![]() Psychologists have always been trying to organize the inner workings of the mind. They saw the mind like this computer, and began to explore this analogy further. They saw how computers could store, retrieve, and collect information that applies to various problems, decisions, and behaviors. Instead, psychologists began to gravitate toward the information processing approach. The stimulus, a red light, can produce a variety of responses that may be chosen based on the time of day, state, your mood, etc. They believed that our behaviors were merely a response to stimuli, something that could be altered or “conditioned.” You can see how examples like turning on a red light can challenge the idea of Behaviorism. Behaviorists took a very deterministic approach. The information processing approach began to uphold cognitive psychology as the replacement for Behaviorism, starting in the 1950s or so. Basic Ideas of Information Processing Theory This video will take you through the basic ideas within information processing theory, and show how this theory has influenced the way that we view the mind’s inner workings. It remains a fundamental idea within the world of cognitive psychology. In fact, the information processing approach is relatively new. But this analogy didn’t always stick for psychologists and neurologists. We can easily connect the information in our memories to data on a hard drive. Comparing our minds to a computer makes sense. Nowadays, the idea that the mind “processes information like a computer” is kind of a given. Maybe you know that there is a high police presence in the area, and wait for the green light “just in case.” There is so much that goes into this one decision. You may decide to turn, even when it’s illegal, because you have to get to the hospital in time for your partner’s birth. If the guy behind you is honking and making a scene, you might not turn to anger them even more. Once you have processed all of the information that you have about traffic laws, the direction you want to go, and the scene in front of you, then you begin to make your decision. You must also gather, and have previously collected, a lot of information within your mind. ![]() There are a lot of factors that play into this one decision. ![]() As you take in your surroundings, you will also have to look for pedestrians, bikers, or other things that may prevent you from turning. Again, you may have to search for a sign that might tell you otherwise. If you want to turn left, you may have to retrieve information about what state you are in and whether you are turning onto a one-way street. But you remember that sometimes, there are signs next to the traffic light that give specific instructions about not turning on red. In the United States, you may be able to turn on red. Before you know whether or not you can turn, you have to retrieve some information from your memory and take in the sights around you. The answer to this question isn’t so simple. If you come to a red light, can you turn before the light turns green? ![]()
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