Chapter 1 Reg. psych

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Chapter One: Intro/History

I. Why Study Psychology?

II. Overview of Goals of Psychology

III. A Brief History of Psychology

IV. Psychology as a Profession

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I. Why Study Psychology?

• Insight

• Practical Information

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Psychology

• The scientific study of behavior and mental processes. Such study can involve both animal and human behavior. When applied to humans, psychology covers everything that people think, feel, and do.

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The Goals of Psychology

• Description• Explanation• Prediction• Control

– Basic Science– Applied Science

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II. Goals Of Psychology

• Description

• Explanation

• Prediction

• Control

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Description

• Gather information• State the facts

(What it is)

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Explanation

• Formulate hypotheses• Develop theories

(Why it is)

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Hypothesis

• An educated guess about the relationship between two variables

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Theory

• An integrated set of principles that organizes, explains, and predicts observations.

Exploring Psychology, Myers, 1990

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Prediction

• Study theories and descriptive accounts of past behaviors

• Predict subsequent behaviors

(What it will be)

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Control

• Influence or manipulate behavior– Basic science– Applied science

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Basic Science

• The pursuit of knowledge about natural phenomena for its own sake (to gain knowledge simply for the sake of knowledge)

(acquire knowledge)

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Applied Science

• Discovering ways to use scientific findings to accomplish practical goals

(use knowledge)

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Hypothesis-buildingStudies done on Orphanage Children

• Dennis, W. “Causes of Retardation Among Institutional Children: Iran.” Journal of Genetic Psychology, 96 (1960):47-58 - – Applied or Basic?

• White, B.L. “Child Development Research: An Edifice Without a Foundation.” Merrill- Palmer Quarterly of Behavior and

Development, 15 (1969): 49-79– Applied or Basic?

• Shaffer (1993)

Applied or Basic?

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The Scientific Method

• State the problem• Develop a hypothesis• Conduct research• Organize and interpret data• Draw conclusions• Communicate the results

Psychology: A Concise Introduction, Pettijohn, 1992

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III. A Brief History of Psychology

A. Psychology as a Discipline

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A. Psychology as a Discipline - Early History

1. Stone Age2. BC: The Ancient Greeks3. The Middle Ages4. 16th century: Copernicus and Galileo5. 17th century: Descartes and the

pseudo-sciences

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1. The Stone Age

• Trephining

• Evil spirits

• Archeology

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Trephining

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Trephining Instruments

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2. The Ancient Greeks

• The will of the gods• Aristotle• Hippocrates• Galen

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Aristotle

• Greek philosopher

• People are rational, thinking organisms

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Hippocrates

• The Father of Modern Medicine

• Mental and emotional problems have natural causes

• Some disorders are caused by head injury

• Some mental and physical characteristics are inherited

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Ancient Greeks

• Observation as a means of knowing the world

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The Natural World: Four Basic Elements

• Fire• Air• Earth• Water

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The Natural World: Four Basic Elements

• Fire Warm• Air Cool• Earth Dry• Water Moist

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The Four Humors

• Blood (warm and moist)• Black bile (cold and dry)• Yellow bile (warm and dry)• Phlegm (cold and moist)

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Galen

• Greek physician• Personality types

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Galen: Personality Types

• An excess of…– blood = sanguine

personality (cheerful, warm-hearted)

– black bile = melancholic personality (sad)

– yellow bile = choleric personality (hot-tempered)

– phlegm = phlegmatic personality (apathetic)

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3. The Middle Ages

• Witchcraft• Demon possession

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4. The 16th Century

• Nicolaus Copernicus• Galileo Galilei

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Nicolaus Copernicus

• Polish astronomer• The sun is the center

of the universe• Observations on the

movements of planets in the solar system

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Galileo Galilei

• Italian astronomer and physicist

• Telescope confirms star positions and movements

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The 16th Century

• Introduced the concept of observation as an element of scientific study (Copernicus)

• Introduced the concept of experimentation as an element of scientific study (Galileo)

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5. The 17th Century

• Dualism• Rene Descartes• Pseudo-sciences

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Dualism

• Philosophy which teaches that the mind and body are separate and distinct from each other.

