Psychology: History, Theories, and Perspectives (Pages 7–11)

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, people, and concepts from psychology history, major theoretical perspectives, and contemporary applications as presented in the notes.

Psychology

The scientific study of behavior and mental processes.

psyche logos

The soul; the Greek root meaning 'the soul' used in the term psychology.The study of; the Greek root meaning 'the study of' in psychology.

introspection

The process of carefully recording one's own thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

philosophy

The discipline that asks fundamental questions about knowledge, mind, and reality; psychology's root.

natural science

The branch of science that studies the physical world; psychology's other root.

Aristotle

Early philosopher; one of the first thinkers associated with questions about knowledge and mind.

Wilhelm Wundt

Founder of experimental psychology; established the first psychology laboratory in the 1870s.

Darwin

Charles Darwin; proposed evolution and natural selection shaping behavior.

functionalism

A theory or doctorine that empahzies the funtion or purpose of something

Gestalt psychology

Perception is more than the sum of parts; breaking into building blocks loses information.

Sigmund Freud;

founder of psychodynamics; emphasized unconscious mind, sexuality, dream analysis, personality, therapy.

unconscious mind

Mental processes outside conscious awareness.

behaviorism

An approach focusing on observable behavior and measurable data.

Edward Titchener

Proponent of structuralism; broke mental experiences into basic elements.

structuralism

An approach that analyzes the mind's structure into simplest components.

William James

American psychologist who proposed functionalism and emphasized evolution.

classical conditioning

Learning by association between a neutral stimulus and a meaningful stimulus (Pavlov).

Ivan Pavlov

Pioneer of classical conditioning; studied conditioned reflexes like salivation in dogs.

cognitive psychology

Perspective studying information processing, thinking, reasoning, and problem solving.

developmental psychology

Perspective examining normal changes in behavior across the lifespan.

social psychology

Perspective examining how environment and social context influence behavior.

biological psychology

Perspective focusing on mind–brain–behavior relationships.

evolutionary psychology

Perspective investigating how evolution shaped thought and behavior for survival and reproduction.

clinical psychology

Perspective dealing with the assessment and treatment of mental illness and promotion of well-being.

1970s brain activity methods

Advances in observing brain activity (neuroimaging) that spurred new knowledge.

therapist

A professional who provides therapy; many doctoral-level psychologists work as therapists.

minimum degree for therapist license

Master's degree is typically the minimum required for licensure as a therapist.