Lecture 1: Intro to Psych

Definition of Psych

Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

What is a mental process?

perceptions, thoughts, decision making, feelings

What is the APA (American Psychology Association)?

The largest professional organization for psychologists in North America; includes 56 divisions

What is the first goal of psych?

content knowledge and applications

What is the second goal of psych?

scientific inquiry and critical thinking

What is the third goal of psych?

values in psychological science

• doing things ethically to improve the worldly quality of life

What is the fourth goal of psychology?

communication, psychological literacy, and technology skills

What is the fifth goal of psych?

personal and professional development

What are the five pillars of psych?

biological, cognitive, developmental, social & personality, mental & physical health

What is the use of replication in research?

getting same findings with different participants, with different researchers

Who is considered the founder of psychology as a separate field of study?

Wilhelm Wundt

What was Wundt’s main studies?

sensation and perception with simple reaction time tests

What is introspection?

the inner observation and analysis of personal mental experiences

What is structuralism?

Early approach to psych where people attmept to break sensation and perception into their small parts

What are the issues with structuralism?

Introspection is unverifiable and unreliable

• two people can have different experiences

• does not work with children and animals

Who taught the first psych course at Harvard and helped develop functionalism?

William James Hall

What is functionalism?

studying psych by focusing on the purpose of mental processes/behaviors

Who made the operant chamber for rats?

B.F. Skinner

Who was the pioneer of therapy and counseling, and created the psychodynamic approach?

Freud

What is the psychodynamic approach?

studying psych by focusing on how our mental processes are affected by childhood and by thought and fears

What was weak of Freud’s approach?

case studies

• biased and sexist on “female hysteria”

Who looked at how biological factors influence thoughts and behaviors?

Pavlov

What is Pavlovian Conditioning?

Can condition responses

• stimulus → response

Who fostered the sociocultural approach?

Lewin

What is the sociocultural approach?

studying psych by considering how social dynamics and culture interact in our everyday lives

Who influenced the cognitive approach?

Kahneman

What is the cognitive approach?

studying psychology with a focus on inner mental processes such as memory, decision making, and thought structures

Who brought psych to Japan and how did he popularize it?

Yujiro Motora, and translated works by Hundt and James

• paved the way for ADHD

Who’s work focused on dream, memory, of the self?

Who did work that identified issues and standardized tests?

Robert Lee Williams II

What term did Williams II coin?

Ebonics