What is the primary focus of cognitive psychology?

Cognitive psychology primarily focuses on mental processes, including how people perceive, think, remember, and learn. It delves into the internal mechanisms of the mind, examining how knowledge is acquired, processed, and stored. This branch of psychology investigates various mental functions such as attention, language, problem-solving, decision-making, and memory. By emphasizing these processes, cognitive psychology helps to elucidate how individuals interpret and interact with the world around them, laying the groundwork for understanding behaviors and other psychological phenomena.

The other options highlight areas that, while significant within the broader field of psychology, do not capture the primary focus of cognitive psychology. Emotional responses pertain more to affective psychology, behavioral changes are largely associated with behavioral psychology, and social influences relate to social psychology. Each of these fields has its unique emphasis, but cognitive psychology distinctly concentrates on the inner workings of thought and mental activity.