unpleasant dreams Sedatives, sleep, anesthetic, anticonvulsant
Amphetamines drugs that stimulate neural activity, causing speeded-up
body functions and associated energy and mood changes Weight control, counteract anesthesia
Psychoactive Drugs
Ecstasy (MDMA) synthetic stimulant and mild hallucinogen
both short-term and long-term health risks
LSD lysergic acid diethylamide
a powerful hallucinogenic drug
also known as acid
THC the major active ingredient in marijuana
triggers a variety of effects, including mild hallucinations
• Learning– relatively
permanent change in an organism’s behavior due to experience
– experience (nurture) is the key to learning
• John B. Watsonviewed psychology as
objective science• generally agreed-upon
consensus today
recommended study of behavior without reference to unobservable mental processes
not universally accepted by all schools of thought today
John B. Watson in his experiment with Little Albert, an 11 month old baby, studied how emotions are
learned. He presented (A) a white rat (CS) and (B) a loud noise (US) to Little Albert. After several
pairings, Albert showed fear (CR) of the white rat. Later, Albert generalized the fear to stimuli that were
simular to CS, such as (C) a beard.
It is widely known that human beings are born
with only two natural fears. One is the fear of falling and the second is the fear of loud noises. Where, then, do all of our other fears come from?
Overgeneralization
Association• We learn by association
– Our minds naturally connect events that occur in sequence
– Aristotle 2000 years ago– John Locke and David Hume 200 yrs ago
• Associative Learning– learning that two events occur together
• two stimuli• a response and its consequences
The core of classical conditioning stems from reflex responses.
A REFLEX is an unlearned response that is naturally elicited by specific stimuli that are biologically relevant
for the organism.
Prior to the experiment the “tone” used had no prior meaning for the dogs. This was a NEUTRAL
STIMULUS and elicits no effect.
* The UCS naturally elicits the UCR.
Dogs were placed in a restraining harness. At regular intervals, a tone (NS) sounded and the dogs were given food (UCS). With repeated
pairings of the NS and UCS, the neutral stimulus becomes the CS and dogs began salivating (CR).
• Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)– effective stimulus that unconditionally-automatically and
naturally- triggers a response• Unconditioned Response (UCR)
– unlearned, naturally occurring automatic response to the unconditioned stimulus
• salivation when food is in the mouth• Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
– previously neutral stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to trigger a conditioned response
• Conditioned Response (CR)– learned response to a previously neutral conditioned
stimulus
Pavlov’s Classic Experiment
Before Conditioning
During Conditioning After Conditioning
UCS (foodin mouth)
Neutralstimulus(tone)
Nosalivation
UCR (salivation)
Neutralstimulus(tone)
UCS (foodin mouth)
UCR(salivation)
CS(tone)
CR (salivation)
Classical or Pavlovian Conditioning
SUMMARY
Classical Conditioning
– organism comes to associate two stimuli
• lightning and thunder
• tone and food
– begins with a reflex
– a neutral stimulus is paired with a stimulus that evokes the reflex
– neutral stimulus eventually comes to evoke the reflex
Acquisition
– the initial stage of learning, during which a response is established and gradually strengthened
– in classical conditioning, the phase in which a stimulus comes to evoke a conditioned response
– in operant conditioning, the strengthening of a reinforced response
Extinction
– diminishing of a CR
– in classical conditioning, when a UCS does not follow a CS
– in operant conditioning, when a response is no longer reinforced
Spontaneous Recovery-reappearance, after a rest period, of an extinguished CR
Discrimination
– in classical conditioning, the ability to distinguish between a CS and other stimuli that do not signal an UCS
– in operant conditioning, responding differently to stimuli that signal a behavior will be reinforced or will not be reinforced
Generalizationtendency for a stimuli similar to CS to evoke similar responses
Classical or Pavlovian Conditioning
UCS(passionate kiss) UCR
(sexualarousal)
CS(onionbreath)
CS(onion breath) CR
(sexualarousal)
UCS(passionate Kiss) UCR
(sexualarousal)
UCS(drug)
UCR(nausea)
CS(waiting room)
CS(waitingroom) CR
(nausea)
UCS(drug)
UCR(nausea)
Operant ConditioningOperant Conditioning
– type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by reinforcement or diminished if followed by punishment
Law of Effect– Thorndike’s principle that
behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely and behaviors followed by unfavorable consequences become less likely
B.F. Skinner (1904-1990)Harvard University
– elaborated Thorndike’s Law of Effect
– developed behavioral technology
Thorndike's Puzzle Box, used a cat solving the puzzle of how to escape from the box. However, unlike Skinner's experiment with rats, the cat did not show any systematic
strategies in learning. He simply scrambled around in the box until he stepped on the
lever.
