Intro to Psychology: Basic processes - Chapter 1: The Evolution of Psychology

What’s Psychology

Psychology is the study of human and the physiological and processes that underlie it.

What’s Psychology (con’t)

The scientific study of conscious experience

The origin of the term “Psychology”

It comes from the Greek words psyche (the soul) and logos (the study of a subject)

When did psychology emerge as a scientific disicpline?

About 140 years ago, in 1879

Who’s responsible for psychology’s birth?

Wilhelm Wundt who succeeded in establishing the first formal laboratory for research in psychology at the University of Leipzig, and made psychology its own independent discipline

Structuralism

The notion that the task of psychology is to analyze consciousness into its basic elements and investigate how these element are related.

Structuralism (con’t)

Emerged in 1892 via Edward Titchener’s leadership

Introspection

The careful, systematic self-observation of one’s own conscious experience.

Introspection (con’t)

Required training to make the subject—the person being studied—more objective and more aware.

Functionalism

Based on the belief that psychology should investigate the function or purpose of consciousness, rather than its structure

Functionalism (con’t)

Was heavily influenced by William James, who argued that the structuralists’ approach missed the real nature of conscious experience.

Functionalism (III)

Argued that consciousness consists of a continuous flow of thoughts

Behaviourism

Is a theoretical orientation based on the premise that scientific psychology should study only observable behaviour

Behaviourism (con’t)

Founded by John B. Watson, who believed the power of the scientific method rested on the idea of verifiability. In principle, scientific claims can always be verified (or disproved) by anyone able and willing to make the required observations.

Behaviour

Refers to any overt (observable) response or activity by an organism.

Behaviour (con’t)

Downplays heredity, and suggests that people are “made”

Unconscious

Contains thoughts, memories, and desires that are well below the surface of conscious awareness but that nonetheless exert great influence on behaviour.

Unconscious (con’t)

Founded by Sigmund Freud who noticed that seemingly meaningless slips of the tongue revealed a person’s true feelings. He also noted that his patients’ dreams often seemed to express important feelings they were unaware of.

Psychoanalytic theory

Attempts to explain personality, motivation, and mental disorders by focusing on unconscious determinants of behaviour.

Behaviourist Skinner’s principle on behaviour

Organisms tend to repeat responses that lead to positive outcomes, and they tend not to repeat responses that lead to neutral or negative outcomes.

Behaviourist Skinner’s principle on behaviour (con’t)

Everyone’s controlled by their environment, and free will is an illusion

Humanism

A theoretical orientation that emphasizes the unique qualities of humans, especially their freedom and their potential and need for personal growth

Humanism (con’t)

Takes an optimistic view of human nature, and maintains that people are not pawns of either their animal heritage or environmental circumstances.

Person-centred therapy

Pioneered by Carl Rogers

Where was the 1st experimental laboratory in the British Empire established?

In the University of Toronto by James Mark Baldwin in 1891

Where and when was the 1st psycholog course offered at a Canadian university

Dallhousie in 1838

The Canadian Psychological Association (CPA)

Was formed in 1939, and Canada’ largest organization for psychology.

The Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) (con’t)

Its objectives are:

• To improve the health and welfare of all Canadians

• To promote excellence and innovation in psychological research, education, and practice

• To promote the advancement, development, dissemination and application of psychological knowledge

• To provide high-quality services to its over 7000 members

Clinical psychology

The branch of psychology concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of psychological problems and disorders.

Cognition

The mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge.

i.e. thinking or conscious experience. For many decades, the dominance

Evolutionary psychology

Examines behavioural processes in terms of their adaptive value or members of a species over the course of many generations.

Evolutionary psychology (con’t)

Its basic premise is that natural selection favours behaviours that enhance organisms’ reproductive success, that is, passing on genes to the next generation.

When did evolutionary psychology emerge?

In the mid to late 1980s

Positive psychology

Uses theory and research to understand better the positive, adaptive, creative, and fulfilling aspects of human existence.

Positive psychology (con’t)

Was brought about in 1997 by APA president Martin Seligman following an interaction with his daughter