PSYC 3260 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Little Albert Experiment, Forgetting Curve, Cognitive Revolution
Document Summary
The mind is a system that creates representations of the world so that we can act within it to achieve our goals. Reasoning and decision-making: all include hidden processes of which we may not be aware. Mental chronometry: measuring how long a cognitive process takes. Reaction-time (rt) experiment: measures interval between stimulus presentation and person"s response to stimulus. Simple rt task: participant pushes a button quickly after a light appears. Choice rt task: participant pushes one button if light is on right side, another if light is on left side. Caption: a modern version of donders" (1868) reaction-time experiment: (a) the simple reaction-time task; and (b) the choice reaction-time task. Choice rt simple rt = time to make a decision. Choice rt = 1/10th sec longer than simple rt. The significance of donders" discoveries (1868: mental responses cannot be measured directly but can be inferred from the participant"s behavior, hermann ebbinghaus (1885)