Cognition: definition, main processes and operation

Cognition allows us to perceive our environment, learn from it and remember the information we have obtained, as well as solving problems that arise during life or communicating with other people.

In this article we will describe what exactly is cognition and what are the main cognitive processes.

What is cognition?

The term "cognition" can be defined as the ability of some living things to obtain information of its environment and, from its processing by the brain, to interpret it and give it a meaning. In this sense, cognitive processes depend on both sensory capacities and the central nervous system.

It is a concept of very broad meaning that can be roughly equated with that of "thought". However, as we will see later, this term can also refer to one of the processes or phases that make up cognition: reasoning, which in turn overlaps with problem solving.

In the field of psychology, cognition is understood as the processing of any type of information through mental functions. From a historical point of view this conceptualization derives from the traditional separation between the rational and the affective; however, today emotion is often viewed as a cognitive process as well.

Throughout history, many authors have proposed that cognition, particularly that which takes place consciously, should be the main object of study in scientific psychology. Wilhelm Wundt, Hermann Ebbinghaus or William James they began to study basic cognitive processes such as memory or attention at the end of the 19th century.

Current developments in the study of cognition owe much to theories of processing of information and cognitivist orientation in general, very popular from the middle of the century XX. These paradigms favored the consolidation of interdisciplinary fields as relevant as the neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience.

Main cognitive processes

The faculties that make up cognition are multiple; we will focus only on some of the most general and relevant, such as attention, language and metacognition (or knowledge about one's cognition).

Likewise, and taking into account current knowledge, we will include emotion as a full-fledged cognitive process.

1. Perception

The term "perception" refers to the capture of stimuli from the environment by the sensory organs and its transmission to higher levels of the nervous system, but also to the cognitive process by which we generate a mental representation of this information and interpret it. In this second phase, prior knowledge and attention are involved.

2. Attention

Attention is the general ability to focus cognitive resources on specific mental stimuli or contents; therefore, it has a regulatory role in the functioning of other cognitive processes. This aptitude is divided into several facets, so that attention can be understood as selection, concentration, activation, vigilance or expectations.

3. Learning and memory

The learning it is defined as the acquisition of new information or the modification of existing mental contents (together with their corresponding neurophysiological correlates). Different types of learning have been described, such as classical and operant conditioning models, which are associated with synaptic enhancement mechanisms.

Memory is a concept closely related to learning, since it encompasses the encoding, storage and retrieval of information. In these processes, structures of the limbic system As the hippocampus, the amygdala, the fornix, the nucleus accumbens or the mammillary bodies of the thalamus.

4. Language

Language is the faculty that allows human beings to use complex methods of communication, both orally and in writing. From an evolutionary point of view it is considered a development of vocalizations and gestures nonspecific that were used by our ancestors and that are similar to those used by other animal species.

5. Emotion

Although emotion has traditionally been separated from cognition (understood equivalently to thought), increasing knowledge in psychology has revealed that the two processes work in a similar way. The level of activation of the sympathetic nervous system and the motivation to approach or move away from a stimulus are determining factors in emotion.

• Recommended article: "The 8 types of emotions (and their characteristics)"

6. Reasoning and problem solving

Reasoning is a high-level cognitive process that is based on the use of other more basic ones to solve problems or achieve objectives around complex aspects of reality. There are different types of reasoning depending on how we classify them; If we do it from logical criteria we have deductive, inductive and abductive reasoning.

7. Social cognition

The popularization of social psychology, which took place in the 1960s and 1970s, led to an increase in interest in the study of cognition applied to interpersonal relationships. From this perspective, transcendental models have been developed such as the attribution theories and schema theory on the representation of knowledge.

8. Metacognition

Metacognition is the faculty that allows us to be aware of our own cognitive processes and reflect on them. Particular attention has been paid to metamemory, since the use of strategies to enhance learning and recall is very useful to improve cognitive performance.