Study Notes on The Cognitive Revolution: A Historical Perspective by George A. Miller

The Cognitive Revolution: A Historical Perspective by George A. Miller

Introduction to Cognitive Science

Cognitive science emerged in the 1950s, a period marked by significant transformation in psychology, anthropology, and linguistics, alongside the foundational developments in disciplines such as computer science and neuroscience. The evolution of cognitive science necessitated that psychology move beyond behaviorism, which limited the scope of inquiry to observable behavior, thus reinstating cognition as a legitimate area of scientific study. Miller emphasizes that collaboration among various fields was essential for addressing complex problems that crossed disciplinary boundaries.

Historical Context

Miller references Oscar Wilde’s aphorism regarding history writing, noting the humility of contributors to this revolutionary movement. He acknowledges that historical significance may not have been apparent to those involved during its unfolding. Miller expresses his desire to create a personal narrative in hopes of aiding future historians of science, despite his recognition that much scholarship is needed to document these events accurately.

The Cognitive Revolution in Psychology

Definition & Opposition to Behaviorism

The cognitive revolution in psychology represented a shift from an earlier movement that defined psychology strictly as the science of behavior, influenced by Pavlov and other physiologists. Proponents of behaviorism claimed that the only verifiable evidence of psychological study was behavior since mental events are not directly observable. This shift enabled psychology to adopt a more empirical basis, transforming disciplines of perception, memory, and language into behavioral constructs.

Miller's Experiences in Graduate School

When George A. Miller attended Harvard in the early 1940s, he was trained in behaviorist jargon which often complicated his interests in speech and hearing due to the inherent limitations of behaviorism. In 1951, he published a book titled "Language and Communication," which exhibited a behavioristic bias yet later came to be regarded as eclectic rather than purely behavioristic.

Influences of Key Figures

Influences such as Noam Chomsky and Jerry Bruner played pivotal roles in transitioning Miller from behaviorism. By the mid-1950s, Miller recognized the limitations of behaviorism and advocated for a return to mentalistic concepts integrating behavioral data.

Limitations of Information Theory

Miller encountered difficulties when he attempted to apply Claude Shannon’s information theory to psychological phenomena. While Shannon’s work on probabilities and Markov processes provided a framework compatible with behaviorism, the psychological insights yielded more significant implications than mere logarithmic values of probabilities. This realization prompted Miller to seek alternatives to Markov processes, thereby welcoming a paradigm shift towards Chomsky’s syntactic theory for understanding cognitive processes in language.

The Decline of Behaviorism

By the mid-1950s, dissatisfaction with behaviorism grew among psychologists. Chomsky famously asserted that limiting psychology to behavior was akin to defining physics as meter reading. Miller highlights that separating mind and behavior was untenable if psychology aimed to achieve scientific legitimacy. This cognitive shift effectively revitalized discussions surrounding the mind in experimental psychology while remaining absent from social and clinical psychology.

Establishment of the Center for Cognitive Studies

Miller recollects the establishment of the Center for Cognitive Studies at Harvard in 1960 influenced by Bruner’s group, which had been focused on cognition. With a grant from the Carnegie Corporation, this center attracted young scholars interested in addressing cognitive phenomena, enabling a successful re-engagement with international counterparts like Sir Frederic Bartlett, Jean Piaget, and A.R. Luria who were progressing cognitively outside the confines of behaviorism.

Merging Disciplines: The Cognitive Science Movement

During this period, developments across several fields were interconnected: Norbert Wiener’s cybernetics, the advent of artificial intelligence by Minsky and McCarthy, and the computational modeling of cognitive processes by Newell and Simon. Notably, the year 1956 is identified as critical for the advancement of information processing psychology. This pivotal year witnessed key conferences, including a significant meeting at Dartmouth concerning artificial intelligence, involving integral figures in cognitive psychology and computer science.

Notable Publications and Advancements in 1956

Several influential works were published in 1956 that contributed to cognitive science:

1. Miller’s article on limitations in human information processing: "The magical number seven, plus or minus two."
2. Newell and Simon’s contributions established essential frameworks for problem-solving.
3. Chomsky’s introduction of transformational generative grammar reshaped linguistic theory.

Moment of Conception for Cognitive Science

Miller pinpoints September 11, 1956, as the pivotal moment for the inception of cognitive science, highlighted by a symposium at MIT. Eminent discussions revolved around logic machines, computer applications to psychological theories, and transformational grammar. This gathering underscored the interrelationship between experimental psychology, theoretical linguistics, and cognitive process simulation, setting the stage for cognitive science.

Birth of Cognitive Science and Interdisciplinary Nature

In the early 1960s, diverse institutions began identifying their work as a collective pursuit of understanding cognition. By the `70s, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation aimed to bridge neuroscience and cognitive studies, which resulted in formally recognizing cognitive science as a distinct field. Miller successfully argued for including various disciplines: psychology, linguistics, neuroscience, computer science, anthropology, and philosophy in the foundation’s initiative.

Report on Cognitive Science

A committee established by the Sloan Foundation outlined the state of cognitive science in 1978, demonstrating how these fields interlinked in pursuing cognitive inquiries. Miller notes various interdisciplinary studies were summarized, illustrating how cognitive science expanded through collaborative research efforts, ultimately leading to the recognition of cognitive neuroscience and increased interdisciplinary communication.

Current Status of Cognitive Science

While the Sloan Foundation did not continue its support for the initiative, the foundational efforts of communication among disciplines have persisted. Miller expresses skepticism about the singularity of cognitive science today, preferring to refer to cognitive sciences in the plural. However, he maintains the vision of a unified science that explores the representational and computational capacities of the human mind, still holds an attractive promise.