Information Technology-Use of Statistical Measures in Research Essay

Information Technology-Use of Statistical Measures in Research - Essay Example This paper studies the use of two of the most common statistical measures used in information technology research viz. measures of central tendencies and variability. Statistics enables the researcher in viewing the collected data in two ways. Descriptive statistics describes the shape of the data. Frequency and distribution are forms of descriptive statistics that help in this. Descriptive statistics uses measures such as mean, median, mode, correlation ,covariance etc.This data may be a sample or population data and we may have population mean compared to sample means etc. Inferential statistics attempts to fit a model to collected data and establishes causality .Inferential statistics also deals to develop predictive models which are based on causality analysis. In this paper mainly simple concepts of descriptive statistics are explored and inferential statistics is not touched upon. Statistical measures, not having real existence, simply support an argument or hypothesis and are just mental constructs. While statistics helps in summary organization of data, interpretation of the same, on its way to hypothesis, is the primary task of the resea rcher. Comparative cost of ownership analysis of Server Operating Systems was done with elaborate use of mean analysis and t test significance (Cahner, 1997). Mean and standard deviation model, multivariate model, Markov process model and time series model were used as part of statistical technique in developing Misuse Detection Systems (Christina, 1997).Statistical user profiles were used as part of multilayered security system (Steve, 1999).A combination of arithmetic mean, median and standard deviation gave sufficient support to help conclude on Survey results on Operating systems'(David, 1998). Discussion A basic primer of descriptive statistics is necessary not only for understanding such concepts but also for pointing to their specific use on research data. "The most frequently used average is the Mean, which is the balance point in a distribution. Its computation is simple - just add up the scores and divide by the number of scores.Formally mean is the value around which the deviations sum to zero.The formal definition also explains as to why informally one defines the mean as the balance point in a distribution. At mean value the positive and negative deviations balance each other out. A major drawback of the mean is that it moves in the direction of extreme scores. If in any two distributions most values are about same size however in one distribution one or two values are inordinately high then the mean of such a distribution would be pulled up greatly in comparison to the other distribution. This is a skewed distribution. For such skewed distributions, a different average, the Median, which is defined as the middle score is used. To get an approximate median, scores are put in order from low to high and count is made till middle score, which is set as median. The Mode is simply the score with highest frequency. The mode is sometimes used in informal

Analysing Abuse Of Migrant Domestic Worker Social Work Essay

Analysing Abuse Of Migrant Domestic Worker Social Work Essay In year 2004, the first ever recorded of the nation worst abused and tortured of migrant worker, Nirmala Bonat. The news has brought to light the sad and painful incidents as a 19th year old Indonesian maid told a harrowing story of how she was repeatedly burnt with an iron and scalded with boiling water by her Malaysian employer. The Malaysian image of a caring nation has been tarnished when pictures of abused Indonesian domestic workers were featured in major newspapers. The reports made great impact as it drew series of reaction from disgusted and angry Malaysians who could not believe the fact that members of our very own community could commit such cruel acts. I just could not bear by looking at the images of Nirmala Bonat being brutalized by her employer. What has she done to deserve such severe punishment from her employer? If indeed, Nirmala Bonat is incompetent in her daily routines work, she should have been returned to her agent for replacement. Manhandling a human being or soul, who is here to earn a better life and living is like committing a merciless crime. Five years later in 2009, another similar Nirmala Bonat case making the headlines once again. An Indonesian maid by the name, Siti Hajar was tortured by an old Malaysian lady without any sense of humanity at all towards her. Abusing migrant domestic worker or helper is no longer something new in the society. Siti Hajars plight made the Malaysian and Indonesian media a headlines once more. News says that she being allegedly scalded with boiling water, tortured and starved. The worst still she is only fed with plain rice and occasionally her employer have asked the maid who is a Muslim to digest pork meat is merely unforgivable at all. One after another, Siti Hajar cases has led to an alleged rape, physical abuse, denial of salaries and basic rights of three Indonesian women by their employer in Sungai Siput, Perak. Such acts are simply inhumane. Up to dated, statistics shows more than hundred of thousand Indonesian women are believed to work in Malaysian homes as hoping to earn a better life. Malaysia as the second largest destination for Indonesian maid after Saudi Arabia besides Kuwait, Jordan, Hong Kong and some other countries including maid working in the United States of America. There are few question that I would like to raise up here; are the Indonesian maids working aboard under a good condition? Do they have the right for their salaries or even getting a freedom of human right? Never, I do understand why the Philippines maids were not abused or even being tortured physically. Is it due to the communication breakdown between the maid and the employer? By having a maid or migrant domestic helper, would