3. What is Psychology?
Psychology is the study of the brain, mental processes,
observable behavior, human and animal development, and
social interactions.
4. History of Psychology
Psychology was once a part of philosophy.
Philosophers such as Rene Descartes, John Locke, and
Thomas Hobbes speculated on human nature.
Philosopher Ideas (simplified)
Rene Descartes Universe and world can be describe in
physical laws; but humans have a mind
and therefore cannot be explained fully by
physical laws.
John Locke Humans born blank slate, “tabula rasa.”
All skills and knowledge are learned.
Thomas Hobbes Consciousness or our awareness is a by-
product of the brain.
5. History of Psychology
Rene Descartes believed that the physical world follows a set
of observable laws or rules. He believed creatures are similar
to machines, in that they are governed by laws and behave in
predictable ways.
Descartes believe that humans are the exception to this rule
because they possess minds. He makes a distinction between
the body and the mind. The mind is not observable and is not
subject to the natural laws. He thought the mind and body
interact through the pineal gland.
6. History of Psychology
John Locke believed that even the mind is under the control
of rules or laws. Locke believed that the world could be
understood through empiricism – gathering knowledge and
understanding the world through observation and experience.
Locke thought that humans are born as a tabula rasa,
meaning a blank slate, and that everything we know must be
learned.
7. History of Psychology
Thomas Hobbes believed that everything could be understood
in terms of materialism. This is the belief that the only things
that exist are matter and energy. According to Hobbes, there
is no spirit or soul.
What we experience as consciousness is, in Hobbes’ view, the
by-product of the machinery of the brain.
8. Schools of Thought
One way to organize all the ideas in psychology is by
categorizing psychological theories and ideas into various
schools of thought.
Each school of thought has a certain way of describing some
aspect of behavior, mental process, or social interaction.
10. Structuralism
William Wundt & Structuralism
Wilhelm Wundt set up the first psychology lab in Leipzig,
Germany.
Wilhelm Wundt championed the school of thought in
psychology called Structuralism, “father of
structuralism.”
Structuralism is an attempt to breakdown the ‘elements’ of
perception into smaller understandable units – similar to
how a chemist breaks down a compound into its elements.
The sensation of ‘red’ or ‘sharp’ or ‘hard’ is understood as
an ‘element’ of consciousness.
11. Structuralism
Trained subjects in introspection.
Introspection is the examination or observation of one’s
own mental and emotional processes.
He asked trained subjects to record their cognitive reactions
to simple stimuli.
Describe this ______, and tell me your sensation of it.
12. Structuralism
A trained subject in an experiment is presented with an
object, such as an apple.
The subject would report the physical characteristics of the
apple (e.g., color, length, density, smell, taste, etc.).
Subject told not to report name of object because that does
not describe sensory data of experience.
15. Functionalism & James
Functionalism & William James
James published The Principles of Psychology,
psychology’s first official textbook.
James championed the school of thought called
Functionalism.
16. Functionalism
Functional psychology or Functionalism refers to a
psychological philosophy that considers mental life and
behaviour in terms of adaptation to the person's environment;
it was influenced by Darwin and evolutionary theory.
For example, an explanation for why a baby cries is that it
helps the baby survive.
It is not an active area of psychology anymore.
17. Schools of Thought: Gestalt
Psychology
Max Wertheimer & Gestalt Psychology
Wertheimer argued against dividing human thought and
behavior into discrete subjects; that is, he did not like
structuralism.
Gestalt theorists argue and demonstrate that the “the whole is
something else than the sum of its parts.”
19. Gestalt Psychology
Gestalt psychology is not an active area of research anymore.
Some of the ideas of Gestalt psychology have been adopted
and reworked by cognitive psychology.
20. Schools of Thought:
Psychoanalysis
Sigmund Freud & Psychoanalysis
Freud describes how the unconscious mind, dreams, and other
psychological mechanisms exert influence on behavior.
Psychoanalysis is a set of theories related to the study of
the unconscious mind and a set of therapeutic techniques to
help patients recover from psychological disorders.
21. Psychoanalysis
A psychoanalyst believes that the unconscious mind – a part
of our mind we do not have access to – controls many of our
thoughts and behavior.
A psychoanalyst would look for impulses or memories
pushed into our unconscious and try to show how these
influence our behavior.
22. Schools of Thought:
Behavioral
Ivan Pavlov & Classical Conditioning
Ivan Pavlov studied digestion in dogs which led to an
unintentional discovery.
He noticed that dogs began to salivate when they heard him
or his assistant walking down the hall before entering the
room; dogs paired the sound footsteps with a delicious meal.
24. Behavioral
John Watson & Behaviorism
Demonstrated that you could take a neutral stimulus, like
a rabbit, and condition someone, like a baby, to fear the
rabbit by sounding an abrasive noise at the same time
the rabbit was present.
The baby associated the terrible noise with the site of the
rabbit.
25. Behavioral
B.F. Skinner & Operant Conditioning
He expands the basic ideas of behaviorism to include the idea
of reinforcement and punishment.
26. Schools of Thought:
Humanistic Perspective
Key figures in the Humanistic perspective are Abraham
Maslow & Carl Rogers.
The humanistic perspective stresses individual choice and
freewill (in opposition to other schools of thought like
psychoanalysis and behaviorism that claim that behavior is
determined).
Humanistic psychologists assert that we choose most of our
behaviors and these choices are guided by physiological,
emotional, and spiritual needs.
29. Evolutionary Psychology
Evolutionary psychologists examine human thoughts and
behaviors in terms of natural selection.
Some psychological traits might be advantageous for survival,
and these traits will be passed on.
Obesity example
30. Cognitive Perspective
Cognitive psychologists examine behavior and thought in
terms of how we interpret, process, and remember information.
Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development focuses on how
our thinking develops as we develop from infants to adults.
A cognitive psychologist might explain a person’s tendency to
be extroverted in terms of how he or she interprets social
situations.
31. Sociocultural Psychology
Sociocultural psychologists look at how our thoughts and
behaviors vary from people living in other cultures. They
emphasize the influence culture has on the way we act and
think.
How much value does the culture place on being part of a
group versus being an individual?
What kind of behaviors are appropriate in some countries but
not in others?
32. Biopsychosocial Model
The biopsychosocial model acknowledges that human
thinking and behavior results from combinations of
biological, psychological, and social factors.
For example, anorexia may be explained as having
biological, psychological, and cultural causes.
33. Summary
Approach Cause of Behavior Method for Investigation
Biological Genes, hormones, physiology, brain,
body
Brain scans, genetic
analysis, investigating
physiology/biology
Cognitive Personal thoughts, thinking patterns,
brain processes, neural networks
Investigating thoughts,
patterns of thinking, and
making analogies with
computer models about the
brain
Humanistic Self-concept, self-esteem Talk-therapy
Psychoanalytic/
dynamic
Unconscious mind, trauma Dream analysis, talk-therapy
Behavioural S/R responses,
reinforcement/punishment
Understanding previous
reinforcement/punishment
history
34. Summary
Approach Cause of Behavior Method for Investigation
Sociocultural Differences in cultural background Cross-cultural studies
Evolutionary Natural selection Genetic analysis, species
comparisons
Structuralism --- Introspection studies
Functionalism Natural selection Species comparison
Gestalt
Psychology
Sensory/Perception processing ---
Biopsychosocial
model
Aims to understand behavior through
multiple schools of thought
