psy 200 consciousness and functionalism (chap. 1)

consciousness:

Person’s subjective experinece of the world and the mind

How did Wundt study consciousness using stimuli and reaction time?

Wundt studied consciousness by through stimuli and reaction time (the amount of time between the onset of a stimimulus and a persons response to it) through touching different parts of the body and seeing how long it took them to react- he found that the further the nerve cells from the brain, the longer it took for the reaction because it takes longer for the nerve signal to transmit to your brain (toes will take longer than thigh)

What is structuralism?

analysis of the basic elements that consitiute the mind. An approach to psychology that attempted to isolate and analyze the minds basic elements

what is introspection?

the analysis of subjective experience by trained observers (how people observe the color green or how something tastes)

What is the problem with using introspection as a research method?

The problem w this method is not everyone could agree on everything (looking at the color green or hearing a certain note played on the piano) since there was no way of telling if the persons description of their experience was accurate

What is functualism?

an approach to psychology that emphasized the adaptive significance of mental processes

How did James and Wundt different in how they beleived consciouness should be studied?

James: believed there was a stream of consciouness

Wundt: Believed it was broken up