it make things much easier or difficult for us? Not to forget, most maid from Indonesia which are brought into the country, merely are from a lower grade. This is because a much more skilled and quality ones would be sent to other countries which offer a greater lucrative sum of money, countries like Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia. This would lead to Malaysian employer felt that they are being cheated as they have to be prepared to accept those lower grades migrant domestic worker. While the agents are allowed to capitalize on a lucrative business as they often wash their hands off as soon as the workers are delivered to the employers. Such situation left no option for the employer as they would need to train the lower grades domestic worker in household management from basic; How to get the laundry done? Cleaning up the bathrooms? Getting the rubbish out of the house? Baby-sitting? Helping our wives in the kitchen or even thinking of he lping you and your family with cooking? With all this situations, the employer would end up with lots of burden and misery. Before I go any further in discussing the possible measures that can be taken as to curb these issues effectively, let us take a glance at the Malaysian law and policies on migrant workers. The system that is being practice in Malaysia has put migrant domestic workers at complete disadvantage as far as seeking for justice is concerned. This is because the migrant domestic workers are at a bigger disadvantage as they are not even considered workers and as such do not fall under the provisions of the Employment Act. Laws and policies are enforced with great speed and efficiency when migrant workers violate these laws and the situation is different when the employer does the same offences. Even tough, migrant workers make complaints against their employers, they will be subjected to various form of abuses including verbal and physical threats. This again causes them to live under severe stress and fear. I have seen and heard many cases where workers are immediately got their contract terminated and being repatriated back to their home country where they are laden with huge debts and poverty. Therefore, domestic workers especially would put up with the abuses and torture rather than returning to their countries empty handed. The next point that I would like to include in this essay is the forms of abuses endured by migrant domestic workers in Malaysia. Press reports merely stated that the wages to workers are not paid as per the contract even after they have fulfilled all the contract terms. Nevertheless, migrant domestic workers spend a lot of money to come to this country and most of the wages earned are often used to pay up loans and debts, which they have secured and as to feed their families back home. When employers do not pay the wages, the workers suffer the most. Beside that, migrant domestic workers are often forced to live in cramped, dirty and badly furnished shacks or crowded into houses meant for a small family. Some even sleep on the kitchen floor with just a piece of thin mattress. To be exact, domestic workers are not given a proper rooms of their own and such housing facilities that are not fit for living would lead to promote unhealthy conditions. The situation, which I have pointed out, brought an environment where employers feel they have the immunity power. Hence migrant domestic workers are virtually at the mercy of their employers who are confident that they would be able to get away with almost anything. Some employers are fully aware that even if the matter is brought to the attention of the authorities such as the civil courts or industrial court, the immigrant policies in Malaysia would make it almost impossible for the migrant worker to successfully seek justice or redress without first either running out of money or time both which is completely controlled the policies stipulated by the Immigration Department. It is not until the sole reason of Nirmala Bonats case received so much attention and quick redress was given because the severity of her injuries making the headlines of every local newspaper front page. Public outcry on her case has prompted the Malaysian authorities to swing into immediate action. The responds show that Malaysian can administer justice swiftly and effectively when it chooses to do so. It is pertinent to note that many cases go unreported in the media. High profile cases that drew attention has forced Malaysia taking up the measures to check on maid abuses by inspecting on homes, interviews of maids and employers and also by introducing a helpline. Therefore, as to curb the problems effectively, I call on the government to grant swift action to migrant workers in seeking justice and protection. Employers who break the law must be made accountable. The government should impose heavier punishment to maid abusers. Law and policies that impede or delaying the justice system must be either amended or removed together. The Malaysian government need to ensure that enforcement agencies such as the Immigration Department, Civil or Industrial Court and the Police Force to enforce the law without bias and prejudice. Whereby there are cases been brought to my attention that migrant workers have often been subjected to extortion by enforcement personnel. Enforcement personnel have also been known to take the employers side in coercing workers to comply with unfair terms of employment. These allegations of extortion and gross misconduct by enforcement personnel must be investigated. Enforcement must be carried out swiftly and impartially against employers who do not obey the law. The authorities must not wait till there is a public outrage as to get into action. In other words, all relevant authorities are to stop all type of harassment on migrant domestic workers immediately. I personally think that the government should set minimum work and living environment standards that employers must adhere to. These can be achieved