Cognition refers to mental activity or processes.
The term cognitive psychology sometimes may be used as a synonym for cognition but more commonly refers to a particular approach to studying the mind that emphasizes the processes by which sensory input is transformed, reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered, and used. Wundt's introspective technique relied on trained observer's reporting on their own mental processes. These trained observers paid careful attention to their own sensations, made precise discriminations among these sensations, and reported them as objectively as possible. Wundt emphasized that the introspective technique was not suitable for studying higher level mental processes such as memory and problem solving. William James approach to studying psychology placed emphasis on the everyday use of cognition.