So what is the definition of Psychology?

1. So what is the definition of Psychology? • Psychology- the scientific study of behavior and mental processes • Mental processes-the thoughts, feelings, and motives that each of us experience privately but cannot be observed • As a science, psychology uses systematic approaches to observe, describe, predict, and explain human behavior and mental processes.

2. What do you know about Psychology? What do you think, when you think of psychology? How does intuition influence what we believe? Psychology is an empirical science dedicated to scientific research initiated by intuition and objective measurement. Scientific research decreases incidence of hindsight bias.

3. Why Psychologists rely on Empirical methods • Scientific research methods are important, but not all questions can be answered using scientific methods • Scientists do not attempt to prove values, beliefs, or opinions to be true or false • What are values? • Values are personal statements; such statements include religious beliefs, moral opinions, old wives tales, etc. • If values can not be considered to be true or false, scientists can not prove or disprove them

4. Brain-imaging techniques • Three commonly used brain-imaging techniques • (1) Positron emission tomography(PET scan)generates images of the brain’s activityby tracking the brain’s use of radioactively tagged compounds that have been injected into the bloodstream. • (2) Magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)uses electrical signals generated by the brain in response to magnetic fields to produce highly detailed images of the brain’s structure. • (3) Functional magnetic resonance imaging(fMRI)uses magnetic fields to track changes in blood flow and oxygen levels in the brain. It provides a picture of brain activityaveraged over seconds rather than the several minutes required by PET scans.

5. Opinions vs Facts • Opinions are personal beliefs and individual ideas • What are some examples of opinion? • Facts are objective statements determined to be accurate through empirical study • What are some examples of facts? • Values are significant when determining which research is appropriate or important

6. Levels of Explanation in Psychology • The study of psychology is influenced by many different topics at different levels of explanation • The Biopsychosocial is a holistic approach to examining phenomena from biological, psychological, and social perspectives • How do we attempt to explain depression from this perspective? • Understanding psychological disorders is difficult because of the many perspectives to consider • Individual differences hinder making predictions… • Individual differences are the variations among people on physical or psychological dimensions

7. Often behavior may be influenced by more variables, simultaneously • The variables may occur at different levels at one time • One variable may influence another variable, such that multiple causes are not independent of one another • Comorbidity occurs when one variable is present and causes other variables to be present as well

8. What are the origins of Psychology? • The origins of psychology can be traced back to the writings of great philosophers such as Aristotle, a Greek philosopher who wrote about topics such as sleep, dreams, the senses, and memory. • Wilhelm Wundt and the first experiment. • Wilhelm Wundt defined psychology as the study of consciousness and emphasized the use of experimental methods to study and measure consciousness • Edward B. Titchener and structuralism and introspection. • complex conscious experiences can be broken down into elemental structures, or component parts of sensations and feelings.

9. William James and functionalism. • William James was an American physiologist and psychologist and his ideas became the basis for a school of psychology called functionalism • Functionalism stressed the importance of how behavior functions to allow people and animals to adapt to their environments. • Functionalists examined how psychology could be applied to areas such as education, child rearing, and the work environment and primarily the influence of the workings of the British naturalist Charles Darwin

10. Psychology 1sts • G. Stanley Hall • G. Stanley Hall received the first PhD in psychology in the United States and he established the first psychology research laboratory in the United States at Johns Hopkins University in 1833. He also began publishing the American Journal of Psychology in 1892. • Mary Whiton Calkins • Mary Whiton Calkins was an American psychologist who conducted research on memory, personality, and dreams and she established a psychological laboratory at Welesley College in 1891; she was also the first woman to be elected president of the APA and although she completed all the requirement for a PhD in psychology from Harvard, Harvard refused to grant her the degree because she was a woman. • Margaret Washburn • Margaret Wasburn was the first American woman to officially earn a PhD in psychology and she published the text The Animal Mind and was the second woman to be elected president of the APA. • Francis Summer • Francis Summer was the first African American to receive a PhD in psychology and he later published a wide variety of topics and chaired the psychology department at Howard University. One of Summer’s students, Kenneth Bancroft Clark was the first black president of the American Psychological Association in 1970.

11. Perspectives in Psychology • Psychodynamic • Behaviorism • Humanistic • Cognitive • Psychosocial • Sociocultural • Behavioral neuroscience

12. Mental Health Professionals • Clinical psychologists…What do you think they do? • What are Psychiatrists? • What is the difference between a psychiatrist and a psychologist?

13. Areas of Research • Biological • Clinical • Cognitive • Counseling • Educational • Experimental • Developmental • Forensic • Health • Industrial/organizational • Personality • Rehabilitation • Social • Sports • School • Military

14. Ethics in Research • Why do we need ethics in research? • What are some elements of ethics?

15. Ethics in Research • So why do we need ethics in research? • What are some elements of ethics? • Some ethical practices include… • Informed consent • Debriefing • Confidentiality • Deception? • There are also ethical guidelines for special populations

16. How do you read and interpret research study findings? • What is the difference between plagiarism and paraphrasing? • When do you cite? • How do you cite? • What is the purpose of a reference page? • What is the relevance of peer-reviewed research?