Discuss/Evaluate the influence of digital technologies on one or more cognitive
processes
Cognitive processes are processes that take place in the brain and affect our behavior, such
as memory, attention and decision-making.
The digital world is a quite recent phenomenon and there are several studies investigating
the effect of the digital technologies on cognitive processes, most of them not yet replicated.
One effect of digital technology on memory that has been investigated is the Google effect.
The google effect is the belief that people use Google as a base on information and
memories.
This increases the transactive memory people have, the common memory by individuals,
the chair information or experiences, but it decreases the actual info that is recalled.
Researchers believe that people can remember where to find info, but not the actual info.
One study that investigates the google effect is conducted by Sparrow. The aim of the study
was to determine whether people recall where to find info more than they recall the actual
info. The method used consisted of 32 undergraduate students at Columbia University
reading standardized instructions from a pc screen. Participants had to write trivial factors
into the pc and then read that the info was saved into a folder called “facts”. Participants were
led to believe that they could access what had been saved. The order of the statements was
randomized. Participants were allowed ten minutes to write down the statements that had
been written. They were then asked general questions about each piece of info they had
written. They were not reminded of the folders’ names. The results were tha participants
recalled the names of the folders where the info was stored more accurately than the info
itself. Participants who believed they would be able to retrieve the information than those who
knew they would not be able to do this. However, it is not really possible to measure the
“level of effort” in this study - so although we can see that there is an effect on recall, we
cannot be certain as to why this difference exists. The conclusion was that the results of
four studies suggest that when faced with difficult questions, people are primed to think
about computers, and when people expect to have future access to information, they have
lower recall rates for the information itself, and instead have recall for where to access it.
Processes of human memory are adapting to the advent of new computing and
communication technology.
This study supports the google effect, and its impact on memory. This might reduce the
actual storage of information, but it assists the brain to adjust to the new technological
advancement and know where to access info. The strengths of this study were that since it
was a laboratory experiment, the variables were well controlled and this might lead to
cause-and-effect. The limitations of this study were that since it was conducted in a
laboratory and the environment was artificial the study lacks ecological validity. The sample
was relatively small and derived from uni students, which means that it might lead to
sampling bias, lowering the generalizability of the findings. It is also hard to determine the
effects of effort on results.
, One more study that investigates the impact of the digital world on cognitive processes is
conducted by Baverlier. The aim of the study was to investigate the connection between
action games and decision making. Studies have shown the effect of computer games on
decision making, memory and attention. The method used was that Bavelier and her team
first studied two groups of men and women, average age 26, who said they had not played
video games in the past year. One group was told to play two action video games for two
hours for a total of 50 hours. The second group was asked to play a simulation game in which
they had to make decisions about a character's life. After the 50 hours of game time,
members of both groups were asked to look at a computer screen and do a simple test. The
computer screen showed a pattern of dots. Participants had to determine which way the
majority of dots were moving by pressing a key on the keyboard. Some of the patterns were
easy. Others were more complex. The results were that the findings showed that although
both groups could accomplish the task, those who had played the action video did the task
faster and with fewer errors - that is, they were able to decipher a large amount of
information more quickly and come to a decision. The conclusion was that playing video
games is neither good nor bad — existing research shows that they are powerful teaching
tools and therefore we need to harness that potential, aiming to maximize the benefits while
minimizing the potential harms. Indeed, playing this type of game results in a wide range of
behavioral benefits, including enhancements in low-level vision, visual attention, speed of
processing and statistical inference. Furthermore, properly controlled training studies have
repeatedly demonstrated a causal link between video game playing and enhanced abilities.
Hence, it is not just that people who naturally choose to play games have better perceptual
skills.
The strengths of this study were that there was good control of the IV and accurate
operationalization of the DV. Researchers also performed MRI scans to see changes in the
operation of specific brain areas. They also used the training section to familiarize the
subject with the experiment and ensure that they were performing above 90% correct on the
task before being scanned. The limitations were that however, since this was an experiment it
does not represent real-life situations and therefore it lacks ecological validity. In this study
it is also difficult to control and isolate other extraneous variables.
For these studies we can conclude that the influence of digital technology on cognitive
processes such as memory and decision making, could be both positive and negative and it
can be used as an educational tool, to study neuroplasticity but also keeping in mind to
minimize potential additions. The problem with research on digital technology and cognitive
processes is that research is hard to be conducted in the natural environment of the people
and might lack ecological validity. Additionally some variables might be hard to
operationalize leading construct validity. Last but not least studies have difficulties
determining cause-and-effect relationships, since several extraneous variables cannot be
controlled. Further research will be needed to determine if the effects of digital technology are
overall positive or negative.
processes
Cognitive processes are processes that take place in the brain and affect our behavior, such
as memory, attention and decision-making.
