Cognitive Approach | Simply Psychology

Cognitive psychology is the scientific study of the mind as an information processor. It concerns the way we take in information from the outside world, ... Togglenavigation Theories ResearchMethodsMentalHealth A-levelStatistics Perspectives CognitivePsychology CognitivePsychologyCognitivePsychology By SaulMcLeod,updated2020 Cognitivepsychologyisthescientificstudyofthemindasaninformationprocessor.Itconcernstheway wetakeininformationfromtheoutsideworld,howwemakesenseofthatinformation. Cognitivepsychologiststrytobuildupcognitive modelsoftheinformationprocessingthatgoesoninsidepeople’sminds,includingperception,attention,language,memory,thinking,andconsciousness. Cognitivepsychologybecameofgreatimportanceinthemid-1950s.Severalfactorswereimportantinthis: Dissatisfactionwiththebehavioristapproachinitssimpleemphasisonexternalbehaviorratherthaninternalprocesses. Thedevelopmentofbetterexperimentalmethods. Comparisonbetweenhumanandcomputerprocessingofinformation. Theemphasisofpsychologyshiftedawayfromthestudyofconditionedbehaviorandpsychoanalyticalnotionsaboutthestudyofthemind,towardstheunderstandingofhumaninformationprocessing,usingstrictandrigorouslaboratoryinvestigation. BasicAssumptions Mediationalprocessesoccurbetweenstimulusandresponse: Behavioristsrejectedtheideaofstudyingthemindbecauseinternalmentalprocessescannotbeobservedandobjectivelymeasured.However,cognitivepsychologistsregarditasessentialtolookatthementalprocessesofanorganismandhowtheseinfluencebehavior. Insteadofthesimplestimulus-responselinksproposedbyBehaviorism,themediationalprocessesoftheorganismareimportanttounderstand.Withoutthisunderstanding,psychologistscannothaveacompleteunderstandingofbehavior. Psychologyshouldbeseenasascience: Cognitivepsychologistsfollowtheexampleofthebehavioristsinpreferringobjective,controlled,scientificmethodsforinvestigatingbehavior. Theyusetheresultsoftheirinvestigationsasthebasisformakinginferencesaboutmentalprocesses. Humansareinformationprocessors: Informationprocessinginhumansresemblesthatincomputers,andisbasedon basedontransforminginformation,storinginformationandretrievinginformationfrommemory. Informationprocessingmodelsofcognitiveprocessessuchasmemoryandattentionassumethatmentalprocessesfollowaclearsequence.Forexample: Inputprocessesareconcernedwiththeanalysisofthestimuli. Storageprocessescovereverythingthathappenstostimuliinternallyinthebrainandcanincludecodingandmanipulationofthestimuli. Outputprocessesareresponsibleforpreparinganappropriateresponsetoastimulus. InformationProcessing InformationProcessing Thecognitiveapproachbegantorevolutionizepsychologyinthelate1950sandearly1960’s,tobecomethedominantapproach(i.e.,perspective)inpsychologybythelate1970s.InterestinmentalprocesseshadbeengraduallyrestoredthroughtheworkofPiagetandTolman. Tolmanwasa‘softbehaviorist’.HisbookPurposiveBehaviorinAnimalsandManin1932describedresearchwhichbehaviorismfounddifficulttoexplain.Thebehaviorists’viewhadbeenthatlearningtookplaceasaresultofassociationsbetweenstimuliandresponses.However,Tolmansuggestedthatlearningwasbasedontherelationshipswhichformedamongststimuli.Hereferredtotheserelationshipsascognitivemaps. Butitwasthearrivalofthecomputerthatgavecognitivepsychologytheterminologyandmetaphoritneededtoinvestigatethehumanmind.Thestartoftheuseofcomputersallowedpsychologiststotrytounderstandthecomplexitiesofhumancognitionbycomparingitwithsomethingsimplerandbetterunderstood,i.e.,anartificialsystemsuchasacomputer. Theuseofthecomputerasatoolforthinkinghowthehumanmindhandlesinformationisknownasthecomputeranalogy.Essentially,acomputercodes(i.e.,changes)information,storesinformation,usesinformation,andproducesanoutput(retrievesinfo).Theideaofinformationprocessingwasadoptedbycognitivepsychologistsasamodelofhowhumanthoughtworks. Theinformationprocessingapproachisbasedonanumberofassumptions,including: