W1 Lecture 3: Women in Early Psychology, Contemporary Subfields, and Career Pathways

Historical Exclusion and the Evolution of Psychological Research

Early psychological research faced significant limitations due to the selective demographics of both researchers and subjects.
Minorities and women were historically denied access to the higher levels of academic psychology, which impacted the diversity of thought and the scope of studied populations.
Most early psychological experiments were conducted primarily using white male subjects between the ages of $18$ and $22$ . This specific demographic was chosen because they were the primary group with access to colleges and universities at the time.
As a result, much of the research conducted early in the history of psychology is currently being redone or re-evaluated to account for more diverse populations and perspectives.

Influential Women in the History of Psychology

Anna Freud (Early Child Psychoanalysis)

Anna Freud, the daughter of Sigmund Freud, is credited with creating the field of child psychoanalysis.
Her fundamental insight was the identification that children require different therapeutic approaches than adults. She argued against the assumption that psychological methods effective for adults would automatically work for children.
She established the Hampstead Nursery for Homeless Children in London.
Concept of "Cupboard Love": Initially, she theorized that a child's relationship with their mother was based solely on the child recognizing the mother as a source of food (the "cupboard").
Shift in Perspective: Her views changed after observing children during World War II. She studied children who stayed in London during the bombings versus those who were evacuated to live with relatives in the country. She discovered that children who remained with their parents were developmentally better off following the war, despite the trauma of the bombings, compared to those sent away. This led her to believe the mother-child relationship was far more complex than just food provision.
influence on Others: She was a mentor to Erik Erikson, even pushing him to enter psychoanalysis. Erikson would later become a major figure in developmental psychology.
Defense Mechanisms: She is known for developing clear and detailed explanations for the various defense mechanisms used by the human mind.

Mary Whiton Calkins (The Science of the Self)

Mary Whiton Calkins was a student of William James. Despite being advocated for by James and other faculty members at Harvard, the university refused to grant her a PhD because of her gender.
Despite being denied her degree, she became the first woman president of the American Psychological Association (APA).
Psychological Focus: She emphasized the importance of the "self" and utilized introspection, a method originally popularized by Wilhelm Wundt.
Science of the Self Quote: She believed psychology should be "conceived as the science of the self or person… as related to its environment, physical, and social."
Personalistic Introspective Psychology: Calkins defined this as the study of conscious, functioning, and experiencing selves that exist in relationship to others. She was one of the first researchers to highlight that environment is critical to human development.
Bidirectional Influence: Her work touched upon the idea of bidirectional influence, which explores how the environment affects an individual and how that individual, in turn, affects their environment.

Leta Stetter Hollingworth (Psychology of Women and Giftedness)

Hollingworth focused her research on the psychology of women and challenged prevailing myths about gender and intelligence.
Challenging Gender Assumptions: She refuted the idea that men were naturally more gifted or more psychologically challenged than women. At the time, men were often institutionalized when experiencing psychological issues, while women were kept at home. This led researchers to falsely assume men had higher rates of psychological variance.
Research on Giftedness: She conducted extensive research on gifted children, arguing that they were often ignored by the educational system.
Academic Contributions: She wrote the first comprehensive textbook on giftedness and taught the first university-level course on the subject.
Like Calkins, she placed a heavy emphasis on the roles of environment and education in determining intelligence.

Margaret Floy Washburn (Comparative Psychology)

Margaret Floy Washburn was the first woman to officially receive a PhD in psychology.
She followed Calkins as a female president of the American Psychological Association (APA).
The Study of the Mind: She insisted on studying the mind and conscious experience at a time when Behaviorists argued the mind should be ignored because it was difficult to observe and measure.
The Animal Mind: She authored the famous book titled The Animal Mind, which was a foundational textbook for comparative psychology. Unlike many Behaviorists who focused almost exclusively on rats, Washburn’s research encompassed a wide variety of different organisms and animal species.

