ENG Comp II- TCP Task 1 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

ENG Comp II- TCP Task 1 - Research Paper Example In this context, Al-Azmi (2013) has provided lots of information on how user behaviors, expectations, and needs are being studied. This paper is selected as a reference since Al-Azmi’s (2013) excellent literature review helps the reader to understand the might of cognitive technologies at full length, especially in the realm of business intelligence. Al-Azmi is a qualified computer engineer with extensive experience in writing journal articles and scientific papers. Bentivoglio, C. A., Bonura, D., Cannella, V., Carletti, S., Pipitone, A., Pirrone, R., .Rossi, P.G. & Russo, G. (2010). Intelligent Agents supporting user interactions within self regulated learning processes.  Journal of e-Learning and Knowledge Society,  6, 27-36. The authors of this journal article clearly show that how adoption of cognitive technologies has proved to be instrumental in improving user satisfaction and performance. Hence, Bentivoglio et al (2010) are of the opinion that development of cognitive tools and techniques with self-regulatory capabilities can give better results. This paper has been selected because the authors have explained several advanced concepts with the help of real world examples. Carlo A. Bentivoglio is a science education specialist from the University of Macerata. Implementation of cognitive technologies in education is one of his team’s current research interests. In this journal article, Dascal and Dror (2005) have successfully attempted to contextualize cognitive technologies as per the demands of contemporary world. The authors show that the cognitive tools can be put in use to improve user performance by the means of process redistributions, semantic understanding of things, text mining, etc. The paper is selected for present research because it contains an exhaustive coverage of the topic that how people can benefit most from intelligences tools and cognitive methods. The authors Dascal (Tel-Aviv University) and Dror (University College of London)

Socioeconomic Status, Parenting Style, and Juvenile Recidivism Research Paper

Socioeconomic Status, Parenting Style, and Juvenile Recidivism - Research Paper Example As the report stresses socioeconomic status interacted with parenting when influencing risks for juvenile delinquency. In addition, individual psychopathology could interact with poor family conditions when influencing recidivism. Moreover, poor parenting can increase the rate of juvenile recidivism, probably due to lack of positive parenting practices, including engagement and support. As for the prevalence of recidivism, it can range from 23% to almost 70%, depending on offenses and other factors. The causes and correlates for recidivism among juvenile delinquents are connected to mental health issues, parenting, gender, and poverty predicted juvenile recidivism. These studies further suggest that violent offenders are at risk of reoffending at more violent crimes, although the treatment they received during their processing or incarceration may reduce recidivism. Treatment programs vary in terms of goals and provision of different long-term or short-term services. Long-term treatm ents that address individual and sub-group needs and have family or social aspects are more effective than short-term treatment. In addition, harsher sentencing with imprisonment increased recidivism. Scholars recommended long-term rehabilitation programs that fit individual and subgroup needs. This paper declares that youths who have delinquent friends and who live in communities with high criminal rates tend to be delinquent too.

