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Cognitive Learning01:21

Cognitive Learning

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Cognitive learning is based on purposive behavior, incidental learning, and insight learning.
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The information-processing theory of cognitive development centers on fundamental mental processes, including attention, memory, and problem-solving skills. Researchers in this field examine how cognitive abilities, such as working memory, evolve and influence children's overall development. Studies indicate that children with stronger working memory tend to excel in reading comprehension, math, and problem-solving compared to peers with less efficient memory skills. Low working memory is...
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Lazarus's Cognitive Appraisal Theory01:20

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Cognitive psychologist Richard Lazarus proposed the cognitive-mediational theory of emotions, which emphasizes how individuals' assessments of stressors significantly affect their experience of stress. According to Lazarus, the stress response is determined by a two-step appraisal process: primary appraisal and secondary appraisal. These cognitive appraisals help individuals evaluate the potential impact of a stressor and determine the adequacy of their coping resources.
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Metacognition is a conscious process where individuals are aware of their cognitive and executive processes, such as planning before solving a problem or self-monitoring during reading. For instance, a writer may need help with composing a piece. The situation involves a writer who is working on a piece of writing, but while doing so, they realize that something is missing. They notice that their characters lack depth or details. This realization occurs because the writer is reflecting on their...
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 8, 2025

Assessing the Multiple Dimensions of Engagement to Characterize Learning: A Neurophysiological Perspective
13:57

Assessing the Multiple Dimensions of Engagement to Characterize Learning: A Neurophysiological Perspective

Published on: July 1, 2015

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Learning progress mediates the link between cognitive effort and task engagement.

Ceyda Sayalı1, Emma Heling2, Roshan Cools2

  • 1The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States of America.

Cognition
|March 5, 2023
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Challenging tasks increase engagement by providing a wider range for learning progress, supporting the learning progress motivation hypothesis. This suggests cognitive effort is sought when performance changes dynamically.

Keywords:
Cognitive effortLearning progressMotivationPupilTask performance

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Neuroscience
  • Human Motivation

Background:

  • Cognitive effort is often perceived as aversive.
  • However, intrinsic motivation research shows people seek challenging tasks.
  • The learning progress motivation hypothesis posits this preference stems from the performance variability in difficult tasks.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To test if engagement with challenging tasks correlates with performance changes.
  • To investigate the role of learning progress in task engagement.
  • To examine pupil responses as an objective measure of cognitive effort and engagement.

Main Methods:

  • Developed a novel paradigm with individually calibrated task difficulty levels (low, intermediate, high).
  • Measured subjective engagement (liking, ratings) and objective engagement (pupil size).
  • Analyzed trial-wise performance changes, including accuracy and learning progress (derivative of accuracy).

Main Results:

  • Challenging tasks elicited higher liking and engagement scores than easy tasks.
  • Pupil size increased with task difficulty, reflecting objective effort.
  • Pupil responses were predicted by changes in accuracy and learning progress, and predicted subjective engagement.

Conclusions:

  • Results support the learning progress motivation hypothesis.
  • Task engagement is linked to cognitive effort through the dynamic range of performance changes.
  • Learning progress, not just difficulty, drives motivation for challenging cognitive tasks.