Six Approaches to Psychology

COGNITIVE APPROACH

Cognition is the process by which the sensory input is transformed, reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered, and used.

WHAT IS COGNITION?

Emphasizes the use of mental processes to handle problems (Behavior is influenced by more than just a response to a stimulus) Attention Memory Language Perception Metacognition (what you think about your thoughts)

How people understand, diagnose & solve problems Jean Piaget & E.C. Tolman

Advantages Analyzes how thoughts affect behavior Good thoughts = Good behavior

Disadvantages Does not include feelings & emotions

COGNITIVE APPROACH

Thought Processes: Can infer mental processes from observable behavior

Gestalt Psychology: means “whole pattern” or

“configuration.” Studies how people interpret

sensory information in order to acquire knowledge.

Perception is more than the sum of its parts”

COGNITIVE THEORY

Downplays emotion, too mentalistic, hard to decide between competing cognitive explanations.

Strong approach today.

COGNITIVE THEORY: CRITICISMS

Thinking: how mental thoughts aff ect behavior. Humanism gives rise to the Cognitive Theory. Studies how we attend, perceive, think, remember, solve problems and arrive at beliefs. Know what’s going on in people’s heads fi rst, then applies it to their behavior.

Jean Piaget: studies children’s cognitive development.

COGNITIVE THEORY