Cognitive Psychology Introduction

Summary

This video series aims to demystify cognitive psychology, exploring how the brain acquires and applies knowledge to influence behavior. The instructor offers an informal platform to discuss the basics of this fascinating field, emphasizing its relevance across various careers. Cognitive processes, such as perception, memory, and problem-solving, are highlighted, showcasing their universality and importance in everyday life, from learning to social interactions and clinical treatments. The videos are structured to cover topics, syllabus material, and deeper questions, providing a comprehensive yet accessible learning experience.

Takeaways

• 📚 The instructor is uploading videos to help students understand cognitive psychology better, as an alternative to uploading slides to Blackboard.
• 👨‍🏫 The videos are not official university material but are created by the teacher to aid in student comprehension.
• 🧠 Cognitive psychology is defined as the study of how the brain acquires and uses knowledge to produce behavior.
• 🔍 The term 'cognition' originates from 'cognoscere' in Latin, meaning 'to know', emphasizing the acquisition and use of knowledge.
• 👀 Knowledge acquisition occurs through the senses, with cognitive processes selecting relevant information from sensory input.
• 🤔 Cognitive processes include the storage, retrieval, and manipulation of information to achieve goals or solve problems.
• 🎯 Examples of cognitive processes in action range from basic needs like hunger to complex skills like playing an instrument or winning at chess.
• 🌐 Cognition is relevant in today's world of big data and ubiquitous information, affecting various aspects of life and society.
• 🧐 Cognitive psychology is a dominant paradigm in psychology, with wide-reaching implications for various professions.
• 🧐 The field also investigates how cognitive processes can go wrong, especially in clinical populations and in compensating for sensory loss.
• 📈 The videos will cover general talks, syllabus material, experiments, and deeper questions from the syllabus, structured for student engagement.
• 🎥 The instructor encourages students to choose which sections to watch, aiming for the videos to be informative and enjoyable.

Q & A

What is the main purpose of the speaker in creating these videos?

The speaker is creating these videos to help students understand the basics of cognitive psychology better, as an additional resource to the official university material.

Why does the speaker mention the issue with uploading slides to Blackboard?

The speaker mentions the issue to explain why they chose to upload videos instead of slides, as each teacher creates their own slides based on department templates.

What does the speaker mean by 'cognition' in the context of cognitive psychology?

In cognitive psychology, 'cognition' refers to the processes by which the brain acquires knowledge and uses it to produce behavior.

How does the speaker describe the acquisition of knowledge through our senses?

The speaker describes it as a process where our senses take in information, and cognitive processes select the relevant and interesting information from the continuous stream of sensations.

What is an example of cognitive processes in action according to the speaker?

An example given is experiencing hunger and deciding to eat something, which involves sensory experience as information and the goal of satisfying that hunger.

What does the speaker suggest about the ubiquity of cognitive processes in everyday life?

The speaker suggests that cognitive processes are everywhere, from learning to play an instrument to winning at chess, and even in treating patients or navigating a disaster site.

How does the speaker relate cognitive psychology to the field of big data?

The speaker relates cognitive psychology to big data by pointing out that in a world of abundant information, cognitive psychology is concerned with how this information is gained, attended to, stored, and manipulated.

What is the speaker's view on the importance of cognitive psychology in various careers?

The speaker believes that cognitive psychology is crucial in various careers, regardless of whether one wants to be a therapist, work in marketing, become a researcher, or a social worker.

What is the structure of the videos according to the speaker?

The structure of the videos includes a general talk on the topic, a review of material related to the syllabus and practical experiments, and an exploration of deeper questions at the end of each chapter.

How does the speaker encourage students to engage with the videos?

The speaker encourages students to decide which sections of the videos they want to watch, hoping that the videos will be informative and enjoyable.

What is the speaker's intention regarding the official status of these videos?

The speaker clarifies that these videos are not official university material but are created to supplement the students' understanding of cognitive psychology.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Introduction to Cognitive Psychology Videos

The speaker introduces a series of videos on cognitive psychology, explaining the rationale behind creating them instead of uploading slides to Blackboard. The videos aim to provide a deeper understanding of cognitive psychology's basics, as the speaker believes the field is essential for various career paths. The speaker emphasizes that while these videos are not official university material, they are intended to supplement students' learning experience. Cognitive psychology is defined as the study of how the brain acquires and uses knowledge to produce behavior, involving cognitive processes such as perception, attention, memory, and problem-solving.

