Psych Chapter 1

James

Functionalist purpose was to study the function of behavior of the world relied on introspection but also more concreter data then Wundt

Tichener

(1921), a British psychologist who studied with Wundt before accepting a position at Cornell University, saw the emerging science of psychology as divided into four general areas: structural psychology, functional psychology, ontogenetic psychology, and taxonometric psychology. He argued strongly that in order for psychology to become a science, psychologists should focus on detailing the structure of consciousness and behavior. Tichener attempted to standardize the introspection methodology, aiming to systematize the measurement of mental phenomena.

COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

As mentioned in the previous section, the cognitive revolution created an impetus for psychologists to focus their attention on better understanding the mind and mental processes that underlie behavior. Thus, cognitive psychology is the area of psychology that focuses on studying cognitions, or thoughts, and their relationship to our experiences and our actions. Like biological psychology, cognitive psychology is broad in its scope and often involves collaborations among people from a diverse range of disciplinary backgrounds. This has led some to coin the term cognitive science to describe the interdisciplinary nature of this area of research (Miller, 2003).

Calkins

Calkins recognized the Structuralist-Functionalist debate was essentially about the proper "unit" for study and the appropriate type of psychological analysis. Fundamentally, Calkins thought psychologists should study an individual's consciousness in relation to their environment and to examine how the person understood the significance and value of their experience in relationship to their environment. Addressing consciousness in terms of "value" assumes the analysis is unique and personal, and that the analysis may not necessarily apply to the group level (i.e., to people in general), as emphasized by the Structuralists' approach. "An emotion is readily described by the structural psychologist as a complex of affective elements with sensational experiences, including organic and kinaesthetic sensations. But an emotion is not adequately described in these terms; it does to be sure include the affective and the sensational elements, but it is also the realized personal relation of one self to individualized self or object" (Calkins, 1906, p. 78).

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY

Clinical psychology is the area of psychology that focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders and other problematic patterns of behavior. As such, it is generally considered to be a more applied area within psychology; however, some clinicians are also actively engaged in scientific research. Counseling psychology is a similar discipline that focuses on emotional, social, vocational, and health- related outcomes in individuals who are considered psychologically healthy. As mentioned earlier, both Freud and Rogers provided perspectives that have been influential in shaping how clinicians interact with people seeking psychotherapy. While aspects of the psychoanalytic theory are still found among some of today's therapists who are trained from a psychodynamic perspective, Roger's ideas about client-centered therapy have been especially influential in shaping how many clinicians operate. Furthermore, both behaviorism and the cognitive revolution have shaped clinical practice in the forms of behavioral therapy, cognitive therapy, and cognitive-behavioral therapy

FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY

Forensic psychology is a branch of psychology that deals questions of psychology as they arise in the context of the justice system. For example, forensic psychologists (and forensic psychiatrists) will assess a person's competency to stand trial, assess the state of mind of a defendant, act as consultants on child custody cases, consult on sentencing and treatment recommendations, and advise on issues such as eyewitness testimony and children's testimony (American Board of Forensic Psychology, 2014). In these capacities, they will typically act as expert witnesses, called by either side in a court case to provide their research- or experience-based opinions. As expert witnesses, forensic psychologists must have a good understanding of the law and provide information in the context of the legal system rather than just within the realm of psychology. Forensic psychologists are also used in the jury selection process and witness preparation. They may also be involved in providing psychological treatment within the criminal justice system. Criminal profilers are a relatively small proportion of psychologists that act as consultants to law enforcement.

Gestalt Perspective

Gestalt [pronounced guess-TALT, and meaning "full or complete form" or organized whole] psychologists were also among the earlier schools in psychology, and include individuals such as Wertheimer, Koffka, Kohler. Although the influence of the Gestaltists on psychology was important, especially in the area of perception, they are not considered a dominant force in the field today. Gestalt psychologists argued we do not simply use an additive model to perceive objects. Our sense organs do not merely receive and transmit objective, independent information to our brain from an outside object. Rather, Gestaltists believe human perception is a more active process, and that individuals bring with them certain inherited "biologically-prewired" tendencies influencing that which we subjectively perceive. One of these tendencies is a predisposition to see things emerge in quite a different form from the individual elements that are sensed.

HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY

Health psychology focuses on how health is affected by the interaction of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors. This particular approach is known as the biopsychosocial model (Figure 1.16). Health psychologists are interested in helping individuals achieve better health through public policy, education, intervention, and research. Health psychologists might conduct research that explores the relationship between one's genetic makeup, patterns of behavior, relationships, psychological stress, and health. They may research effective ways to motivate people to address patterns of behavior that contribute to poorer health (MacDonald, 2013).

INDUSTRIAL-ORGANIZATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

Industrial-Organizational psychology (I-O psychology) is a subfield of psychology that applies psychological theories, principles, and research findings in industrial and organizational settings. I-O psychologists are often involved in issues related to personnel management, organizational structure, and workplace environment. Businesses often seek the aid of I-O psychologists to make the best hiring decisions as well as to create an environment that results in high levels of employee productivity and efficiency. In addition to its applied nature, I-O psychology also involves conducting scientific research on behavior within I-O settings (Riggio, 2013).

introspection

Noun- examination or observation of one's own mental and emotional processes used by Structuralist Wundt to measure conscious experiences of perceptual phenomena

PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY

Personality psychology focuses on patterns of thoughts and behaviors that make each individual unique. Several individuals (e.g., Freud and Maslow) that we have already discussed in our historical overview of psychology, and the American psychologist Gordon Allport, contributed to early theories of personality. These early theorists attempted to explain how an individual's personality develops from his or her given perspective. For example, Freud proposed that personality arose as conflicts between the conscious and unconscious parts of the mind were carried out over the lifespan. Specifically, Freud theorized that an individual went through various psychosexual stages of development. According to Freud, adult personality would result from the resolution of various conflicts that centered on the migration of erogenous (or sexual pleasure-producing) zones from the oral (mouth) to the anus to the phallus to the genitals. Like many of Freud's theories, this particular idea was controversial and did not lend itself to experimental tests (Person, 1980).

Understand the etymology of the word "psychology"

Psyche was a mortal who's beauty challenged aphorodity. She sent her son Eros to make psych fall in love with the ugliest man in the world, but he accidentally pricked himself with his arrow and fell in love with her. she betrayed him and lost his trust, but then went to aphorodity to win him back. she completed 3 impossible tasks and gained his love. Then she became a goddess herself. Psyche comes to represent the human soul's triumph over the misfortunes of life in the pursuit of true happiness the Greek word psyche means soul, and it is often represented as a butterfly. Psyche comes to represent the human soul's triumph over the misfortunes of life in the pursuit of true happiness

Psychodynamic Perspective

Psychodynamic Perspective Sigmund Freud, living in Austria during the late 19th century, was interested in examining unconscious influences on behavior. From his casework with individuals exhibiting maladaptive behavior (commonly called hysteria at the time), Freud developed a theory explaining the origins of (healthy and unhealthy) psychological development, and created a form of therapy to treat individuals. Psychodynamic theory emphasized unconscious conflicts, early childhood influences on the developing personality, and anxiety relief through the use of defense mechanisms, especially repression. [You'll study the details of psychodynamic theory in [Gazzaniga 4e] Chapter 13 on personality and Chapter 14 on abnormal behavior, and about psychoanalysis in Chapter 15 on therapeutic methods. Given our detailed study of this perspective in later chapters, I save my comments about Freud and the other psychodynamic theorists until later in the semester.] Although Freud's complex, grand theory was widely influential (especially as a method of therapy in America in the first half of the 20th century), it was also criticized as unscientific. Although psychodynamic theory was beset with problems and not widely adopted in Europe, in America psychodynamic theory took hold and influenced both psychologists and the American culture for many decades.

perspectives that dominated the field of psychology (in the past or currently)

Psychodynamic perspective, Biological [or neuroscience] perspective, Behavioral [or learning] perspective, Cognitive perspective, Sociocultural tradition.

