Topic > Cognitive Psychology: Definition and My Understanding

Psychology is the study that focuses primarily on the mind and behavior. In this field, there are five main types of perspectives. These perspectives answer life's fundamental questions regarding how we think, feel, and act. What interests me most is the cognitive perspective. By definition, this is a scientific study of the mind as an information processor in relation to mental functions such as the use of language, perception, attention, use of long-term and short-term memory, problem solving, and way we think. Like a computer, the mind can process information, store data, and produce necessary outputs, all guided by a set of prearranged instructions. According to Mcleod (2013) this has led cognitive psychologists to explain that memory consists of three phases: encoding (where information is received and processed), storage (where information is retained) and retrieval (where information is recalled) ”. In essence, it is important to observe an organism's mental processes to have a complete understanding of how they can influence behavior. The father of this extraordinary branch of psychology is said to be Ulric Neisser. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The cognitive perspective is very fascinating. I find this interesting because my sister was studying biology and she told me about how the neurons and vast neural networks that make up our central nervous system detect stimuli from receptors, interpret them, and send electrochemical messages to our extremities. Some of these actions are guided by memory, which is the mind's ability to learn from previous responses to a stimulus; for example, when someone taps us on the side of the rib, our response is to twitch and if this action is performed continuously for a long period of time, our mind already knows by heart that when that person raises the finger we must contract. This phenomenon can be called classical conditioning. In a sense, the cognitive perspective can work hand in hand with behaviorism. The cognitive perspective would be helpful in my career choice, which is in the business field. This area of ​​study is and requires me to remember a vast number of concepts and methods to effectively complete my work. By increasing my cognitive skills in this area, I will be able to improve my memory of these concepts and methods and increase my problem solving skills in analyzing data for the task at hand. For example, managing many numbers would require concentration and excellent memory. Most of the skills needed for this specific field I would have acquired during my studies, where they would have been stored as memory to be recalled when I needed them. As previously mentioned, the mind can operate based on memory and as “Tolman suggested that learning is based on the relationships that form between stimuli” (McLeod, 2015). By describing cognitive skills, not only will I be able to perform well, but I will gain recognition for my work ethic along with self-fulfillment and satisfaction in knowing I have achieved my goals. The cognitive perspective could generally improve my life by helping me with my memory skills. According to Karen Cherry (2019), psychologists have found that while our short-term memory is quite short and can only last a few seconds, it can be enhanced with repetition techniques and that same data can be moved into memory for a long time