"let's break down the meanings of "cognitive" and "psychology" in the context of cognitive psychology:
In the context of cognitive psychology, "cognitive" refers to mental processes and activities related to acquiring, processing, storing, and using information. It encompasses a wide range of mental functions, including perception, attention, memory, language, problem-solving, and decision-making. Cognitive processes are essentially the ways in which individuals think and understand the world around them.
"Psychology" is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. It explores various aspects of human and animal behavior, seeking to understand the underlying mechanisms, causes, and effects. Psychology encompasses multiple branches or perspectives, and cognitive psychology is one such perspective that specifically focuses on mental processes and how they influence behavior.
Cognitive Psychology:
Therefore, in the term "cognitive psychology," the word "cognitive" specifies the particular aspect of psychology that deals with mental processes.
Cognitive psychology is concerned with understanding how people think, perceive, remember, and solve problems. It investigates the internal processes of the mind and explores how these processes shape behavior.
Cognitive Psychology delves into the intricate realm of human thought processes, exploring the inner workings of our minds, including attention, perception, memory, action planning, and language. These components play a pivotal role in shaping our identity and influencing our behavior.
The thoughts linked to these concepts can manifest consciously or subconsciously. While we may consciously strive to concentrate on a lecture, external stimuli like a harsh sunlight or a flickering PPT can induce a nonconscious shift of attention elsewhere.
Many experts in the field, including cognitive psychologists, embrace a comprehensive approach that encompasses both traditional cognitive psychology and cognitive neuroscience. The latter utilizes neuroimaging techniques to investigate cognitive processes, providing a visual representation of brain activity associated with these internal thoughts. This approach shares a similar perspective with cognitive psychology but adds a dimension of visualizing neural activity.
Cognitive psychology also intersects with cognitive neuropsychology, focusing on how brain damage affects cognition, and to some extent, with computational neuroscience, which involves creating computational models of brain function.”
In the vibrant landscape of psychological exploration, the mid-1950s witnessed the ascent of Cognitive Psychology, a paradigm shift fueled by several pivotal factors:
- Discontent with the simplicity of the behaviorist approach, which solely emphasized observable behavior and overlooked the intricacies of internal mental processes.
2.The advent of refined experimental methods, opening new avenues for probing the mysteries of the mind with greater precision.
3.A fascinating juxtaposition between human cognition and the emerging world of computers. Delving into the complexities of thought processes, psychologists began drawing parallels with the realm of artificial intelligence, leveraging computer models to unravel the enigma of human cognition.
This transformative era saw psychology veer away from the confines of conditioned behavior and psychoanalytical musings about the mind. Instead, the spotlight shifted to a meticulous and rigorous exploration of human information processing, ushered in by dedicated laboratory investigations. The emphasis on understanding the intricate workings of the mind marked a departure from convention, propelling Cognitive Psychology into the forefront of psychological inquiry.
The behaviorist approach exclusively examines externally observable behaviors, focusing on stimuli and responses that can be quantifiably measured. According to behaviorists, the study of internal mental processes is deemed impractical, given the inability to visually observe what transpires within a person’s mind, making objective measurement challenging.
In contrast, cognitive psychologists consider it crucial to explore the mental processes of an organism and understand how these processes shape behavior. Cognitive psychology posits the existence of a mediational process that unfolds between the stimulus or input and the subsequent response or output.Positioned after the stimulus and before the response, these mediational processes play a crucial role.
In contrast to the straightforward stimulus-response connections proposed by behaviorism, understanding the organism’s mediational processes is deemed indispensable. Without this comprehension, psychologists cannot attain a comprehensive understanding of behavior.
These mediational events, often referred to as mental events, encompass functions such as memory, perception, attention, problem-solving, and more. For instance, within the cognitive framework, problem gambling is attributed to maladaptive thinking and faulty cognitions. These cognitive errors lead to illogical conclusions; for instance, gamblers might miscalculate the level of skill involved in ‘chance’ games, leading them to participate with the belief that the odds are in their favor, increasing their chances of winning.
Therefore, according to cognitive psychologists, a thorough understanding of behavior necessitates an exploration of these crucial mediational processes.
A scientific perspective :
The cognitive approach asserts that internal mental processes can be scientifically examined through controlled experiments, utilizing the outcomes to draw inferences about these processes. These experiments, conducted in highly controlled laboratory settings, aim to eliminate the influence of extraneous variables, enabling researchers to establish causal relationships between independent and dependent variables.
Cognitive psychologists employ diverse measures, including behavioral indicators such as verbal protocols of thinking aloud and physiological markers like neuroimaging (PET and fMRI). Brain imaging techniques, like fMRI and PET scans, directly reveal the brain’s processing of information by mapping cognitive functions to specific areas. This visualization occurs as the involved brain areas exhibit increased metabolism and illuminate on the scans.
The controlled nature of these experiments ensures replicability, fostering credibility in psychology. Replicability, a fundamental concept in science, allows others to validate research by reproducing experiments, confirming the accuracy of conclusions. Without replicability, scientific findings risk invalidity, hindering falsifiability, a key aspect of scientific inquiry. Additionally, peer review plays a crucial role in justifying research, and replicability is essential for ensuring the accuracy and reliability of scientific investigations.
Cognitive psychology and computer science
Cognitive psychology has been significantly shaped by the strides in computer science, drawing parallels between the inner workings of computers and human information processing.
The analogy between human and computer information processing is striking. Both involve the transformation, storage, processing, and retrieval of information from memory. This shared framework underscores the intricate similarities in how our minds and computers engage with information.
In the realm of cognitive processes like memory and attention, information processing models take center stage. These models posit that mental processes adhere to a linear sequence, mirroring the step-by-step flow observed in computer operations. This linear perspective forms the backbone of our understanding of how cognitive functions unfold, shedding light on the ordered dynamics that govern memory and attention in the human mind.
Referred few books and blogs to write this . Thanks to the resourses .
Atkinson, R. C., & Shiffrin, R. M. (1968). Chapter: Human memory: A proposed system and its control processes. In Spence, K. W., & Spence, J. T. The psychology of learning and motivation (Volume 2). New York: Academic Press. pp. 89–195.