effectively as the government must ratify the International Convention on Protection of the Rights of all Migrant Workers and Members of their Families, which was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1990 and ensure its full implementation. The cultural differences in Malaysia as for a domestic worker to work 24 hours, seven days a week with no off day while being paid wages below the national poverty line. I would like to urge all migrant domestic workers who have been abused to bravely step forward and expose their employers as to put a stop of mistreating them. The agents too should be accountable for their carelessness and irresponsibility as most Muslims maids who work in non-Muslim homes were required to bath dogs and handled pork. Such act would utterly insensitive on the part of the employers and the agents. The solution would be that non-Muslim employers should be allowed only to hire non-Muslim maids while Muslim employers to bring in Muslim maids. The phrase Learn to live without maids struck my mind as I was watching Nanny 911, a television series of a Nanny assigned to homes as to help out American couples in handling and managing their families. I would like to state that men and children should also do housework. House chores are not as easy as you think it would be. We Malaysian are a lucky lot as we can afford to have maids with affordable rates and yet there are complaints of Indonesian maids now are asking for a little more. Therefore, I would say we should do the daily chores, home and outside ourselves. I have seen how typical it can be as only the women do everything at home as the men and children just laze around. Mind you there are tones of work to be done in the house besides caring for the children. There is the sweeping and mopping, cleaning the toilets, washing dishes, the laundry, the ironing, the cooking, dusting the windows and cabinets and the list goes on. This is not fair to women especially, we should have a balance and as for the men and children should lend a helping hands in assisting with the household chores. I think it is about time for us to learn to do something ourselves as this is something that we should ponder over. I would like to suggest that we should not solely depend on maids from aboard. We could train our local women especially the single mothers or purely a fulltime housewife. We could have them to come over on daily basis or even by the hours as another alternative in curbing the problems. This will lead to a cost effective and less risk of domestic helper or maid being abuse as they are not require to stay with the employer. Career women with families to take care of should change their mindset as placing the whole responsibility of the household works solely to the maid as their servant. Therefore to ease their worries especially those having children could send them to a nursing or a childcare center during the days and pick them up after work. The aspects of managing time with work and household duties are really hard to manage. I would say, why not we do it ourselves as life has become much more easier with new inventions with the latest technology of electrical appliances in doing household works. Children are very much a fast pace learner in everything if they were taught on how to do handle household chores. We should train our children to be more discipline and independent from a younger age as to get rid off the sole hope on maids. Parents can start by telling them how to keep their space clean and tidy, like make up their beds as they got up from sleep, wash their own plates or even get the rubbish out of the house. I would love to Live a life without the maid, the wife should ask the male spouse for assistance, cooperation and shares the responsibility in managing the house and their children. In most develop countries especially the westerner, we could see that the male gender does not feel ashamed when come to household works. The husband and wife would take turns and share equal responsibilities in raising and taking care of the family. It is about time as the long-standing issue on the supply of maids is finally nearing a conclusion between Malaysia and Indonesia with the signing of the Letter of Intent (Lol) on amendments to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the Recruitment and Placement of Maids from Indonesia on the 18th May 2010. The Indonesian government is expected to lift its ban since June last year as to allow its citizen to work in Malaysia again. Both government officials have been holding meetings to resolve issues in relation to the maids issue. Among the issues agreed to is that maids in Malaysia will be given one day off weekly and their right to hold on to their passports. However, employer and the maid concern could agree to forego the day off in lieu of compensation and an employer could also hold onto a maids passport if both parties agreed. The only issue that is still pending is the wage paid to migrant domestic workers as it requires more discussions. Finally, I hope the government would recognize Migrant Domestic Workers as workers and grant them all the rights that come with the status. This hopefully will resolve the problem. Perhaps the employers should also be required to sign an undertaking not to physically abuse the maid and if they are unhappy, the maids are to be returned to the agency for further training or getting a new replacement. BIBLIOGRAFI 1. Prof Datuk Dr. Nik Safiah Karim, Head of PERTIWI (2009). The Maids: Ease vs Burden. Pertubuhan Tindakan Wanita Islam (PERTIWI). 2. Prof Madya Dr. Rusinah Siron, Social Analysis. (2009). Overcome your life without Indonesian maid. Universiti Tenaga Malaysia (UNITEN), Kuala Lumpur. 3. Article Maid deal soon, The Star, 19th May 2010. 4. Article Learn to live without maids, The Star, 24th May 2010. 5. Immigration Department of Malaysia. 6. Malaysian Employment Act. 7. http://thestar.com.my/news/story/ Nirmala Bonat case: Housewife found guilty, 18 years jail.