From this, Thorndike proposed the Law of Effect which says that an animals learned
response that results in rewarding consequences are strengthened, and the
responses with punishing consequences are weakened.
In one experiment, Skinner placed a rat inside a box with two levers, one that issued a reward when pulled and the other that issued a punishment. Over time, the rat began to stop pulling the lever that shocked him and just focused on the lever that gave him food.
As a result, Skinner was able to show the effects of
reinforcement and punishment in operant conditioning.
Operant Conditioning
Reinforcer
– any event that strengthens the behavior it follows
Shaping
– conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer approximations of a desired goal
Successive Approximations
– reward behaviors that increasingly resemble desired behavior
Skinner Box– soundproof chamber
with a bar or key that an animal presses or pecks to release a food or water reward
– contains a device to record responses
Principles of ReinforcementPrimary Reinforcer
– innately reinforcing stimulus
– satisfies a biological needSecondary Reinforcer
– conditioned reinforcer– learned through association
with primary reinforcer
Continuous Reinforcement– reinforcing the desired response
each time it occurs– learning occurs rapidly– extinction occurs rapidly
Partial Reinforcement– reinforcing a response only part of
the time– results in slower acquisition– greater resistance to extinction
Schedules of Reinforcement1) Fixed Ratio (FR)
– reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses
– like piecework pay 2) Variable Ratio (VR)reinforces a response after an
unpredictable number of responses
like gambling, fishingvery hard to extinguish because
of unpredictability3) Fixed Interval (FI)
– reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed
– response occurs more frequently as the anticipated time for reward draws near 4) Variable Interval (VI)
reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals
produces slow steady respondinglike pop quiz
In essence, if one's actions make the thing happen it is a
ratio; if timemust pass then it is an interval.
• Punishment– aversive event that decreases the behavior that it
follows
– powerful controller of unwanted behavior
Punished behavior is not forgotten, it's suppressed-behavior returns when punishment is no longer eminent
Causes increased aggression- shows that aggression is a way to cope with problems- Explains why aggressive delinquents and abusive parents come from abusive homes
Creates fear that can generalize to desirable behaviors, e.g. fear of school, learned helplessness, depression
Does not necessarily guide toward desired behavior- reinforcement tells you what to do--punishment tells you what not to do- Combination of punishment and reward can be more effective than punishment alone
Punishment teaches how to avoid it
Latent Learning
– learning that occurs, but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it
Overjustification Effect– the effect of promising a reward for doing what one
already likes to do– the person may now see the reward, rather than
intrinsic interest, as the motivation for performing the task
Martin Seligman’s LEARNED HELPLESSNESS
Taught dogs that they were helpless to escape from an electric shock by placing a barrier in the cage to prevent dogs from escaping when they were shocked.
Removed the barrier but the dogs made no effort to escape.
This “learned helplessness” has been compared to people who are depressed. They feel past/future events are out of their control and they are helpless = depression.
Father of Positive Psychology
Univ. Pennsylvania
Cognition and Operant Conditioning
Intrinsic Motivation Desire to perform a behavior for its own sake and
to be effective Extrinsic Motivation Desire to perform a behavior due to promised
rewards or threats of punishments
Observational Learning– learning by observing and imitating others
Modeling– process of observing and imitating behavior
Prosocial Behavior– positive, constructive, helpful behavior– opposite of antisocial behavior
Observational LearningMirror Neurons frontal lobe neurons that fire when performing
certain actions or when observing another doing so may enable imitation, language learning, and
empathy
Albert Bandura wanted to study aggression in adolescents. He suggested that environment causes behavior, true; but behavior causes environment as well. He labeled this concept reciprocal determinism: The world and a person’s behavior cause each other.
The bobo doll studies:
*made of film of one of his students, a young woman, essentially beating up a bobo doll.
*showed his film to groups of kindergartners who, as you might predict, liked it a lot.
*when they were let out to play, the little kids started beating the daylights out of the bobo doll.
He called the phenomenon observational learning or modeling, and his theory is usually called social learning
theory.
CONCEPTS: Mental representations of categories of items or ideas, based on experience.
*building blocks of thinking
*allow organization in systematic ways
CONCEPTS: Might be
*classes of objects (chairs, birds, birthday parties)
*properties (red, large)
*abstractions (truth, love)
*relations (smarter than….)
