Domain specificity is a theoretical position in
cognitive science (especially modern
cognitive development
Cognitive development is a field of study in neuroscience and psychology focusing on a child's development in terms of information processing, conceptual resources, perceptual skill, language learning, and other aspects of the developed adult bra ...
) that argues that many aspects of
cognition
Cognition refers to "the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses". It encompasses all aspects of intellectual functions and processes such as: perception, attention, thoug ...
are supported by specialized, presumably evolutionarily specified, learning devices. The position is a close relative of
modularity of mind 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 b ...
, 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
In the field of psychology, nativism is the view that certain skills or abilities are "native" or hard-wired into the brain at birth. This is in contrast to the "blank slate" or tabula rasa view, which states that the brain has inborn capabilities ...
. Other cognitive scientists also hold the mind to be modular, without the modules necessarily possessing the characteristics of Fodorian modularity.
Domain specificity emerged in the aftermath of the
cognitive revolution
The cognitive revolution was an intellectual movement that began in the 1950s as an interdisciplinary study of the mind and its processes. It later became known collectively as cognitive science. The relevant areas of interchange were between th ...
as a theoretical alternative to
empiricist theories that believed all learning can be driven by the operation of a few such general learning devices. Prominent examples of such domain-general views include