Contemporary Subfields of Psychology

Biopsychology and Evolutionary Psychology

These fields often explore the biological and evolutionary roots of behavior, sometimes summed up by the phrase "My brain made me do it."
Non-conscious Action: The focus is on the vast number of tasks human beings perform without conscious thought, such as brushing teeth, turning door handles, or driving a car while thinking about other things.
Mechanistic and Deterministic Views: These approaches can be viewed as mechanistic (treating the brain as a machine) and deterministic (suggesting that behavior is dictated by biology rather than free will). This has significant legal implications if an individual argues they are not responsible for a crime because their brain dictated the action.

Cognitive Psychology

Focuses on the relationship between thoughts and behaviors, often asking, "What were you thinking when you did that?"
It posits that our thinking patterns determine our attitudes and actions. The colloquialism "if your life stinks, then take a look at the way you think" encapsulates this approach.
Cognitive psychotherapy is a primary professional application of this subfield.

Developmental Psychology

Investigates how our perspective of the world changes as we age. This includes shifts in how we view education, health, and memory.
Aging: For example, younger people rarely discuss health, whereas older individuals discuss it frequently due to biological changes.
Major Domains of Change: Biological, Cognitive, and Socio-emotional development.

Personality Psychology

Concerned with traits that are stable and observed over long periods of time, such as being introverted, outgoing, or happy.
Conscientiousness: Mentioned as one of the "Big Five" personality traits, specifically relating to academic focus.
Personas (Carl Jung): This field explores the "masks" or different personas people wear in various settings (work, school, home). It asks identifying questions about who the "real" person is beneath these situational masks.

Social Psychology

Focuses on the "power of the situation" and how social settings influence behavior.
It explains why a person might behave very differently in a classroom than they do in a cafeteria, a sports competition, or at home.

Industrial-Organizational (I-O) Psychology

Applied to the workplace to optimize efficiency and employee well-being.
I-O psychologists address issues like worker burnout, optimal work hours, office layout, and benefits such as on-site childcare to create a productive environment.

Health Psychology

Explores the intersection of mental and physical health.
Focuses on managing the stress and demands of daily life through mindfulness, meditation, diet, and maintaining a balance between work, school, and family.

Sports Psychology

Assists athletes in preparing for competition and managing the psychological impact of failure.
Case Study: A gymnast student was told by her mother to "prepare to fail" before a state competition. The instructor advised her to focus entirely on winning and only address failure if it actually occurred. The student focused on winning and became a state champion.
Nowadays, sports psychologists are common at major universities and in professional sports organizations.

Forensic Psychology

A specialized field that involves providing psychological expertise within the legal system and assisting with court cases.

Careers in Psychology

Degrees and Credentials

Bachelor's Degree: Offers limited career options specifically in psychology, though it provides a foundation for many other fields.
Master’s Degree (MS, MA, MEd): Required to begin practicing as a clinical psychologist, school psychologist, or counselor.
PhD (Doctor of Philosophy): Focuses heavily on research and requires a dissertation (a long, original research project). This degree is standard for university research and teaching.
PsyD (Doctor of Psychology): Focuses more on clinical practice and different approaches to therapy rather than intensive research.

Professional Roles

Clinical Psychologist: Helps individuals navigate psychological challenges. They primarily utilize "talk therapy." While traditionally they could not prescribe medication, this is slowly changing in some jurisdictions.
School Psychologist/Counselor: Typically requires a Master's or an MEd. They work within educational settings to support students.
High School Psychology Teacher: Possible with a Bachelor's degree. These professionals often teach other subjects like Sociology or World History as well.
Psychiatrist: Unlike psychologists, psychiatrists are Medical Doctors (MDs). They attend medical school and primarily focus on the biological aspects of mental health, meaning they can prescribe medications. While psychologists focus on talk therapy, psychiatrists often focus on medical intervention for disorders.
Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner: Requires a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) followed by a Master's or PhD. They work in psychiatric settings, often collaborating with doctors or working independently to provide care in a medical format.