Randy Strickland
University of Phoenix
PSY/360
Dione Johnson
July 111, 2011
Cognitive Psychology Definition Paper
Introduction
Cognition is the “science” term for "the process of thought.” Its usage varies in different ways in accordance with different disciplines: For example, in psychology and cognitive science, it refers to an information processing view of an individual's psychological makeup. It addresses the questions of how psychological/cognitive functions are produced by the neural circuitry. Cognitive psychology is the bases for most learning theories today, so it has made its mark to never be erased. This work would emphasize its impact and show its relevance, so consider the literature under review.
Cognitive Psychology Defined Cognitive psychology is “the scientific investigation of human cognition, that is, all our mental abilities – perceiving, learning, remembering, thinking, reasoning, and understanding” (New World Encyclopedia, 2008, para. 3). Cognitive psychology studies how one applies and acquires information and knowledge. It is a close relative of cognitive science and influenced by philosophy, computer science, artificial intelligence, anthropology, biology, linguistics, neuroscience, and physics (New World Encyclopedia, 2008). Cognitive Psychology has three main approaches: Computational Cognitive Psychology that develops computational models and formal mathematics of human cognition based upon dynamical systems and symbolic representation; Neural Cognitive Psychology, which uses neurobiological methods (e.g., lesion patients) and brain imaging (e.g., MEG, PET, Optical Imaging, fMRI, SPECT, EEG) to have a better understanding of the human neural basis of cognition; and Experimental Cognitive Psychology, which applies methods of experimentation in order to investigate human cognition, which places cognitive psychology into the natural sciences (Hothersall,2005).