Ch1: Introduction

Definitions of Psychology:

💡 Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. The word “psychology” comes from the Greek words “psyche,” meaning life, and “logos,” meaning explanation.

What is Psychology? Or What does Psychology mean?

• It examines both observable behaviors and the internal, often unconscious, processes that shape human experience.

• The primary goals of psychology are to describe, understand, predict, and sometimes control behaviors and mental processes.

  • By doing so, psychology aims to gain deeper insight into why individuals think, feel, and act the way they do, both individually and in groups.

Explain how psychology changed from a philosophical to a scientific discipline. Or What are the critics of Psychology?

• Psychology was also defined as the “science of mind”. But psychologists were never satisfied with this definition because mind was a vague term that could not be defined in objective terms.

• Mind and mental experiences were primarily subjective in nature. Therefore the later psychologists switched their positions and began investigations into behavior that was an objective and observable phenomenon.

• Critics argue that psychology often struggles to maintain objectivity, as many psychological concepts and diagnoses are influenced by subjective interpretation rather than concrete measurement

• Besides the obvious critics, there are Ethical issues that have arisen regarding research practices, treatment methods, and the use of psychological knowledge in various settings.

  • Behaviorism: Criticized for ignoring internal mental processes and focusing solely on observable behavior.

  • Psychoanalysis: Questioned for its lack of empirical support and reliance on untestable concepts.

  • Cognitive Psychology: Sometimes seen as too narrow, neglecting emotional and social factors in favor of mental processes.

• The field has moved steadily from speculation about behavior toward a more objective and scientific approach as the technology available to study human behavior has improved.

Outline the basic schools of psychology and how each school has contributed to psychology.

Schools of thoughts

The earlier schools that paved the way for further developments in modern psychology were

• Structuralism: focused on studying the conscious experience by looking into its individual parts or elements.

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It focused on breaking down mental processes into it’s most basic components.

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• Founder: Wilhelm Wundt, father of modern psychology.

The school of thought that focused upon the study of mind and conscious experience: consciousness, thinking, and emotions. They used introspection as their method of study. Focused upon the structure and operations of the mind processes rather than studying whole things and phenomenon. Hence named as Structuralism.

The first well formed system of psychology that laid the foundations for the scientific and experimentally oriented study of mind and mental processes.

For example: If you are looking at an apple, your mind process would be broken down into the color, shape and touch.

• Functionalism: focused on what the mind does and how it does while adapting to the environment.

• Founder: Willian James, John Dewey

An approach that concentrated on what the mind does, in other words the functions of mental activity, and the role of behavior in allowing people to adapt to their environments.

In simple words, instead of focusing on ‘what’ is going on in our mind, it focused on why we have the thoughts and behaviors. Then, it focused on the role they play in helping us adapt to our environment.

So, the functionalist psychologists start with the fact that objects are perceived and “how” or “why” they are perceived.

• Psychodynamic School: focuses on the unconscious forces that drive/ motivate human behavior or belief that the inner forces over which individuals have little control, motivate behavior.

• Founder: Sigmund Freud, the most influential figure in the history of psychology.

The basis of motivation and behavior lies in inner forces; forces that are predetermined, and forces over which humans have little control, which the person is not aware of i.e., unconscious determinants of behavior (These unconscious thoughts come from early life experiences, or repressed memories.)

It maintained that instincts are the driving force behind individual’s personality; there are life instincts as well as death instincts that play a role in human life.

For example: You feel really anxious about something, so Freud argued that it might be from a repressed memory. You are not consciously aware of it.

Freud also introduced a model of human psyche with three parts: Id, ego and super ego. These are the driving factors in human behavior.

• Behaviorism: The psychological model that focuses on the overt observable behavior. The model emerged as a reaction to the earlier approaches that emphasized the significance of hidden, underlying, predetermined forces. The behaviorists suggest that observable behavior alone should be the main area of interest to psychology.

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It is a school of thought that argues all behavior is learned through the interaction with the environment. It focuses on overt rather than internal mental processes, like thoughts or emotions.

