Which of the following perspectives in cognitive psychology focuses on how we perceive and organize patterns in our environment?

• A. Psychoanalytic theory
• B. Gestalt psychology
• C. Humanistic psychology
• D. Behaviorism

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Identify the key concept in the question: it asks about the perspective in cognitive psychology that focuses on how we perceive and organize patterns in our environment.
2. Recall the main perspectives in psychology and their focus areas: Psychoanalytic theory emphasizes unconscious motives, Humanistic psychology focuses on personal growth and self-actualization, Behaviorism studies observable behaviors and their conditioning.
3. Understand that Gestalt psychology is a cognitive perspective that emphasizes the idea that 'the whole is greater than the sum of its parts,' focusing on how people naturally organize sensory information into meaningful patterns and wholes.
4. Recognize that Gestalt psychology studies principles such as figure-ground, proximity, similarity, closure, and continuity, which explain how we perceive and organize visual information.
5. Conclude that the perspective focusing on perception and organization of patterns in the environment is Gestalt psychology.