Most of the activities involve the ability of human beings to comprehend and bring together different aspects of life. The activities have brought the need for the investigations of the mechanisms of human thinking and the quality of artificial intelligence. The coordination of different activities of human beings has led the arising need to study the motives of different people, their sensation, their perception, their learning speed and the ability to remember. The study of cognition enables a person to improve the understanding the activities of other people and the way they perform their duties. There are various ways that different scholars have used to explain cognition. This paper is a reflection of the two scholarly articles.
Strayer " Johnston (2001) have expounded my understanding of cognition in various ways. To begin with, the article by Strayer " Johnston (2001) has enabled me to understand that when humans are involved in activities that may have emotions, they have a great influence on the current activity they undertake. Strayer " Johnston (2001) suggested that the drivers who were using cellular phones missed traffic signals double. This shows that it is very much important for a person to entirely concentrate on the activity at hand to avoid adverse outcomes. While the drivers are on road, it is recommended that they concentrate on the road to avoid accidents. Cellular phones are influential to the user as they may influence their thinking because conversations may get emotional. The activities that require a lot of attention may be influenced by the mental state of a person.
When there is the need for important information, either from an adult or a minor, it is prudent and ethical that a person uses intelligence to obtain it. Information about crimes or national security might require investigators to use a lot of intelligence to avoid demonstrations or mistrust in government. When interrogating a witness, the application of force should not be used since it violates their autonomy. It is proven that when force is used, in most cases, many witnesses do not respond accordingly as they consider it as oppression. The witnesses resort to giving false or distorted information. They react this way to avoid more interactions and this becomes a defense mechanism.
Information is very important in communicating to other people and it determines the way we relate with other people (Zaragoza et al., 2001). The activities we perform are much influenced by the information we receive. A good illustration is that information of good news. Naturally, a large percentage of people shall receive the information with great joy and it shall in most cases be spread to other people. A driver on road might get such news and be over-excited. Driving faster may result so that they can join the others to celebrate. It is very difficult to control one’s emotions and this occasionally leads to making un-intended mistakes as there is a divided attention.
Strayer " Johnston (2001) realized that the increase of accidents on roads needed to be investigated to come up with the causes of the increased accidents. The investigators set a research question on the effects of cellular phone use on roads to communicate as the major cause and advocated to find solutions. Strayer " Johnston (2001) also noticed increased errors in information collection. The authors used various methods to conduct their research questions. The authors collected data from participants. They used a random method to avoid bias. Scientific approach was used to enhance the reliability of data.
Strayer " Johnston (2001) had a major strength associated with data collection. Obtaining data from participants is effective due to their availability. The use of human subjects is associated with ethical concerns. However, the study by Strayer " Johnston (2001) had limitations, especially the experimental method of data collection. This method did not measure the performance of a single task, leading to shadowed outcomes. The method used by Zaragoza et al. (2001) was effective in addressing the research question as it has a large field of study and its validity is worthy. However, the study did not use a large sample size, thereby, limiting the reliability and validity of the results.
The two articles improved my understanding of cognition in a broad way. The methods used to analyze the data were appropriate and the research questions were appropriately designed. The sensation, perception, the learning ability and memory of people have been addressed clearly in the article. The articles have helped me to incorporate the studies of thinking and means of investigating the mechanisms of human thinking. Relationships are important to the survival of humans. They enable people to learn from each other and avoid significant mistakes. Relationships also improve the ability of humans to manage their emotions and avoid addressing unplanned activities. Interactions enhance the social cognitive ability of humans. Responsible decision making is also an important skill that enables people to solve disagreements between them and make appropriate choices that bring development.
References
.Strayer, D. L., " Johnston, W. A. (2001). Driven to distraction: Dual-task studies of simulated driving and conversing on a cellular telephone. Psychological science, 12(6), 462-466.
Zaragoza, M. S., Payment, K. E., Ackil, J. K., Drivdahl, S. B., " Beck, M. (2001). Interviewing witnesses: Forced confabulation and confirmatory feedback increase false memories. Psychological Science, 12(6), 473-477.