The Impact of Sunk Opportunity and Accounting Costs Assignment

The Impact of Sunk Opportunity and Accounting Costs - Assignment Example This means that for there to be an opportunity cost, there ought to be more than one form of option of financial based decision that needs to be made. Again, for there to be opportunity cost, there ought to be the weighing of the number of options available before selecting the best fitting or most profitable of the choices (Adams, 1997). Based on the outline given about opportunity cost above, there is a scenario that was experienced within my department that can be given to fit the meaning and implication of opportunity cost. There was a time that the company acquired new equipment and machinery to be used for heavy duty logistics purposes. The machinery was considered advanced and exotic to what had already been used within the company over the years. It was therefore important that the human resource department in which I belonged to at the time take steps towards getting people to operate and run the new machinery. At the time, there were known experts in a neighboring country who had adequate knowledge and experience in the use of the machinery. The first option for the company was therefore to import these skilled workers and employ them to be regular staff of the company. Among other things, the cost for doing this was to include the travel expense on these people, an international salary quotation that was to be given to them, expatriate benefits, and residential allowances. The other alternative was to train some of the existing employees to take up this role. The training was to last for 6 month s. The cost involved here however included time spent on not using the machinery immediately while these people were receiving training, the fee for the training program, and extra allowance for increased responsibility. Because there were costs involved in each of these cases, it was classified as an opportunity cost. Upon careful consideration, the company settled to go for option one, which was to

Negative Effects Of A Patriarchal Society

Negative Effects Of A Patriarchal Society Many literary men experienced this century as the Age of anxiety while many female counterparts experienced this time as en era of exuberance. An important reason for such a reaction was the increase in female power which marked the new culture of the 20th C. During this time, women of both sides of the Atlantics achieved not only the vote but entered every profession in ever greater numbers. The images of women portrayed by modernist men were largely negative. There was a notable obsession to write about what women should and should not be. In many of her writings, Virginia Woolf observed that while the Victorian cook lived like a leviathan in the lower depthsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The Georgian cook is a creature of sunshine and fresh air (Fernandez, 2009: 1233). In this sense, women were no longer defined through their erotic relationship with men; the task of the woman writer instead was to trace the prospects and problems of an expanding female intellectual community. Accompanied by oth er modernist writers, Virginia composed experimental books concerning the ideas of female power, such the case of to the lighthouse in which Mrs. Ramsay the mystical and mysterious mother, became an emblem of independence and endurance (Fernandez, 2009: 1240). The novel is divided into 3 sections; The window, Time Passes and To the Lighthouse. Each section is narrated in a stream of consciousness style from various narrators. The central plot of the novel centers on the story of a journey to the lighthouse. James Ramsay, son of the Ramsays marriage, wants to achieve this journey at the age of 6 with her mother but only after 10 years he can do this trip. He achieves this aim after he had gained strong feelings of hatred against his father because of causing him a difficult path during childhood.;Had there been an axe handy, a poker, or any weapon that would have gashed a hole in his fathers breast and killed him, there and then, James would have seized it. Such were the extremes of emotion that Mr. Ramsay excited in his childrens breasts by his mere presence; standing, as now, lean as a knife, narrow as the blade of one, grinning sarcastically, not only with the pleasure of disillusioning his son and casting ridicule upon his wife, who was ten thousand times better in every way than he was (James thought), but also with some secret conceit at his own accuracy of judgment (Woolf, 1987: 1). By focusing on the contrast between male a female characters, Virginia Woolf has paid attention to the necessity of each one for the other in mental terms. In this sense, Mr. and Mrs. Ramsay are contrasted with other characters so as to show the discrepancy of a mind belonging of a man or a woman. Mrs. Ramsay