SPORT AND EXERCISE PSYCHOLOGY

Researchers in sport and exercise psychology study the psychological aspects of sport performance, including motivation and performance anxiety, and the effects of sport on mental and emotional wellbeing. Research is also conducted on similar topics as they relate to physical exercise in general. The discipline also includes topics that are broader than sport and exercise but that are related to interactions between mental and physical performance under demanding conditions, such as fire fighting, military operations, artistic performance, and surgery.

SENSATION AND PERCEPTION

Scientists interested in both physiological aspects of sensory systems as well as in the psychological experience of sensory information work within the area of sensation and perception (Figure 1.12). As such, sensation and perception research is also quite interdisciplinary. Imagine walking between buildings as you move from one class to another. You are inundated with sights, sounds, touch sensations, and smells. You also experience the temperature of the air around you and maintain your balance as you make your way. These are all factors of interest to someone working in the domain of sensation and perception.

The Cognitive Revolution

Shifted focus back onto study of the mind rather then behavior By the 1950s, new disciplinary perspectives in linguistics, neuroscience, and computer science were emerging, and these areas revived interest in the mind as a focus of scientific inquiry. This particular perspective has come to be known as the cognitive revolution

SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

Social psychology focuses on how we interact with and relate to others. Social psychologists conduct research on a wide variety of topics that include differences in how we explain our own behavior versus how we explain the behaviors of others, prejudice, and attraction, and how we resolve interpersonal conflicts. Social psychologists have also sought to determine how being among other people changes our own behavior and patterns of thinking.

Humanism

Some psychologists began to form their own ideas that emphasized personal control, intentionality, and a true predisposition for "good" as important for our self-concept and our behavior Maslow, Rogers,

Structuralists v Functionalists

Structuralists can't account for the distinction between pride and joy, or from sympathy from egoistic sorrow, says Calkins. Pride and joy are pleasant emotions. Structuralists would break down these emotions into constituent parts and this would make the emotions seem quite similar. However, the Functionalists argue to adequately understand pride or sympathy, one must consider its function and recognize the individual's relationship to the environment, for these emotions are inherently social. Structuralist-Functionalist debates are viewed in the context of an emerging psychological science trying to establish itself as a discipline independent of philosophy and physiology. The emergence of different perspectives was not to end with the Structuralist-Functionlist debate. We will see that throughout the years, several other perspectives emerged, become dominant in the field, and then declined in influence. Although the Structuralist (elementalist) and Functionalist (adaptation) schools of thought are no longer dominant in the field of contemporary psychology, some of the themes and analytic strategies continue to influence various areas of scientific psychology.

Behavioral Perspective

While psychodynamic theorists were shaping the debate about the causes of behavior being ruled by unconscious motivations, it was challenged strongly in America by a competing perspective, the behavioral or learning perspective. The behaviorists, represented by Watson, Pavlov, Skinner, and other psychologists, argued that psychology would not advance as a science if it chiefly focused on unobserved, assumed, hidden, hypothesized internal ("mind") factors such as those advanced by introspectionists and psychodynamists. Behaviorists argued: subjective, unobserved, hidden variables were inappropriate sources of data for psychologists; data collection using objective methods (empiricism) should receive priority; and using well-designed and well-controlled experiments allowing public verification and repeated procedures (replication) were essential to advance psychological knowledge. The behaviorists also developed creative methods to systematically explore a wide range of human and animal behavior, and to collect data.

the biological perspective

a collection of models and findings, not a specific "theory", and emphasizes four things: First, various structures in the brain correspond to different experiences and behaviors. Second, various processes in the brain and body also influence behavior. For example, neurotransmission accounts for basic communication between neurons and allows us to experience events and behave in the world. In addition, other bodily processes, such as the release of hormones into the blood stream, influence our behavior and experience. Third, various molecular processes, including genetics, epigenetics and underlying DNA play a profound influence on our behavior, characteristics, and experiences. Psychologists use different methods to assess the relative influence of heredity upon our characteristics and different aspects of our behavior. Fourth, the biological perspective also recognizes the influence on evolutionary forces on behavior. We may engage in certain behaviors or display certain traits because these characteristics have adaptive value for the person and result in reproductive success for the individual, thus perpetuating in the species individuals who display the characteristic under study.

