The Psychology Book (50 page)

century, such as perception,

outside psychology. Improvements

information-processing analogy to

consciousness, and memory,

in communications and computer

psychology was a student of Frederic

were largely neglected.

technology, and possibilities opened

Bartlett’s at Cambridge, Donald

There were inevitably some

up by artificial intelligence—then

Broadbent, who had been inspired

exceptions. Psychologists Frederic

a growing field thanks to advances

by the work of computer scientist

Bartlett of the UK and Bluma

made during World War II—led to

Alan Turing and communications

Zeigarnik of Russia were both

a new way of thinking about the

expert Colin Cherry in the 1940s

studying the process of memory in

brain: as an information processor.

and 50s. But the turning point came

the 1920s and 30s, anticipating the

The mental processes, referred to

in the US, where behaviorism

work of later cognitive psychologists.

as “cognitive processes” or

began to be criticized for its

In Germany, Wolfgang Köhler’s

“cognition,” which behaviorism

limitations, leading to a so-called

work on problem-solving and

would not or could not examine,

“cognitive revolution” in the late

decision-making drew on Gestalt

now had a model for psychologists

1950s. In the vanguard of this

COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 159

Endel Tulving

Aaron Beck outlines

Gordon H. Bower

Elizabeth Loftus’s book

produces a series

cognitive behavior

reports experiments

Eyewitness Testimony

of seminal papers

therapy
(CBT) in

that suggest
memory

exposes the
fallibility

on memory and

Depression: Causes

retrieval
is

of eyewitness

retrieval processes.

and Treatment
.

mood-dependent.

memory
as evidence.

1960S

1967

1978

1996

1967

1971

1992

2001

Ulric Neisser coins

Roger Shepard
and

In
Facial Expressions of

In
The Seven Sins

the term
“cognitive

Jacqueline Metzler

Emotion
, Paul Ekman

of Memory,
Daniel

psychology”
in his

publish research

suggests that certain
facial

Schacter details

book of the same title.

showing that people are

expressions are universal

ways our

able to mentally rotate a

and therefore biological.

memories can

3-D object.

be erroneous
.

dramatic shift of approach were the

Loftus, Daniel Schacter, and

behavioral therapy and meditation

Americans George Armitage Miller

Gordon H. Bower. There was also a

techniques, soon became standard

and Jerome Bruner, who in 1960

reappraisal of Gestalt psychology:

treatment for disorders such as

co-founded the Center for Cognitive

Roger Shepard reexamined ideas of

depression and anxiety, and led to

Studies at Harvard University.

perception, and Wolfgang Köhler’s

a movement of positive psychology

work on problem-solving and

advocating mental wellbeing rather

A new direction

decision-making resurfaced in the

than just treating mental illness.

Miller and Bruner’s ground-breaking

theories of Daniel Kahneman and

At the beginning of the 21st

work led to a fundamental change

Amos Tversky. And, perhaps for the

century, cognitive psychology is

of direction in psychology. Areas

first time, cognitive psychologists,

still the dominant approach to the

that had been neglected by

including Bower and Paul Ekman,

subject, and has had an effect on

behaviorists, such as memory,

made a scientific study of emotion.

neuroscience, education, and

perception, and emotions, became

But it wasn’t only the theories of

economics. It has even influenced

the central focus. While Bruner

behaviorists that were overturned;

the nature–nurture debate; in the

incorporated the concepts of

Freud’s psychoanalytic theory and

light of recent discoveries in

cognition into existing theories

its followers were also criticized for

genetics and neuroscience,

of learning and developmental

being unscientific. Aaron Beck

evolutionary psychologists such

psychology, Miller’s application of

found that cognitive psychology

as Steven Pinker have argued