is the sentimental one who possesses a poetical mind while Mr. Ramsay is the egoistic one who contrasts his ideas with that of her wife (McCarthy, 2002: 2 ). Mrs. Ramsay is first presented as a typical Victorian mother, preaching to her daughters the superiority of the male sex; Indeed, she had the whole of the other sex under her protection; for reasons she could not explain, for their chivalry and valour, for the fact that they negotiated treaties, ruled India, controlled finance and woe betide the girl-pray Heaven it was none of her daughters! Who did not feel the worth of it (Woolf, 1987: 2). By the time the novel was written, women had to comfort and serve men. That patriarchal society imposed the differences between women and men by proving the stereotypes of feminity and masculinity. Mr. Ramsay is the representative male character whose views of life as object or subject as well as his thinking in linear terms were the result of the intelligence and education achieved through the alphabet theory. It was his splendid mind like the alphabet is ranged in twenty-six letters all in order, then his splendid mind had one by one, firmly and accurately, until it had reached, say, the letter Q. He reached Q. Very few people in the whole of England ever reach Q (Woolf, 1987: 16). On the other hand, Lily Briscoe is the female character affected by this theory of the alphabet as well as by Mr. Tansley way of disapproving her by saying that women cant paint, cant write (Woolf, 1987: 24). In this way, she does not fit into that idealized stereotype of women required by the dominated society of the period. She mirrors Woolf own ideology as regards the inequalities of both sexes (McCarthy, 2022: 2). In fact, Lily Briscoe feels undermined by men; She felt a sudden emptiness, a frustration (Woolf, 1987: 77). Nevertheless, she does not obey to that tradition and tries to impose her independence. By portraying Mrs. Ramsays picture, she fights against the society which idealized the female with domesticity and maternity in order to become a painter (McCarthy, 2002: 3). Women have always fought to break the boundaries between them and men in order to free themselves. Such conflict was also present in literature where men were the ones who dominate while women should address a phallocentric language in their works of art. That is why, lily transcends the barriers separating the experience of life and production of art (Baker:3). The feminine is not beautiful but a masquerade or performance while beauty is questionable since a beautiful woman is a construction from a patriarchal society (Humm, 2007: 239). Mrs. Ramsay is essential since her beauty causes an effect in every character when it is perceived. This beauty is seemed through her different roles; as a beautiful mother when warming her child Yes, of course, if its fine tomorrow, said Mrs. Ramsay. But youll have to be up with the lark, she added; James Ramsay, sitting on the floor cutting out pictures from the illustrated catalogue of the Army and Navy stores, endowed the picture of a refrigerator, as his mother spoke, with heavenly bliss. It was fringed with joy (Woolf, 1987: 1). Or as a woman increasing her beauty through the time, from men perspectives; or even when she dies and Lily Briscoe is portraying her as if she has never died. Lily Briscoe is the artist who comprehends the necessity as regards men and women. She finishes her painting since she perceives the fusion of apparently opposites. Both characters are the vital contrasts in the novel who, however, agree with one striking similarity; Mrs. Ramsay herself at some points deconstructs her role expressing doubts and dissatisfaction about the gender role into which she has been forced (Ingman, 1998: 133). Lily Briscoe instead, has to deconstruct the rigid Victorian gender identities in order to become a painter. Mrs. Ramsay ends on a note of dissatisfaction that she carries a notebook of statistics in her bag, in the hope that thus she would case to be a private woman whose charity was half a sop to her own indignation, half a relief to her own curiosity and become, what with her untrained mind she greatly admired, an investigator elucidating the social problem (Woolf, 1987: 4). She also adds in this her admiration for Lily; there was in Lilyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Something of her own which Mrs. Ramsay liked very much indeed (Woolf, 1987: 53). In the same way, Lily shows admiration for Mrs. Ramsay when she dies; for if she did not do it nobody would do it (Woolf, 1987: 67). Virginia Woolf highlights how strong were the influences and effects caused by the phallocentrism lived during the Victorian period; especially the consequences produced in children and family life. Mr. Ramsay, the domineering and self-centered husband (Woolf, 1987: 1), blocks the maturity of his son James since he does