*procedures (how to tie your shoes)
*intentions (intention to break into a conversation)
CONCEPTS: TWO KINDS
Natural concepts: mental classifications that develop out of everyday experiences in the world. (birds, mother’s face, artichokes, Statue of Liberty)
Artificial concepts: defined by a set of rules or characteristics (dictionary definitions, mathematical formulas)
We organize much of our memory into CONCEPT HIERARCHIES.
Animal
Bird Fish
Canary Ostrich Shark Salmon
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Cognitive MapsMental, visual representation of the layout of one’s environmentexample- after exploring a maze, rats act as if they have learned a cognitive map of it
Cognitive maps help you get to psychology class or drive your mom to the theatre or help you walk around your house.
Schema: Cluster of related concepts that provides a general conceptual framework for thinking about a topic, an event, an object, people or a situation in one’s life. (Zimbardo)
*provide contexts
*provide expectations
*provide features likely to be found when encountering familiar people or situations.
For example, take the word, TERMINAL.
Are you in:
*an airport?
*a hospital?
*an auto shop?
How does the meaning change?
We also have SCHEMAS about persons, roles, and ourselves. An event schema is called a SCRIPT.
We have scripts for going to restaurant, going to church,
going to the library, or making love.
Culture influences our scripts. U.S. servicewomen in the middle east had to change many behaviors taken for granted at home, such as walking unescorted in public or driving a car or wearing clothing that showed their faces and legs, when they went into Arab countries.
Conflicting scripts can make people awkward and difficult to understand. Sometimes it can be so uncomfortable, they don’t want to play the scene again.
INDUCTIVE REASONING: form of thinking using individual cases or particular facts to reach a general conclusion.
The ice is cold = all ice is cold
DEDUCTIVE REASONING: form of thinking in which conclusions are inferred from premises, the conclusions are true if the premises are true (if this, then that)
All men are mortal & Socrates is a man = Socrates is mortal
SELECT A STRATEGY:
a) Trial and error (for simple problems)
b) Algorithms
c) HeuristicsALGORITHMS: formulas or procedures. If applied correctly, algorithms will always work.
*balance checkbook, figure gas mileage, calculate gradepoint average.
What abilities do good thinkers possess?
a) Identify the problem
b) Select a strategy
HEURISTICS: simple, basic rules or “rule of thumb”. (i.e.) “feed a cold, starve a fever” Heuristics do not guarantee a solution, but they give us a good start. Useful heuristics include:
a) Working backward
b) Searching for analogies. (if the new problem is similar to the one you’ve faced previously)
c) Breaking a big problem into smaller pieces
Obstacles to problem-solving include:
a) Mental set
b) Functional fixedness
c) Self-imposed limitations
Say this word 3 times.
SILK
What do cows drink?
Did you say milk?They actually drink water. . . . But this is an example of mental set.
OTHER OBSTACLES:
a) Lack of specific knowledge
b) Lack of interest
c) Low self-esteem
d) Fatigue
e) Drugs (even legal drugs)
f) Stress
g) Bias
BIAS
a) Confirmation bias: finding fault with information that doesn’t confirm your belief.
b) Hindsight bias: people overestimate their ability to have predicted an event
c) Anchoring bias: faulty heuristic caused by basing an estimate on a completely unrelated quantity.
1 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 5 x 6 x 7 x 8 = ?
8 x 7 x 6 x 5 x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1 = ?When these equations are given to 2 separate groups of people to ESTIMATE, the average answer for #1 was 512, and #2 was 2250.
d) Representativeness bias: faulty heuristic strategy based on the presumption that once people or events are categorized, they share all the features of other members in that category.
e) Availability bias: faulty heuristic strategy that estimates probabilities based on information that can be recalled from personal experience.
Marzano outlined 9 strategies most likely to improve student achievement:
1. Identifying similarities and differences2. Summarizing and note taking3. Reinforcing effort and providing recognition4. Homework and practice5. Nonlinguistic representations6. Cooperative learning7. Setting objectives and providing feedback8. Generating and testing hypotheses9. Cues, questions, and advance organizers
Following the 1948 Convention of the American Psychological Association, B S Bloom took a lead in formulating a classification of "the goals of the educational process".
Three "domains" of educational activities were identified. • Cognitive Domain• Affective Domain • Psychomotor Domain
Bloom and his co-workers established a hierarchy of educational objectives, (Bloom's Taxonomy), which divide cognitive objectives into subdivisions ranging from the simplest behaviour to the most complex.