Biopsychology

biopsychology explores how our biology influences our behavior. While biological psychology is a broad field, many biological psychologists want to understand how the structure and function of the nervous system is related to behavior (Figure 1.11). As such, they often combine the research strategies of both psychologists and physiologists to accomplish this goal

Psychology

commonly defined as the systematic study of behavior and mental processes and all the factors, overt and covert, influencing behavior.

Wundt

first known psychologist structuralist goal was to identify components of consciousness and how those components combined to result in our conscious experience used introspection

Psychoanalytic theory

focuses on the role of a person's unconscious, as well as early childhood experiences, and this particular perspective dominated clinical psychology for several decades

Developmental psychology

is the scientific study of development across a lifespan. Developmental psychologists are interested in processes related to physical maturation. However, their focus is not limited to the physical changes associated with aging, as they also focus on changes in cognitive skills, moral reasoning, social behavior, and other psychological attributes.

Freud

one of the most influential and recognoligable psychologists started Psychoanalytic theory In Freud's view, the unconscious mind was a repository of feelings and urges of which we have no awareness. Gaining access to the unconscious, then, was crucial to the successful resolution of the patient's problems.

Understand the merits of an education in psychology

psychology students come to understand the complex factors that shape one's behavior. They appreciate the interaction of our biology, our environment, and our experiences in determining who we are and how we will behave. They learn about basic principles that guide how we think and behave, and they come to recognize the tremendous diversity that exists across individuals and across cultural boundaries

Structuralists notes

represented by Wundt in Germany and Tichener in America. Structuralists thought the new science of psychology should analyze consciousness into basic elements and to learn how these elements are inter-related, and how they combine to form higher forms of thought. The Structuralists' aimed to identify the constituent parts or essential characteristics (i.e., structures) that made up consciousness. One of the difficulties encountered with the introspection method, however, was its subjectivity—individuals had difficulty identifying or agreeing on basic elements, as individuals using introspection reported different experiences when presented with the same stimuli. But ultimately the goals of Structuralism were too narrow, its methodology more subjective than those argued by competing perspectives, and its influence died out in the early 20th century.

Behaviorism

shifted the focus of psychology from the mind to behavior Pavlov, Watson, Skinner remember dog with treat and bell

birth of psychology

the scientific discipline of psychology is only about 130 years old. The year 1879 is traditionally considered the birth of psychology as a discipline, when Wilhelm Wundt opened his psychological laboratory at the University of Leipzig, Germany. Prior to the late 1880s, questions now addressed by psychologists were considered by philosophers, physiologists, or others speculating about human behavior.

Wertheimer, Koffka, Köhler, and Gestalt Psychology

three German psychologists who immigrated to the United States in the early 20th century to escape Nazi Germany. the word Gestalt means "Whole" a major emphasis of Gestalt psychology deals with the fact that although a sensory experience can be broken down into individual parts, how those parts relate to each other as a whole is often what the individual responds to in perception.

Functionalists

were interested in how consciousness functioned as an adaptive tool for the person rejected the notion that human consciousness could be reduced to basic physiological elements—they did not view consciousness as an epiphenomenon or outgrowth of biological processes. Rather, Functionalists assumed "that psychic facts are conditioned or accompanied or followed by physiological and biological phenomena...[The Functionalist] regards the organism, in other words, as the physiological correlate of the self, and the bodily movements as antecedents, or correlates, or consequences of psychic phenomena" (Calkins, 1906, p. 75).