APRAJITA JAIN

MA APP. PSYCHOLOGY
COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
2308550002

COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

ASSIGNMENT

APPROACHES AND KEY ISSUES TO COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

Information processing approach

The information processing approach is a key framework within cognitive psychology that views
the human mind as a computer-like system that processes information to produce behavior and
mental experiences. This approach is rooted in the idea that cognitive processes can be
understood as the manipulation and transformation of information, much like a computer
processes data. The information processing approach suggests that cognitive functions, such as
perception, memory, problem-solving, and decision-making, can be conceptualized as processes
that involve the encoding, storage, retrieval, and manipulation of information. These processes
are often represented as stages or steps in the flow of information. Encoding relates to the
registering of information in a way that can be recovered and understood later, just like the
computer saves the information in 0s and 1s. Storage refers to the actual retaining of information
in the brain, retrieval refers to the bringing the information back to the conscious brain and make
it to use. This at times involves manipulation of the information in which some parts of the
memory might get distorted and others might change due to the new learning, which we
generally call proactive and retroactive interference. Similar to a computer having finite
processing capacity and memory storage, the information processing approach acknowledges
that human cognitive systems have limits in terms of attention, working memory, and processing
resources. These limitations can affect cognitive performance and influence how information is
processed. We cannot respond to all the stimuli at once, rather we attend to few, which we call
selective attention. Similarly, we cannot memorize everything that we see or learn, but we
memorize only that information which we find relevant and important to us, or at times some
very happy and sad memories are memorized without any conscious effort because of the
intensity of the incident.
APRAJITA JAIN
MA APP. PSYCHOLOGY
COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
2308550002

AI approach

Cognitive psychology has been very instructive for the development of AI, and current AI design
makes extensive reference to human cognitive models. The process of human mental activity is
simulated in various aspects such as attention, encoding, and memory. The AI (Artificial
Intelligence) approach towards cognitive psychology involves using computer models and
algorithms to simulate and study various aspects of human cognition. This approach seeks to
understand and replicate human cognitive processes in order to develop AI systems that can
perform tasks that typically require human intelligence. AI researchers develop computational
models and algorithms that simulate human cognitive processes. Artificial intelligence is trained
to recognize emotions, understand human feelings, and replicate the human psyche, which in
turn accelerates research in cognitive psychology. These models are designed to mimic how
humans think, perceive, reason, learn, and solve problems. Cognitive modeling in AI often draws
inspiration from psychological theories of cognition. There are various researches in which
different algorithms have been made to enable the AI mimic humans. NLP (natural language
processing) model is a subfield of AI that focuses on enabling computers to understand, generate,
and interact with human language. These aim to replicate aspects of human language
understanding and generation, including semantics, syntax, and context.

Computer vision is another area where AI aims to mimic human perception. Computer vision
systems use machine learning algorithms to recognize and interpret visual information from
images and videos, allowing AI systems to "see" and understand the visual world in a manner
akin to human perception. Reinforcement learning is also one of the many creations Predictive
text, text summarization, question answering, and machine translation are all examples of natural
language processing (NLP) that uses reinforcement learning. By studying typical language
patterns, RL agents can mimic and predict how people speak to each other every day. Predictive
text, text summarization, question answering, and machine translation are all examples of natural
language processing (NLP) that uses reinforcement learning. By studying typical language
patterns, RL agents can mimic and predict how people speak to each other every day.
APRAJITA JAIN
MA APP. PSYCHOLOGY
COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
2308550002

At present, in the development of artificial intelligence (AI), the scientific community is mostly
based on brain cognition research (Nadji-Tehrani and Eslami, 2020), which is to reproduce the
real physiological activities of our human brain through computer software. This replication of
the biology of the human brain cannot well simulate the subjective psychological changes
(Zador, 2019). For example, in terms of memory, human memory forgetting is non-active, and
the more we want to forget the more memorable it becomes, while machine forgetting is an
active deletion, which deviates from our psychological expectations.

Key issues

Nature VS nurture

The nature – nurture debate is all about whether the human cognition is affected by nature which
is heredity or nurture, which is environment. It talks about which factor we lay our emphasis on.
If its heredity, then to what extent does heredity fixes and influences our cognition, and if its
environment, how and to what level does it affect.

Rationalism VS Empiricism

The debate is all about how we make sense out of the environment surrounding us. One says that
we go by rationalism which states that knowledge already exists within the human mind and
does not need any experience to gain knowledge, on the other hand is empiricism, which states
that we acquire knowledge with the help of our sensory experiences and observation of the
external world.

Structure VS Process

This talks about the subject matter of cognition. The debate is about whether we should study the
structure of the mind or process of cognition like thinking.

Domain generality VS Domain Specificity

This debate is about whether the different cognitive processes are general or specific in nature.
Generality says that certain cognitive processes or mechanisms are general and can be applied to
a wide range of tasks or domains. In other words, they are not specific to one particular area of
APRAJITA JAIN
MA APP. PSYCHOLOGY
COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
2308550002

cognition but are flexible and adaptable. Whereas on the other hand, domain specificity says that
not all cognitive processes cannot be applied to all situations.

Validity of causal inferences versus Ecological validity

This argues if we should study cognition by using highly controlled experiments that increase the
probability of valid inferences regarding causality or use more naturalistic techniques.

Applied VS Basic research

This argues on whether we should just fundamentally study cognition for the sake of knowledge,
or should we study it in ways that can help people know how to use cognition efficiently.

Biological versus Behavioral methods

This is about whether we study the brain and its functions directly, perhaps even scanning the
brain while people are performing cognitive tasks or we study people’s behavior in cognitive
tasks, looking at measures such as percentage correct and reaction time.

BOTTOM – UP AND TOP – DOWN PROCESSING

Bottom-up processing and top-down processing are two complementary cognitive processes that
humans use to make sense of sensory information, particularly in the context of perception.
These processes work together to help us interpret the world around us. The bottom-up
approach was developed by psychologist E.J. Gibson, who set a solid foundation for the
perception of human beings. Bottom-up processing is the process of "sensing," in which our
sensory receptors take in sensory data from the outside environment. Our brains select, arrange
and interpret these sensations through perception. In the bottom-up processing approach, the
perception begins at the sensory input, the stimulus. Bottom-up processing is an explanation for
perceptions that start with an incoming stimulus and work upward until a representation of the
object is formed in our minds. For ex, when you look at a piece of text, bottom-up processing
involves recognizing individual letters and then combining them to recognize words, sentences,
and finally, the overall message.
APRAJITA JAIN
MA APP. PSYCHOLOGY
COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
2308550002

Top-down processing is concept-driven and guided by prior knowledge, expectations, and

cognitive processes. It starts at the "top" with higher-level information and uses this information
to influence the interpretation of incoming sensory data. an individual's perception begins with
the most general and gradually moves towards the most specific. The perceptions of the
individuals are largely influenced by the expectations that they have and their prior knowledge.
Richard Gregory developed the concept of the top-down approach, and according to him, the
perception process is a constructive one that relies on top-down processing. Gregory suggests
that using prior knowledge and experience of a stimulus helps an individual to draw inferences.
Many people use the top-down approach as it helps the individual to quickly make sense of the
environment in a world with limitless sensory experiences and information surrounding us. It
makes us capable of making sense of all the information our senses give. Perceptions begin with
the broadest and progress to more nuanced top-down processing. Our expectations and
prejudices have a significant influence on how we view things. For ex, If you're reading a
sentence with a typographical error, top-down processing helps you recognize the error because
it expects words to follow certain grammatical and spelling rules.