Unit 1 AP Psych

Module 1: A Brief History

Psychology’s Pre Scientific Roots

A. Greek Philosophy

  1. Psychology derives from green philosophy (psyche = mind – ology = study of)

  2. The Greek Philosophy argument

    1. Plato: The mind and body are separate (dualism) and knowledge is inmate (inborn)

    2. Aristotle: Knowledge derives from experience (empiricism)

B. Eastern Philosophy

  1. Buddhism: Self awareness and perceptions shape happiness

  2. Confucianism: Intelligence is a tool that can be measured

  3. Taoism: The mind should work with the body to achieve self cultivation

C. Enlightenment Philosophy

  1. Rene Desacartes: The Christian idea of dualism is explained via philosophy and physiology

  2. John Locke: The mind is a tabula rasa or a blank state at Birth

  3. Francis Bacon: Natural Phenomenon is understood through the scientific method (Modern Empiricism)

Psychology’s earliest school of thought

A. Structuralism

  1. Germany 1879: William Wundt opened the first psychology lab

  2. Edward Titchener used introspection or self analysis to explain consciousness

  3. Structuralism focused on what are the various mental emotional processes

B. Functionalism

  1. William James authors the first psychology textbook

  2. G. Stanley Hall was the 1st president of the American Psychological Association

  3. Functionalism focuses on why the environment impacts consciousness

C. Women in Psychology

  1. Women Played a large role in psychology’s early development

  2. Margret Floy Washburn was the first woman awarded a PhD in psychology

  3. Mary Whiton Calkins was the first female PhD at Harvard

Module 2: The Schools of Thought/Perspective

The main rival fields of Psychology

A. Psychodynamics l The Neo-Freudians

  1. Sigmund Freud wrote that our unconscious mind shapes our thoughts and actions

    1. This technique: Psychoanalysis explored the impact of unconscious memories

  2. The Neo-Freudians belief: childhood trauma shapes feelings of inadequacy in adults

  3. Involves dream analysis, hypothesis, and psychoanalysis (Freud used all)

B. Behaviorism l The Behaviorists

  1. The Behaviorists argued that psychology should be an objective science

  2. The experiments and research they conducted focused on observable behaviors

  3. Ivan Pavlov, John Watson, and BF skinner created various learning modules

  4. Very much science based - leading them to be quite boring

C. Humanism l The Humanists

  1. Carl Rogers (the one who created humanism): a person-centered approach helps individuals in therapeutic settings

  2. Abraham Maslow: a set of needs must be met to achieve inner potential

  3. The Humanists focused on personal growth, motivation, and self-worth

The other fields that are interviewed with one another

A. Cognitive and Biological

  1. Behaviors are shaped by internal processes like memories, emotions, and intelligence

  2. Field of neurobiology studies the brain and our biochemistry

  3. Cognitive neuroscience studies impact of biological factors on our mental processes

B. Evolutionary and Socio-Cultural

  1. Natural Selection argues that genetic mutations lead to traits that are passed down

  2. Environmental factors like religion, language, family, and diet shape our how we view our world

  3. Our environment and genetics shapes both are behavior and internal processes

Module 3: Contemporary Issues

Biggest Issues impacting Psychology today

A. Objective

  1. Psychology - a social science that studies human behavior and mental processes

  2. Psychologists - how can behavior be observed, explained, and predicted

  3. Nature-Nurture Debate: What impacts our behavior more, genes or environment?

B. Biopsychosocial approach

  1. Biological - genetics, brain chemistry, and evolutionary traits

  2. Psychological - learned thoughts, emotions, and inner dialogue

  3. Social - relationships and external influences

The work of basic psychology differed from applied psychology

A. Basic Psychology

  1. Uses scientific research to expand the field of psychology

  2. Psychometrics - scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits

  3. Professions - neurobiology development, cognitive, educational, personality, and social

B. Applied Psychology

  1. Uses psychology to solve practical problems

  2. Majority of psychologists conduct applied research

  3. Professions - community, industrial/organizational, huma factor, counseling, clinical, psychiatrists, and positive