Comprehensive Study Notes on Fundamental Psychology Concepts and Domains
Historical Foundations and Early Schools of Thought
Psychology: The science of behavior and mental processes.
Empiricism: The idea that knowledge comes from experience, and that observation and experimentation enable scientific knowledge.
Structuralism: An early school of thought promoted by Wilhelm Wundt and Edward Bradford Titchener that used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind.
Introspection and Psychoanalysis:
- Introspection: A reflective process of looking inward to observe one's own psychological processes, utilized by structuralists to explore mind structure.
- Psychoanalysis: A perspective and technique where the analyst notes supposed dream meanings, resistances, and other significant behaviors and events in order to promote insight.
Functionalism: An early school of thought promoted by William James and influenced by Charles Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function—how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish.
Behaviorism: The view that psychology should be an objective science that studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Contemporary psychologists generally agree with the premise that psychology must be an objective science, but do not agree that mental processes should be excluded from study.
Humanistic Psychology: A historically significant perspective that emphasized human growth potential.
Contemporary Psychological Perspectives and Approaches
Biopsychosocial Approach: An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural viewpoints to gain a complete understanding of behavior and mental processes.
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 processes (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes.
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.
Cognitive Psychology: The study of mental processes, such as those that occur when we perceive, learn, remember, think, communicate, and solve problems.
Cognitive Neuroscience: The interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language).
Social-Cultural Psychology: The study of how situations and cultures affect our behavior and thinking.
Evolutionary Psychology: The study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection.
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.
Domains, Subfields, and Applied Psychology
Basic Research: Pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base.
Applied Research: Scientific study that aims to solve practical problems.
Psychometrics: The scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits.
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 enhance teaching and learning.
Personality Psychology: The study of individuals' characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting.
Social Psychology: The scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another.
Industrial-Organizational (I/O) Psychology: The application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces.
Human Factors Psychology: A field of psychology allied with industrial-organizational psychology 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 provide medical (e.g., 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.
Key Concepts, Core Debates, and Critical Inquiry
Critical Thinking: Thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. Rather, it examines assumptions, appraises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions.
Nature-Nurture Issue: The longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors. Modern science views traits and behaviors as arising from the continuous interaction of nature and nurture.
Natural Selection: The principle that inherited traits that better enable an organism to survive and reproduce in a particular environment will (in competition with other trait variations) most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.
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.
Evidence-Based Learning and Study Strategies
Testing Effect: Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply re-reading, information. This phenomenon is also sometimes referred to as the retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning.
SQ3R Study Method: A systematic study method incorporating five distinct steps:
- Survey: Scan the material before reading.
- Question: Formulate questions based on headings and topic goals.
- Read: Read actively to answer the formulated questions.
- Retrieve: Practice retrieving information without looking at notes.
- Review: Review material to solidify memory and test understanding.