The Reeves Rebuttal :: essays research papers

The Reeve's Rebuttal The Reeve of Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales I portrayed in the first as â€Å"old and choleric and thin†(605), choleric meaning short-tempered and yellow. All of Chaucer’s descriptions of the pilgrims in his tales give an insight into and very well foreshadow the their tale to come, and the Reeve is of course no exception. His description continues, portraying him with a conservative and resolve appearance, and one of fierce authority. Clever, calculating, and ruthless seem to sum up his personality, an imposing persona in a weakening body. And when it comes his time to tell his tale, he is quick t fight tale to tale with the Miller to embarrass him more so, being a carpenter himself and having the Millers tale just so insultingly decrying another carpenter. His description is immediately true, as his short-temper brings his tale of a hapless and cruel miller’s defeat in order to decry the Miller. In the Reeve’s tale, two scholars visit a cheat of a miller from the local university with corn to grind. These boys eventually turn the tables on the miller, and thus it is no small surprise that the position these boys are in is similar to the Reeve’s career as well. The boys, clever and aware, watch to make sure they wouldn’t get cheated by the miller, so in turn the miller lets loose their horse, delaying their return home and letting the miller keep a cut of the corn. To take back what’s theirs ad have the final insult, one of the boys has his way with the millers daughter, and the other his way with the wife. Though undetermined, this could be a clever complementing of the reeve’s younger life. The story, though complete with a moral of the wicked getting their just rewards, is little more than snipe at the real Miller, having him be beaten, tricked, and dishonored by the younger Reeve’s versions. In the prologue of The Canterbury Tales, the Reeve is a ragged older version of the boys later to come in his story.

How do the directors Franco Zeffirelli Essay

Both films are based around the original script by Shakespeare, yet both directors have adapted the script slightly too go with their version of the film â€Å"Romeo and Juliet. † Baz Luhrmann’s version of â€Å"Romeo and Juliet† begins with a shot of a television; this tells the viewers that the film is set in modern times, rather than Elizabethan England. The news reporter reads out the background history of the â€Å"ancient grudge. † Whilst she reads, the camera slowly zooms in, as this happens shots of newspapers and magazine headlines flash up creating the feeling that the fights between the two families affect the whole city whilst this is happening there is some operatic music in the background which is brought into the foreground, so that we get the impression the film is going to be about a fight between two families that end in tragedy. The screen blanks, and the film starts. The Montague boys are driving up a motorway in a bright yellow customised 4Ãâ€"4 in the background you can hear hip-hop music, this makes the Montague boys seem fun, peaceful and approachable. They pull into a petrol station where the Cauplet boys are introduced. You instantly feel that the Capulet boys are the opposite of the Montagues, because they are dressed in Mafia style clothes. The whole fight is sparked by one of the Montague boys biting their thumb at the Capulets. There are a lot of shots of just the actor’s eyes this is used to build up tension. In the background Spaghetti western music is playing this gives me the feeling there is going to be an old western style shoot out. Baz Lurhmann uses fast motion a few times this is to add a little bit of comedy in a serious moment in the film. Tybolt comes into the picture and stomps out a cigarette. The fight starts; most of the fight is in slow motion I think that it is used to make the fight look more dramatic. The operatic music starts again in the background creating the affect of violence and hate. The camera pans to one of the Montague boys who is running away through the traffic, and the two others speeding away in their car for their lives, you can hear the sounds of car horns which is then drowned out by the oncoming helicopter. The camera shot is then from the point of view of Captain Prince in the helicopter. This makes the two men on the floor look small and insignificant compared to the chief. Where as Zeffirelli’s version is a lot slower and easy going. The start of the film is of rolling hills at dawn, with Sir Lawrence Olivia’s voice and medieval style music in the background. The music is more romantic than Baz Lurhmann’s choice but they both work equally as well. The camera pans following a horse and cart along a walled city, this is to remind us it is set in Verona. In the background you can hear the hustle and bustle of the market town, the market is were we first see the Capulets talking to each other, in this version of the film the Capulets are portrayed as the rebellious ones, playing and joking around, the camera pans to the Montagues who are talking to a stall owner. The Capulets walk over to cause uproar, one of the Capulets bites his thumb and they have a confrontation. In the background there is silence and there are shots of the town folks standing watching them, you can hear one man say â€Å"look at them! † I think this is used to show how the villagers react to all the fighting. As the scuffle breaks up the Montague’s turn leave, one of their elder members is tripped over by the Capulets. The fight starts in the background the director has chosen to have screaming and the sound of people fleeing. The town bell rings in the foreground. My interpretation of this is that the bell is supposed to alert the Prince of Verona, and to tell the people to stay away from the market square. Benvolio is introduced with a crowd of Montagues behind him creating the feeling he is an important figure in the film. The fighting stops for a few moments then Tybalt says â€Å"Peace but I hate peace†¦ † Then the fighting continues, the noise of the brawl dominates for quite some time until the sound of trumpets echoes the town, the trumpets grow louder with the noise of hooves. The Prince arrives on a white horse with several trumpet players behind him. The Prince looks down on his unruly subjects. This makes the Prince look very powerful compared to the people on the ground, there is silence whilst the prince addresses the crowd this gives me the impression that the Montagues and Capulets respect the Prince’s authority over them.

