History of Psychology

Psamtik I

An Egyptian pharaoh who conducted an early psychology experiment to prove Egyptians were the oldest people by testing language development in isolated twins.

Hypothesis

An if-then statement used by Psamtik to suggest that a child without language exposure would speak an innate language (Egyptian).

Control Group

A necessary component of experiments that was missing in Psamtik's study, making it less valid.

Frigian Word

The first word spoken by the twins, "bekos," which disproved Psamtik's hypothesis as it was not Egyptian.

Twin Studies

Research showing that twins develop their own language when sharing experiences, relevant to Psamtik's experiment.

William Wundt

The psychologist who conducted the first modern experiment in psychology in the late 19th century, focusing on perception.

Structuralism

A psychological approach established by Edward Titchener that analyzed basic elements of perception.

Introspection

A method used by Titchener where subjects self-reported their experiences, leading to issues of reliability and bias.

Functionalism

A counter to structuralism developed by William James, focusing on how organisms adapt to their environment rather than just conscious processes.

Gestalt

A psychological theory proposed by Max Wertheimer emphasizing the perception of whole patterns rather than individual components.

Apparent Movement

A Gestalt principle where movement is perceived as a whole rather than in separate parts.

Proximity

A Gestalt principle stating that objects close together are perceived as belonging together.

Sigmund Freud

An Austrian psychologist who introduced psychoanalysis, focusing on unresolved past trauma as a cause of abnormal behavior.

Psychoanalysis

A therapeutic approach developed by Freud to explore and resolve past traumas affecting behavior.

Behaviorism

A psychological perspective founded by John Watson that focuses on observable behavior rather than introspection or internal processes.