Cognitive Psychology

Catalog description

The study of the mind has been the focus of psychology since its inception in the 19th century. Today, the majority of psychological research focuses on the cognitive system and its biological basis. This course will provide an overview of knowledge regarding the components of the human cognitive system (e.g., attention, memory, executive processes) and how they form the basis for higher-order cognitive skills (e.g., language and decision making). The course will provide a history of the field and the methodologies that have been and are currently being used to study the human mind. Each section of the course will include an overview of basic and applied research to demonstrate how knowledge of the cognitive system can be used to enhance human functioning in applied settings and better understand human limitations and tendencies to commit certain types of errors.