Cognitive and Social Psychology: Development, Theories, and Impact

This essay provides a detailed overview of cognitive and social psychology, examining the development of cognitive behavior within a social context. It explores various theories of cognitive development, including Piaget's theory, sociocultural theory, core-knowledge theory, and information-processing theory. The essay also delves into theories of memory, such as the multi-store model, levels of processing, and working memory model, along with their practical applications. Furthermore, it discusses theories of social psychology, like attribution theory and cognitive dissonance, and their relevance. The interaction between individuals and society, the influence of groups on individual behavior, and the significance of social relationships are also analyzed. The essay concludes by emphasizing the profound impact of the environment and society on an individual's cognitive and social development.

Running Head: COGNITIVE AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
Cognitive and Social Psychology
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Introduction
Cognitive development is said to be the field of study in human psychology which is
related to the development of a child in terms of information processing, development of brain,
perception of skills and its development and learning their first language. These developments in
children take place according to the type of society in which they grow at young age. There are
some sociological factors which determine the development of a child’s brain towards cognitive
factors and develop a psychology among them. In the following discussion cognitive
development in a social context is illustrated with the theories of cognitive development. Other
theories related to the memory and its applications, theory of psychology, individual interaction
with society and community, influence of group on an individual behavior and theories of social
relationships and discussed briefly. All these theories of psychology holistically establish the
cognitive psychology.
Cognitive Development in a Social Context
Development of cognitive behavior and content in a human being comes from the
creation of environmental practices which a child experiences and observes their parents and
other partners do around them. These developmental practices are dependent on the type of
environment created around a child by the adults (Berntsen 2017). The information processed by
a child is in the same way its parents would have perceived it when they were children and their
parents before them since the genesis of the species. The social concepts which a child
understands and learns is from the behavior and practices which are followed by the adults
around them. It completely depends on the type of society in which the child is living which will
determine its cognitive development. For example a child learns the same language which is
spoken by his parents in his home (Bremner 2017). The cognitive development of a child’s brain

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happens mainly from its surroundings. The brain acts in the same way as it is trained to act by
the environment in which the child lives.
THEORIES OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
There are generally four theories of Cognitive Development which are considered
standard in the context of cognitive psychology. The first one is Piaget’s Theory, the second one
is Sociocultural Theory, third one is Core-Knowledge Theory and the fourth one is Information-
processing Theory. The most relevant and important among all these theories is Piaget’s Theory
which states that child is a scientist and they construct their own knowledge through
experimenting (Banks 2012). It states that children learn on their own without interference of any
adults. It I established that children are intrinsically motivated to learn and they do not need any
motivation and rewards from adults for their learning. According to Piagent there are four stages
of cognitive development which are qualitative change in which children of different ages think
differently, broad applicability in which knowledge acquired by children increases its scope and
outlook, brief transitions which states that transition to higher levels of thinking may not be
continuous and the last one is invariant thinking in which all the stages of thinking are equal
(Forde 2009).
Theories of Memory and Their Application to Practice
There are many theories of memory which state that how a person remembers anything.
An important theory of memory is Multi-Store Model in which there are 3 states of memory:
sensory, short-term and long term. Another theory is Levels of Processing, according to which
the quality of memory depends upon the level of processing information. There are two types of
processing, shallow processing and deep or semantic processing. Third model of memory is

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Working Memory Model (Kingsley 2017). This theory is based on how the information is
filtered and is available when the memory is recalled according to the need. Another theory of
memory is Miller’s Magic Number which relates to the short-term memory. A person has a
capacity of retaining things for some time after that he forgets it when not revised. It is called the
theory of Memory Decay. It is about measuring the longevity of a memory that how long it will
last if not revised and in what time it will be completely forgotten (Seebohm et al. 2012).
Theories of Social Psychology and Their Application to Practice
There are quite a number of social psychology theories which are applied in different
circumstances. Attribution theory is one in which people explain the characteristics of others. It
is divided into two parts, the first one is situational attribute which is derived from external
factors and other one is dispositional which is concerned with internal factors. Theory of
cognitive dissonance relates to the concept of the self and its importance. If some other person
contradicts the belief of a self then the person concerned feels uncomfortable about the situation
(Spiegel and Parent 2017). Drive Theory is concerned with the presence of an audience which
makes a person conscious and develops a sense of arousal. Elaboration likelihood Theory
illustrates that if a memory is created out of persuasion then it exists due to the “likelihood of
cognitive elaborations”. Self-verification theory states that a person has a desire to be
understood and known by its peers. Social-comparison theory states that a person knows about
himself by comparing his nature to other people around him (Seebohm et al. 2012).
Individual Interaction with Society and Community
Individual is the most basic unit of a society. It is the cumulative effect of the individual’s
psychology which shapes the nature and kind of a community. If people do not interact with each

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other, there will be no community. An individual learns to interact and develop cognitive
psychology through the community in which his lives. The interaction on individual in a society
is determined by the right and wrong practices which a community is in consensus with
(Kingsley 2017). Each society is governed by its own values and rules which is learnt by the
individual. There are certain types of interactions which may be a glance, a handshake, a
conversation or waving of a hand. The theory of interaction of an individual with a society can
be categorized in three phases which are functionalist, inter-actionist and culture and personality.
There are some basic etiquettes of interaction which an individual has to learn from the society to
hold a substantial position in their respective community (Van Stekelenburg and Klandermans
2017).
Influence of the Group on Individual Behavior
Groups are made by the individuals, and they are governed by their own set of morns
which are formed by the set of values of the respective individuals of the group. Norms of the
group changes as the group and the individual grows in it. The values and methods of interaction
determine the collective behavior of the group. Whereas, the changes in ways of interaction have
direct impact on an individual. There are certain norms such as performance norms which
determine the rules with which a person should do their work in a group (Seebohm et al. 2012).
Appearance norms, which determines the looks and physical appearance of an individual. Social
Arrangement norms, which are concerned about the social etiquettes of a person. Resource
allocation norms guide a person in the business environment. All these norms of a group
influence the behavior of an individual which is a reflection of the collective behavior of a group
on an individual (Smith and Haslam 2017).

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Theories of Social Relationships and Its Application in Social/Community Settings
Man is a social animal and to survive and develop himself in his life he needs to make
social relationships with people around him. These social relationships become the major part of
an individual’s life as one gets engrossed in them and lead their entire life complying with the
needs of these relationships. The most basic social relationship which a person develops is
family. In this relationship a person develops an emotional and physical bond which leads to
their development on an individual aspect and development of the entire society on a collective
basis(Banks 2012). There are four theories of social relationship which are Communal Sharing in
which people share same thoughts and feelings unconditionally between themselves. Authority
ranking which shares a relationship of subordination. Equality Matching, a theory in which
people tend to establish balance in the society. Market pricing theory which measure the socially
meaningful and beneficial relationships accordingly (Forde 2009).
Conclusion
From the above discussion about the cognitive and social psychology it can be concluded
that a development of a child’s psychology is determined by the environment in which he lives at
young age. There are a number of factors which determines the cognitive development of a
child’s brain and shapes it to comply with the rules and regulations, values and etiquettes
followed in their respective societies. The above discussion comprise of social theories which are
related to an individual’s significance in the society. Memory theories are also discussed which
determines the longevity of a person’s memory and its capacity to learn and remember things
according to the situation. It can be concluded that there is a great impact of the society and
environment in which a person lives and grows as it solely determines the nature and character of
a person. As it has been said that “a man is known for the company he keeps”.

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References
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