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Introduction to Cognitive Psychology

  • Overview: The course provides an introduction to cognitive psychology, exploring topics including exams, grading, lectures, and the structure of the curriculum.

Syllabus

  • Exams: 2 midterms and a final exam.
    • Exam Weight: 75% (25% each for midterms)
  • Final Paper: Represents 15% of the course grade.
  • Attendance and Participation: Contributes 10% to the overall grade.

Outline of Today’s Lecture

  • The lecture covers several key areas:
    • Definition of cognitive psychology
    • Historical context: Philosophy and early psychological theories
    • Overview of modern cognitive theory

What is Cognitive Psychology?

  • Definition:
    • It is the scientific study of the human mind and brain.
    • It examines:
    • Knowledge and Beliefs:
      • Includes personal memories, factual knowledge, concepts, and current perceptions.
    • Thinking Processes:
      • Problem solving, reasoning, decision making, language use, and cognitive skills.

Examples of Questions in Cognitive Psychology

  • The course will explore myriad questions, including:
    • Memory:
    • Is eyewitness testimony in criminal trials generally reliable?
    • Are memories of significant events reliable?
    • Language and Decision Making:
    • Do individuals learn languages faster when they are young?
    • Do other species exhibit language capabilities?
    • Are people's decisions generally good?
    • Examples include medical and jury decision-making.
    • Categories and Causality:
    • How do individuals categorize objects in their environment? (e.g., dogs, SUVs, toasters)
    • What role do concepts play in social stereotypes?
    • How do people learn about causal relationships (e.g., sunrises causing roosters to crow)?
    • Reasoning and Expertise:
    • Do individuals consistently reason logically?
    • Do experts possess unique innate abilities or simply have more experience?

Focus on Commonalities in Cognition

  • Cognitive psychology primarily seeks patterns common across individuals rather than focusing on differences such as culture or gender.
  • Rationale: Research typically indicates that cultural groups demonstrate similar cognitive processes, with variances arising from beliefs, experiences, or values.

Psychopathologies in Cognitive Psychology

  • The field does consider differences stemming from psychopathologies, including:
    • Lesions from surgical procedures or strokes.
    • Brain damage due to accidents.

Historical Foundations of Cognition

  • Philosophical Origins: Questions regarding cognition were initially raised by philosophers, touching on themes such as:
    • Free will, consciousness, truth, the origins of knowledge, and the composition of the universe.

Epistemology: Sources of Knowledge

  • Rationalism: Knowledge arises from reasoning or is innate.
  • Empiricism: Knowledge is derived from sensory observations and experiences.

Metaphysics/Ontology: Composition of the Universe

  • Materialism: Asserts that the universe consists of one kind of 'material'.
  • Dualism: Proposes the existence of both material and mental substances, leading to the mind-body problem, which questions how the mind can influence the body.

Philosophical Contributions to Psychology

  • Historical philosophers have shaped ideas on cognitive questions:

Key Philosophers

  • Socrates and Plato (4th-5th century B.C.):

    • Advocated rationalism—believed that knowledge is recollected from innate ideas.
    • Utilized the Socratic method to aid discovery through questioning.

  • Rene Descartes (1596-1650):

    • Adopted dualism, proposing two distinct substances:
    • Mental (res extensa) and Material (res cogitans).
    • Famously articulated, "Cogito, ergo sum" (I think, therefore I am).

  • Aristotle (367-322 B.C.):

    • An empiricist who argued that knowledge is grounded in sensory experience.
    • Proposed the mind is a blank slate (tabula rasa) at birth, gradually filled with ideas through experiences.

  • John Locke (1632-1704):

    • British empiricist and materialist believing all knowledge originates from sensory experiences and associations of ideas.

Philosophical Foundations vs. Psychological Science

  • Philosophers initiated the inquiry into cognition but faced limitations in answering their questions.
  • By the mid-19th century, the field shifted toward scientific methodologies.

Stages of Scientific Psychology

  • Three Stages:
    1. Introspectionism
    2. Behaviorism
    3. Modern Cognitive Psychology
  • Each stage focuses on developing theories based on experimental data.

Stage 1: Introspectionism

  • Period: Late 19th - early 20th century.
  • Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920): Founded the first experimental psychology lab in 1879, propelling the study of psychology into an experimental endeavor aimed at identifying the structure of conscious experience through introspection, describing elements of consciousness based on introspection.