not want to comfort his sons desire of going to the Lighthouse. What he said was true. It was always true. He was incapable of untruth; never tampered with a fact; never altered a disagreeable word to suit the pleasure or convenience of any mortal being, least of all of his own children, who, sprung from his loins, should be aware from childhood that life is difficult; facts uncompromising; and the passage to that fabled land where our brightest hopes are extinguished, our frail barks founder in darkness (here Mr. Ramsay would straighten his back and narrow his little blue eyes upon the horizon), one that needs, above all, courage, truth, and the power to endure (Wool f, 1987: 1). He just imposes obstacles in his children happiness, Mr. Ramsay is the one who controls and dominates his family, women and children. Even when he has too much work, he looks for support in women; he is always trying to be satisfied by her wife;He wanted sympathy. He was a failure, he said. Mrs. Ramsay flashed her needles. Mr. Ramsay repeated, never taking his eyes from her face, that he was a failure. She blew the words back at him. Charles Tansley she said. But he must have more than that. It was sympathy he wanted, to be assured of his genius, first of all, and then to be taken within the circle of life, warmed and soothed, to have his senses restored to him, his barrenness made fertile, and all the rooms of the house made full of life-the drawing-room; behind the drawing-room the kitchen; above the kitchen the bedrooms; and beyond them the nurseries; they must be furnished, they must be filled with life (Woolf, 1987: 18). Mr. Ramsay refuses to let James to fulfill his desire so his son hated him. He hated him for coming up to them, for stopping and looking down on them; he hated him for interrupting them; he hated him for the exaltation and sublimity of his gestures; for the magnificence of his head; for his exactingness and egotism (for there he stood, commanding them to attend to him) but most of all he hated the twang and twitter of his fathers emotion which, vibrating round them, disturbed the perfect simplicity and good sense of his relations with his mother (Woolf, 1987: 18). However, Mr. Ramsay changes his mind after ten years later when his wife Mrs. Ramsay dies. He changes especially his view of the world in linear terms which is left aside. At this precise moment, Lily Briscoe finishes Mrs. Ramsay portrayal making her seem as if she has never died; Lily had taken the wrong brush in her agitation at Mr. Ramsays presence, and her easel, rammed into the earth so nervously, was at the wrong angle. And now that she had put that right, and in so doing had subdued the impertinences and irrelevances that plucked her attention and made her remember how she was such and such a person, had such and such relations to people, she took her hand and raised her brush. For a moment it stayed trembling in a painful but exciting ecstasy in the airà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ That woman sitting there writing under the rock resolved everything into simplicity; made these angers, irritations fall off like old rags; she brought together this and that and then this, and so made out of th at miserable silliness (Woolf, 1987: 80). Mr. Ramsays change is finally achieved by his acceptance to go to the lighthouse with his children; without the presence of his wife but making feel Woolfs aim that it was possible to take out the phallocentrism during the Victorian period (McCarthy, 2002: 3). Adding Lilys painting which represents the change in ideology between the old and the new generation of women at that time (Ingman, 1988: 132). To conclude, in the Lighthouse it is symbolically represented the tensions and negative effects of the age of tyranny felt by most women, children and feminist artists during the Victorian period. James Ramsay could finally fulfilled his dream but, unfortunately, he has grown up full of hatred for his father lack of love and comprehension; Cam, his brother, feels too disappointed and dos not know if joining his brother or fathers side. How many children or men like them there must have been, it is impossible to measure but what is certainly true is that scars from childhood mostly are never cured. children dont forget, children dont forget (Woolf, 1987: 32) That is why, with the stream of consciousness technique as well as Woolfs unique style, the portrayal of a family governmed by such a patriarchal man was magnificently felt; not only for the well developed dramatization of each character but because the complexity of the novel shows that women writers were also capable of creating such significant work of art without following a phallocentric language or a language imposed by men. I was not going to let myself be diminished, neutralized; I would not ever let them make me over their image (McCarthy, 2002: 2).

