Automation`s implications on anxiety`s effects in solving complicated tasks
Abstract
The study of anxiety and automation took a great extent in the twentieth century giving basis to different theories and opinions. Current study is based on differences between anxious and non- anxious subjects on their performance in solving simple and complex tasks before and after a learning phase and automation. Current study wants to draw attention to the fact that automation diminishes the impact of anxiety on performance, especially in solving complex tasks by reducing the level of attention and the depth of conscious processing and by avoiding the sub activation of the units in the working memory involved in complex tasks.
Keywords: anxiety, automation, performance, tasks complexity
It is found in recent years an influx of conflicting theories and opinions in the area of automation of information processing. Current study wants to study the impact of learning, respectively automation in both anxious and non-anxious subjects` performance that in typical situations is affected by anxiety or arousal. Anxiety is defined by Spielberger in 1972 as' unpleasant feelings, consciously perceived, feelings of tension and apprehension with associated activation or arousal of the autonomic nervous system"(Spielberger, 1972, p.29). Anxiety is studied since Yerkes & Dodson, whose research is materialized in the Yerkes & Dodson law and continues to the present, recently distinguishing between the different impact that anxiety has on processing efficiency and the effectiveness of performance, the former being significantly affected more and the level of the latter not being found too many visible differences. These kinds of studies are ba...
... middle of paper ...
... the units responsible for solving the problems, and in the sense of reducing the use of attention by these units.
REFERENCES:
1.Eysenck, MW. Anxiety: The Cognitive Perspective', London, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Ltd.
2.Eysenck, McLeod & Matthews, 'Cognitive Functioning and Anxiety. Psychological Research '
3.Hampson, PJ, 'Aspects of Attention and Cognitive Science.The Irish Journal of Psychology'
4.Hitch, GJ, 1978, 'The Role of Short-term Memory in Mental arithmetic. Cognitive Psychology '
5.Mark T. Keane & Eysenck, 'Cognitive Psychology has Student's Handbook'
6.Miclea, M., 'Psychology cognitiva.Metode theoretical and experimental', Polirom, 2003
7.Shallice, T., 1988, 'From Neuropsychology to Mental Structure', Cambridge University Press
8.Shiffrin, RM & Schneider, W (1977), 'Controlled and Automatic Human Information Processing', Psychology Review.
Weiten, W., Dunn, D.S., Hammer, E.Y. (2011). Psychology Applied to Modern Life. Belmont, Ca. Cengage Learning
In his well-known book “The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat” Oliver Sacks (Sacks, 1998) describes a man who can see, but not interpret what he sees: shown a glove, the man calls it a “receptacle with five protuberances” – people see not just with their eyes, but their brain as well – perception involves a whole and purposive cognitive process (Duric et al., 2002, p.1286) and this paper will cite research that shows how Working Memory (WM) is a central component of this purposive cognitive process and how it goes above and beyond perception to impact behavior and adaptation. John Sweller highlights the peculiar nature of human cognitive architecture with the point that WM is limited in its ability to process new material but it is massive in its ability to process previously learned complex information in conjunction with Long Term Memory (LTM) thus enabling human beings to perform simple and routine tasks at one extreme while helping them scale intellectual heights at the other extreme (Sweller, 2003, p.215). The last few decades have seen cognitive scientists associating emotional modulation into the computational models of learning and retention – traditionally associated with memory – thus bringing in emotion, anxiety and motivation into the framework of cognitive architecture (Lang, Davis, & Ohman, 2000). This paper will begin by presenting existing research on Working Memory and its properties like capacity and duration. The paper will also talk about the emotional aspect of cognition as it falls under the purview of working memory under high cognitive load, look at Cognitive Load Theory and also focus on anxiety and motivation.
Anxiety disorders are the 2nd most diagnosed mental illness in the United States. Anxiety comes from the “fight or flight” physiological response in ones body. The fear a person experiences is an intense emotional alarm accompanied by a surge of energy in the autonomic nervous system. The surge is what motivates us to flee from danger, cueing the “flight” response. However, some anxiety is good for us in moderate amounts. Most people perform better when we are a little anxious (Yerkes & Dodson, 1908). Anxiety can improve test performance or make you more energetic and charming on a date. It improves, social, physical, and intellectual performance. In fact little would get done if we didn’t have any anxiety. However anxiety can be negative as well. The most common symptoms are looking worried and anxious or fidgeting. That is pretty normal for most people. These symptoms are a physiological response that starts in the brain. It elevates the heart rate and creates muscle tension. Most of the research has been done with animals. Animals seem to experience anxiety in a similar way to ...
Anxiety disorders are very common and the causes vary. Symptoms of anxiety disorders can be disabling for some but in most cases people who suffer with it can still carry on social relationships and job functions. There are medical outlets a patient can seek to help cope and treat anxiety through biological treatment and psychotherapy. The authors of “Anxiety Reactivity and Anxiety Perseveration Represent Dissociable Dimensions of Trait Anxiety” focused on anxiety vulnerability by testing and measuring reactivity and preservation in regard to anxiety. (Rudaizky, page, MacLeod 2012).
According to Sharp (2012), “anxiety disorders are the most widespread causes of distress among individuals seeking treatment from mental health services in the United States” (p359).