Informationmadeavailablefromtheenvironmentisprocessedbyaseriesofprocessingsystems(e.g.,attention,perception,short-termmemory); Theseprocessingsystemstransform,oraltertheinformationinsystematicways; Theaimofresearchistospecifytheprocessesandstructuresthatunderliecognitiveperformance; Informationprocessinginhumansresemblesthatincomputers. TheRoleofSchemas Cognitiveprocessingcanoftenbeaffectedbyschemas(amentalframeworkofbeliefsandexpectationsdevelopedfromexperience).Asyougetolder,thesebecomemoredetailedandsophisticated. Aschemaisa“packetofinformation”orcognitiveframeworkthathelpsusorganiseandinterpretinformation.Theyarebasedonourpreviousexperience.Schemashelpustointerpretincominginformationquicklyandeffectively,thispreventsusfrombeingoverwhelmedbythevastamountofinformationweperceiveinourenvironment.Howeveritcanalsoleadtodistortionofthisinformationasweselectandinterpretenvironmentalstimuliusingschemaswhichmightnotberelevant.Thiscouldbethecauseofinaccuraciesinareassuchaseyewitnesstestimony.Itcanalsoexplainsomeerrorswemakewhenperceivingopticalillusions. MediationalProcesses MediationalProcesses Thebehavioristsapproachonlystudiesexternalobservable(stimulusandresponse)behaviorwhichcanbeobjectivelymeasured.Theybelievethatinternalbehaviorcannotbestudiedbecausewecannotseewhathappensinaperson’smind(andthereforecannotobjectivelymeasureit). Incomparison,thecognitiveapproachbelievesthatinternalmentalbehaviorcanbescientificallystudiedusingexperiments.Cognitivepsychologyassumesthatamediationalprocessoccursbetweenstimulus/inputandresponse/output. Themediational(i.e.,mental)eventcouldbememory,perception,attentionorproblemsolving,etc.Theseareknownasmediationalprocessesbecausetheymediate(i.e.,go-between)betweenthestimulusandtheresponse.Theycomeafterthestimulusandbeforetheresponse. Therefore,cognitivepsychologists’sayifyouwanttounderstandbehavior,youhavetounderstandthesemediationalprocesses. HistoryofCognitivePsychology HistoryofCognitivePsychology Kohler(1925)publishedabookcalled,TheMentalityofApes.Inithereportedobservationswhichsuggestedthatanimalscouldshowinsightfulbehavior.HerejectedbehaviorisminfavourofanapproachwhichbecameknownasGestaltpsychology. NorbertWiener(1948)publishedCybernetics:orControlandCommunicationintheAnimalandtheMachine,introducingtermssuchasinputandoutput. Tolman(1948)workoncognitivemaps–trainingratsinmazes,showedthatanimalshadaninternalrepresentationofbehavior. BirthofCognitivePsychologyoftendatedbacktoGeorgeMiller’s(1956)“TheMagicalNumber7PlusorMinus2.” NewellandSimon’s(1972)developmentoftheGeneralProblemSolver. In1960,MillerfoundedtheCenterforCognitiveStudiesatHarvardwiththefamouscognitivistdevelopmentalist,JeromeBruner. UlricNeisser(1967)publishes"CognitivePsychology",whichmarkstheofficialbeginningofthecognitiveapproach. ProcessmodelsofmemoryAtkinson&Shiffrin’s(1968)MultiStoreModel. Thecognitiveapproachishighlyinfluentialinallareasofpsychology(e.g.,biological,social,Behaviorism,developmental,etc.). CognitiveApproachSummary CognitiveApproachSummary KeyFeatures MediationalProcesses InformationProcessing ComputerAnalogy Introspection(Wundt) Nomothetic(studiesthegroup) Schema Methodology/Studies CaseStudy(HM,KF) LabExperiments Observations(Piaget) ComputerModeling Interviews(Kohlberg,Piaget) BasicAssumptions