A Look at Meditation Essay -- Meditation Health Medical Essays

A Look at Meditation   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In this modern day and age, the negative effects of stress are unavoidable. People have tried various methods to help cope with stress, everything from exercise and diet to alternative methods like biofeedback. However, the most effective method to deal with stress is not one of these modern methods but rather a 5,000 year-old idea: Meditation. Meditation not only helps reduce the negative effects of stress, but also leads to a better sense of well-being by uniting mind and body.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The basic principles and practices of meditation are rooted in Hinduism, an Asian religion whose followers believe that the soul is eternal and maintains an eternal relationship with God. Hindus believe that because the soul is eternal, it must reincarnate in various forms to retain this everlasting relationship. Thousands of young people flocked to the ideas of Hinduism in the 1970's to escape the drug culture of the times.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As the troubled youth of the 1970's matures into the professionals of the 1990's, the practice of meditation has been incorporated into the medical field and studied for its effect on the body and mind. The physical practice of meditation slows and calms the body, lowering blood pressure and heart rate with the use of deep breathing exercises.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The calming of the body in itself works to fight stress but those who meditate say that meditation also helps to replenish the mind. The mind, along with the body, needs to feel at peace. In the hustle and bustle of the technological age, we often seek out materialistic means of happiness. Some pursue hobbies that like rock climbing that present both physical and mental challenges to satisfy this need while others stretch out in front of the television to relax.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  We approach our search for a better sense of well-being on a superficial level instead of dealing with the issues that are the root cause of our pain. We don't really understand what happiness is and therefore spend our time and energy trying to get rid of the pain instead of confronting it. If we turn to meditation to guide us through the journey of self-awareness. If an individual is aware of the cause of his pain, he can better understand it and cope instead of letting it determine the course of his life. It is not the actual event that produces a stressful response, but r... ...pier and healthier than she did in college due to the growth of consciousness. "Whatever you apply yourself to, you are more successful."   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  La Fave says that with time and practice, the mind and body can be peaceful and potentially stressful situations no longer have power to cause the body harm.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Maharishi Vedic University is currently putting together a curriculum for the development of human consciousness that not only teaches meditation but also a healthier way of life. They are located off the capitol square at 23 N. Pickney and can be reached at (608)255-4447. La Fave encourages anyone interested in learning about meditation to call or stop by.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The search for a better sense of well-being is a life-long one. What makes an individual feel satisfaction and inner peace changes as time goes by but are rarely achieved without training the mind. Meditation forces its practitioner to return to the self, to confront the obstacles of life, not push them away. Works Cited: "Krishna-izing the World" by Richard Vara, "The Houston Chronicle, Feb. 2, 1991. "Opening Up to Happiness" by Mark Epstein, M.D., "Psychology Today", July August 1993.

It 236 Navigation Assignment

Point Navigation IT/236 Instructor †¦ by †¦ The purpose of this paper is to search for and identify examples of how we would like our site navigation to work and function. I have included three different web sites that all use a similar style of navigation which is the same style I would prefer to use with my site. Since their styles are practically the same, I could agree with or use either one of their styles on my site and be satisfied with the way it functioned and the outcome.The apple web site navigation bar, allows the user to click on the tab of interest when ever he/she desires, and go to that section of the site from which ever page they are currently on. And, it is not difficult for the user to know where they are currently browsing either, because the site shows you by changing the color of the tab you’re viewing. The site also has gorgeous images of its products without slow loading times, which allows navigation of the site at great speeds. The user can easily browse the site jumping from tab to tab.Next on the list of choice is, the World of Warcraft site, it may not be familiar to everyone, however it is in the same category of navigation styles that I’m interested in using for my site. Similar to the apple website navigation, is a series of linear icons that allow the user to click and select an area of interest to load that page from what ever page they are currently viewing. It doesn’t matter if they are on the home page or not. This is the Web-structure that I also plan