Anxiety is one of the most fundamental emotions shared by all species of animals. When confronted with danger, the fight or flight response of the sympathetic nervous system is triggered so that we are prepared to react and protect ourselves. Without anxiety and its physiological manifestations, such as hypersensitivity to environment and enhanced blood supply to leg muscles, the likelihood of harm or disaster in threatening situations would undoubtedly dramatically increase. A moderate amount of anxiety also has the result of prompting individuals to prepare for certain events, such as exams and presentations, that clearly benefit from this action.
Anxiety is common mental illness in the US, which Kim Krisberg talks about in her article “Anxiety: A Normal Response That Can Feel Overwhelming. The cause of anxiety is brought up in Peter Crostas’ article “What Causes Anxiety?” Crosta also explains the treatments for anxiety in his article, “What Are Treatments For Anxiety?”
Everybody has a day where it all just seems to be too much. Whether you just have had a bad day and are feeling overwhelmed or you struggle with anxiety regularly, dealing with it can all be the same. It is important to know ways to help battle these feelings safely. Being well informed can make a big difference when it comes to dealing with your own anxiety or even helping a friend through a panic attack. You must be careful; it is not uncommon when fighting anxiety to bring about more stress. Anxiety is a constant struggle but with the right tools it can be manageable.
The true nature of intelligence has been debated more intensely then ever over the last century. As the science of psychology has developed one of the biggest questions it had to answer concerned the nature of Intelligence. Some of the definitions that have been given for intelligence have been the ability to adjust to one’s environment. Of course by such a definition even a person who is generally considered to be dull can be regarded as being intelligent if he can take care of himself. Other definition is such as having the tendency to analyze things around yourself. However it can be argued that such behavior can lead to over-analyzing things and not reacting to one’s environment and dealing with it in an intelligent manner.
Muscle aches, trouble concentrating, and being tired all the time, these are some effects that anxiety disorders can have on a person. Jake has been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. Just like there are many different causes and different types of disorders, there are also many ways to treat the disorders. Three different types will be explained within this essay. Number one, the humanistic approach, or being able to fulfill a personal potential. Number two, the behavioral view of the change in behaviors, and then the third, the cognitive side, or mental processes. By looking at these specific views, we will define them and see where they believe the causes are formed and the care they can give to help in combating the anxieties of life.
...occupying their minds with irrelevant things that do not pertain to the task at hand (Vassilaki, 2006). Thus, their energy is wasted when it could be used for task elaboration or to help improve their overall academic performance. Students with academic anxiety are self engrossed and lead to their own academic demise. Test anxiety does not only affect a students performance on a test, but Huberty (2009) asserts that test anxiety overtime tends to contribute to more common underachievement. He describes the consequences of constant test anxiety including lowered self-esteem, reduced effort, and loss of desire to complete school tasks. Students who have academic anxiety also have a higher risk of developing depression, and often feel deprived of confidence (Cunningham, 2008). Thus, academic anxiety can become extreme, and have negative effects of students’ well being.
Anxiety is defined as a diffuse, internal, loose floating tension that doesn’t have a real danger or an external object. There is also a significant difference from the notion of fear. Fear usually has an outer object (a real fear of a snake, height or an unreal fear, when the danger is just imagined). Anxiety does not have an external object or external danger, but have an internal danger. Internal danger can be some intrapsychic conflict, impulse unacceptable to the ego, suppressed thoughts, etc.
(2014) tested the interaction between anxiety and WMC by using math tests, where participants had to solve as many math problems as they could in in a set time limit. They found that for individuals with low WMC, increases in trait anxiety were related to decreases in cognitive test performance. For those with High WMC, an increase in trait anxiety was associated with higher test scores. They hypothesize, for the high-WMC individuals, this is due to an increased motivation to do well on the task, which is driven by anxiety (Owens et al., 2014). In addition, ACT suggest that high-anxiety individuals will be motivated to perform well on tasks to avoid negative results, but this can result in poor task efficiency. Therefore, high-anxious participants may exert extra effort or need more time to complete tasks. It is possible that if the high-anxious participants were given more time to complete tests, it could have improved their scores (Owens et al.,
Sarason, I. (1984). Stress, anxiety, and cognitive interference: reactions to tests. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology, 46(4), 929.
For example, we learn and perform more successfully when we feel secure, happy or excited about the subject matter (Boekaerts,1993; Oatly & Nundy, 1996). It also has the potential to interfere with learning as we may been easily distracted from learning if we feel anger, anxiety or sad. Emotions may interfere our learning capacity by limiting our capacity to balance emotional issues with learning, creating anxiety towards learning and triggering emotional responses in learning. We may have difficulty in learning if our mind are cluttered with distracting thoughts; we will feel anxious in learning which causes us to not feeling competent while learning; we will also get upset easily when we face any negative comments while learning which will impede our further learning (Linda et al. 2014) (3). Another aspect of emotion is our mood as it is clear that mood affects what is noticed and encoded. When our mood match the mood we were in when experiencing and learning information, we tend to be able to remember easier (Mempowered 2011). According to Art Markman (2010), people in a positive mood learned to classify items that required a rule-based strategy faster than those in a neutral or negative mood. Finding suggests that positive mood has specific influence on learning as it affetcs the ability to learn things that require some amount of flexibility and creativity