Cognitive theory

A cognitive theory of learning sees second language acquisition as a conscious and reasoned thinking
process, involving the deliberate use of learning strategies. Learning strategies are special ways of
processing information that enhance comprehension, learning or retention of information. This
explanation of language learning contrasts strongly with the behaviourist account of language learning,
which sees language learning as an unconscious, automatic process.

Cognitive Processes

What are cognitive processes? We can understand cognitive processes as the procedures we use to
incorporate new knowledge and make decisions based on said knowledge. Different cognitive functions
play a role in these cognitive processes: perception, attention, memory, reasoning… Each of these
cognitive functions work together to integrate the new knowledge and create an interpretation of the
world around us.

-ATTENTION AS A COGNITIVE PROCESS: Attention is the cognitive process that allows us to concentrate
on a stimuli or activity in order to process it more thoroughly later. Attention is a fundamental cognitive
function for the development of daily situations, and it is used in the majority of tasks that we carry-out
day-to-day. In fact, it has been considered a mechanism that controls and regulates the rest of the
cognitive processes: from perception (we need attention to be able to pay attention to the stimuli that
don't reach our senses) to learning and complex reasoning.

-MEMORY AS A COGNITIVE PROCESS: Memory is the cognitive function that allows us to code, store, and
recover information from the past. Memory is a basic process for learning, as it is what allows us to
create a sense of identity. There are many types of memory, like short-term memory, which is the ability
to retain information for a short period of time (remember a telephone number until we can write it
down on paper), and long-term memory, which are all of the memories that we keep for a long period of
time. Long-term memory can be broken into smaller groups, declarative memory and procedural
memory. Declarative memory consists of the knowledge that was acquired through language and
education (like knowing that World War II ended in 1945), as well as knowledge learned through
personal experiences (remembering what my grandma used to make for me). Procedural memory refers
to learning though routines (learning how to drive or ride a bike). Other types of memory are auditory
memory, contextual memory, naming, and recognition.

-PERCEPTION AS A COGNITIVE PROCESS: Cognitive perception allows us to organize and understand the
world throgh stimuli that we receive from our different senses, like sight, hearing, taste, smell, and
touch. While most people are familiar with the common senses, there are some other, less-known
senses, like propioception (stimuli which unconsciously perceives our position in space and judges
spatial orientation) and interoception (which is the perception of our organs in our bodies. It is what
allows us to know when we're hungry or thirsty). Once the stimuli is received, our brain integrates all of
the information, creating a new memory

Indicate which country or region you are in to view specific content.

Cognition and Cognitive Science

This page is for information only. We do not sell any products that treat conditions. CogniFit's products
to treat conditions are currently in validation process. If you are interested please visit CogniFit Research
Platform

What is Cognition? Meaning and Definition

What is cognition? The word comes from the Latin root cognoscere, which means “to know”. By
cognition, we are usually referring to everything that is related to knowledge. In other words, the
accumulation of information that we have acquired through learning or experience.

The most accepted definition is the ability to process information through perception (stimuli that we
receive through our different senses), knowledge acquired through experience, and our personal
characteristics that allow us to integrate all of this information to evaluate and interpret our world. It is
the ability that we have to assimilate and process the information that we receive from different sources
(perception, experience, beliefs, etc.) and convert them into knowledge. It includes different cognitive
processes, like learning, attention, memory, language, reasoning, decision making, etc., which are part
of our intellectual development and experience.

Different disciplines have studied it, like neurology, psychology, anthropology, philosophy, etc. However,
it was cognitive psychology that started to look in-depth intohow processing information influences
behavior and what relation different mental processes had in the acquisition of knowledge. Cognitive
psychology emerged in the late 1950's as the opposition to the prevalent behaviorism of the time.
Authors such as Piaget and Vigotsky revolutionized the scientific panorama with their theories about
development and cognitive learning, which are still relevant today. Starting in the 60s, interest in
cognition and cognitive skills grew exponentially, and the research that it generated allowed us to learn
more about these processes.

Advancements in neuroimaging has helped to contribute physiological and neuroanatomical

understanding to these studies. This is important for understanding cognitive processes and how they
influence our behavior and emotions.

What is cognition

Cognitive Processes

What are cognitive processes? We can understand cognitive processes as the procedures we use to
incorporate new knowledge and make decisions based on said knowledge. Different cognitive functions
play a role in these cognitive processes: perception, attention, memory, reasoning… Each of these
cognitive functions work together to integrate the new knowledge and create an interpretation of the
world around us.

-ATTENTION AS A COGNITIVE PROCESS: Attention is the cognitive process that allows us to concentrate
on a stimuli or activity in order to process it more thoroughly later. Attention is a fundamental cognitive
function for the development of daily situations, and it is used in the majority of tasks that we carry-out
day-to-day. In fact, it has been considered a mechanism that controls and regulates the rest of the
cognitive processes: from perception (we need attention to be able to pay attention to the stimuli that
don't reach our senses) to learning and complex reasoning.

