Give examples of early efforts (before 1950) to study human cognition experimentally.
The developments and efforts before 1950 to study the human cognition experimentally are summarized below:
It was J.S. Mill and his mental chemistry that set stage for cognitive psychology as an experimental science of mind. Development of such a science is encouraged by him. Mill’s lead was taken by Fechner to show that cognitive events could be studied experimentally. Also, he studied learning and memory experimentally, that helps in discovering the foundational facts that remain canonical today.
Wurtzburg School conducted research on wide array of cognitive topics. William James’s book “The principles of Psychology” summarized the Wurtzburg School research on cognition and many other possibilities were also suggested.
Sir Frederic Charles Bartlett with his book demonstrated the influence of cognitive, personal, schema or themes on memory, compared to the influence of mechanical laws of association. Jean Piaget also popularizes the schema in the context of cognitive development.