Cognitive Approach to Psychology

Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology Shane Galvin Class: 061/AT Applied Psychology Teacher: Carol Neenan Title: Psychological Perspective Word count: 3121 The Cognitive Approach to Psychology Contents Page 1 – Contents Page 2 – Introduction Page 3 – History Page 4 – Cognitive Psychology and Cognitive Science Page 6- Research methods i) iii) v) Reaction time Studies Eye Tracking Studies Psychophysics ii) iv) vi) Priming Studies Lateralisation Studies Single-Cell Studies Page 8 – Memory Storage and Models Page 10 – Therapeutic Applications Page 11 – Evaluation Page 12 – Bibliography Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology The Cognitive Approach to Psychology What is Cognitive Psychology? Literally, ‘Cognition’ means knowing, but in the greater framework of Psychology, Cognition is thinking, perceiving information, understanding, construction and presentation of an answer to a question. Essentially, cognition is a ter m for the use of our mental processes. â€Å"Cognitive Psychology is the study of higher mental processes such as attention, language use, memory, perception, problem solving, and thinking. † (Gerrig & Zimbardo. 2002) Cognitive Psychology uses scientific methods and scrutiny to develop a deeper understanding of the human mind, rather than the brain, a methodology perhaps adapted from Behaviourism, in which modern Cognitive Psychology holds its roots. Yet, unlike behaviourism, which only focuses on observable behaviour, Cognitive Psychology is also concerned with internal mental states. 2 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology History In 1932, Behaviourist Edward Tolman published his book â€Å"Purposive Behaviour in Animals and Men† In his works Tolman studied rats in a maze, in which food was placed at the end of the maze.In the initial phase of a test, the rat would not be hungry while first entering the maze; this would allow the rat to learn where the food would be and to associate a certain location with the prospect of food. Of course, being armed with such a primal survival instinct would influence the rat to learn and adapt quickly. The rat would move in the general direction of the food as opposed to a specific pathway and Tolman observed that the rats were able to use untrained routes towards the food.This meant that rats had an ability to learn, beyond mere survival instinct and presented a problem for radical behaviourism. Whether Tolman knew it or not, both he and his rats were laying down the groundwork for modern cognitive psychology. Tolman theorized that the animal had developed an image of its environment that it later used as a reference when finding its food. This is called a â€Å"Cognitive Map† i. e. , the rats showed use of their cognitive map by reaching a goal (food) from a number of different starting points.The rats had no instinctive information of the maze and no stimuli that would condition it to have knowledg e of the maze, in other words; the rats learned about their environment and stored the information. This helped to establish some basis for memory storage, learned behaviour and analytical methodology for Cognitive Psychology and would help Psychologists prepare for the â€Å"Cognitive Revolution† of the 1950’s where Cognitive Psychology and its principle areas of research begin to become defined. 3 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied PsychologyThe Term â€Å"Cognitive Psychology† came into use in 1967 in the book Cognitive Psychology by Neisser. â€Å"†¦ the term cognition refers to all processes by which the sensory input is transformed , reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered and used†¦ it is apparent that cognition is involved in everything a human being might possibly do; that every psychological phenomena is a cognitive phenomena† (Neisser, 1967) Perhaps it was the invention of the computer that gave Cognitive Psychology the most credibility.For t he first time in history, mankind had something to which it could compare with the human brain or mind, and gave the cognitive approach its terminology. By being able to study a simpler artificial construct, psychologists now had the opportunity to learn more about cognitive processes. â€Å"Cognitive psychology focuses on the way humans process information, looking at how we treat information that comes in to the person (what behaviorists would call stimuli), and how this treatment leads to responses. In other words, they are interested in the variables that mediate between stimulus/input and response/output. (McLeod, 2007) Cognitive Psychology and Cognitive Science Part of the effect that the cognitive revolution had on its approach is the amalgamation of techniques and ideology’s from other distinct areas of research and study such as linguistics, computer science, developmental psychology and cognitive psychology. It seems as though it is a reaction to the ‘stimulu s-response’ methodology and mode of interpretation espoused by behavioural scientists. Noam Chomsky theorised that the brain had a centre for language acquisition that went beyond what could be explained by behavioural psychology.Jean Piaget had laid out stages of cognitive development that children go through which again could not be explained within the framework of Behaviourism. Computer scientists provided a new way of comparably examining the brain by using computer processing as a method to conceptualise brain processing. â€Å"These scientists maintained their own distinct methodologies†¦ but they held together and remained united in their interest in cognition and in their goal to bring the scientific study of these processes to light. This scientific collective became known as cognitive science† (Solso, et al. 2008) In modern times cognitive science relies on computer science, philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, linguistics and anthropology. Cognitive s cience is heavily influenced by computer science; in computer modelling it is possible to construct and test cognitive models, in the form of artificial intelligence (AI) which has leaked into popular use in the form of interactive technology such as video gaming. 