-MEMORY AS A COGNITIVE PROCESS: Memory is the cognitive function that allows us to code, store, and
recover information from the past. Memory is a basic process for learning, as it is what allows us to
create a sense of identity. There are many types of memory, like short-term memory, which is the ability
to retain information for a short period of time (remember a telephone number until we can write it
down on paper), and long-term memory, which are all of the memories that we keep for a long period of
time. Long-term memory can be broken into smaller groups, declarative memory and procedural
memory. Declarative memory consists of the knowledge that was acquired through language and
education (like knowing that World War II ended in 1945), as well as knowledge learned through
personal experiences (remembering what my grandma used to make for me). Procedural memory refers
to learning though routines (learning how to drive or ride a bike). Other types of memory are auditory
memory, contextual memory, naming, and recognition.

-PERCEPTION AS A COGNITIVE PROCESS: Cognitive perception allows us to organize and understand the
world through stimuli that we receive from our different senses, like sight, hearing, taste, smell, and
touch. While most people are familiar with the common senses, there are some other, less-known
senses, like propioception (stimuli which unconsciously perceives our position in space and judges
spatial orientation) and interoception (which is the perception of our organs in our bodies. It is what
allows us to know when we're hungry or thirsty). Once the stimuli is received, our brain integrates all of
the information, creating a new memory.

-LANGUAGE AS A COGNITIVE PROCESS: Language is the ability to express our thoughts and feelings
through spoken word. It is a tool that we use to communicate and organize and transmit information
that we have about ourselves and the world. Language and thought are developed together and are
closely related, they mutually influence each other.

-THOUGHT AS A COGNITIVE PROCESS: Thought is fundamental for all cognitive processes. It allows us to
integrate all of the information that we've received and to establish relationships between events and
knowledge. To do this, it uses reasoning, synthesis, and problem solving (executive functions).

-LEARNING AS A COGNITIVE PROCESS: Learning is the cognitive process that we use to incorporate new
information into our prior knowledge. Learning includes things as diverse as behaviors or habits, like
brushing our teeth or learning how to walk, and knowledge that we learn through socialization. Piaget
and other authors have talked about cognitive learning as the process of information entering our
cognitive system and changing it.

Examples of cognitive processes

Here are some examples of situations where you might use cognitive processes:

-Dreaming

When humans dream, they often have active sensory perceptions that include depictions of real-world
and imagined scenarios. We may create such scenarios from our memories, or there may be another
source for the information we perceive during dreams. Brain scans show that humans' brains are quite
active during REM sleep, the stage of sleep where dreams occur.

-Driving

Driving is an example of procedural knowledge, which is cognition that occurs without conscious recall.
Another example of procedural knowledge is riding a bike. You perceive stimuli while driving, such as
seeing other cars on the road, but once you are good at driving, you store the actions in another
unconscious part of the brain that automatically activates when you start your car.

-Reading a book

Human brains can create expansive worlds that exist only within the confounds of our minds, especially
when we read books. You translate sensory information from your eyes into thoughts and memories,
allowing you to visualize the setting and plot of the book and understand symbols and themes. For
instance, you may imagine what characters look like when interacting and the scenery surrounding the
protagonist throughout their journey.

-Doing homework

Doing homework is an example of cognition that relies on conscious thought, attention and memory.
Recalling information learned during class and reading provided materials for learning more about
school subjects are all intensive uses of cognition. For instance, you may remember how to solve a math
problem but read a portion of your textbook to double-check your answer.

• formal Linguistic

In mathematics, computer science and linguistics, a formal language consists of words whose symbols
are taken from the alphabet and form-aligned according to a certain set of rules.

The alphabet of the formal language consists of symbols, letters or tokens that are combined into strings
of the language.[1] Each concatenated string of symbols will be called an alphabet of words. A formal
language is often defined through formal grammar such as regular grammar or context-free grammar
consisting of constructs.

In computer science, formal languages are used among other things as the basis for describing the
grammar of a programming language and the formal version will constitute the part of natural language
in which words will represent concepts associated with certain semantics or meanings.The first formal
language is thought to have been used by Gottlob Frege in the book Begriffsschrift (1879) which Frege
describes as a "formal language of pure thought."[2]

Example :

There is a rule that describes a formal language L over the alphabet Σ = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, +, =}:

-Any containing string that does not contain a "+" or "=" and does not start with a "0" is an L.

-The string "0" is L.

-A string containing "=" is L only if there is one "=" separating the two valid strings will be L.

-A string containing "+" but not "=" is L if every "+" in the string separates two valid strings it will be L.

-There are no strings in L other than those implied by existing rules.

According to these rules, the string "23+4=555" is L, but the string "=234=+" is not. This formal language
expresses natural numbers, but only expresses what they look like (syntax), not based on meaning
(semantics). For example, there is nothing in this rule to indicate that "0" means zero, "+" means
addition, "23+4=555" is incorrect, etc.

Formal definition sentences contain explanatory sentences that are based on acceptable logic because
they are in accordance with what is happening in society. Sentences with formal definitions are also
called terminological definitions which do not contain similes and have two meanings or combine two
phrases. Examples of formal definition sentences:

a. Humans are the smartest living creatures because they have reason.

b. Geology comes from the Greek "geo" which means earth and "logos" which means reason.

c. Scouting is an activity outside of school that aims to shape the superior character of students.