to use for my site.And, as it is definitely needed, the developers of this site have made it easy for the user to identify their current location on the navigation bar so they do not have to question their current location, or ever feel as though they cannot accomplish something on the site because they are lost. Finally, is the Expedia web site, which is primarily used for booking flights and hotels, rental services, even cruise line vacations and more. One can easily view this web page once it’s been entered and executed in the browser’s address bar (sometimes this site naturally takes a bit longer to load).And upon arriving at the site they can, similarly to the other two sites, click on whichever tab they desire based on their traveling, vacation, or rental needs. Without complication the user is capable of viewing their current location and loading the desired web page from what ever location that may be, as it is not required to return to the home page each time the user wishes to view a new section/tab. To my knowledge, each of these three web sites uses the Web-structure for their sites. Meaning the user doesn’t view the site and its pages in a linear manner.They are free to browse however they wish. And in my opinion, this is probably one of the most effective ways for a site to be constructed. All in all, these three web sites that I chose to display the navigation style that I’m inter ested in, all use the same type of style. They allow the user to comfortably jump to which ever section of the web site that they desire, without any required starting points, and at the same time they keep the user informed of which page they are currently viewing. Image here Image here New Image here New Image here

Catherine Malasa Essay

Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behavior. Psychology is a multifaceted discipline and includes many sub-fields of study areas such as human development, sports, health, clinical, social behavior and cognitive processes.  Because psychology is new a social science, it attempts to investigate the causes of behavior using systematic and objective procedures for observation, measurement and analysis, backed-up by theoretical interpretations, generalizations, explanations and predictions Psychology is an academic and applied discipline that involves the scientific study of mental functions and behaviors[1] with the immediate goal of understanding individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases,[3][4] and by many accounts it ultimately aims to benefit society. In this field, a professional practitioner or researcher is called a psychologist and can be classified as a social, behavioral, or cognitive scientist. Psychologists attempt to understand the role of mental functions in individual and social behavior, while also exploring the physiological and neurobiological processes that underlie certain cognitive functions and behaviors. Question: What Is Cognitive Psychology? Answer: Cognitive psychology is the branch of psychology that studies mental processes including how people think, acquire knowledge, perceive, learn, remember or store information and then apply it. As part of the larger field of cognitive science, this branch of psychology is related to other disciplines including neuroscience, philosophy and linguistics. Cognitive psychology studies in areas of research such as, Perception, attention, reasoning, thinking, problem solving, memory, learning, language, and emotion are areas of research. Classical cognitive psychology is associated with a school of thought known as cognitivism, whose adherents argue for an information processing model of mental function, informed by functionalism and experimental psychology. On a broader level, cognitive science is an interdisciplinary enterprise of cognitive psychologists, cognitive neuroscientists, researchers in artificial intelligence, linguists, human–computer interaction, computational neuroscience, logicians and social scientists. Computational models are sometimes used to simulate phenomena of interest. Computational models provide a tool for studying the functional organization of the mind whereas neuroscience provides measures of brain activity. The core focus of cognitive psychology is on how people acquire, process and store information. There are numerous practical applications for cognitive research, such as improving memory, increasing decision-making accuracy and structuring educational curricula to enhance learning. Until the 1950s, behaviorism was the dominant school of thought in psychology. Between 1950 and 1970, the tide began to shift against behavioral psychology to focus on topics such as attention, memory and problem-solving. Often referred to as the cognitive revolution, this period generated considerable research on topics including processing models, cognitive research methods and the first use of the term â€Å"cognitive psychology. The term â€Å"cognitive psychology† was first used in 1967 by American psychologist Ulric Neisser in his book Cognitive Psychology. According to Neisser, cognition involves â€Å"all processes by which the sensory input is transformed, reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered, and used. It is concerned with these processes even when they operate in the absence of relevant stimulation, as in images and hallucinations†¦ Given such a sweeping definition, it is apparent that cognition is involved in everything a human being might possibly