1. Psychology 360 Theories of Learning
David Allbritton

2. Approaches to Learning
Information Processing
Mental processes and representations
Associationist (Behaviorist)
Connectionist
Neuro-cognition
Evolutionary Psychology

3. Introduction to Cognitive (Information Processing) Psychology
Metaphors for the mind
A brief historical perspective
Influences on Cognitive Psychology

4. Metaphors for the Mind Aristotle’s wax tablet (analog representation)
Locke’s chalkboard (passive learning)
Telephones and radios (information theory)
Computers (information processing theories)
Networks (connectionism)

5. A Brief History (1) Structuralism -- Wundt structure (representation)
mentalism
reductionism
Criticized for:
restriction to low-level processes (ignoring much of thinking)
static -- no interest in process

6. A Brief History (2) 2. Functionalism – William James
function (process)
high-level thought processes
"Stream of consciousness"
Criticized for:
lack of rigor

7. A Brief History (3) 3. Behaviorism – Watson, Skinner
external stimuli and observable behavior (S-R)
"black box" – no mentalism
methodological rigor
associationist
Criticized for:
ignored internal thought

8. A Brief History (4) 4. The Cognitive Revolution (1960's)
mentalism returns
objective measures retained (RT, accuracy)
mental representations and mental processes become the object of study

9. Influences on Cognitive Psych
Behaviorism
Verbal Learning tradition (Ebbinghaus)
Human factors (WWII)
Information Theory (signal detection)
Computer Science (hardware/software)
Linguistics (rules and symbols)

10. 3 Assumptions of Cog. Psych:
Mental processes exist and can be studied scientifically.
Humans are active seekers and processors of information.
Reaction time and accuracy can be used to measure mental processes.