→ a count was made of how many features were present in the drawings
Standard group (6): patients with semantic dementia had to make drawings of 64
drawings as well
→ first had to undergo an MRI to rule out the possibility that it could be
cured
→ had to take a number of tests for cognition, episodic memory, executive
functions, non-verbal problem-solving, and visuo-spatial skills to
ensure this was all working well
Results
Patients had a general impairment and scored lower on semantic tasks
The drawings often did not correlate with what should be drawn, but still
recognizable
Artifact domain → mainly features were omitted and drawings were boxy
Vivid domain → features were left out and some things were added
PROBLEM 5: MENTAL IMAGERY
Mental Imagery
Imagery = the mental representation of things that are not currently seen or sensed
by the sense organs
→ can even represent things that you’ve never experienced
Most aware of visual imagery
Not everyone is equally skilled in creating and manipulating mental images
→ visible with fMRI
Cognitive Psychology Summary 39
, According to an extreme view of imagery, all images of everything we ever sense
may be stored as exact copies of physical images
→ realistically seems impossible
Study by Tartaglia et.al.(2009)
Learning can take place by using mental images
Participants were presented with 3 parallel lines (middle one closer to left or right)
Practice using mental images resulted in participants becoming more sensitive to
the asymmetry
Dual-Code Theory
💡 Dual-code theory = we use both pictorial and verbal codes for representing
information in our minds (Piavio, 1969,1971)
These 2 codes organize information into knowledge that can be acted on, stored,
and retrieved
Verbal and pictorial information are processed differently
Analog code = a representation that closely resembles the physical object
→ mental images are analog codes
Symbolic code = a form of knowledge representation that has been chosen
arbitrarily (when there’s nothing about it that would suggest it represents it)
Cognitive Psychology Summary 40
, → the symbol “8” resembles the concept of “eighteness”
Supporting evidence
Actual visual perception may interfere with simultaneous visual images
Verbal expression may interfere with a mental manipulation of a verbal statement
Propositional Theory
💡 Propositional theory = the propositional form of mental representation is
neither in words nor in pictures. It is an abstract form that represents the
underlying meanings of knowledge
Cognitive Psychology Summary 41
Standard group (6): patients with semantic dementia had to make drawings of 64
drawings as well
→ first had to undergo an MRI to rule out the possibility that it could be
cured
→ had to take a number of tests for cognition, episodic memory, executive
functions, non-verbal problem-solving, and visuo-spatial skills to
ensure this was all working well
Results
Patients had a general impairment and scored lower on semantic tasks
The drawings often did not correlate with what should be drawn, but still
recognizable
Artifact domain → mainly features were omitted and drawings were boxy
Vivid domain → features were left out and some things were added
PROBLEM 5: MENTAL IMAGERY
Mental Imagery
Imagery = the mental representation of things that are not currently seen or sensed
by the sense organs
→ can even represent things that you’ve never experienced
Most aware of visual imagery
Not everyone is equally skilled in creating and manipulating mental images
→ visible with fMRI
Cognitive Psychology Summary 39
, According to an extreme view of imagery, all images of everything we ever sense
may be stored as exact copies of physical images
→ realistically seems impossible
Study by Tartaglia et.al.(2009)
Learning can take place by using mental images
Participants were presented with 3 parallel lines (middle one closer to left or right)
Practice using mental images resulted in participants becoming more sensitive to
the asymmetry
Dual-Code Theory
💡 Dual-code theory = we use both pictorial and verbal codes for representing
information in our minds (Piavio, 1969,1971)
These 2 codes organize information into knowledge that can be acted on, stored,
and retrieved
Verbal and pictorial information are processed differently
Analog code = a representation that closely resembles the physical object
→ mental images are analog codes
Symbolic code = a form of knowledge representation that has been chosen
arbitrarily (when there’s nothing about it that would suggest it represents it)
Cognitive Psychology Summary 40
, → the symbol “8” resembles the concept of “eighteness”
Supporting evidence
Actual visual perception may interfere with simultaneous visual images
Verbal expression may interfere with a mental manipulation of a verbal statement
Propositional Theory
💡 Propositional theory = the propositional form of mental representation is
neither in words nor in pictures. It is an abstract form that represents the
underlying meanings of knowledge
Cognitive Psychology Summary 41