do; that every psychological phenomenon is a ognitive phenomenon. † Noam Chomsky helped to launch a â€Å"cognitive revolution† in psychology when he criticized the behaviorists’ notions of â€Å"stimulus†, â€Å"response†, and â€Å"reinforcement†. Chomsky argued that such ideas—which Skinner had borrowed from animal experiments in the laboratory—could be applied to complex human behavior, most notably language acquisition, in only a superficial and vague manner. The postulation that humans are born with the instinct or â€Å"innate facility† for acquiring lan [pic] [pic] The Muller-Lyer illusion. Psychologists make inferences about mental processes from shared phenomena such as optical illusions. helped to renew interest and belief in the mental states and representations—i. e. , the cognition—that had fallen out of favor with behaviorists. English neuroscientist Charles Sherrington and Canadian psychologist Donald O. Hebb used experimental methods to link psychological phenomena with the structure and function of the brain. With the rise of computer science and artificial intelligence, analogies were drawn between the processing of information by humans and information processing by machines. Research in cognition had proven practical since World War II, when it aided in the understanding of weapons operation. [47] By the late 20th century, though, cognitivism had become the dominant paradigm of psychology, and cognitive psychology emerged as a popular branch. Assuming both that the covert mind should be studied, and that the scientific method should be used to study it, cognitive psychologists set such concepts as subliminal processing and implicit memory in place of the psychoanalytic unconscious mind or the behavioristic contingency-shaped behaviors. Elements of behaviorism and cognitive psychology were synthesized to form the basis of cognitive behavioral therapy, a form of psychotherapy modified from techniques developed by American psychologist Albert Ellis and American psychiatrist Aaron T. Beck. Cognitive psychology was subsumed along with other disciplines, such as philosophy of mind, computer science, and neuroscience, under the cover discipline of cognitive science. Cognitive psychology is the branch of psychology that studies mental processes including how people think, perceive, remember and learn. As part of the larger field of cognitive science, this branch of psychology is related to other disciplines including neuroscience, philosophy and linguistics. The core focus of cognitive psychology is on how people acquire, process and store information. There are numerous practical applications for cognitive research, such as improving memory, increasing decision-making accuracy and structuring educational curricula to enhance learning. Until the 1950s, behaviorism was the dominant school of thought in psychology. Between 1950 and 1970, the tide began to shift against behavioral psychology to focus on topics such as attention, memory and problem-solving. Often referred to as the cognitive revolution, this period generated considerable research on topics including processing models, cognitive research methods and the first use of the term â€Å"cognitive psychology. † The term â€Å"cognitive psychology† was first used in 1967 by American psychologist Ulric Neisser in his book Cognitive Psychology. According to Neisser, cognition involves â€Å"all processes by which the sensory input is transformed, reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered, and used. It is concerned with these processes even when they operate in the absence of relevant stimulation, as in images and hallucinations†¦ Given such a sweeping definition, it is apparent that cognition is involved in everything a human being might possibly do; that every psychological phenomenon is a cognitive phenomenon. † How is Cognitive Psychology Different? †¢ Unlike behaviorism, which focuses only on observable behaviors, cognitive psychology is concerned with internal mental states. Unlike psychoanalysis, which relies heavily on subjective perceptions, cognitive psychology uses scientific research methods to study mental processes. Who Should Study Cognitive Psychology? Because cognitive psychology touches on many other disciplines, this branch of psychology is frequently studied by people in a number of different fields. The following are just a few of those who may benefit from studying cognitive psychology a web site that should be useful if you are studying psychology †¢ PsychBLOG †¢ Course Content †¢ Themes †¢ Investigations Core Studies †¢ Home Top of Form [pic][pic][pic][pic] Bottom of Form Search Holah Top of Form [pic][pic][pic][pic][pic] [pic][pic][pic] Bottom of Form [pic]Core Studies †¢ Cognitive Psychology †¢ Developmental Psychology †¢ Individual Differences †¢ Physiological Psychology †¢ Social Psychology Exam Help †¢ Course Structure †¢ Exam Questions †¢ Exam Technique A Bit More Stuff †¢ About †¢ Links †¢ Further Reading [pic][pic] [pic][pic]Home ;gt; Cognitive Psychology Cognitive Psychology masters in psychology Cognitive psychology studies our mental processes or cognitions. These mental processes that cognitive psychologists focus on include memory, perception, thinking and language. The main assumption of the cognitive approach is that information received from our senses is processed by the brain and that this processing directs how we behave or at least justifies how we behave the way that we do. Cognitive processes are examples of