Basic psychology unit 1

Meaning and definition of psychology

Psychology is derived from two greek words - Psyche and logos

Psychology is the scientific study of

  • behaviour (what we do)

  • mental processes (perception, thought, memory, logical reasoning, IQ, EQ)

Historical background

So Previously Freud Brought Gestalt Home Expecting Pineapple Cake

Structuralism School (1879)

  • Wilhelm Wundt

    • Established the first lab in Leipzig, Germany

    • introspection method

      • self-observation and reporting of conscious inner thoughts, desires and sensations

  • E.B. Titchener, G. Stanley Hall

  • A school of psychology that aims to identify the contents of mental processes (components) rather than the whole function of the process.

  • Analyse the Brain by breaking down mental processes into their most basic components

  • Criticism: subjected and limited to conscious experiences.

Psychoanalysis (1895)

Sigmund Freud

  • Psychoanalysis is the study of unconscious mind and how it affects a person's thoughts, feelings, and emotions.

  • The conscious mind: contains thoughts, feelings, and perceptions that we are presently aware of.

  • The preconscious mind: memories, ideas, and thoughts that are available for conscious awareness, but we are not thinking about them currently.

  • The unconscious mind: the largest part of the human mind. The unconscious mind is responsible for troubling thoughts, urges, and feelings hidden from conscious view.

  • Criticism: unconscious processes could not be tested scientifically.

Functionalism

William James

  • To examine the mind in its whole, rather than focusing on individual components

  • Suggests that the mind’s primary purpose is to help humans adapt to their environment. This approach focuses on the overall function of the brain in fulfilling practical needs, rather than analysing its separate components.

  • Criticism: overemphasised evolutionary aspect, neglecting social, cultural, and environmental factors.

Behaviourism

  • John B. Watson

    • Little Albert experiment in collaboration with Rosalie Rayner

    • conditioned a baby to fear a white rat by pairing it with a loud noise

  • Ivan Pavlov

    • Classical conditioning - A form of learning in which an organism learns to associate two stimuli and anticipate events.

  • B.F. Skinner

    • Operant conditioning/ instrumental conditioning

  • Focuses on how people learn through their interactions with the environment. Idea that all behaviours are acquired through conditioning, which is a process of reinforcement and punishment.

  • Criticism: ignored internal mental processes.

Gestalt School (1912)

Max Wertheimer

“The whole is greater than sum of its parts.”

  • A school of psychology concerned with the sensory experience and how they naturally relate back to the whole mind, and how the mind perceives and processes that relation.

  • The word Gestalt roughly translates to ‘form’ or ‘shape’ in German, reflecting the idea that the mind tends to perceive entire structures rather than assembling them from smaller components

  • Criticism: mental processes can’t be observed.

Humanistic

Carl Rogers

  • Abraham Maslow

    • Hierarchy of needs is a framework often depicted as a pyramid.

    • The hierarchy suggests that higher needs, self-esteem and self-actualisation, can only be pursued once more basic needs have been satisfied and fulfilled.

    • Self actualisation refers to the process of realising and fulfilling ones potential and capabilities.

  • Perspective that emphasises looking at the whole individual using the concept of capacity for self-actualisation, self-fulfilment, and validation. Argues that people are free to choose their own lives and make their own decisions, focusing on the underlying motivations that drive personality, self-concept, and self-esteem.

  • Focused on the potential of innate good in humans and personal autonomy

  • Criticism: overly optimistic.

Existential Psychology

Rollo May

  • Viktor Frankl

    • Logotherapy

    • meaning-centred approach which promotes freedom of choice and personal responsibility

  • It considers human nature to be open-minded, flexible and capable of enormous range of experiences.

  • Emphasises the subjective meaning of human experience, uniqueness of the individual, and personal responsibility reflected in choice

  • Deals with fundamental issues such as meaning of life, responsibility, freedom, isolation, death.

Positive psychology

Martin Seligma

  • Focus on studying and promoting optimal human functioning, rather than focusing on the treatment of mental illness.

Cognitive psychology

Jean Piaget

  • Explain human thought and behaviour in terms of how we process, interpret, and remember environmental events.

  • Focus on though processes and information processing

  • Criticism: mental processes can’t be observed.

Scope of psychology

  • Psychologist

  • Basic Research

  • Neuropsychologist

  • Social psychologist

    • study of how individual’s thoughts, behaviours and feelings are influenced by social interactions and group dynamics

  • Educational psychologist

    • improving learning in classrooms and other educational settings

  • Clinical psychologist

    • assessment, diagnosis and treatment of mental illness and psychological disorders

  • Applied Research

    • discovering new and more effective ways to solve specific problems

  • Forensic psychologist

    • application of psychology to legal and criminal justice system

  • Sports psychologist

    • applications of psychological principle to improve athletic performance and wellbeing