4 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology But it is of particular benefit to psychologists because they can test certain, although limited, cognitive models and theories based on computer models.Cognitive Psychology uses a combination of techniques adapted from other areas of research in order to research its own theories, thus we have an intrinsic relationship between cognitive psychology and other methodologies as illustrated in Gardner’s Hexagon. The diverse range of methodologies in the cognitive approach allows researchers and clinical psychologists to approach problems, issues and hypotheses from a multitude of different backgrounds and allow a wider range of scrutiny to verify their findings in keeping with sc ientific inquiry.Ultimately this allows the cognitive scientist/psychologist to create models of predictive capability that are reproducible which, in Psychology, allows for a greater understanding of the human mind and its mechanisms. 5 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology Research Method’s The research methods of cognitive psychology observe and record how we take in information from the physical world, the response time of reactions and how we process this information to perceive it. â€Å"The method’s of cognitive psychology stem from those used by early German researchers studying memory, association and processes.These tools became a mainstay of experimental psychology. As cognitive psychology began to form and become interdisciplinary, methods from other research fields were borrowed and modified for use in the study of cognitive processes. Research methods are the tools by which we come to know and understand, as well as test ideas and develop new ones. â₠¬  (Solso, et al. , 2008) i) Reaction Time Studies: Reaction time studies are used to study cognitive processes and seem to be a defining methodology in the cognitive approach.An example is Donder’s complication studies, in which a subject’s response speed to a white light being turned on was recorded and compared to a yellow light being turned on. Researchers believed early on that the time difference between the two responses could have been attributed to additional processing that it took to differentiate the yellow from the white light. â€Å"Reaction time studies fundamentally rely on the assumption that cognitive activity takes time and that one stage is completed before the other starts. † (Solso, et al. , 2008) ii) Priming studies:Priming studies have been used by psychologists for quite some time. With the invention of computer technology, specifically brain imaging technology, priming studies are becoming more popular. â€Å"In priming studies a stim ulus is briefly presented (a prime) and then, after a delay, a second stimulus is presented and a participant is asked to make some judgement regarding the second stimulus, such as, â€Å"Is the second stimulus the ‘same’ as the first? † (Solso, et al. , 2008) There are two types of priming effects. The Semantic priming Effect and the Object priming effect.The Semantic priming effect is that by activating one item, the acceptability of the second item is enhanced. The Object priming effect is typically in two stages. The first stage is the presentation of an object. This is followed by an interval that may be as short as a millisecond or as long as several months. In the second stage an object similar to the first object is presented, it could be changed, degraded or rotated etc. The participants’ accuracy in remembering the first object is then measured and sometimes the reaction time is measured as well. Tulving & Schacter, 1990) 6 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Ap plied Psychology iii) Eye-Tracking studies: A large portion of the brain is used for interpreting and processing visual sensory information. Researchers have developed techniques to track the movement of eyes in order to determine where a person’s eye is fixed which in particular helps to study people reading, what sentence they are looking at and where they look next. Eye-tracking studies have helped researchers to discover that people who have dyslexia have different eye movements to people who do not have dyslexia. v) Lateralisation Studies Lateralisation studies developed from the idea that the two sides of the brain are responsible for different cognitive functions, in an effort to localise functions within the brain, Broca and Wernicke’s area’s ( centres that are responsible for speech and language) are located on one side of the brain, the left side, this implies that the brain has localised area’s for different functions, these studies were partic ularly important in the area of memory study and studies of amnesiac patients, through the methodology used in lateralisation studies, i. e. riming type tests, and brain imaging we know that the hippocampus is responsible for memory, although there are two hippocampi. There are also more invasive techniques used in lateralisation studies using patients with extreme epilepsy undergoing preventative surgery whereby the corpus collosum, the fibre’s which connect the hemispheres