The Psychology Book (61 page)

COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 193

WE ARE CONSTANTLY

ON THE LOOKOUT FOR

CAUSAL CONNECTIONS

DANIEL KAHNEMAN (1934– )

IN CONTEXT

APPROACH

U
ntil very recently, our Israeli-American Daniel Kahneman,

perception of risk and

with Amos Tversky, reexamined

the way that we make

theories of how we make decisions

our decisions was considered to

when faced with uncertainty, in

Prospect theory

be more a matter of probability

Judgment under Uncertainty:

and statistics than psychology.

Heuristics and Biases
(1974). They

BEFORE

However, cognitive psychology,

found the general belief that people

1738
The Dutch-Swiss

with its emphasis on mental

made decisions based on statistics

mathematician Daniel

processes, brought the concepts

and probability was not true in

Bernoulli proposes the

of perception and judgment to

practice. Instead, people base their

expected utility hypothesis

the field of problem-solving, with

decisions on “rule of thumb”—on

to explain decision-making

some surprising results.

specific examples or small samples.

preferences in situations

Consequently, judgments can

involving risk.

frequently be wrong, because they

1917
Wolfgang Köhler publishes

are based on information that

The Mentality of Apes
—his

comes easily to mind, rather than

study of problem-solving

that has actual probability.

in chimpanzees.

Kahneman and Tversky noticed

After observing a long

this experience-based method of

1940s
Edward Tolman’s

run of red on the roulette

problem-solving has a pattern: we

studies on animal behavior

wheel, most people

tend to overestimate the likelihood

open up a new area of

erroneously believe that

of things with low probability (such

research into motivation

black is now due.

as a plane crash), and underestimate

and decision-making.

Daniel Kahneman &

those with a higher probability (such

Amos Tversky

as crashing while driving drunk).

AFTER

These findings formed the basis

1980
US economist Richard

of Kahneman and Tversky’s prospect

Thaler publishes the first

theory, proposed in 1979, and led to

paper on the subject of

the collaborative field of psychology

behavioral economics:

known as behavioral economics. ■

Toward a Positive Theory

of Consumer Choice
.

See also:
Edward Tolman 72–73 ■ Wolfgang Köhler 160–61

194

EVENTS AND EMOTION

ARE STORED IN

MEMORY TOGETHER

GORDON H. BOWER (1932– )

IN CONTEXT

When we are in a

APPROACH

When we are in an

happy mood
, we tend

Memory studies

unhappy mood
, we tend

to store in memory the

to store in memory the

BEFORE

positive things

negative things

that happen...

1927
Bluma Zeigarnik

that happen...

describes the “Zeigarnik

effect” of interrupted tasks

being better remembered

than uninterrupted ones.

1956
George Armitage

...because we
pay more
attention

Miller’s
The
Magical Number

to the information that
agrees with

7, Plus or Minus 2
provides a

our mood
.

cognitive model for storage

in short-term memory.

1972
Endel Tulving makes a

distinction between semantic

and episodic memory.

Events and emotion are stored

AFTER

in memory together.

1977
Roger Brown coins the

term “flashbulb memory” for

autobiographical memory

connected with highly

emotional events.

2001
Daniel Schacter

When we are
happy,

When we are
unhappy,

publishes
The Seven Sins of

we find it easier to

we find it easier to

Memory
, which categorizes

recall memories from

recall memories from

a
happy time
.

the ways that memory can fail.

an
unhappy time
.

COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 195

See also:
Bluma Zeigarnik 162 ■ George Armitage Miller 168–73 ■ Endel Tulving 186–91 ■ Paul Ekman 196–97 ■

Daniel Schacter 208–09 ■ Roger Brown 237

T
he 1950s saw a revival of that we form an association between

interest in the study of

our emotional state and what is

memory. Increasingly

going on around us, and the emotion

sophisticated models of short- and

and the information are stored in

long-term memory were developed,

memory together. It is then easier to

in order to explain how information

recall facts that we learned when

is selected, organized, stored, and

we were in the same mood as we

retrieved. The ways in which

are when recollecting them.

memories could be forgotten or

Bower also discovered that

distorted were also identified.

emotion plays a part in the type of

information that the brain stores.

Memory and mood

When we are happy, he observed

By the 1970s, the focus in learning

that we tend to notice—and

theory and memory had moved to

therefore remember—positive

An idyllic vacation
, according to

investigating why some memories

things; when we are sad, negative

Bower, is more easily recalled when we

are better stored or more easily

things attract our attention and are

are in a happy mood. Bad memories of

retrieved than others. One of the

committed to memory more easily.

the trip are likely to be forgotten, or

foremost psychologists in the field,

For example, Bower found that

only remembered when we are unhappy.

Gordon H. Bower, had noticed that

unhappy people recalled details of

emotion appeared to impact on

a sad story better than those who

Bower’s findings led him to study

memory. Bower carried out studies

were happy when they read it. He

people in various emotional states,

in which people learned lists of

called this “mood-congruent

retrospectively observing their

words while in different moods, and

processing,” and concluded that

videotaped interactions with others.

later had to recall them, again when

episodic memory—of events, not

Memory and judgement of past

in varying emotional states. He

just words or facts—is especially

behavior varied with current mood.

uncovered what he called “mood-

linked to emotions. The events and

This research helped Bower to

dependent retrieval:” whatever a

emotions are stored together, and

refine his ideas about emotion and

person has learned when unhappy

we remember best the events that

memory, and inspired further

is easier to recall when they are

match our mood, both when they

psychological examination of the

again unhappy. Bower concluded

occurred, and when recalling them.

role emotions play in our lives. ■

Gordon H. Bower

Stanford University, California,

where he taught until his

Gordon H. Bower was brought

retirement in 2005. His research

up in Scio, Ohio. At high school,

there helped to develop the field

he was more interested in

of cognitive science, and in 2005

baseball and playing jazz than

Bower was awarded the US

People who are happy

studying, until a teacher

National Medal of Science for

during the initial experience

introduced him to the works of

his contributions to cognitive

learn the happy events better;

Sigmund Freud. He went on to

and mathematical psychology.

angry people learn anger-

graduate in psychology at Case

Western Reserve University,

provoking events better.

Key works

Cleveland, switching to Yale

Gordon H. Bower

for his PhD in learning theory,

1966, 1975
Theories of Learning

which he completed in 1959.

(with Ernest Hilgard)

From Yale, Bower moved on

1981
Mood and Memory

to the internationally acclaimed

1991
Psychology of Learning

psychology department of

and Motivation
(Volume 27)

196

EMOTIONS ARE A

R U

PAUL NA

EKMAN ( W

1934–A

) Y TRAIN

When Ekman began his research

IN CONTEXT

E
motions, and more

especially emotional

in the 1970s, it was assumed that

disorders, played a large

we learn to physically express

APPROACH

part in psychotherapy from its

emotions according to a set of

Psychology of emotions

beginnings, but they were seen

social conventions, which differ

BEFORE

more as symptoms to be treated

from culture to culture. Ekman

1960s
The study of isolated

than as something to be examined

traveled widely to all corners of the

tribal communities by

in their own right. One of the first

world, first photographing people in

American anthropologist

to realize that emotions deserved

the “developed countries,” such as

Margaret Mead suggests

as much attention as thought

Japan and Brazil, and then people

that facial expressions are

processes, drives, and behavior

in far-flung, cut-off places without

culture-specific.

was Paul Ekman, who came to

access to radio or television, such

the subject through his research