Free Cognitive Schema And Examples Essay Sample

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A cognitive framework or concept that helps in organizing and interpreting information is called as cognitive schema. These can be considered as shortcuts to interpreting information that is otherwise very large to compose and understand considering their possible contexts. But, there is one thing that cognitive schema does not cover, and that is to evaluate information from all aspects 9 (Cherry, 2011). In the case information needs to be evaluated in a certain context, it is not the best framework to use. A schema is basically an understanding of what something ought to be, more or less a picture that the information gatherer already has in his mind. In easier words, cognitive schema completes, and otherwise incomplete story based on its experiences and understanding of the matter (Schmitt, 2001).

Example 1:

If a student tries to talk with his professor who is in his office, he would have it in his schema that the door will be closed and that he will have to knock and then wait for a voice to come approving him to come in. After he finds it being the same, his next schema about the environment of the office, i.e. neat desk with papers, pens, and paperweights and books will get formed.

Example 2:

Stereotyping of people is the most easily understood example of how cognitive schema works. Human mind learns through experience how various traits can be associated with the people of certain specific appearances. Having said that, if a person sees another individual who is fleeing the scene after snatching a by passers wallet, the main thing that the observer would focus on would be the general appearance i.e. color of skin, the standard of clothing and the wildly running action. Now, in another completely separate setting, if he sees a person wearing identical clothes of the similar race, who is running off hurriedly, he will automatically start assuming that the observed individual is a thief even if he is not. The cognitive scheme of this sort is bound so well that it almost becomes a belief.

Example 3:

When there are clouds, there can be rain but it cannot be said that there will be. If a person enters a building that supposedly has no windows or at least no window through which the person can see outside. And whilst entering the building he sees dense clouds covering the sky, the similar in kind that he has experience about being almost certain to rain. After having entered the building, and not being able to see the sky of the outside floor for quite some time, when he comes out of the building he finds the floor wet and, therefore, the idea that it had rained gets enforced in his mind. The idea was that it might rain when he had entered inside, though there really was a high chance to. But upon his exit the idea became that it had already rained as he thought it might. Suppose that there was never any rain and that the water on the floor came when the floors were thoroughly mopped while the clouds dissipated. If not told the complete part of the story, the cognitive schema of the observer would guide him towards the making of an altogether wrong story hence depriving him of knowing the real thing.
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