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Unit 01 - Overview. Psychology’s History Psychology’s Big Issues and Approaches Careers in Psychology. Psychology’s Roots: Prescientific Psychology. Ancient Greeks: Socrates, Plato: mind separate from body, preexisting knowledge, used logic
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Unit 01 - Overview • Psychology’s History • Psychology’s Big Issues and Approaches • Careers in Psychology
Psychology’s Roots:Prescientific Psychology • Ancient Greeks: • Socrates, Plato: mind separate from body, preexisting knowledge, used logic • Aristotle: no preexisting knowledge (comes from experience), loved data over logic • Rene Descartes: • agreed with Socrates & Plato, 1st to talk about nerve pathways • Francis Bacon: focused on experimentation (Enlightenment period/scientific approach) • John Locke:“tabula rasa (the mind is a “blank slate”) • Empiricism: (Locke & Bacon) what we know comes from experience; observation & experimentation enable scientific knowledge
Psychology’s RootsPsychological Science is Born • Wilhelm Wundt (1879): “father of psychology”, 1st psych lab ever • University of Leipzig • Reaction time experiment • G. Stanley Hall: • 1st US psych lab
Psychology’s RootsThinking About the Mind’s Structure • Edward Titchener • Structuralism • Used introspection (looking inward, describing sensations & feelings of an experience) to reveal the structures of the mind • Unreliable, unscientific, required highly trained, verbal people
Psychology’s RootsThinking About the Mind’s Function • William James: Harvard professor, influenced by Charles Darwin • Functionalism: explored how mental & behavior processes function: adapt, survive & flourish • Wrote the 1st psych textbook: Principles of Psychology
Mary Calkins: 1st woman in psych program at Harvard, denied degree, 1st female APA President • Margaret Floy Washburn: 1st female psych Ph.D., 2nd female APA president • Experimental psychology: study of behavior & thinking using the experimental method
Psychological Science Develops • Sigmund Freud • Emphasized how emotional responses to childhood experiences & unconscious thought processes affect our behavior • Father of psychoanalysis
Behaviorism: (1920s) view that psych should be objective; studies behavior without reference to mental processes • John B. Watson & Rosalie Rayner: • Science based on observable behavior, not mental processes • Behavior influenced by conditioning
Behaviorism • B.F. Skinner • “study of observable behavior” • Conditioning • Used rats & pigeons
Humanistic psychology: (1960s) emphasized the growth potential of healthy people: drew attention to the way the environment influences behavior & importance of meeting need for love & acceptance • Carl Rogers & Abraham Maslow • Cognitive Neuroscience: interdisciplinary study of brain activity linked with cognition (perception, thinking, memory, language)
Psychology: • The science [way of asking & answering questions] of behavior [anything an organism does] and mental processes [internal, subjective experiences: sensations, perceptions, dreams, thoughts, beliefs, feelings
Psychology’s Biggest Question • Nature vs Nurture • Biology versus experience • Debated by Greeks, Locke & Descartes • Charles Darwin • Natural selection: traits contributing to reproduction & survival will most likely be passed on (evolution) • Nurture works on what nature endows
Psychology’s Three Main Levels of Analysis • Levels of Analysis: differing complementary views for analyzing any given phenomenon • Biological • Psychological • Social-cultural • Biopsychosocial Approach: integrated approach, includes all 3 above • See Table on pg. 12! (VERY important)
Psychological Approaches/Perspectives • Behavioral: how we learn observable responses • Biological: how body & brain enable emotions, memories, sensory experiences; genes & environment influence on differences • Cognitive: thinking, knowing, remembering, communicating; how we encode, process, store & retrieve info • Evolutionary: how natural selection promoted survival of genes (evolution of behavior & mind) • Humanistic: how we meet our needs for acceptance & achieve self-fulfillment • Psychodynamic: how behavior springs from unconscious drives/conflicts (looks as past experiences) • Social-cultural: how behavior/thinking varies across situations & cultures
Psychology’s Subfields • Psychometrics: scientific study of measurement of human abilities, attitudes & traits • Basic Research: pure science; aims to increase knowledge (for its own sake) • Biological psychologists: study links between brain & mind • Developmental psychologists: study changing abilities from “womb to tomb” • Cognitive psychologists: experiment with thinking & how we solve problems • Educational psychologists: study influences on thinking & learning • Personality psychologists: investigate persistent traits • Social psychologists: explore how we view & affect each other
Applied Research: scientific study that aims to solve problems • Industrial/organizational psychologists: application of psych concepts/methods to optimize behavior in workplaces • Human factors psychologists: how people/machines interact; how environments can be made safe & efficient • Counseling psychologists: assists people with problems in living & greater well-being • Clinical psychologists: studies, assesses & treats disorders • Psychiatrists: medical doctors; provide medical & psychological therapy (often, use of drugs) • Positive psychology: study of human functioning; goal of discovering/promoting strengths/virtues to help people thrive • Community psychologists: Study how people interact with social environments & how social institutions affect people & groups
