Course Description Cognitive Psychology – PSYC 240 Hudson Valley Community College

Critically exploring psychology: 1.1 Cognitive psychology | OpenLearn - Open University

Welcome to PSYC 240: Cognitive Psychology

Welcome to the study of the human mind! In this course, we embark on an exciting journey into the cognitive architecture that shapes our everyday lives. Have you ever wondered how your brain effortlessly recognizes a face in a crowd, why your memory suddenly fails you during a high-stakes exam, or how you are able to effortlessly read and comprehend the very words on this screen?

Cognitive psychology is the discipline dedicated to answering these exact “Whats, Whys, and Hows.” Throughout the semester, we will pull back the curtain on our internal mental processes, exploring the intricate mechanics of:

  • Perception & Consciousness: How we convert raw sensory input into a meaningful internal reality.

  • Mechanisms of Attention: How our brains filter out background noise to focus on what matters.

  • The Architecture of Memory: How we acquire, store, and reconstruct information (and why we sometimes forget).

  • Language & Decision-Making: How we communicate complex ideas and navigate choices under pressure.

By studying both historical foundations and modern neuroscientific breakthroughs, you will not only learn how psychological science is conducted, but you will also gain practical strategies to improve your own learning, problem-solving, and future professional career.

Get ready to look at how you think in a whole new way!

COURSE OVERVIEW

 Course Description, Goals, & Objectives

This course provides an introduction to cognitive psychology, focusing on how people acquire, store, communicate and use information. Cognitive psychologists ask questions that many of us ask ourselves in our everyday lives–the Whats? Whys? and Hows?–to determine answers to how we educate, evaluate, and persuade people, and much more. This course focuses on historical and recent theoretical studies and findings related to the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive processes.  Prerequisite(s): PSYC 100.

 At the end of this course students will be able to:

Demonstrate knowledge of theories, theorists, research studies, concepts, and themes in cognitive psychology
Demonstrate understanding of the historical basis in which cognitive psychology was formed as a branch of general psychology
Distinguish the major theoretical objectives of cognitive psychology from other sub-disciplines in the field of psychology
Differentiate the goals of the subareas within the study of cognitive psychology
Evaluate scientific research methods such as descriptive and experimental research and quantitative analysis.
Apply critical thinking to evaluating research, popular articles, and cognitive topics in various media.
Describe how ethical standards apply to psychological science and everyday practices.
Synthesize ideas, interpret quantitative and qualitative data, and present evidence-based arguments in various formats including writing and oral communication.
Apply cognitive theories and knowledge to problem solving and strategies in real-life situations.
Describe how what you have learned in studying cognitive psychology can be used in your professional career.