Milestones in Cognitive Therapy

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(1) Identify at least four key milestones in the field of psychology.

In the broadest sense, cognition evolved to as an intellectual process by which knowledge is gained from perception or ideas" (Sternberg, 2006). From this definition, Cognitive psychology emerged as the study of how people perceive, learn, remember, and think about information originated with Wundt's (1879) study of human thought processes. (p. 2). This process according to Sternberg, of utilizing cognition to study human thought included various methods aimed at determining human thought processes. As the research indicates, Cognitive psychology emerged with is focus on human thought processes. In its origin, cognitive psychology was contrasted with previous theories of human behavior. Research shows that Cognitive Psychology developed as an alternative approach to studying human behavior (Cunia, 2005. The discipline had its foundation in studies of logical analyses, rational knowledge and empirical evidence. A major and first milestone in the development of Cognitive psychology, research shows that as the discipline development Cognitive Psychology was viewed as an alternative approach to studying human behavior (Cunia, 2005).

(a) Mind versus Body Dichotomy Debate

The study of the mind fueled the dichotomous debate of a physical and mental world. The physical world was intricately related to the physical characteristics of the brain (e.g., size, weight, location, blood circulation, neural function, etc.). Relative to this mind vs. body dichotomy, issues arose as to what was most influential in shaping human behavior -the mind or body (or nature vs. nurture) debate. Subsequently, the emphasis on human cognition was viewed as central to the development of psychology as a scientific discipline. Based on Sperry's (1980), analysis, the best way to study concepts of the mind-brain dichotomy is to accept the classical definition of monism and dualism, but "within a mind-body theory in which monalism includes subjective mental properties and causes". For example, the concept of consciousness has been presented from the outset as a view that uses common sense within the scientific view. For instance, based on the nature vs. nurture debate, attention had been given to the role of biological mechanisms as ...