Psy 541—Cognitive Processes—Spring, 2008
SYLLABUS
Instructor: Keith Hutchison Voice: (406) 994-5528
Office: 401D Traphagen Fax: (406) 994-3804
Office hours: M
Required Texts:
Course Objective:
This course
examines the theories and research in current hot topics of cognitive
psychology. Each week we will read
several of what I consider to be critical articles and/or chapters in a
particular area of research. It is hoped
that these readings and consequent discussions will help you understand the
important issues and controversies in each of these areas. However, in order to examine some issues
“in-depth”, several other possible topics will not be covered. This course is not intended to provide a
basic overview of cognitive psychology. Students
are expected to have already mastered an undergraduate course in cognitive
psychology. Those who have not had such
a course or who have not had one recently will be able to obtain a broad
overview of each area as well as definitions of terms by reading the
appropriate sections from an undergraduate text before reading the
assignments listed in the syllabus.
Course
Requirements
Class Participation
Each week we will discuss a
series of empirical/theoretical journal papers and book chapters. Although all
students are expected to read all assigned papers and participate in class
discussion, each student will be responsible for presenting one of the assigned
papers each week. These presentations should be informal but designed with the
goal of generating class discussion (it is always appropriate to provide a
short hand out containing the highlights of the reading). Because participation
is critical to the learning process, class attendance is imperative. If you need to miss one class for any reason
please let me know and be sure to provide hand-outs to the other students. If
you miss more than one class, you will not be able to earn greater than a ‘C’
grade for the class. If you miss more than two classes, you will receive an ‘F’
in the class.
Research Proposal
Each
student is required to submit an 8-10 page typewritten research proposal. The proposal can address any one (or a
combination) of the main topic areas covered in this course. The proposal must be in APA style and include
the following sections: title page,
abstract, introduction, method, expected results, discussion, and references. The proposed research must make a contribution
to the existing research literature.
That is, you must propose a study that has not already been conducted. The
proposal is due on Monday,
Exams
There will be two written exams. These exams will cover the material from the entire class and the questions for the exam will be generated by class discussion.
Grades
Class participation 15%
Class presentations 15%
Midterm exam 20%
Research proposal 30%
Final exam 20%
Some Journal and Book Abbreviations Used in Assignments
CDPS: Current Directions in Psychological
Science
JEP:G:
Journal
of Experimental Psychology: General
JEP:LMC: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory,
& Cognition
M&C: Memory & Cognition
PB&R: Psychonomic
Bulletin & Review
Psych rev: Psychological Review
Psych Sci:
Psycholological
Science
JCN: Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience
JML Journal of Memory and Language
ATT & Perf : Gopher, Daniel; Ed; Koriat, Asher; Ed;
(1999). Attention and performance XVII: Cognitive
regulation of performance: Interaction of theory and
application;
Gazzaniga: Gazzaniga, M.S.,
Ivry, R. B., & Mangun, G. R. (1998).
Cognitive neuroscience: The biology
of the mind.
Memory: SPF? Forster & Jelicic. (1999). Memory:
Systems, Process, or Function?.
Neath: Neath,
Ian. (1998). Human memory: An
introduction to research, data, and theory.
Ca: Brooks/Cole Publishing
Co.
OHM:
Purves et al. (2008). Principles of Cognitive Neuroscience.
University
Press.
Thinking: Osherson,
Daniel N. Ed; Smith, Edward E. (1995). Thinking: An invitation to cognitive
science, Vol. 3 (2nd
ed.).
VWM Conway et al. (2007). Variations in Working Memory.
Schedule
Week 1: Introduction of class and overview of Cognitive Psychology
(1/28)
Week 2: Attention and Memory Basics. (2/4).
Platt (1964, Science): Strong Inference. 347-353.
Balota
& Marsh (2006):
Cognitive Psychology, an overview 1-19.
Sternberg
(1966): High speed
scanning in human memory 652-654.
Posner
(1980, QJEP): Orienting
of attention 3-25.
Neath (1998) chap 6: Perspectives on processing
111-134.
Week 3: Attention, Memory and the Brain. (2/11):
Purves
et al. (2008) chap 10:
Overview of attention. 249-270.
Gazzaniga (1998) chap 7: Memory systems, 260-283.
Wagner et al., (1998, Science): Building memories:
Remembering and forgetting 1188-1191.
Wheeler (2000, OHM) chap 37: Episodic memory and
autonoetic awareness 597-608.
