Scientific Foundations of Psychology

Scientific Foundations of Psychology

  • Psychology: The science of behavior and mental processes.

  • Monism: Mind and body are aspects of the same thing.

  • Dualism: Mind and body are separate entities that interact.

  • Nature-Nurture Controversy: Debate over whether behavior is from heredity (nature) or experience (nurture).

Schools of Psychology

  • Structuralism: Focused on units of consciousness and elements of thought using introspection.

    • Wilhelm Wundt: Founder of scientific psychology.

    • G. Stanley Hall: Brought introspection to the U.S.

    • Edward Titchener: Studied elements of consciousness.

    • Margaret Floy Washburn: First woman to complete a Ph.D. in psychology.

  • Functionalism: Focused on how organisms use perceptual abilities to adapt.

    • William James: Wrote Principles of Psychology.

    • Mary Whiton Calkins: First woman president of the APA.

Principal Approaches to Psychology

  • Behavioral Approach: Concerned with behavioral reactions to stimuli; learning through experience.

    • Ivan Pavlov: Classical conditioning.

    • John Watson: Classical aversive conditioning.

    • B. F. Skinner: Operant conditioning.

  • Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic Approach: Concerned with unconscious instincts, conflicts, and defenses.

    • Sigmund Freud: Founder of psychoanalysis.

  • Humanistic Approach: Focuses on individual potential and unique perceptions.

    • Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow: Humanistic psychologists.

  • Biological Approach: Concerned with physiological and biochemical factors.

  • Cognitive Approach: Concerned with how we process information, think, and use language.

    • Jean Piaget: Studied cognitive development in children.

  • Evolutionary Approach: Concerned with how natural selection favored survival behaviors.

  • Sociocultural Approach: Concerned with how cultural differences affect behavior.

  • Biopsychosocial Model: Integrates biological, psychological, and social factors.

  • Eclectic: Uses techniques from various approaches.

Domains in Psychology

  • Clinical Psychologists: Treat mental disorders.

  • Counseling Psychologists: Help people adapt to change.

  • Developmental Psychologists: Study psychological development.

  • Educational Psychologists: Focus on effective teaching and learning.

  • Experimental Psychologists: Conduct research.

  • Forensic Psychologists: Apply principles to legal issues.

  • Health Psychologists: Focus on health and illness factors.

  • Industrial/Organizational Psychologists: Improve workplace productivity.

  • Neuropsychologists: Explore brain/behavior relationships.

  • Personality Psychologists: Focus on traits and attitudes.

  • Psychometricians: Focus on psychological data methods.

  • Social Psychologists: Study the impact of interactions on behavior.

Research Methods

  • Theories: Explain phenomena.

  • Hypothesis: Predicts relationships between factors.

  • Replication: Repeating experiments to verify results.

  • Independent Variable: Variable manipulated in an experiment.

  • Dependent Variable: Measured behavior or mental process.

  • Population: Group to which the study applies.

  • Sample: Subgroup participating in the study.

  • Random Selection: Equal chance of being chosen.

  • Experimental Group: Receives the treatment.

  • Control Group: Comparison group without the treatment.

  • Random Assignment: Equal chance of being in any group.

  • Confounding Variables: Factors causing differences besides the independent variable.

  • Operational Definition: Specific procedure to determine a variable.

  • Experimenter Bias: Researcher's expectations influence results.

  • Demand Characteristics: Clues influence participant responses.

  • Single-Blind Procedure: Participants unaware of group assignment.

  • Double-Blind Procedure: Experimenter and participants unaware of group assignment.

  • Placebo: Inactive treatment for the control group.

  • Placebo Effect: Response to belief in the treatment's effect.

  • Reliability: Consistency/repeatability of results.

  • Validity: Accuracy of measurement/prediction.

  • Statistics: Analysis of numerical data.

Descriptive Statistics

  • Frequency Distribution: Arrangement of scores.

  • Central Tendency: Average scores.

    • Mode: Most frequent score.

    • Median: Middle score.

    • Mean: Arithmetic average.

  • Variability: Spread of data.

    • Range: Difference between largest and smallest scores.

    • Standard Deviation (SD): Average difference from the mean.

  • Normal Distribution: Bell-shaped curve.

  • Percentile Score: Percentage at or below a score.

  • Correlation Coefficient (r): Degree of association between data sets ($-1$ to $+1$$).

Inferential Statistics

  • Statistical Significance (p): Probability findings are not due to chance (p < .05 or p < .01).

Ethical Guidelines

  • Rules for responsible and moral research/clinical practice.