of the brain, are cut. v) Psychophysics Psychophysics is the scientific study of the relationship between stimuli and the sensations and perceptions evoked by these stimuli. (Solso, et al. , 2008) Psychophysicists are interested in perceptual thresholds.For example in Weber’s study of perceptual threshold’s he tested a person’s ability to detect weight. If a person was holding a weighted object, how much weight could be added before the person could detect and perceive the difference in weight. vi) Single-cell Studies Single-cell studies are typically conducted in animals as opposed to humans because of their invasive nature. Hubel & Wiesel, who were awarded a Nobel Prize for their 1959 research, mapped the visual cortex of cats. This research involved the opening of the skull of the subject.They had theorised that because single cells communicate with each other via electrical impulses then it would be possible to probe these single cells with a an extremely fine meter to measure the amount of electrical activity in a cell without damaging it, thereby allowing them to evaluate perceptual experience at a cellular level. Hubel & Wiesel basically restrained a cat , opened its skull, probed it’s brain and then showed the cat 7 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology moving images and kept probing until they could record the level of cellular electrical activity.This gave us an insight into how we visual perceive the world and the physical action that takes pl ace in the brain. (Solso, et al. , 2008) Memory, Storage and Models Cognitive Psychology is viewed as a pure science, its accepted theories on memory, for example, are based on laboratory experiments with demonstrable results as well as solid work in case studies. For example the Multi store Model (MSM) by Atkinson & Shiffrin (1968, 1971) cited by (McLeod, 2007) attempted to explain how information is transferred from Short Term Memory to Long Term Memory.This model views sensory memory, STM and LTM as â€Å"permanent structural components† and suggests that memory is made up of a series of stores. MSM likens memory as information flowing through a system. Information is detected by the sense organs and enters the sensory memory. If attended to this information enters the short term memory. Information from the STM is transferred to the long-term memory only if that information is rehearsed. If rehearsal does not occur, then information is forgotten, lost from short term memo ry through the processes of displacement or decay. McLeod, 2007) This model has influenced the study and research of memory and is supported and informed by studies of retrograde and anterograde amnesia. The Working Model of Memory (Baddely & Hitch, 1974), shows that short term memory is more than one store and consists of different components. Similarly, in long term memory different kinds of memory such as addition/subtraction, how to play chess or what we did yesterday are not stored in one ‘hard-drive’ type long term memory store. There are different types of memory, episodic (memory of events), procedural (memory of how to do 8 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology hings) and semantic (general knowledge). This model of memory espouses that rehearsal is the process whereby by we transfer information into Long term memory but that it is not necessary to rehearse in some cases. . We know, now, that the part of the brain that deals with memory is the hippocampus; it i s part of the limbic system and deals with short term memory and long term memory, as well as spatial functions, the hippocampus is shown in this diagram. As we can see, there are hippocampi; there is a hippocampus in both sides of the brain. The hippocampus is part of the cerebral cortex and is located in the medial temporal lobe.Damage to the hippocampus can result in a person being unable to store new memories and is quite devastating to a person’s quality of life. In the case of Clive Wearing, based on Baddely, 1990; Blakemore 1988 as cited in (Gross, 2010), who suffered from anterograde amnesia, we can see the effects of damage to the hippocampus, in this case caused by a rare brain infection caused by the cold sore virus (Herpes Simplex). Mr. Wearing lives almost as if he is frozen in time, constantly believing he has just woken from years of unconscious sleep. He retains developed skills, for example he was the chorus master of the London Sinfonietta.Unfortunately for Mr. Wearing his ability to recall memories from earlier in his life is extremely patchy, at best. Atkinson and Schiffrin regard the kind of memory Deficits displayed by Clive Wearing as ‘perhaps the single most convincing demonstration of a dichotomy in the memory system’ (Gross, 2010) 9 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology Therapeutic Applications Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is based on how our thoughts, feelings and behaviour all interact with each other; our thoughts influence our feelings and behaviour.CBT helps the client to develop alternate ways of thinking and behaving in order to reduce psychological distress. Through reflective processes and tasks such as homework, the client’s maladaptive thought process and behaviour is challenged. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is a blanket term for different therapeutic interventions that share similar characteristics. Two therapies which form the basis of CBT are Rational Emot ive Behaviour Therapy, developed by Albert Ellis in the 1950s, and Cognitive Therapy, developed by Aaron T.Beck in the 1960’s. Beck puts forward the argument that our emotional reactions are essentially a function of how we construe the world. â€Å"Depressed people see themselves as victims, and Beck sees them as victims of their own illogical self-judgements. Beck’s central idea is that depressed individuals feel as they do because their thinking is dominated by negative schemas. † (Gross, 2010) Beck essentially implies that we interpret our reality by using our cognitive processes and our perception.If our perceptions are skewed because our cognitive processes are maladaptive or our methods of reasoning are incorrect then our emotions and behaviour become distorted from reality. In order to correct emotional or psychological disturbances then we must seek to examine the root of the problem, viewing this through the lens of cognition means that we must correct our thought process in order to correct the symptomatic behavioural and emotional disorder. Beck uses method’s to treat a disorder depending on the disorder that the client suffers from. He stresses the importance of the quality of the relationship between the client and therapist.Beck also places particular emphasis on the client discovering misconceptions for themselves. (McLeod, 2008) Albert Ellis’ Rational Emotional Behavioural Therapy is quite contrasting to Becks method. Ellis Proposes that the therapist should be a teacher and that a warm personal relationship is unnecessary. REBT can also be highly directive, persuasive and confrontational. REBT also uses different methods of approach to a client’s issue depending on the client’s personality. Human cognition can be held responsible for the individual’s successes and accomplishments, according to CBT cognition can also be held responsible for our problems. You are responsible for the outcom e of the situation’ It emphasises control over one’s behaviour and emotions through correcting thought processes. The nature of Cognitive 10 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology Psychology/Science allow cognitive theories to be tested in a variety of situations, for example Rimm & Litvak’s 1969 (McLeod, 2008) study shows that When experimental subjects are manipulated into adopting unpleasant assumptions or thought they became more anxious and depressed.Moreover, many people with diagnosed psychological disorders such as anxiety and sexual disorders have been found to display maladaptive thoughts and assumptions, making a case for the effectiveness of CBT. Aaron Beck’s work in researching depression and order disorders in clinical as well as laboratory settings and testing memory and other cognitive functions, and in particular his outcome studies have shown that CBT can be highly effective. CBT is also used in the treatment of drug abuse, bipolar disor der and in patients with cancer, HIV, OCD, PTSD and schizophrenia.It has also been theoretically applied in the treatment of psychopathy. Evaluation/Personal Learning Upon examining the field of Cognitive Psychology, I have learned that cognitive Psychology is adaptive. It evolves with the times and incorporates new technologies, but also has a serious grounding in scientific methodology in order to correctly examine and understand the human mind. Cognitive Psychology is informed by the greater umbrella that is cognitive science. For example it uses information from computer science and neuroscience in order to better understand the cognitive processes that exist in the human brain.Given that the ‘mind’ is not a physical entity; this style of scientific inquiry may be the best approach in understanding it. There is a good scientific framework underlying Cognitive psychology which then allows the Psychologist to move forward and deal with issues presented by the mind. As we can see in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, the therapist approaches the abstract nature of the mind by focusing on the underlying mental hierarchy. That being, Cognition, Emotion, Behaviour, in order to treat symptomatic issues, the therapist using this approach must deal with the thought processes that create these symptoms.The most important lesson that I have learned is that, while the mind is an abstract construct and is quite difficult to quantify, quantifiable information about physical constructs such as the brain and general human biology and chemistry and its influences informs the understanding of the human mind. 11 Shane Galvin-061 AT-Applied Psychology Bibliography Baddely, A. & Hitch, G. , 1974. Working Memory. In: G. Bower, ed. The Psychology of Learning and Motivation: Advances in Research and Theory. New York: Academic Press, pp. 47-89.Gerrig, R. J. & Zimbardo. , &. P. G. , 2002. Glossary. [Online] Available at: http://www. apa. org/research/action/glossary. aspx [Accessed 14 November 2012]. Gross, R. , 2010. Psychology The Science of Mind and Behaviour. 6th ed. London: HodderArnold. McLeod, S. , 2007. Atkinson and Shiffrin | Multi Store Model of Memory.. [Online] Available at: http://www. simplypsychology. org/multi-store. html [Accessed 16 November 2012]. McLeod, S. , 2007. http://www. simplypsychology. org/cognitive. html. [Online] Available at: fromhttp://www. implypsychology. org/cognitive-therapy. html [Accessed 10 November 2012]. McLeod, S. , 2008. Simply Psychology, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. [Online] Available at: http://www. simplypsychology. org/cognitive-therapy. html [Accessed 12 November 2012]. Neisser, U. , 1967. Cognitive Psychology. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. Solso, R. L. , Maclin, O. H. & Maclin, M. K. , 2008. Cognitive Psychology. 8th ed. Boston: Pearson. Tulving, E. & Schacter, D. L. , 1990. Priming and Human Memory Systems. Science, Volume 247, pp. 301-306. 12