General Psychology Chapter 1

Psychology

the study of mental activity and behavior which are based on brain processes

Descartes and the Mind/Body Problem: Dualizm

the mind and the body are seperate yet intertwined. as discussed throughout this book, psychologists now reject this idea, called dualism. instead they view the mind as a product of brain process

Wundt's Experimental Psychology Laboratory

established the first spychology laboratory in Germany in 1879. this event marked the beginning of modern experimental psychology

Structuralism and Introspection

in structuralism, a person would perform introspection about an object. for example, the person might report on the quality (red) and intensity (bright) of an apple. the person's verbal reports were thought to reveal the basic parts of the conscious mind

Structuralism

an early school of psychology that explored the structures of the mind through introspection

William James

FUNCTIONALISM founder, investigated the function of the conscious mind. he wanted to understand how the operations of the mind help people adapt to environmental demands

Darwin and Natural Selection

Darwin observed the species change over time. such change enables speciees to adapt and survive. the mechanism of change - the engine of evolution - these ideas led to the development of evolutionary theory

Functionalism

an early school of psychology concerned with the adaptive purpose, or function, of mind and behavior

Natural Selection

in evolutionary theory, the idea that those who inherit characteristics that help them adapt to their particular environments have a selective advantage over those who do not

Sigmund Freud

PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY founder. used it to treat unconscious mental forces that conflicted with acceptable behavior and produced psychological disorders

*concluded that human behavior is determined by mental processes operating below the level of conscious awareness

Max Wertheimer

GESTALT PSYCHOLOGY founder. according to this school of thought, people's experiences cannot be broken down into parts. instead, perception is unique for each person and is affected by context

"The whole is different from the sum of its parts"

Gestalt Theory

the idea that the whole of personal experience is different from simply the sum of its parts

Behaviorism

a psychological approach that emphasizes the role of environmental forces in producing behavior

Cognitive Psychology

the study of how people think, learn, and remember

John B. Watson

BEHAVIORISM founder, the scientific study of how obvservable environmental factors affect behavior

Behaviorism in Our Lives

Many people use the principles of behaviorism to train animals. to increase a desired behavior, the trainor provides an environmental stimulus that is rewarding.

George Miller

COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY founder. this modern school of psychology uses experimental methods to investigate how people think, remember, pay attention, make decisions, and solve problems

Cognitive Psychology in Our Lives

reveals how we pay attention, remember, solve problems, and make decisions. this information can be used to improve our learning and our daily lives. indeed, many of the features in this textbook are based on the principles of cognitive psychology, so using this book will help you learn

Kurt Lewin

SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY founder. he pioneered the use of experimental research to investigate how people incluence each other

Social Psychology in Our Lives

the rise of social spychology means that we have a stronger understanding of how people are influenced by others and by social situations. in some cases, this influence may be negative, when a person is isolated from his peers. but in other cases the presence of others can have very positive effects

Social Psychology

the study of how people are influenced by their interactions with others

4 Levels of Psychological Analysis

Biological (brain stems, neurochemistry, genetics), Individual (individual differences, perception and cognition, behavior), Social (interpersonal behavior, social cognition), Cultural (thoughts, actions, behaviors in different societies and cultural groups)

Culture

the beliefs, values, rules, and customs that exist within a group of people who share a common language and environment and that are transmitted through learning from one generation to the next

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

groups of people responsible for reviewing proposed research to ensure that it meets the accepted standards of science and provides for the physical and emotional well-being of research participants

5 Main issues Addressed

Privacy, Confidentiality, Informed consent, Deception, Risks

Scientific Method

a systematic procedure of observing and measureing phenomena (observable things) to answer questions about what happens, when it happens, what causes it, and why. this process involves a dynamic interaction between theories, hypotheses, and research methods.

Theory

a model of interconnected ideas or concepts that explains what is observed and makes predictions about future events

Hypothesis

a specific prediction of what should be observed if a theory is correct

Descriptive methods

a research method that provides a systematic and objective description of what is occurring

Observational Studies

a specific type of descriptive method. they involve observing and classifying behavior, either with intervention by the observer or without interention by the observer

Case studies

are a descriptive research method that involves intensive examination of one person or organization or a few individuals or organizations

Correlational Methods

examine how variables are related, without intervention by the observer

Examines how variables are naturally related in the real world. the researcher makes no attempt to alter the variables or assign causation between them

Experiemental Methods

a research method that tests casual hypotheses by manipulating independent variable and measureing the effects on dependent variables

Self Reports

descriptive research method that involves asking questions of research participants. the participants then respond in any way they feel is appropriate or select from among a fixed number of options.

independent variable

in an experiment, the variable that the experimenter manipulates to examine its impact on the dependent variable

dependent variable

in an experiment, the variable that is affected by the manipulation of the independent variable

control group

in an experiment, a comparison group of participants that recieves no intervention or receives an intervention that is unrelated to the independent variable being investigated

experimental group

in an experiment, one or more treatment groups of participants that receive the intervention of the independent variable being investigated

random assignment

placing research participants into the conditions of an experiment in such a way that each participant has an equal chance of being assigned to any level of the independent variable