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Modularity of mind is the notion that a mind may, at least in part, be composed of innate neural structures or mental modules which have distinct, established, and evolutionarily developed functions. However, different definitions of "module" have been proposed by different authors.
A cognitive module in cognitive psychology is a specialized tool or sub-unit that can be used by other parts to resolve cognitive tasks. It is used in theories of the modularity of mind and the closely related society of mind theory and was developed by Jerry Fodor.
The relationship between domain general learning and domain specific learning (also known as the modularity debate or modularity of mind) has been an ongoing debate for evolutionary psychologists. [7] The modularity of mind or modularity debate states that the brain is constructed of neural structures (or modules) which have distinct functions.
The position is a close relative of modularity of mind, but is considered more general in that it does not necessarily entail all the assumptions of Fodorian modularity (e.g., informational encapsulation). Instead, it is properly described as a variant of psychological nativism. Other cognitive scientists also hold the mind to be modular ...
In nature, modularity may refer to the construction of a cellular organism by joining together standardized units to form larger compositions, as for example, the hexagonal cells in a honeycomb. In cognitive science, the idea of modularity of mind holds that the mind is composed of independent, closed, domain-specific processing modules.
An early supporter was Jerry Fodor, who argued that the mind functions partly, by innate, domain-specific mental modules. [3] In Modularity of Mind, Fodor proposed the Hypothesis of Modest Modularity, stating that input systems such as perception and language are modular, whereas central systems such as belief fixation and practical reasoning ...
An example of Fodor's concept of modules is seen in cognitive processes such as vision, which have many separate mechanisms for colour, shape and spatial perception. [ 10 ] One of the fundamental beliefs of domain specificity and the theory of modularity suggests that it is a consequence of natural selection and is a feature of our cognitive ...
Unlike a single large network that can be assigned to arbitrary tasks, each module in a modular network must be assigned a specific task and connected to other modules in specific ways by a designer. In the vision example, the brain evolved (rather than learned) to create the LGN. In some cases, the designer may choose to follow biological models.