4 APPROACHES TO HUMAN COGNITION

Cognitive psychology - An approach that aims to understand human cognition by the study of
behavior, a broader definition also includes the study of brain activity and structure.
Cognitive neuroscience - An approach that aims to understand human cognition by combining
information from behaviour and the brain.
Cognitive neuropsychology - this approach involves studying brain-damaged patients to
understand normal human cognition. It was originally closely linked to cognitive psychology but
has recently also become linked to cognitive neuroscience.
Computational cognitive science - this approach involves developing computational models to
further our understanding of human cognition; such models increasingly incorporate knowledge
of behaviour and the brain. A computational model takes the form of an algorithm, which
consists of a precise and detailed specification of the steps involved in performing a task.
Computational models are designed to simulate or imitate human processing on a given task.
Bottom-up processing - Processing directly influenced by environmental stimuli.
Serial processing - Processing in which one process is completed before the next one starts.
Top-down Processing - Stimulus processing that is influenced by factors such as the individual's
past experience and expectations.
Parallel processing – Processing in which two or more cognitive processes occur at the same
time.
Cascade processing - Later processing stages start before earlier processing stages have been
completed when performing a task.
Strengths of Cognitive Psychology

 The great majority of theories driving research in cognitive neuroscience originated

within cognitive psychology.
 Has also had a predominant influence on the development of cognitive tasks and on task
analysis (how a task is accomplished).
Limitations of Cognitive Psychology

 Lacks ecological validity, the extent to which laboratory findings are applicable to
everyday life
 Theories in cognitive psychology are often expressed only in verbal terms.
 Difficulties in falsifying theories have led to a proliferation of different theories on any
given topic
 The findings obtained using any given task or paradigm are sometimes specific to that
paradigm and do not generalize to other (apparently similar) tasks.
5 major assumptions in Cognitive Neuropsychology

 Modularity – The cognitive system consists of numerous modules or processors operating

fairly independently or separately of each other.
 Anatomical modularity - each module is located in a specific brain area.
 Universality – Individuals share a similar or an equivalent organization of their cognitive
functions, and presumably have the same underlying brain anatomy.
 Subtractivity - The basic idea is that brain damage impairs one or more processing
modules but does not change or add anything.
 Transparency - The performance of a brain-damaged patient reflects the operation of a
theory designed to explain the performance of healthy individuals minus the impact of
their lesion
Strengths of Cognitive Neuropsychology

 Allows us to draw causal inferences about the relationship between brain areas and
cognitive processes and behavior
 Ability to provide evidence falsifying plausible cognitive theories.
 Produces large-magnitude phenomena which can be initially theoretically highly
counterintuitive
 Cognitive neuropsychology has increasingly been combined fruitfully with cognitive
neuroscience
Limitations of Cognitive Neuropsychology

 The crucial assumption that the cognitive system is fundamentally modular is reasonable
but too strong.
 Other theoretical assumptions also seem too extreme.
 The common assumption that the task performance of patients provides relatively direct
evidence concerning the impact of brain damage on previously intact cognitive systems is
problematic.
 Lesions can alter the organization of the brain in several ways.

MAJOR TECHNIQUES USED TO STUDY THE BRAIN

 Single-unit recording - An invasive technique for studying brain function, permitting the
study of activity in single neurons.
 Event-related potentials (ERP) - The pattern of electroencephalograph (EEG) activity
obtained by averaging the brain. Responses to the same stimulus (or very similar stimuli)
presented repeatedly.
 Positron emission tomography (PET) – A brain-scanning technique based on the
detection of positrons; it has reasonable spatial resolution but poor temporal resolution.
 Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) - A technique based on imaging blood
oxygenation using an MRI machine; it provides information about the location and time
course of brain processes.
 Event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (efMRI) - This is a form of
functional magnetic resonance imaging in which patterns of brain. activity associated
with specific events (eg. correct vs incorrect responses on a memory test) are compared
 Magneto- encephalography (MEG) - A non-invasive brain-scanning technique based on
recording the magnetic fields generated by brain activity; it has good spatial and temporal
resolution
 Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) - This is a technique in which a coil is
placed close to the participant’s head and a very brief pulse of current is run through it
 Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) - A weak electric current is passed
through a given brain area for some time. The electric charge flows from a positive site
(an anode) to a negative one (a cathode).