The digital world is a quite recent phenomenon and there are several studies investigating
the effect of the digital technologies on cognitive processes, most of them not yet replicated.
One effect of digital technology on memory that has been investigated is the Google effect.
The google effect is the belief that people use Google as a base on information and
memories.
This increases the transactive memory people have, the common memory by individuals,
the chair information or experiences, but it decreases the actual info that is recalled.
Researchers believe that people can remember where to find info, but not the actual info.
One study that investigates the google effect is conducted by Sparrow. The aim of the study
was to determine whether people recall where to find info more than they recall the actual
info. The method used consisted of 32 undergraduate students at Columbia University
reading standardized instructions from a pc screen. Participants had to write trivial factors
into the pc and then read that the info was saved into a folder called “facts”. Participants were
led to believe that they could access what had been saved. The order of the statements was
randomized. Participants were allowed ten minutes to write down the statements that had
been written. They were then asked general questions about each piece of info they had
written. They were not reminded of the folders’ names. The results were tha participants
recalled the names of the folders where the info was stored more accurately than the info
itself. Participants who believed they would be able to retrieve the information than those who
knew they would not be able to do this. However, it is not really possible to measure the
“level of effort” in this study - so although we can see that there is an effect on recall, we
cannot be certain as to why this difference exists. The conclusion was that the results of
four studies suggest that when faced with difficult questions, people are primed to think
about computers, and when people expect to have future access to information, they have
lower recall rates for the information itself, and instead have recall for where to access it.
Processes of human memory are adapting to the advent of new computing and
communication technology.
This study supports the google effect, and its impact on memory. This might reduce the
actual storage of information, but it assists the brain to adjust to the new technological
advancement and know where to access info. The strengths of this study were that since it
was a laboratory experiment, the variables were well controlled and this might lead to
cause-and-effect. The limitations of this study were that since it was conducted in a
laboratory and the environment was artificial the study lacks ecological validity. The sample
was relatively small and derived from uni students, which means that it might lead to
sampling bias, lowering the generalizability of the findings. It is also hard to determine the
effects of effort on results.
, One more study that investigates the impact of the digital world on cognitive processes is
conducted by Baverlier. The aim of the study was to investigate the connection between
action games and decision making. Studies have shown the effect of computer games on
decision making, memory and attention. The method used was that Bavelier and her team
first studied two groups of men and women, average age 26, who said they had not played
video games in the past year. One group was told to play two action video games for two
hours for a total of 50 hours. The second group was asked to play a simulation game in which
they had to make decisions about a character's life. After the 50 hours of game time,
members of both groups were asked to look at a computer screen and do a simple test. The
computer screen showed a pattern of dots. Participants had to determine which way the
majority of dots were moving by pressing a key on the keyboard. Some of the patterns were
easy. Others were more complex. The results were that the findings showed that although
both groups could accomplish the task, those who had played the action video did the task
faster and with fewer errors - that is, they were able to decipher a large amount of
information more quickly and come to a decision. The conclusion was that playing video
games is neither good nor bad — existing research shows that they are powerful teaching
tools and therefore we need to harness that potential, aiming to maximize the benefits while
minimizing the potential harms. Indeed, playing this type of game results in a wide range of
behavioral benefits, including enhancements in low-level vision, visual attention, speed of
processing and statistical inference. Furthermore, properly controlled training studies have
repeatedly demonstrated a causal link between video game playing and enhanced abilities.
Hence, it is not just that people who naturally choose to play games have better perceptual
skills.
The strengths of this study were that there was good control of the IV and accurate
operationalization of the DV. Researchers also performed MRI scans to see changes in the
operation of specific brain areas. They also used the training section to familiarize the
subject with the experiment and ensure that they were performing above 90% correct on the
task before being scanned. The limitations were that however, since this was an experiment it
does not represent real-life situations and therefore it lacks ecological validity. In this study
it is also difficult to control and isolate other extraneous variables.
For these studies we can conclude that the influence of digital technology on cognitive
processes such as memory and decision making, could be both positive and negative and it
can be used as an educational tool, to study neuroplasticity but also keeping in mind to
minimize potential additions. The problem with research on digital technology and cognitive
processes is that research is hard to be conducted in the natural environment of the people
and might lack ecological validity. Additionally some variables might be hard to
operationalize leading construct validity. Last but not least studies have difficulties
determining cause-and-effect relationships, since several extraneous variables cannot be
controlled. Further research will be needed to determine if the effects of digital technology are
overall positive or negative.
