SCHEMAS IN BUDDHIST PSYCHOLOGY
BY SOORAKKULAME PEMARATANA
University of Peradeniya
Interaction between the Buddha’s Teaching and Western psychology has
been long started and proved to productive. The most recent encounter with
the Buddha’s Teaching seems to be cognitive psychology. This encounter
has been convenient as both disciplines accept the ability of the individual to
analyze and to correct his erroneous cognitions and the possibility of
guiding the individual for genuine self-understanding.
This paper aims to compare the Buddhist notion of Papaca saā sankhā
and the notion of schemas in cognitive psychology and to examine whether
Buddhist teachings can contribute to better understanding of human
behaviour and thought.
Papaca saā sankhā (PPS) is a generic Pali term used to refer to
psychological traces created in human mind as a result of sensory process.
The term is interpreted in various ways but all interpretations agree that
PPS are resultant cognitive structures. It should be observed that they are
not merely resultant cognitions but cognitive structures that the individual
evaluate and interpret new experiences. They are the basis for one’s
interpretation of the world of experiences.
Schemas are also treated in cognitive psychology as cognitive structures that
mold one’s experiences. A schema is defined as a structure for screening,
coding and evaluating the stimuli that impinge on the organism. Schema is
that which condenses and molds the raw data into cognitions. In the case of
Cognitive Therapy particular idiosyncratic schemas that result in
psychological disorders are dealt with.
This paper argues that the Buddhist notion of PPS can provide depth to the
notion of schemas in cognitive psychology and expand the perspective on
human behaviour and thought.