cognition

• four major units of the brain: cerebrum, diencephalon, brain stem, cerebellum
• key cognitive processes: perceptual-motor function, language, learning and memory, social cognition, complex attention, executive function
• perception is the interpretation of the environment and is dependent on the acuity of sensory input, awareness or consciousness is the ability to perceive or to be sensitive to and respond to environemental stimuli
• memory refers to the retention and recall of past experiences and learning
• executive function refers to the higher thinking processes that allow for flexibility, adaptability, and goal directedness, it determines the content of consciousness, supervises voluntary activity, and is future oriented
• cognition is a comprehensive term referring to all processes of human thought