 What is cognitive psychology?

We can briefly say that cognitive psychology is the scientific study of the mind as an
information processor. Fundamentally, cognitive psychology studies how people acquire
and apply knowledge or information. But, in addition to adding to our understanding of
how the human mind works, the field of cognitive psychology has also had an impact on
approaches to mental health.

Cognitive psychology involves the study of internal mental processes—all of the things
that go on inside your brain, including perception, thinking, memory, attention, language,
problem-solving, learning and consciousness. While it is a relatively young branch of
psychology, it has quickly grown to become one of the most popular subfields.

 History:
The intellectual origins of cognitive psychology began with cognitive approaches to
psychological problems at the end of the 1800s and early 1900s. The Cognitive Revolution
began in the mid-1950s when researchers in several fields began to develop theories of
mind based on complex representations and computational procedures. Before the 1970s,
many mental health approaches were focused more on psychoanalytic, behavioral, and
humanistic approaches.

The so-called "cognitive revolution" that took place during this period put a greater
emphasis on understanding the way people process information and how thinking
patterns might contribute to psychological distress. Thanks to research in this area by
cognitive psychologists, new approaches to treatment were developed to help treat
depression, anxiety, phobias, and other psychological disorders.

Among the most relevant factors contributing to the rising importance of cognitive
psychology we can find:
1. Dissatisfaction with the behaviorist approach in its simple emphasis on external
behavior rather than internal processes.
2. The development of better experimental methods.
3. Comparison between human and computer processing of information.

The emphasis of psychology shifted away from the study of conditioned behavior and
psychoanalytical notions about the study of the mind, towards the understanding of
human information processing, using strict and rigorous laboratory investigation.

 Assumptions
There are three basic assumptions Cognitive Psychology proposes. These are:

1. Mediational processes occur between stimulus and response:

 Behaviorists rejected the idea of studying the mind because internal mental
processes cannot be observed and objectively measured. However, cognitive
psychologists regard it as essential to look at the mental processes of an organism
and how these influence behavior. Instead of the simple stimulus-response links
proposed by Behaviorism, the mediational processes of the organism are
important to understand. Without this understanding, psychologists cannot have a
complete understanding of behavior.

2. Psychology should be seen as a science:

Human cognition can at least in principle be fully revealed by the scientific method,
that is, individual components of mental processes can be identified and
understood. Cognitive psychologists follow the example of the behaviorists in
preferring objective, controlled, scientific methods for investigating behavior. They
use the results of their investigations as the basis for making inferences about
mental processes.

3. Humans are basically information processors:

Internal mental processes can be described in terms of rules or algorithms in
information processing models. Information processing in humans resembles that
in computers, and is based on based on transforming information, storing
information and retrieving information from memory. Information processing
models of cognitive processes such as memory and attention assume that mental
processes follow a clear sequence. For example:
- Input processes are concerned with the analysis of the stimuli.
- Storage processes cover everything that happens to stimuli internally in the
brain and can include coding and manipulation of the stimuli.
- Output processes are responsible for preparing an appropriate response to
a stimulus.

 Approaches
Very much like physics, experiments, simulations, and modelling are the major research
tools in cognitive psychology. Often, the predictions of the models are directly compared
to human behavior. With the ease of access and wide use of brain imaging techniques,
cognitive psychology has seen increasing influence of cognitive neuroscience over the past
decade. There are currently three main approaches in cognitive psychology: experimental
cognitive psychology, computational cognitive psychology, and neural cognitive
psychology.

1. Experimental cognitive psychology treats cognitive psychology as one of the

natural sciences and applies experimental methods to investigate human
cognition. Psychophysical responses, response time, and eye tracking are often
measured in experimental cognitive psychology.
 2. Computational cognitive psychology develops formal mathematical and
computational models of human cognition based on symbolic and subsymbolic
representations, and dynamical systems.
3. Neural cognitive psychology uses brain imaging and neurobiological methods to
understand the neural basis of human cognition.

The three approaches are often inter-linked and provide both independent and
complementary insights in every sub-domain of cognitive psychology.

 Pros & Cons

Once we have gone over the core concepts of this branch of psychology, we must go over
its pros and cons. Among its benefits we can find:
- The cognitive approach is it has always employed highly controlled and
rigorous methods of study in order to enable researchers to infer cognitive
processes at work. This has involved the use of lab experiments to produce
reliable, objective data.
- The cognitive approach is probably the most dominant approach in
psychology today and has been applied to a wide range of practical and
theoretical contexts.
- Combines easily with approaches: e.g. Behaviorism + cognitive psychology
= social learning theory; biology + cognitive psychology = evolutionary
psychology.

