# Ch. 1: An Introduction to Cognitive Psychology ## What Is Cognitive Psychology? - Cognitive psychology is a subdiscipline of experimental psychology focused on investigating the mental processes that give rise to our perceptions and interpretations of the world around us. - **Cognition**, or mental activity, refers to the acquisition, storage, transformation, and use of knowledge. - **Cognitive psychology** has two meanings 1. Sometimes it is a synonym for the word cognition. (Rarely, in practice.) 2. Refers to a theoretical approach, the **cognitive approach**, to psychology, emphasizing people's thought processes and knowledge. ## Historical Perspectives on the Field - The contemporary version of cognitive psychology emerged in the 1950s, though its origins can be traced to the classical Greek philosophers. - **Aristotle** examined topics such as perception, memory, and mental imagery. He discussed how humans acquire knowledge through experience and observation, emphasizing empirical evidence. - **Wilhelm Wundt**: founder of experimental psychology. Advocated the **introspection** technique to study mental processes. - Trained observers would systematically analyze their own sensations and objectively report them. - Early memory researchers - Hermann **Ebbinghaus** (1850-1909) - Tested recall of lists of items— nonsense syllables such as "DAX." - **Mary Whiton Calkins** (1863-1930) - The **recency effect**: recall is especially accurate for the final item in a series of stimuli. - **William James** (1842-1910) preferred to theorize about everyday experiences. - _Principles of Psychology_: textbook emphasizing human mind as active and inquiring. - tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon - **Behaviorism**: psychology must focus on objective, observable reactions to stimuli. - Dominated US psychology in first half of 20th century. - **John B. Watson** (1878-1958) was the earliest, prominent behaviorist. - Typically studied non-human animals' behavioral response to changes in environment. e.g. rat's maze. - **Operational definition**: a precise definition that specifies exactly how a concept is to be measured. - **The Gestalt Approach** ### Origins of Cognitive Psychology ### Cognitive Revolution ### Cognitive Psychology in Present Times ## Mind, Brain, and Behavior ### Cognitive Science ### Computer Metaphor of the Mind ### Cognitive Neuroscience ## Textbook Overview ### Chapter Preview ### Themes in the Book ### How to Use Your Book Effectively # Ch. 2: Visual and Auditory Recognition ## Overview of Visual Object Recognition - **Perception** uses previous knowledge to gather and interpret the stimuli registered by the senses. - For example, you use perception to interpret each letter on this page. - Perception combines aspects of both the outside world (visual stimuli) and your inner world (previous knowledge.) - ### The Visual System ### Organization in Visual Perception ### Theories of Visual Object Recognition ## Top-Down Processing and Visual Object Recognition ### Bottom-Up versus Top-Down Processing ### Top-Down Processing and Reading ### "Smart Mistakes" in Object Recognition ## Specialized Visual Recognition Processes ### Neuroscience Research on Face Recognition ### Applied Research on Face Recognition ## Speech Perception ### Characteristics of Speech Perception ### Theories of Speech Perception