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How different is Cognitive Psychology from Cognitive Science? 

Definitely a question that must be answered before we proceed to talk about anything else here! Cognitive Science and Cognitive Psychology both study the mind and mental processes, but they differ in scope, approach, and methods. These are the key differences:

• Cognitive Science (CS) is an inter-disciplinary field (AI. Neuroscience, Linguistics, Anthropology, Psychology) whereas Cognitive Psychology (CP) is a subfield of psychology. 
• CS majorly focuses on studying cognition in humans, animals and machines where as CP focuses on human mental processes. 
• CS uses methods of research such as computational models, AI, neuroscience and philosophy. On the other hand, CP uses behavioural experiments, imaging studies and psychometric tests. 
• CS has applications with robotics, human-computer interactions, and clinical studies. CP has its applications in therapy, education and consumer psychology. 

With that being established, it is not to say that they do not share multiple interconnected aspects. Now that the distinction has been made obvious, let’s examine the history of cognitive psychology. Its origins are deeply rooted in philosophy, and it took a detour through behaviorism before sparking a revolution that altered the way we study the mind. Let’s go back and observe how everything transpired.

How we came to study the Mind

From how we recall a song’s lyrics to how we make snap decisions, cognitive psychology permeates every aspect of life. However, how did this field develop? Why did psychologists start researching thought processes instead than behavior? We can better appreciate our progress in solving the puzzles of the human mind when we have a solid understanding of the history of cognitive psychology.

The development of cognitive psychology is a tale of changing viewpoints. Its foundations are in ancient philosophy, and during the Cognitive Revolution of the 1950s and 1960s, it finally became a dominant force after being eclipsed by behaviorism for a large portion of the early 20th century. It is still developing today, including knowledge from computer modeling, artificial intelligence, and neuroscience. Let’s take a closer look at how this transformation happened. 

Before Cognitive Psychology: The Early Roots

Philosophers argued over the nature of perception, knowledge, and thought long before psychology was recognized as a legitimate scientific discipline. Two of ancient Greece’s most renowned philosophers, Plato and Aristotle, held different opinions about how knowledge is obtained.

According to Plato, knowledge is intrinsic, meaning that people are born with certain basic concepts. However, empiricism – the belief that knowledge is derived from experience and observation – was supported by Aristotle.

Centuries of research into the functioning of the mind were sparked by these philosophical discussions. Later on, psychology study would be guided by these same issues as researchers looked for empirical data to explain human behavior and thought.

The Birth of Experimental Psychology

Psychology at last emerged as a separate field in the late 1800s. Often regarded as the father of psychology, Wilhelm Wundt established the first psychology laboratory in Leipzig, Germany, in 1879. He trained people to closely watch and document their own conscious experiences as part of his introspection method.
Around the same period, Hermann Ebbinghaus carried out ground-breaking studies on memory, presenting ideas like as,

• How memories deteriorate with time is known as the Forgetting Curve.
• The Spacing Effect: How dispersing learning enhances memory.

Though these early research played a significant role in the development of cognitive psychology, behaviorism quickly overtook the discipline as the dominant school of thinking.

The Rise (and Dominance) of Behaviorism

A significant change occurred in psychology during the beginning of the 20th century. Prominent psychologists like John Watson and, subsequently, B.F. Skinner maintained that psychology should only concentrate on behavior that can be observed, not on mental processes that take place inside the mind. For many years, this method—known as behaviorism—dominated psychology.

Important Behaviorist Concepts:

• The science of psychology ought to be impartial. 
• Thoughts and emotions should not be investigated; only observable conduct should.
• Conditioning (associations between inputs and responses) is how learning happens.

Well-known behaviorist experiments include:

• Ivan Pavlov made the discovery of classical conditioning with his Pavlov’s Dogs, demonstrating how humans and animals can learn by association.
• John Watson’s Little Albert Experiment showed how human emotions might be conditioned.
• Skinner’s Box: B.F. Skinner’s research on operant conditioning demonstrated how incentives and punishments may modify behavior.

Although behaviorism has many drawbacks, it made a substantial contribution to psychology. It found it difficult to explain:

• How do kids construct sentences they have never heard before? This is known as language acquisition.
• Creativity and problem-solving: How can people generate fresh concepts?
• How do we store and retrieve information using memory and attention?

A new method known as cognitive psychology emerged as a result of these holes in behaviorism’s explanations.

The Cognitive Revolution: A Shift Toward the Mind

It was time for a revolution in psychology by the 1950s and 1960s. Developments in neuroscience, linguistics, and computer technology prompted psychologists to reconsider how the mind interprets data.

Important Elements That Contributed to the Cognitive Revolution:

• Discontent with Behaviorism: Psychologists realized that behaviorism disregarded the inner workings of the mind.
• The Development of Computer Science More and more, the brain has been likened to a computer, processing data through input, storage, and retrieval.
• Noam Chomsky’s Critique of Behaviorism Contended that people possess an underlying capacity for language acquisition and that reinforcement alone is insufficient to explain language acquisition.
• New Studies on Memory and Perception: Jerome Bruner and George Miller, among others, studied how humans retain and process information.

Crucial Players in the Cognitive Revolution were:

• According to George Miller, the short-term memory can only hold roughly seven plus or minus two objects.
• Cognitive psychology was formally established as a field of study by Ulric Neisser’s 1967 publication, Cognitive Psychology.
• Artificial intelligence models of human problem-solving were created by Herbert Simon and Allen Newell.

This change signaled the beginning of cognitive psychology, a discipline that studied language, perception, memory, reasoning, and problem-solving.

Modern Cognitive Psychology: Where We Are Today

Since its inception, cognitive psychology has broadened its purview. These days, it has strong ties to disciplines like computational modeling, artificial intelligence, and neuroscience. Technological developments like fMRI and EEG enable researchers to examine brain activity in real time, providing a deeper understanding of human thought processes.

Important Topics in Contemporary Cognitive Psychology:

• Memory & Learning: How do we store, encode, and access data?
• Perception and Attention: How do we understand our environment and concentrate on particular stimuli?
• Making Decisions How do we make decisions and assess risks?
• Emotion and Cognition: What effects do emotions have on behavior and thought?
• Mindfulness and Consciousness: What is self-awareness?

Where is cognitive psychology applicable?

Education & Learning: Studies on memory and attention have aided in the creation of more potent instructional techniques.

Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, is a popular treatment that assists patients in reframing harmful cognitive patterns.

Artificial Intelligence: AI and human-computer interfaces are developed according to cognitive principles.

Designing better technology requires an understanding of perception and decision-making, which is achieved through user experience (UX) design.

Marketing & Advertising: Businesses can better customize their campaigns by understanding how consumers make decisions.

Want a Deeper Dive? Download the Full Notes!

If you’re looking for a more structured and detailed breakdown of cognitive psychology’s history, well I’ve got you covered! Download the academic notes for an in-depth exploration of key figures, theories, and research studies.