Weldon (1999, Memory: SPF?): The memory chop shop: Issues in the
search for memory systems, 162-204.
Week 4: Attention 1: Absent
Mindedness. (2/25)
Gazzaniga (1998) chap 11: executive functions &
frontal lobes. 423-464.
Heckhausen & Beckmann (1990, Psych rev): Inattentional
action & action slips 36-48.
Norman and Shallice (1986): Attention to action: willed and
automatic control of behavior 1-18.
Uncapher & Rugg (2005, JCN). Effects of divided
attention on fMRI correlates of memory
encoding 1923-1935.
Kane et al. (2007, Psych Science). For
whom the mind wanders, and when. 614-621.
Week 5: Attention 2: Working Memory and Executive control.
(3/3)
Kane & Engle (2003, JEP:G): Working-Memory capacity and the control of
attention: The contributions of goal neglect, response competition, and task
set to Stroop interference 47-70.
Heitz, Schrock, Payne, & Engle (2007). Effects of incentive on
working memory capacity: Behavioral and pupillometric
data. 1-11.
Braver et al. (2007, VWM). Explaining the many
variations of working memory variation: Dual mechanisms of cognitive control, 76-106.
De Pisapia &
Braver (2006): A model of
dual control mechanisms through anterior cingulate and prefrontal cortex
interactions. 1322-1326.
Week 6: Attention 3: Selective
Attention and Inhibition. (3/17)
Einstein et al. (2005, JEP:G):
Multiple processes in prospective memory retrieval: Factors determining
monitoring vs. spontaneous retrieval. 327-342.
Tipper & Driver (1988, M&C): Negative priming between pictures and words in a selective attention
task: Evidence for semantic processing of ignored stimuli. 64-70
Neill et al. (1992, JEP:LMC):
Persistence of negative priming: II. Evidence for episodic trace retrieval. 993-1000.
Rothermund et al.
(2005). Retrieval of Incidental
Stimulus-Response Associations as a Source of Negative Priming. 482-495
Week 7: Midterm Exam &
Semantic Priming Lecture (3/24).
Week 8: Semantic Memory &
Priming_1. (3/31)
Neely and Keefe (1990) Semantic context effects on visual word processing: A hybrid
prospective-retrospective processing theory. 207-247.
Balota and Paul (1996, JEP:LMC). Summation of Activation: Evidence from
multiple primes that converge and diverge within semantic memory, 827-845.
Hutchison (2003, PB&R) Is
semantic priming due to association strength or feature overlap? A microanalytic review. 785-813.
Landauer (2005, CDCS).
Learning and representing verbal meaning: The latent semantic analysis
theory, 131-137.
Week 9: Reconstructive Memory
_1. (4/7)
Schacter chap 4: Misattribution. 88-111.
Roediger & McDermott (1995,
Payne et al. (1996) Memory illusions, recalling,
recognizing, and recollecting events that never occurred, 261-285.
Hutchison & Balota (2005, JML), Decoupling
semantic and associative information in false memory: Explorations with
semantically ambiguous and unambiguous critical lures 1-28
Week 10: Reconstructive Memory
_2. (4/14) Replaces Gonsalves (perhaps imagery and memory_burkner)
Schacter chap 5: Suggestibility. 112-137.
Mitchell et al. (2005, JCN): fMRI
evidence for the role of recollection in suppressing misattribution errors: The
illusory truth effect 800-810.
Thomas & Loftus (2002, M&C). Creating bizarre false memories through imagination, 423-431.
McDermott and Buckner. (2002): Functional neuroimaging studies of memory
retrieval, 166-171.
Week 11: Cognitive Aging. (4/21)
Craik & Anderson (1999, ATT & Perf)
chap 21: Applying cognitive research to aging 583-615.
Hasher, Lustig,
and Zacks (2007, VWM):
Inhibitory mechanisms and the control of attention. 227-249.
Jacoby (1999,
Balota & Faust (2001). Attention in dementia of the Alzheimer’s
type. 51-80.
Kanne et al. (1999). Relating anatomy to
function in Alzheimer’s disease. 979-985.
Week 12: Implications and Applications. (4/28):
Bjork (1999, ATT & Perform) chap 15:
Assessing our own competence: Heurisitcs and
Illusions 435-459.
Shafir
& Tversky (1995; Thinking) chap 3: Decision making. 77-100.
Chan
and McDermott (2007, JEP:LMC). The testing effect in recognition memory:
A dual process account. 553-571.