Research Subfields (Careers) • Cognitive psychologists: anything related to thinking, attention, perception, language, memory, judgement, decision-making, forgetting, intelligence (professor, consultant) • Developmental psychologists: research on age-related issues; education/school, child psychopathology, gerontology; public policy, health care, child care. Usually specialized by age. • Educational psychologists: learning & environment; research, test-creation, employee-training • Experimental psychologists: investigate behavioral processes in humans/animals; learning, attention, memory; academic settings, zoos, government agency, business • Psychometricand Quantitative Psychologists: design, analyze, interpret tests & results of research; university, testing company, research firm, government agency • Social psychologists: study aggression, attitudes, prejudice, attraction, group behavior, leadership; university, market research, hospital, government agency, research firm
Forensic psychologists: legal issues & psych. Often work with law enforcement. • Health psychologists: promote health & prevent disease. Smoking, weight loss, sleep, pain management, problems associated with terminal illness. Private practice, hospital school, mental health, rehab, etc. • Industrial/organizational (I/O) psychologists: ways to increase productivity, personnel selection, job satisfaction. Organizational structure, behavior, training. • Neuropsychologists: treat nervous system disorders (Alzheimer’s, stroke, head injuries, learning disabilities, autism, ADHD) • Rehabilitation psychologists: work with people who’ve lost function after accident or illness. Usually in rehab or hospitals. • School psychologists: diagnose & treat problems that affect learning • Sport psychologists: study factors that influence participation in sports. Coach & athlete prep, diagnose/treat problems (substance abuse, anxiety). Usually research, teaching, private practice or with a team/organization
The Helping Professions • Clinical psychologists: often specialize in disorders; research, teaching, assessment, consultation; private practice, mental health, schools, medical settings, counseling, government, military • Community psychologists: enhance environmental settings; prevention, crisis intervention; focus on underserved & minorities; work with public health; mental health depts., corrections, welfare, research, consultation, teaching • Counseling psychologists: help people adjust to life transitions or changes; don’t usually deal with severe psychopathology. Therapy, assess mental health; coping mechanisms. Academic setting, mental health, private practice.
Definition Slides(you do not have to copy these in your notes—put them on your flash cards!)
Empiricism = the view that knowledge originates in experience and that science should, therefore, rely on observation and experimentation.
Structuralism = early school of thought promoted by Wundt and Titchner; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind.
Functionalism = a school of thought promoted by James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function – how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish.
Experimental Psychology = the study of behavior and thinking using the experimental method.
Behaviorism = the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. • Most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2).
Humanistic Psychology = a historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people.
Cognitive Neuroscience = the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language).
Psychology = the science of behavior and mental processes.
Nature-Nurture Issue = the longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors. • Today’s science sees traits and behaviors arising from the interaction of nature and nurture.
Natural Selection = the principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.
Levels of Analysis = the differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon.
Biopsychosocial Approach = an integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis.
Behavioral Psychology = the scientific study of observable behavior, and its explanation by principles of learning.
Biological Psychology = the scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes. • Some biological psychologists call themselves • behavioral neuroscientists, • neuropsychologists, • behavior geneticists, • physiological psychologists, or • biopsychologists.
Cognitive Psychology = the scientific study of all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.
Evolutionary Psychology = the study of the evolution of behavior and mind, using principles of natural selection.
Psychodynamic Psychology = a branch of psychology that studies how unconscious drives and conflicts influence behavior, and uses that information to treat people with psychological disorders.
Social-Cultural Psychology = the study of how situations and cultures affect our behavior and thinking.
Psychometrics = the scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits.
Basic Research = pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base.
Developmental Psychology = a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span.
Educational Psychology = the study of how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning.
Personality Psychology = the study of an individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting.
Social Psychology = the scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another.
Applied Research = scientific study that aims to solve practical problems.
Industrial-Organizational (I/O) Psychologists = the application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces.
Human Factors Psychologists = an I/O subfield that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use.
Counseling Psychology = a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, and marriage) and in achieving greater well-being.
Clinical Psychology = a branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treat people with psychological disorders.