PSY 421: Advanced Cognitive Psychology

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PSY 421 Advanced Cognitive Psychology

• Introduction
• Syllabus and Foundations of Cognitive Psychology

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Syllabus

• Course and Instructor Information
• PSY 421
• T/TH 8-915 am
• 106 Boucke Building
• Instructor Alicia J. Knoedler, Ph.D.
• Office Hours T/TH 2-3pm whenever door is open
  (439 Moore Building)
• Course webpage
• http//www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/a/j/ajk12/cour
  ses/acp.html
• Angel course page
• https//cms.psu.edu/frameIndex.htm

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Syllabus, continued

• Course Media
• Required Textbook
• Robinson-Riegler, G., Robinson-Riegler, B.
  (2004). Cognitive psychology Applying the
  science of the mind. Boston Pearson/Allyn
  Bacon. ISBN 0-205-32763-X
• Recommended Reference
• American Psychological Association (2001). The
  publication manual of the American Psychological
  Association (5th ed.). Washington, DC APA.

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Syllabus, continued

• Course Content and Goals
• This course involves an intensive study of human
  cognition - how we perceive information and
  events, interpret them, learn, remember, use
  language, make decisions, and other cognitive
  abilities and applications. The purpose of this
  course is to give you an overview of the field of
  cognitive psychology and allow you to more
  closely study some aspects of cognition that are
  of interest to you. There is also an applied
  component to this course taking what you have
  learned about cognition to further explore and
  understand mental processes and cognitive
  behavior in the "real world."
• Some lecture and note-taking will be involved in
  this course. However, students will be required
  to be active, through discussions and learning
  exercises and activities, in their encoding and
  evaluation of information about how people learn,
  remember, and modify their thoughts and
  behaviors.
• The goals for the course are for the students to
  learn to
• Read, write, and think effectively about
  cognitive psychology
• Develop and utilize research tools typical in the
  field of cognitive psychology
• Effectively present research ideas
• Apply research ideas from cognitive psychology to
  other aspects of human and/or animal behavior

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Syllabus, continued

• Course Assignments
• Critical Thinking Essays (45)
• Collaborative Experimental Proposal (16) and
  Presentation (9)
• Final Paper (25)
• Attendance/Discussion (5)
• NO EXAMS or QUIZZES

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Syllabus, continued

• Grading Scale
• The following grading scale will be used in this
  course (measure is points earned, rounded to
  nearest whole number)
• A 100 to 93 B 89 to 87
  C 79 to 77
• A- 92 to 90 B 86 to 83
  C 76 to 73
• B- 82 to
  80 C- 72 to 70
• D 69 to 67 F Below 60
• D 66 to 63
• D- 62 to 60

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Course Tools

• ANGEL Course Space
• Everything will be posted there syllabus,
  lecture slides, assignments, grades, etc.
• Turn in all assignments via the ANGEL course
  space
• Email to the instructor should be sent through
  ANGEL rather than psu.edu email address
• Use course website via instructors webspace as a
  backup
• To prepare for each class read the material
  from the text, print out or download the lecture
  slides
• To do well in this course prepare for class,
  show up, pay attention, participate in discussion
  and activities, use your brain and think

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Questions..

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Assignment Due September 7 by 8 am

• Please log in to the ANGEL course space
• Complete the Class Questionnaire via the
  Assignments folder
• Download the slides for September 7 class
• Any difficulties should be reported in class so
  that they can be resolved

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Foundations of Cognitive Psychology

• Part 1 What is this course about and what have
  I gotten myself into?

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Defining Cognitive Psychology

• Plain and simple The study of mental processes
  
• Constructs and concepts name what is studied
  within cognitive psychology
• Many other areas of psychology and disciplines in
  the social sciences utilize research findings,
  theories, and models from the field of cognitive
  psychology
• Basic Assumptions
• Mental processes exist
• Humans are active (rather than passive)
  information processors
• Mental processes can be identified through the
  use of behavioral measures (like reaction times,
  and patterns of correct or incorrect responses)

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Studying Cognitive Psychology

• Examples
• The Monty Hall Three-Door Problem
• Irrelevant Speech
• False Memories
• Word Superiority