Cognitive Science in the age of Augmented Cognition

Speaker: Danny Oppenheimer

Carnegie Mellon University, USA

March 27, 2024
11:15 AM - 1 PM U.S. Eastern Time | Register Now

Abstract

While most psychologists focus on thinking that occurs in the brain, most would also acknowledge that cognition is not exclusively accomplished by the brain, but by an interaction between brains, tools, and environments. According to the "extended mind" perspective, cognitive processes are often offloaded to various technologies, freeing our limited cognitive resources for more complex thought. Extending cognition to our environment is not new, however with recent advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning, cognition enhancing devices are being developed at unprecedented rates. Using augmenting technologies does not merely improve our thinking, but in many ways can qualitatively change the nature of how we think. Different media lead us to ask different questions, remember (or forget) different information, attend to different details, make different choices, and interact with other people in different ways. These types of thinking aren't inherently better or worse, but they may be better or worse for facilitating specific goals and impact the effectiveness of psychological interventions. In this talk, I will discuss why it is important for psychologists to extend our frameworks to account for the extended mind, and highlight some recent research from my own lab that explores how the use of technology can meaningfully and qualitatively affect thinking and behaviors.

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