Psychology - Chapter 1: Psychology's History and Approaches

Critical Thinking

Thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. Rather, it examines assumptions, appraises the source, discerns hidden values, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions.

Empiricism

The idea that knowledge comes from experience, and that observation and experimentation enable scientific knowledge.

Structuralism

An early school of thought promoted by Wundt and Titchener; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind.

Introspection

A method of self-observation in which participants report their thoughts and feelings.

Functionalism

Early school of thought promoted by William James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function- how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish.

Behaviorism

The view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2).

Humanistic Psychology

Historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people and the individual's potential for personal growth.

Cognitive Psychology

The scientific study of mental processes, including perception, thought, memory, and reasoning.

Cognitive Neuroscience

A field of psychology that attempts to understand the links between cognitive processes and brain activity.

Psychology

The science of behavior and mental processes

Nature-Nurture Issue

The long-standing controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors.

Natural Selection

The principle that inherited traits that better enable an organism to survive and reproduce in particular environment will most likey be passed down to succeeding generations.

Evolutionary Psychology

The study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection.

Behavior Genetics

The study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior.

Culture

The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next.

Positive Psychology

The scientific study of human flourishing, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive.

Biopsychosocial Approach

Integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural viewpoints.

Behavioral Psychology

The scientific study of observable behavior, and its explanation by principles of learning.

Biological Psychology

The scientific study of the links between biological and psychological processes (links between biology and behavior).

Psychodynamic Psychology

A branch of psychology that studies how unconscious drives and conflicts influence behavior, and uses that information to treat people with psychological disorders.

Social-cultural Psychology

The study of how situations and cultures affect our behavior and thinking.

Testing effect

Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information.

SQ3R

A study method incorporating five steps: Survey, Question, Read, Retrieve, Review.

Psychometrics

The scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits.

Basic Research

Pure research that aims to confirm an existing theory or to learn more about a concept or phenomenon

Developmental Psychology

A branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span.

Educational Psychology

The study of how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning.

Personality Psychology

The study of an individuals' characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting.

Social Psychology

The scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another.

Applied Psychology

The branch of psychology concerned with everyday, practical problems

Industrial-organization (I/O) Psychology

The application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces.

Human Factors Psychology

An I/O psychology subfield that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use.

Counseling Psychology

A branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being.

Clinical Psychology

A branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders.

Psychiatry

A branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychological therapy

Community Psychology

A branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups.

Wilhelm Wundt

German physiologist who founded psychology as a formal science; opened first psychology research laboratory in 1879 (University of Leipzig).

G. Stanley Hall

In 1883, Wundt's American student Hall went on to establish the first formal U.S. psychology laboratory, at Johns Hopkins University.

Edward Bradford Titchener

Wundt's student who joined the Cornell University faculty and introduced structuralism after receiving his Ph.D. in 1892.

William James

Founder of functionalism; studied how humans use perception to function in our environment.

Charles Darwin

English natural scientist who formulated a theory of evolution by natural selection. Functionalism was influenced by his research.

Mary Whiton Calkins

First female president of the APA (1905); a student of William James; denied the PhD she earned from Harvard because of her sex (later, posthumously, it was granted to her); distinguished memory researcher.

Margaret Floy Washburn

First female to be awarded a PhD in psychology; 2nd president of the APA (1921); wrote an influential book called "The Animal Mind."

John. B Watson

Behaviorism; emphasis on external behaviors of people and their reactions in a given situation; famous for study in which little Albert was taught to fear a white rat.

B.F. Skinner

Behaviorist that developed the theory of operant conditioning. The Skinner box, otherwise known as an operant conditioning chamber, is a laboratory apparatus used to study animal behavior within a compressed time frame.

Sigmund Freud

Austrian physician whose work focused on the unconscious causes of behavior and personality formation; founded psychoanalysis.

Carl Rogers

Humanistic learning theory emphasizes the freedom and autonomy of learners. It connects the ability to learn with the fulfillment of other needs (building on Maslow's hierarchy) and the perceived utility of the knowledge by the learner.

Abraham Maslow

Humanistic psychologist known for his "Hierarchy of Needs" and the concept of "self-actualization."

Ivan Pavlov

Russian Psychologist who discovered classical conditioning; trained dogs to salivate at the ringing of a bell.

Jean Piaget

Known for his theory of cognitive development in children.

Dorothea Dix

Activist who helped improve conditions for mental patients.