The 8 superior psychological processes
Higher psychological processes, such as language or reasoning , are involved in the capabilities that distinguish people from other animals. These and other voluntary and controlled functions have allowed us to dominate the planet and explain much of the complexity that characterizes our societies.
But, What exactly do the higher cognitive functions consist of? In this article you will find the description of the main psychological processes and the definition of this concept.
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What are the higher psychological processes?
According to Lev Vygotsky, higher mental processes are human psychological systems that develop from more basic, shared with animals. They are mediated by symbols and emerge from social interaction , as well as a natural consequence of brain development.
In the opposite way, the basic or elementary psychological processes They are shared by many species of animals and are present in people from birth. This type of processes basically includes attention, perception and memory.
The concept of the higher psychological process is widely used today, especially in cognitive psychology and neurosciences, although the definition is not always equivalent to that of Vygotsky.
In the field of neuropsychology we speak of superior psychological processes to refer to the brain functions that depend on the areas of integration of the cortex . As the name suggests, these regions integrate information from the rest of the brain, allowing processes of great complexity such as language or reasoning.
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The main superior cognitive functions
There is no clear consensus about the number of higher psychological processes that exist, although they are usually included in this concept at least the gnosias, the praxias, the language and the executive functions , like reasoning and inhibition; we will treat the latter separately.
1. Gnosias
Gnosis is defined as the ability to recognize and give meaning to what we perceive . It depends on the memory and the senses, so we can talk about visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory or tactile gnosies; these are simple gnosias, by which we give direct meaning to external stimulation.
On the other hand, there are also complex gnosias, which combine the information of the senses with other brain functions, giving rise to the perception of one's own body or visuospatial orientation.
2. Praxias
When we execute a motor behavior under voluntary control In order to reach a goal we are carrying out a praxis, generally learned motor programs. Disorders in these functions are called "apraxias."
Praxias are divided into three types: visuoconstructive (using different elements to create a set, such as a drawing), ideomotor or ideomotor (recognizing and carrying out simple gestures, for example waving by hand) and ideational or ideative (using a sequence of movements with a concrete meaning).
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3. Attention
Attention can be considered a basic or superior mental process depending on the complexity of the task and whether there is voluntary control. is defined as the ability to focus cognitive resources on certain stimuli , and is mediated by alert processes and by perception.
Among the types of attention that we could consider superior psychological processes It is worth highlighting the selective attention, the sustained and the divided . Selective attention is the ability to focus on a single stimulus, the sustained is to pay attention for a prolonged period of time and the divided allows alternating the focus of attention between various stimuli.
4. Language
Language is a fundamental psychological process because it facilitates other cognitive and media functions in many types of learning. For the development of language the symbolic function is required , that is, the ability to represent ideas through symbols and understand them, if they were created by other people.
Within this higher mental process we find diverse capacities, such as the expression or discrimination of phonemes and letters. Both oral and written language, which is supported by the spoken language, allow information to be given or requests made to other people; the development of this capacity was key to the progress of human societies.
5. Decision making
Decision making is the ability to choose the most appropriate action plan among those available to us. This ability includes the detailed analysis of the options and their possible consequences, as well as the comparison of the alternatives.
It encompasses the decision making within the executive functions, such as reasoning, planning or inhibition, which we will describe in the following sections. Executive functions are complex brain processes that allow us to reach goals and maximize our adaptation to the environment through the supervision of voluntary behavior.
6. Reasoning
We can define reasoning as the process by whichWe draw conclusions, make inferences and establish abstract relationships between concepts. It can be inductive (when we use individual cases to arrive at a general rule), deductive (draw conclusions from the general rule) or abductive (make the simplest inference possible).
7. Planning
Through planning we not only create plans to achieve our goals, but also allow the establishment of goals. In addition, planning is strongly involved in decision making and problem solving.
8. Inhibition
When we speak of superior psychological processes, the term "inhibition" refers to the ability to ignore irrelevant stimuli , or to restrain inadequate impulses in a given context. Brain inhibition seems to be altered in different psychological disorders, including schizophrenia and ADHD.