05:02

🌐 The Ubiquity of Cognitive Processes

This paragraph delves into the pervasiveness of cognitive processes in everyday life and various fields, including the impact of big data and information overload. The speaker discusses how cognitive psychology is concerned with the selective acquisition, attention, storage, retrieval, and manipulation of knowledge. Examples are given to illustrate cognitive processes at work in different scenarios, such as a lab rat navigating a maze, a child learning to speak, a person focusing in a noisy environment, and even a robot searching for survivors in a disaster. The speaker also touches on the importance of cognitive psychology in understanding clinical populations, such as those suffering from depression, and in compensating for sensory loss, as in the case of deaf or blind individuals. The paragraph concludes by highlighting the broad applicability of cognitive psychology across various professions and the structure of the upcoming video series.

Keywords

💡Cognitive Psychology

Cognitive Psychology is the study of mental processes such as perception, memory, thinking, and problem-solving. It is central to the video's theme as it is the subject being taught. The script mentions that cognitive psychology is about how the brain acquires knowledge and uses it to produce behavior, highlighting its relevance to understanding human cognition.

💡Blackboard

Blackboard is an online learning management system used by educational institutions to deliver course content, assignments, and communication tools. In the script, the speaker mentions the challenge of uploading slides to Blackboard, indicating the platform's role in educational content delivery.

💡Syllabus

A syllabus is a document outlining the content, objectives, and structure of a course. The script refers to the syllabus as a guide for the material covered in the lectures and practicals, showing its importance in organizing the course content.

💡Perception

Perception is the process by which the brain organizes and interprets sensory information to give meaning to the environment. The script discusses perception as a way in which we acquire knowledge about the world, emphasizing its role in cognitive processes.

💡Information Processing

Information processing refers to the cognitive activities involved in receiving, attending to, storing, and retrieving information. The video script uses this term to describe how cognitive processes handle the continuous stream of sensory input and the strategic application of this information to achieve goals.

💡Cognition

Cognition encompasses all the mental actions and processes that the mind uses to deal with information, including thinking, understanding, learning, and remembering. The script frequently uses the term to describe the overarching theme of cognitive psychology and its omnipresence in various life activities and fields.

💡Behavior

Behavior refers to the actions or reactions of an organism in response to external or internal stimuli. In the context of the video, behavior is the outcome of cognitive processes, such as the decision to eat when experiencing hunger.

💡Sensory Experience

Sensory experience is the initial stage of perception where the senses take in information from the environment. The script uses sensory experience as an example of how information is acquired and can lead to specific behaviors or goals, like eating when feeling hungry.

💡Clinical Populations

Clinical populations refer to groups of individuals who have specific health conditions or disorders that are the subject of clinical research or treatment. The script mentions that cognitive processes can be affected in clinical populations, indicating the importance of cognitive psychology in understanding and treating such conditions.

💡Deaf Cognition

Deaf cognition pertains to the study of cognitive processes in individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. The script points out that research is dedicated to understanding how the brain adapts and compensates for the lack of auditory input, showing the diversity of cognitive psychology's scope.

💡Blind Cognition

Blind cognition is the study of cognitive processes in individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Similar to deaf cognition, the script mentions that understanding blind cognition is crucial for cognitive psychology, as it reveals how the brain adapts to the absence of visual information.

Highlights

Introduction to cognitive psychology through video uploads due to the inability to share slides on Blackboard.

Cognitive psychology defined as the study of how the brain acquires and uses knowledge to produce behavior.

Cognition involves the selection of relevant and interesting information from continuous sensory input.

Cognitive processes include the storage, transformation, and strategic application of information to achieve goals.

Cognitive psychology's broad application in various fields and its importance in understanding everyday behaviors.

The significance of cognitive psychology in the context of big data and the ubiquity of information.

The role of cognitive processes in everyday activities, from eating due to hunger to learning to play an instrument.

Cognitive processes in strategic activities like winning at chess and social interactions for children with anxiety.

The application of cognitive psychology in clinical settings, such as treating patients and understanding cognitive processes in depression.

Research on cognitive processes in individuals who are deaf or blind and how the brain adapts to compensate for sensory loss.

Cognitive psychology as a dominant paradigm in psychology with a wide reach across different professions.

The structure of the video series, starting with a general talk, followed by syllabus material and deeper questions.

The videos are unofficial material provided by the university, aimed at helping students understand cognitive psychology better.

Cognitive psychology's relevance to future careers, regardless of the specific field one wishes to enter.

The importance of cognitive processes in various scenarios, from navigating a maze to focusing in a noisy environment.

The potential for cognitive psychology to contribute to the development of technology, such as robots navigating disaster sites.

