Psychology Chapter 1: What is Psychology

Evolutionary Perspective

(Darwinian perspective) social biologists see human thoughts & actions in terms of natural selection. Focuses on the evolution of behavior and mental processes.

Behaviorism

A theoretical orientation based on the premise that scientific psychology should study only observable behavior

Sociocultural Perspective

An approach to the study of psychology that emphasizes the role of social and cultural influences on behavior.

Humanistic Perspective

An explanation for behavior which suggests that humans strive for self-fulfillment and are motivated by a basic goodness. Stresses the importance of consciousness, self-awareness, and the capacity to make choices.

School Psychology

Area of psychology in which the psychologists work directly in the schools, doing assessments, educational placement, and DIAGNOSING educational problems

Willhelm Wundt

1832-1920 - established the first psychological laboratory in 1879, studied the structure of human consciousness, his approach became known as structuralism. "Father of Psychology."

William James

1842-1910; Field: functionalism; Contributions: studied how humans use perception to function in our environment; Studies: Pragmatism, The Meaning of Truth.

Sigmund Freud

1856-1939; Field: psychoanalytic, personality; Contributions: id/ego/superego, reality and pleasure principles, ego ideal, defense mechanisms (expanded by Anna Freud), psychoanalysis, transference

John B. Watson

1878-1958 American psychologist who founded behaviorism, emphasizing the study of observable behavior and rejecting the study of mental processes.

Principle

A basic truth or law. Ex: I have always run my business based on the principle that honesty is always the best policy.

Counseling Psychology

A branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being.

Human Factors Psychology

A branch of psychology that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use

Community Psychology

A branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups.

Developmental Psychology

A branch of psychology that studies physical, emotional, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span of a person.

Behavior

A field of psychology that concentrates on observable, measurable behaviors and not on mental processes

Geriatrics

Branch of medicine dealing with older individuals and their medical problems

Cross-Cultural Psychology

Branch of psychology that studies the effects of culture on behavior and mental processes.

Educational Psychology

The APPLICATION of psychology and psychological methods to the study of development, learning, motivation, instruction, assessment, and related issues that influence the interaction of teaching and learning.

Forensic Psychology

The branch of psychology concerned with intersections between psychological practice and research and the judicial system.

Morality

The concept of right or good conduct.

Getsalt Psychology

The forerunner of the cognitive school - emphasizes the mind and interprets information in terms of patterns rather than as individual bits of information

Psychoanalytic Perspective

The perspective that stresses the influences of unconscious forces on human behavior.

Biological Perspective

The psychological perspective that emphasizes the influence of biology on behavior.

Social Psychology

The scientific study of how people think about, interact with, influence, and are influenced by the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of other people.

Psychodynamic thinking

The theory that most of what exists in an individual's mind is unconscious and consists of conflicting impulses, urges, and wishes

Associationism

The theory that our understanding of the world occurs through ideas associated with similar sensory experiences and perceptions.

Social-learning Theory

The theory that suggests that people have the ability to change their environments or to create new ones.

Personality Psychology

This perspective is interested in describing and understanding individual's "consistency in behavior" which represents their personality; also interested and concerned with factors that shape personality and with personality assessment; the identification of their human characteristics/traits.

Cognitive activities

mental processes

Psychological constructs

theoretical entities, or concepts, that enable one to discuss something that cannot be seen, touched, or measured directly

Theory

A statement that attempts to explain why things are the way they are and why they happen the way they do.

Health Psychology

A subfield of psychology that studies how health and illness are influenced by emotions, stress, personality, life-style, and other psychological factors.

Psychology

Scientific study of behavior and mental processes

Structuralism

A historical school of psychology devoted to uncovering the basic structures that make up mind and thought. Structuralists sought the "elements" of conscious experience. An approach to psychology based on the idea that conscious experience can be broken down into its basic underlying components.

Psychoanalysis

A lengthy insight therapy that was developed by Freud and aims at uncovering conflicts and unconscious impulses through special techniques, including free association, dream analysis, and transference to determine and understand human behavior.

Psychiatrist

A medical doctor who has specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders

Introspection

A method of self-observation in which participants report their thoughts and feelings. Means "looking within."

Learning Perspective

A psychological approach that emphasizes how the environment and experience affect a person's or animal's actions; it includes behaviorism and social- cognitive learning theories.

Cognitive Perspective

A psychological approach that emphasizes mental processes in perception, memory, language, problem solving, and other areas of behavior.

Experimental Psychology

A psychologist who studies sensation, perception, learning, motivation, and emotion in carefully controlled laboratory conditions.

Functionalism

A school of psychology that focused on how our mental and behavioral processes function - how they enable us to adapt, survive, and flourish in our environments.

Rehabilitation Psychology

Help clients with mental retardation, developmental disabilities, and disabilities resulting from stroke or accidents adapt to their situations.

Basic Research

Research that has no immediate application and is done for its own sake.

Industrial and Organizational Psychology

applies the principles of psychology to the workplace focusing on the practical issues of personnel selection and training, working conditions, workplace morale, and leadership