hypothetical constructs. That is, we cannot directly see processes such as thinking but we can infer what a person is thinking based on how they act. Cognitive psychology has been influenced by developments in computer science and analogies are often made between how a computer works and how we process information. Based on this computer analogy cognitive psychology is interested in how the brain inputs, stores and outputs information. However we are much more sophisticated than computer systems and an important criticism directed at the cognitive approach is that it often ignores the way in which other factors, such as past experiences and culture influence how we process information. Loftus and Palmer’s (1974) study of eyewitness testimony demonstrates how the cognitive process of memory can be distorted by other information supplied after an event. This highlights that memory is not merely a tape recording but is a dynamic process which can be influenced by many events such as leading questions. The study also shows that memory is a dynamic process and changes to make sense of experiences. When we behave in a particular way towards another person it is likely that we attempt to understand how the other person is thinking and feeling. Baron-Cohen’s (1997) study shows that our behaviour can be influenced by a cognitive process called a theory of mind. Having a theory of mind enables a person to appreciate that other people have thoughts and beliefs that are different from their own. Baron-Cohen’s study attempts to demonstrate that the central deficit of autism is a failure to fully develop this cognitive process of a theory of mind. It has been argued that humans are unique in possessing the ability to communicate with language which involves very sophisticated cognitive skills. However this argument is challenged by the study from Savage-Rumbaugh et al. (1986) who studied the language capabilities in pygmy chimpanzees. A main strength of cognitive psychology is that this approach has tended to use a scientific approach through the use of laboratory experiments. A strength of using laboratory experiments is that they are high in control therefore researchers are able to establish cause and effect. For example Loftus and Palmer were able to control the age of the participants, the use of video and the location of the experiment. All participants were asked the same questions (apart from changes in the critical words), and the position of the key question in the second was randomised. Furthermore, such standardised experiments are easy to test for reliability. However, as many cognitive studies are carried out in laboratory settings they can lack ecological validity. When cognitive processes such as memory and theory of mind are studied in artificial situations it may be difficult to generalise the findings to everyday life. A further strength of the cognitive approach is the useful contributions that have arisen from this approach. For example, many modern types of therapy are based on the cognitive approach. Understanding cognitive processes allows us to help people to improve their cognitive processes such as memory and language. The Baron-Cohen et al. study enables us to better understand the behaviour of people with autism, Loftus and Palmers’ study highlights the limitations of eye-witness testimonies and the ape research may offer strategies to help children with language difficulties to develop language or to use strategies such as the lexigram system. Furthermore the cognitive approach has become the dominant approach in psychology particularly since it has become allied with neurology. The cognitive approach nowadays is often called cognitive science and is able to provide a very sophisticated understanding of how the brain processes information. A weakness of the cognitive approach relates to the validity of measuring cognitive processes. We can only infer what a person is thinking and therefore the cognitive approach relies heavily on self report measures and observation. There are a number of reasons why we have to question the validity of self report measures and observation. For example we can only infer that adults with autism have theory of mind difficulties from the results of the Eyes Task or that pygmy chimps are really using language when they communicate through a Lexigram. However, because of the developments of brain scanning techniques we are able to record the active parts of the brain more accurately nowadays and cognitive science is providing a more and more detailed description of how cognitive processes work. For example, brain scanning techniques are giving great insights about how memory works. It has been argued that a weakness of the cognitive approaches reliance on the computer analogy leads to a reductionist and mechanistic description of experiences and behaviour. Reductionism is the idea that complex phenomena can be explained by simpler things. The cognitive approach often takes this narrow focus and ignores social and emotional factors which may impact on cognition. For example, the autism study investigated just one central cognitive deficit as an explanation for autism. However the reductionist approach does have strengths. An advantage of the reductionist view is that by breaking down a phenomenon to its constituent parts it may be possible to understand the whole. This type of single mindedness has lead to some great discoveries in psychology as it has in the ‘natural’ sciences.