Traces the sequences of the different operations within the mind - similar to how a computer is broken down into memory units, an input processor, etc.

Information-Processing approach

Ulric Neisser was a key figure in the cognitive revolution, best known for publishing the first textbook on the subject, titled 'Cognitive Psychology,' in 1967. His book became a foundational text for cognitive psychology courses across the United States, helping to solidify the discipline's place in academia.

Ulric Neisser

Noam Chomsky (1928–), an influential American linguist, played a pivotal role in the early days of the cognitive revolution. Dissatisfied with behaviorism's dominance in psychology, he argued that its exclusive focus on external behavior was short-sighted. Chomsky advocated for re-incorporating the study of mental functioning into psychology to provide meaningful contributions to understanding behavior. He is also known for conceptualizing the notion that language arises in part from innate structures in our brain (Universal grammar).

Noam Chomsky

Behaviorism's influence was significantly stronger in American psychology than in European psychology. The cognitive revolution played a crucial role in bridging this gap by helping to re-establish communication between psychologists in Europe and their American counterparts.

Impact of the Cognitive Revolution on Transatlantic Psychology

Cognitive science is an interdisciplinary approach that emerged as psychologists began to cooperate with scientists from other fields, such as anthropology, linguistics, computer science, and neuroscience. Spurred by the cognitive revolution, the influence and prominence of this interdisciplinary perspective continue to resonate in modern-day psychology.

Cognitive Science as an Interdisciplinary Field

Imagine two psychologists are studying how a rat learns to navigate a maze. The first psychologist, working in the 1940s, focuses exclusively on the rat's speed, number of errors, and the specific sequence of turns it makes. A second psychologist, working in the 1960s after a major shift in the field's dominant perspective, would be more interested in which aspect of the rat's performance?

The cognitive revolution provided the primary impetus for the emergence of cognitive psychology by redirecting the field's focus from purely observable behavior to the scientific study of the mind and its underlying mental processes.

Causal Link Between Cognitive Revolution and Cognitive Psychology

Cognitive therapy is a psychotherapeutic approach grounded in the idea that a person's thoughts directly dictate their emotions and behaviors. By helping clients identify and alter dysfunctional thought patterns, therapists aim to alleviate emotional distress and foster more logical, rational interpretations of situations.

Cognitive Therapy

Emerging in the 1950s, the cognitive revolution was a movement that revived scientific interest in the mind. This shift was driven by new disciplinary perspectives in linguistics, neuroscience, and computer science, which collectively redirected psychological inquiry back toward mental processes after a prolonged period dominated by behaviorism's focus on external behavior.

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University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

- Structuralism
- Behaviorism 
- Cognitive revolution

Early schools of thought/movements in Psychology (leading up to cognitive psychology)

As one of the most historically influential schools of thought, behaviorism aimed to establish psychology as an objective science. This approach centered on studying overt, observable behavior while deliberately deemphasizing the significance of unobservable internal mental processes.

Behaviorism

Goldstein, E. B. (2014). Cognitive psychology: Connecting mind, research and everyday experience. Nelson Education.


Cognitive psychology: Connecting mind, research and everyday experience

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020, April 22). Psychology (2nd ed.). OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction

OpenStax Psychology (2nd ed.) Textbook

The psychological school of thought that posits our experience is made up of combining basic elements of experience, referred to as sensations. Wanted to make a "periodic table of elements" for psychology. It dominated psychology in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Structuralism

Timeline of predecessors to cognitive psychology

Cognitive Revolution (1950s)

Ivan Pavlov's foundational research with dogs significantly expanded the understanding of learning. His studies investigated a form of associative learning that is now recognized as classical conditioning.

Ivan Pavlov

A core methodology in behaviorist research is conducting experiments on animals, based on the premise that the fundamental principles of learning discovered in animals can be generalized to human behavior. This approach assumes that many complex psychological processes can be understood by studying simpler organisms. Edward C. Tolman, a behaviorist, articulated this view by stating, 'I believe that everything important in psychology (except … such matters as involve society and words) can be investigated in essence through the continued experimental and theoretical analysis of the determiners of rat behavior at a choice-point in a maze.'

Use of Animal Models in Behaviorism

John B. Watson (1878–1958) was an influential American psychologist who conducted his most famous work during the early 20th century at Johns Hopkins University. Often considered the father of behaviorism, he championed the shift in psychology's focus away from internal mental processes—which he believed were impossible to analyze objectively—toward the direct observation and control of overt behavior.

John B. Watson

Behaviorism faced criticism for its reductionist and deterministic viewpoints. Critics, particularly from the humanist perspective, argued that its focus on genetics and environment as the sole determinants of behavior was overly simplifying. They contended that this approach disregarded important aspects of the human experience, such as personal control and intentionality.

Critiques of Behaviorism

B. F. Skinner was a pivotal figure in the school of behaviorism, whose contributions to the understanding of the principles of operant conditioning are considered exceptionally significant within psychology.

B. F. Skinner

Over time, the strict principles of behaviorism have evolved, leading to a convergence with other psychological traditions. Notably, cognition has come to play a larger role, with a growing acknowledgment that internal thought processes are significant in learning, challenging the original insistence by some behaviorists that only external environmental triggers mattered.

Cognitive Influence on Behaviorism

John B. Watson's approach to behaviorism was founded on the principle that psychology should be an objective science focused exclusively on measurable, observable behavior. He proposed that all behavior could be understood as a simple stimulus-response reaction, deliberately ignoring internal mental processes. Watson argued that concepts like consciousness were unscientific because they could not be directly seen or measured, and that a legitimate psychological science must limit its study to outward actions.

Watson's Core Principles of Behaviorism

A psychologist is studying why a specific student consistently fails to complete their homework. The psychologist decides to focus only on observable events in the student's environment, such as the time of day the homework is assigned, the presence of distractions like television, and the tangible rewards or punishments the student receives from their parents for completion or non-completion. This approach deliberately avoids speculating about the student's internal feelings of motivation, their thought processes, or their unconscious desires. Which of the following principles is best illustrated by the psychologist's methodology?

In the context of addiction treatment, behavioral therapy plays a crucial role in motivating individuals to engage with their treatment program. It also equips them with practical strategies for managing cravings and preventing relapse.

Role of Behavioral Therapy in Addiction Treatment

B. F. Skinner (1904–1990) was an American psychologist and, like John B. Watson, a prominent behaviorist. He focused on how behavior is affected by its consequences, proposing that reinforcement and punishment are major factors in driving behavior. To carefully study the principles of modifying behavior through these consequences, he developed an operant conditioning chamber, commonly known as a Skinner box.

B.F. Skinner

A major focus within behaviorism was the study of learned behavior and its interaction with the innate, inborn qualities of an organism.

Behaviorist Study of Learned and Inborn Behaviors

In the context of behaviorism, a stimulus-response reaction is the idea that all behavior can be studied as a simple reaction to a stimulus, ignoring unobservable internal mental processes.

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