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Rene Descartes

• French philosopher• Extended dualism• The mind and body

work together to create a person’s experiences

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The Pseudo-sciences

• Phrenology• Physiognomy• Typology

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Phrenology

• The study of personality based on the ‘bumps’ of the skull

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Modern Science

• A combination of…– Philosophy– Logic– Math– Observation

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Psychology as a Discipline - Basic Theories

• Structuralism• Functionalism

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Structuralism

• Thoughts have structure, just as a molecule does

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Structuralism

• Wilhelm Wundt• German physiologist• Laboratory of

Psychology,1879• University of

Leipzig, Germany

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Structuralism

• The mind must be studied as scientifically as other ‘natural laws’

Wundt, Wilhelm, Principles of Physiological Psychology, 1878

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Introspection

• A detailed examination of one’s own thinking

• A controlled situation with trained subjects reporting their thoughts so that the basic structure of thought processes can be mapped

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Functionalism

• The functions of the human mind -- thinking, feeling, learning, remembering -- exist to help man survive as a species

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William James

• founded the Functionalist branch of psychology

• Established the first American psychology laboratory, at Harvard College

• Principles of Psychology (1890)

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A Brief History of Psychology

B. Psychology as the Study of...1) Unconscious Processes2) Individual Differences3) Observable Behavior4) Cognitive Processes

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1.) Unconscious Processes

• Psychoanalysis• Study of the unconscious mind• Sigmund Freud

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Sigmund Freud

• Viennese doctor• Unconscious, or

subconscious, mind• Biological/

sociological conflict• Free association

(talking cure)• Dream analysis• Case studies

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2.) Individual Differences

• Sir Francis Galton

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Sir Francis Galton

• English mathematician• Heredity/genius• Nature vs. Nurture• Secondary research• Personality/IQ tests• Inquiries into Human

Faculty and Its Development (1883)

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3.) Observable Behavior

• Behaviorism• Humanistic Psychology

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Behaviorism

• Ivan Pavlov• John B. Watson• B. F. Skinner

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Ivan Pavlov

• Russian physiologist• Nobel Prize (1904)• The mechanics of

digestion• Classical

conditioning

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Classical Conditioning

• UCS = unconditioned stimulus• UCR = unconditioned response• NS = neutral stimulus• CS = conditioned stimulus• CR = conditioned response

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Pavlov’s Experiment

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Classical Conditioning Paradigm

• Before Conditioning:– UCS ----> UCR– NS ----> No response

• During Conditioning:– UCS + CS ----> UCR

• After Conditioning:– CS ----> CR

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Classical Conditioning Paradigm

• Before Conditioning:– UCS (meat) ----> UCR (salivation)– NS (tone) ----> No response

• During Conditioning:– UCS (meat) + CS (Tone) ----> UCR (salivation)

• After Conditioning:– CS (tone) ----> CR (salivation)

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Behaviorism

• Behavior occurs as a result of learning

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John B. Watson

• Father of Behaviorism

• Prior learning• Observable behavior• Little Albert

Experiment

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B. F. Skinner

• Stimulus-Response (S-R) psychology

• Walden II (1949)• Beyond Freedom and

Dignity (1971)• Reinforcement• Teaching machine

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Humanistic Psychology

• The third force• Backlash to behaviorism• Study of the individual as a whole

person• Self-actualization

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Carl Rogers

• Believed behaviorism was de-humanizing

• Human nature is naturally

active, not reactive.

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Abraham Maslow

Self-Actualization

Hierarchy of Needs

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Humanism

• Behaviorism is de-humanizing• Deprives man of free will• Human nature is active, not reactive

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4.) Cognitive Psychology

• Study of cognitive processes• Internal knowledge

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Jean Piaget

• Theory of Psycho-Social Development

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Cognitive Psychology

• Behavior is affected by…– Perception– Interpretation– Thinking– Problem-solving– Assessment of knowledge– Use of language

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IV. Psychology as a Profession

A. What is a Psychologist?B. Specialty Fields in Psychology

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A. Psychiatry vs.. Psychology

• A psychiatrist’s training ... – medical doctor– specialty in psychiatric medicine– hospital or private practice– freely prescribe medicines

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Psychiatry vs.. Psychology

• A psychologist’s training …– observe and analyze patterns of behavior– develop theories of behavior– apply knowledge to influence behavior

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B. Specialty Fields

• Clinical psychology• Counseling

psychology• Personality

psychology• Social psychology• Developmental

psychology

• Educational psychology• Community psychology• Industrial/Organizational

psychology• Experimental psychology