Now, regarding its limitations, we can see that:

- Cognitive psychology has a narrow focus on mental processes. For example,

the use of the computer analogy means that information processing
researchers focus mostly on the logical aspects of cognitive processing and
less on the emotional, creative and social aspects that also affect thinking
- Cognitive psychology has often relied on comparisons with how computers
work as a possible way the mind might work. But is this really how the brain
works? The brain is infinitely more powerful and flexible than the most
advanced computer.
- And, finally, I dare to say it can be overly simplistic, something now as
Machine Reductionism, which basically entails the idea that CP considers us
as “machines” and not as a comprehensive sentient and rational entity.

 Issues and Debates

- Free will vs Determinism:
The position of the approach is unclear as it argues on one hand that we
the way we process information is determined by our past experience
(schemas). On the other hand, in the therapy derived from the approach
(CBT) it argues that we can change the way we think.
 - Nature vs Nurture:
The cognitive approach takes an interactionist view of the debate as it
argues that our behavior is influenced by learning and experience (nurture),
but also by some of our brains’ innate capacities as information processors
e.g., language acquisition (nature).
- Holism vs Reductionism:
The cognitive approach tends to be reductionist. As when studying a
variable, it isolates processes such as memory from other cognitive
processes. However, in our normal life we would use many cognitive
processes simultaneously, so it lacks validity.
- Idiographic vs Nomothetic:
It is a nomothetic approach as it focuses on establishing theories on
information processing that apply to all people.
- Are the research methods used scientific?
The cognitive approach uses lab experiments which are highly controlled
therefore they are replicable. However, it measures non-observable
behaviors; therefore, it could be argued that it is not as scientific as the
behaviorist approach.

 Applications
Cognitive psychology research has even produced an extensive body of principles,
representations, and algorithms. Successful applications range from custom-built expert
systems to mass-produced software and consumer electronics. For example:

1. Development of computer interfaces that collaborate with users to meet their

information needs and operate as intelligent agents.
2. Development of a flexible information infrastructure based on knowledge
representation and reasoning methods.
3. Development of smart tools in the financial industry.
4. Development of mobile, intelligent robots that can perform tasks usually reserved for
humans, and finally
5. Development of bionic components of the perceptual and cognitive neural system
such as cochlear and retinal implants.

 When to see a cognitive psychologist

The work of cognitive psychologists is essential for helping people who have experienced
issues with mental processes. While we tend to take abilities such as attention and
problem solving for granted, perhaps because they are so woven into the fabric of our
everyday existence, cognitive disruptions can create havoc in multiple areas of an
individual's life.
Psychologists who work in this area often focus on a particular area of interest such
as memory, while others might instead choose to work directly on specific health concerns
related to cognition, such as degenerative brain disorders or even brain injuries.

Anyway, in general, the most common reasons for consultive a cognitive psychologist are
the following:

- Alzheimer's disease, dementia, or memory loss

- Brain trauma treatment
- Cognitive therapy for a psychological illness
- Interventions for learning disabilities
- Perceptual or sensory issues
- Therapy for a speech or language disorder

Cognitive behavior therapy and rational emotive behavior therapy are two methods in
which clients and therapists focus on the underlying cognitions that contribute to
psychological distress. Therapists can help clients identify irrational beliefs and other
cognitive distortions that are in conflict with reality and then aid them in replacing such
thoughts with more realistic, healthy beliefs. These professionals frequently go by titles
other than cognitive psychologists, such as psychiatrist, clinical psychologist, or counseling
psychologist, but many of the strategies they utilize are rooted in the cognitive tradition.

 Conclusion
Research on cognitive psychology may at times seem academic and far-removed from the
problems you face in everyday life, yet the findings from such scientific investigations play
a role in how professionals approach the treatment of mental illness, traumatic brain
injury, and degenerative brain diseases.

Thanks to the work of cognitive psychologists, we can better pinpoint ways to measure
human intellectual abilities, develop new strategies to combat memory problems, and
decode the workings of the human brain—all of which ultimately has a powerful impact
on how we treat cognitive disorders.

The field of cognitive psychology is a rapidly growing area that continues to add to our
understanding of the many influences that mental processes have on our health and daily
lives, from understanding how cognitive processes change over the course of child
development to looking at how the brain transforms sensory inputs into perceptions,
cognitive psychology has helped us gain a deeper and richer understanding of the many
mental events that contribute to our daily existence and overall well-being.

 Referencia de fuentes:

- https://imotions.com/blog/cognitive-psychology/
- https://www.verywellmind.com/cognitive-psychology-4157181
- https://www.simplypsychology.org/cognitive.html
- http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Cognitive_psychology
- https://www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/blog/what-is-cognitive-psychology/
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