Cognitive Perspective in Psychology 🌍 Basic Idea The Cognitive Perspective focuses on how people think, perceive, remember, and learn. It studies mental processes — how the mind works like a computer that processes information. --- 🧩 Key Focus Areas

Lecture on cognitive in psychology

1. Start with a question: 👉 “When you forget where you kept your mobile phone — what actually happened? Did your brain stop working, or did your mind miss some step?” Discuss: Students will likely say “I wasn’t paying attention.” You can respond: “Exactly! The cognitive perspective focuses on these mental activities — attention, memory, thinking, and problem-solving — that explain how we behave.”

2. Simple definition: Cognitive perspective studies how people think , understand , learn , and remember information. Example: When you prepare for a quiz, you use attention to focus, memory to retain, and thinking to recall — all of which are cognitive processes.

3. Historical Background (5 min) Before the 1950s, psychology was mostly about behaviorism — only what can be seen. Behaviorists said: “We can’t study the mind because it’s invisible!” But in the 1950s–60s, psychologists realized that the mind is not a “black box.” We can study how it works by observing how people perceive , remember , and solve problems .

4. This movement was called the Cognitive Revolution. Example: When two people see the same traffic accident but describe it differently — it’s not behavior but mental interpretation (perception) that differs.

5. Core Idea of Cognitive Perspective Main idea: Humans are information processors — similar to computers. We receive input (from the environment) → process it → and produce output (behavior or decision).

6. Process Meaning Simple Example Attention Selecting what to focus on Listening to teacher while ignoring background noise Perception Understanding sensory information Interpreting a friend’s expression as anger or worry Memory Storing and recalling information Remembering what you studied for a quiz Thinking Using information to solve problems Deciding which topic to study first Language Using symbols and words to communicate Expressing your thoughts in English or Urdu

7. Example (Daily life): When you’re cooking and someone calls your name, your attention shifts. If you forget to add salt later, that’s because your memory got interrupted.

8. Psychologist Contribution Example for Students Jean Piaget Studied how children’s thinking develops in stages (sensorimotor, preoperational, etc.) Small kids think differently — e.g., a 5-year-old may think the moon follows them because their thinking is egocentric. Ulric Neisser Coined the term Cognitive Psychology (1967) and emphasized studying how people process information Helped make psychology more “mental” again after behaviorism. George Miller Discovered that short-term memory can hold about 7 ± 2 items That’s why we remember a phone number easily if it’s in small chunks (e.g., 0300–1234567). Noam Chomsky Showed that humans are born with an innate ability to learn language Children quickly learn grammar even without being taught. Albert Ellis & Aaron Beck Used cognitive principles to create therapies — changing negative thinking patterns In therapy, when a client says “I always fail,” the therapist helps them identify and correct this faulty thought.

9. Perspective Focus Example Behavioral Behavior is shaped by environment — rewards/punishments “I study hard because my teacher appreciates me.” Cognitive Thoughts and interpretations guide behavior “I study hard because I believe it will make me successful.”

10. Summary line: Behaviorists ask “What happens to you?” Cognitive psychologists ask “What do you think about what happens to you?”

11. Applications of Cognitive Perspective (8–10 min) 🎓 In Education Helps design better teaching methods. Understanding attention and memory improves study techniques. Example: Using mind maps or summaries improves recall. 🧍‍♀️ In Therapy (Cognitive Therapy / CBT) Thoughts cause feelings and behavior. Changing negative thoughts helps people feel better. Example: A student thinking “I’ll never pass” can be helped to think “If I plan and study daily, I can improve.” 💻 In Artificial Intelligence Cognitive principles are used to make computers “think” — like in Google search, chatbots, and smart assistants. 💡 In Daily Life Decision-making, planning, remembering names, solving problems, and interpreting people’s behavior — all use cognitive processes.