Cognitivepsychologyisapurescience,basedmainlyonlaboratoryexperiments. Behaviorcanbelargelyexplainedintermsofhowthemindoperates,i.e.,theinformationprocessingapproach. Themindworksinawaysimilartoacomputer:inputting,storingandretrievingdata. Mediationalprocessesoccurbetweenstimulusandresponse. AreasofApplication Therapy(CBT) Education(Piaget) Education(Vygotsky) Education(Bruner) CognitiveNeuroscience CognitiveBias MoralDevelopment(Kohlberg) MoralDevelopment(Piaget) Intelligence LearningStyles(Kolb) Memory Forgetting Depression Perception Attention EyewitnessTestimony Strengths Onestrengthofthecognitiveapproachisithasalwaysemployedhighlycontrolledandrigorousmethodsofstudyinordertoenableresearcherstoinfercognitiveprocessesatwork.Thishasinvolvedtheuseoflabexperimentstoproducereliable,objectivedata. Thecognitiveapproachisprobablythemostdominantapproachinpsychologytodayandhasbeenappliedtoawiderangeofpracticalandtheoreticalcontexts. Combineseasilywithapproaches:e.g.Behaviorism+cognitivepsychology=sociallearningtheory;biology+cognitivepsychology=evolutionarypsychology. Limitations Cognitivepsychologyhasanarrowfocusonmentalprocesses.Forexample,theuseofthecomputeranalogymeansthatinformationprocessingresearchersfocusmostlyonthelogicalaspectsofcognitiveprocessingandlessontheemotional,creativeandsocialaspectsthatalsoaffectthinking Cognitivepsychologyhasoftenreliedoncomparisonswithhowcomputersworkasapossiblewaythemindmightwork.Isthisreallyhowthebrainworks?Thebrainisinfinitelymorepowerfulandflexiblethanthemostadvancedcomputer. MachineReductionism IssuesandDebates IssuesandDebates FreewillvsDeterminism Thepositionoftheapproachisunclearasitarguesononehandthatwethewayweprocessinformationisdeterminedbyourpastexperience(schemas).Ontheotherhandinthetherapyderivedfromtheapproach(CBT)itarguesthatwecanchangethewaywethink. NaturevsNurture Thecognitiveapproachtakesaninteractionistviewofthedebateasitarguesthatourbehaviorisinfluencedbylearningandexperience(nurture),butalsobysomeofourbrains’innatecapacitiesasinformationprocessorse.g.languageacquisition(nature). HolismvsReductionism Thecognitiveapproachtendstobereductionistaswhenstudyingavariableitisolatesprocessessuchasmemoryfromothercognitiveprocesses.However,inournormallifewewouldusemanycognitiveprocessessimultaneously,soitlacksvalidity. IdiographicvsNomothetic Itisanomotheticapproachasitfocusesonestablishingtheoriesoninformationprocessingthatapplytoallpeople. Aretheresearchmethodsusedscientific? Thecognitiveapproachuseslabexperimentswhicharehighlycontrolledthereforetheyarereplicable.However,itmeasuresnon-observablebehaviors;thereforeitcouldbearguedthatitisnotasscientificasthebehavioristapproach. CriticalEvaluation CriticalEvaluation B.F.Skinnercriticizesthecognitiveapproachashebelievesthatonlyexternalstimulus-responsebehaviorshouldbestudiedasthiscanbescientificallymeasured.Therefore,mediationprocesses(betweenstimulusandresponse)donotexistastheycannotbeseenandmeasured.Skinnercontinuestofindproblemswithcognitiveresearchmethods,namelyintrospection(asusedbyWilhelmWundt)duetoitssubjectiveandunscientificnature. HumanisticpsychologistCarlRogersbelievesthattheuseoflaboratoryexperimentsbycognitivepsychologyhavelowecologicalvalidityandcreateanartificialenvironmentduetothecontrolovervariables.Rogersemphasizesamoreholisticapproachtounderstandingbehavior. Theinformationprocessingparadigmofcognitivepsychologyviewsthatmindsintermsofacomputerwhenprocessinginformation.However,althoughtherearesimilaritiesbetweenthehumanmindandtheoperationsofacomputer(inputsandoutputs,storagesystems,theuseofacentralprocessor)thecomputeranalogyhasbeencriticizedbymany.Suchmachinereductionism(simplicity)ignorestheinfluenceofhumanemotionandmotivationonthecognitivesystemandhowthismayaffectourabilitytoprocessinformation. Behaviorismassumesthatpeoplearebornablankslate(tabularasa)andarenotbornwithcognitivefunctionslikeschemas,memoryorperception. Thecognitiveapproachdoesnotalwaysrecognizephysical(re:biologicalpsychology)andenvironmental(re:Behaviorism)factorsindeterminingbehavior.Cognitivepsychologyhasinfluencedandintegratedwithmanyotherapproachesandareasofstudytoproduce,forexample,sociallearningtheory,cognitiveneuropsychologyandartificialintelligence(AI). Anotherstrengthisthattheresearchconductedinthisareaofpsychologyveryoftenhasapplicationsintherealworld.Forexample,cognitivebehavioraltherapy(CBT)hasbeenveryeffectivefortreatingdepression(Hollon&Beck,1994),andmoderatelyeffectiveforanxietyproblems(Beck,1993).ThebasisofCBTistochangethewaythepersonsprocessestheirthoughtstomakethemmorerationalorpositive.  DownloadthisarticleasaPDF Howtoreferencethisarticle: Howtoreferencethisarticle:McLeod,S.A.(2015).Cognitivepsychology.SimplyPsychology.www.simplypsychology.org/cognitive.html APAStyleReferences Atkinson,R.C.,&Shiffrin,R.M.(1968).Chapter:Humanmemory:Aproposedsystemanditscontrolprocesses.InSpence,K.W.,&Spence,J.T.Thepsychologyoflearningandmotivation(Volume2).NewYork:AcademicPress.pp.89–195. Beck,A.T,&Steer,R.A.(1993).BeckAnxietyInventoryManual.SanAntonio:HarcourtBraceandCompany. Hollon,S.D.,&Beck,A.T.(1994).Cognitiveandcognitive-behavioraltherapies.InA.E.Bergin&S.L.Garfield(Eds.),Handbookofpsychotherapyandbehaviorchange(pp.428—466).NewYork:Wiley. Köhler,W.(1925).AnaspectofGestaltpsychology.ThePedagogicalSeminaryandJournalofGeneticPsychology,32(4),691-723. Miller,G.A.(1956).Themagicalnumberseven,plusorminustwo:somelimitsonourcapacityforprocessinginformation.PsychologicalReview,63(2):81–97.Neisser,U(1967).Cognitivepsychology.Appleton-Century-Crofts:NewYorkNewell,A.,&Simon,H.(1972).Humanproblemsolving.Prentice-Hall. Tolman,E.C.,Hall,C.S.,&Bretnall,E.P.(1932).Adisproofofthelawofeffectandasubstitutionofthelawsofemphasis,motivationanddisruption.JournalofExperimentalPsychology,15(6),601. TolmanE.C.(1948).Cognitivemapsinratsandmen.PsychologicalReview.55,189–208Wiener,N.(1948).Cyberneticsorcontrolandcommunicationintheanimalandthemachine.Paris,(Hermann&Cie)&Camb.Mass.(MITPress). FurtherInformation WhyYourBrainisNotaComputer CognitivePsychologyBookChapter CognitiveRevolution CognitivePsychologyHistorialDevelopment RelatedArticles EyewitnessTestimony ConfirmationBias TheMandelaEffect StroopEffect MoralDevelopment Memory McGurkEffect Forgetting SelectiveAttention Perception Piaget's4Stages FluidvsCrystallizedIntelligence LearningStyles CognitivebehavioralTherapy InformationProcessing LevVygotsky UncannyValley TheoryofPlannedBehavior KeyStudies PetersonandPeterson(1959)-DurationofSTM PiagetandInhelder(1956)-ThreeMountainsTask LoftusandPalmer(1974)-CarCrashStudy  DownloadthisarticleasaPDF Howtoreferencethisarticle: Howtoreferencethisarticle:McLeod,S.A.(2015).Cognitivepsychology.SimplyPsychology.www.simplypsychology.org/cognitive.html Home|AboutUs|PrivacyPolicy|Advertise|ContactUsBacktotopSimplyPsychology'scontentisforinformationalandeducationalpurposesonly.Ourwebsiteisnotintendedtobeasubstituteforprofessionalmedicaladvice,diagnosis,ortreatment.©SimplyScholarLtd-Allrightsreserved reportthisad reportthisad RelatedArticles MemoryForgettingPerceptionAttentionInformationProcessingLanguageAcquisitionJeanPiagetLevVygotskyJeromeBruner reportthisad reportthisad reportthisad x