The flexibility of the video content, allowing students to choose which sections to watch based on their interests.

Transcripts

hey guys welcome to the videos on

cognitive psychology so uh during uh

some of the study groups a few people

asked me if I could maybe upload my

slides uh to Blackboard uh so the

problem with uploading slides to

Blackboard is that each of the teachers

makes his or her own slides based on the

templates provided to us by the

department

so rather than just spending my time

trying to convince the department to

upload the templates and the guidelines

uh given to us as teachers I decided to

do something a little bit more

interesting um I will be uploading

videos to this account pertaining to

each of the four uh practicals and maybe

I'll add one or two additional videos

relating to our

topics um and also because it's not on

blackboard or within the context of a

classroom I can speak a little bit more

freely about the material itself so

these videos are technically not quote

official material provided by the

university um but it's more just

something that I'm doing uh to help you

guys understand some of the basics of

cognitive psychology a little bit

better um because it it really is a

wonderful field and I want you to finish

this course um having the feeling that

you genuinely learn something about

cognitive psychology and about

psychology in general um something that

you'll be able to apply later on in your

career uh regardless of what you

actually end up

doing so cognitive

psychology what is it about um the word

cognition

comes from the word coges in Latin

meaning to

know so in short cognitive psychology is

basically the psychology of how the

brain acquires knowledge and uses

knowledge to produce

behavior and this acquisition and use of

knowledge requires cognitive

processes so we acquire knowledge about

the world for example through um our

senses through perception our senses

take in

information and some cognitive process

might then select the interesting

relevant arousing information from this

continuous stream of

Sensations and uh we might then use the

relevant information to give some kind

of

response or we might store the

information for later use

we could take the information and

transform it manipulate it uh apply it

strategically to solve some kind of

problem or puzzle or to uh achieve some

kind of certain goal or

outcome um so this use of

information and cognitive processes

to uh reach a certain outcome can be

viewed very

broadly uh after after all a lot of

things can be considered information and

a lot of things can be considered goals

and outcomes uh the simplest of examples

is that you have some form of sensory

experience which we cons uh consider

your information and because of that

sensory experience you now want to

achieve uh some sort of

goal um for example you may experience

hunger and because of that experience

you decide to go eat something right um

but this works on different levels as

well uh for example learning to play an

instrument also involves getting

information from your senses in order to

reach the goal of playing a song um

winning at chess involves information

about the board and about strategies and

has the goal of winning the game um for

a child with social anxiety the goal of

making friends and and having simple

conversations um can be very difficult

because they have problems processing

social

information um treating a patient

involves getting information uh from the

patient through diagnosis and uh

continuously throughout the treatment

process in order to eventually

successfully achieve the goal of healing

the

patient um so in other words cognition

is basically everywhere uh and this is

especially true today in a world of big

data and uh the ubiquity of information

in all shapes and

sizes um so the field of co uh cognitive

psychology again is concerned with how

this information and how this

knowledge about the world is

gained selectively attended to stored in

memory

retrieved and uh internally

manipulated and um obviously also where

all of these processes can go

wrong um so these processes can take

place within a lab brat uh running

through a maze within a child uh

learning to walk and talk uh within a

person trying to focus on a specific

conversation in a loud bar or at a part

party um or even within a robot that is

trying to navigate a collapsed building

after some kind of disaster uh in order

to find survivors so that it can signal

uh the rescue team where to go um

cognition takes place within a person

suffering from depression and uh a lot

of research is dedicated to figuring out

how the cognitive processes are affected

within clinical

populations um uh I mean cognitive

processes also take place in people who

are deaf or blind and uh here as well a

lot of research and a lot of resources

are dedicated to figuring out how deaf

cognition works and how blind cognition

works and what the brain does in order

to compensate for the lack of certain

cognitive processes by adapting

different cognitive

processes um so because of all of

this cognitive

psychology is arguably perhaps the most

dominant Paradigm in Psychology

today uh cognitive psychology has a very

very wide reach so whether you want to

be a therapist

eventually uh whether you want to work

for some kind of marketing

agency uh whether you want to become a

researcher a social worker it really

doesn't matter what you want to do

eventually you will always require some

form of knowledge on cognitive

psychology

so here's how these videos are

structured I start off giving my general

talk on the topic for each of the

sessions as usual then we'll go through

some of the material relating to what's

in the syllabus and uh the experiments

that you guys did in the

practicals and finally we'll take a look

at some of the deeper questions at the

end of each chapter in the syllabus uh

so it's up to you to decide which of

these sections you uh actually want to

watch I just hope that they're

informative somehow uh and enjoy