Learning and Cognition Paper

Learning and Cognition Paper

Salma El Gharabawy

PSY 390

University of Phoenix

Everyday, people tend to learn something new in their lives; whether through watching other people or through their own experiences, people learn. We all “know” things, and naturally perform a lot of actions, meaning we exhibit in a lot of behaviors. Ever stop to think where all of this came from? Some are innate, while others are only acquired actively; therefore, any knowledge or behavior that we have now and were NOT born with, was one way or the other, “learned”. Learning is an integral part of all living things’ lives; some certain behaviors we are born with, innate (genetically predisposed at birth or maybe even during conception) such as certain reflexes and some specific species behaviors; while others are only gained through learning. Learning, in the field of psychology has been best described as “ . . . .a relatively permanent change in behavior or in behavioral potentiality that results from experience and cannot be attributed to temporary body states such as those induced by illness, fatigue, or drugs” (Hergenhahn & Olson, 2005). That said, in order to get a complete understanding of the mechanism of learning, in regards to the psychology field, it is really important for a person to first understand the specific role that is played by behavior, in learning, the different types of learning as well as the relationship between the two; learning and cognition.

Needless to say, it is a known fact that the actual neurological processes of learning cannot actually be witnessed or observed first hand; therefore, behavior is the only thing that is left to science that can be used in learning more about the learning processes and their mechanisms. The free online dictionary offered a very satisfying definition for learning when it stated, “Learning in psychology, the process by which a relatively lasting change in potential behavior occurs as a result of practice or...