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• Studied by: John B. Watson and BF Skinner

They specifically study: • Observable/ overt behavior • Specific measurable responses • How particular types of behaviors are controlled by particular types of environmental stimuli

Method of investigation: Data are typically collected under controlled laboratory conditions, employing technological assistance.

• Gestalt psychology: focused on studying the whole experience of a person rather than breaking it into individual components.

• Founder:

It is a school of thought that focuses on how people perceive the world rather than breaking it down into individual parts.

The key idea is that ‘the whole is better than the sum of it’s parts’.

For example: If you look at a face, you do not see the nose, eyes and mouth alone. You see the complete face as the mind organizes the information.

What are the objectives of Psychology?

Psychology is the scientific study of mind and soul. It examines both observable behaviors and the internal, often unconscious, processes that shape human experience.

Psychology is taught in business schools because business is fundamentally about people—customers, employees, teams, and leaders.

The field of psychology is vast but it’s goals can be broken down into 4 main areas:

1. To describe

2. To explain

3. To predict

4. To control

• The first goal of psychology is to describe what is happening. As the psychologists understand, they can describe the behaviors.

  • Knowledge of human behavior helps businesses identify customer needs, predict consumer behavior, and develop products and marketing strategies that resonate with their target audience.

  • Skills: Business leaders benefit from understanding what motivates people, how to resolve conflicts, and how to build cohesive teams. Psychology equips future managers with tools to inspire, support, and guide employees

• After describing such behavior, they can proceed to explain it. They look for reasons behind actions thoughts and emotions.

  • With psychology, we understand that everyone is different, and no two people have the same motivations, or same driving factors. Some people like money, some like reputations, some enjoy rewards.

• Psychologists also aim to predict these behavior in the future. Predictions are based on previous observation and results.

  • Make better decisions: Analytical thinking, a core aspect of psychology, enables business professionals to assess situations, interpret data, and make informed decisions that drive business success.

• The final goal of psychology is to control or influence this behavior. It aims to help people make better decisions, overcome challenges, or improve their behavior. They use their understanding to create strategies for change.

  • Psychology teaches how to communicate persuasively, manage interpersonal relationships, and understand diverse perspectives—skills critical for negotiation, teamwork, and customer relations.

  • Psychologists help organizations manage change, train employees, and implement policies that attract and retain talent, ensuring adaptability and long-term success.

  • Psychological principles and tools—such as emotional intelligence, empathy, and active listening—play a crucial role in understanding and addressing the underlying causes of disputes.

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Business psychology, also known as industrial-organizational psychology, is applied in areas such as:

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• Employee motivation and engagement

• Leadership development

• Team dynamics and collaboration

• Recruitment, selection, and training

• Change management

• Marketing and consumer behavior analysis

The three mental processes: The decision-making process is shaped by the interplay of cognition (thinking), conation (willing/action), and affect (emotion/feeling). Each component plays a distinct role, and their interaction determines how individuals approach, evaluate, and execute decisions.

1. Cognition

2. Conation

3. Affection

Define behavior.

Behavior is defined as the actions and reactions of individuals or groups in response to internal or external stimuli, which can be observed and measured. These responses may be overt (observable) or covert (not directly observable), conscious or subconscious.

How behaviorism differs from other Psychological theories?

• Behaviorism is distinct in its emphasis on observable and measurable behaviors, rejecting the study of internal mental states such as thoughts, feelings, and motivations as too subjective for scientific inquiry. Other psychological theories, such as cognitive, or psychodynamic approaches, consider internal processes, unconscious motivations, or subjective experiences as central to understanding behavior

• Behaviorists argue that behavior is primarily shaped by environmental stimuli and learned through conditioning (classical and operant), rather than being driven by innate factors or internal mental processes. In contrast, psychodynamic theories emphasize unconscious drives and early experiences.

• Behaviorism relies on controlled experiments and objective measurement, often using animal studies to derive general principles of learning that apply to humans. Other theories may use introspection, case studies, or qualitative methods to explore internal mental states and subjective experiences.

What is classical conditioning?

Classical conditioning refers to learning that occurs when a neutral stimulus (e.g., a tone) becomes associated with a stimulus (e.g., food) that naturally produces a behavior.

For example: Ivan Pavlov’s famous experiment, dogs naturally salivated (unconditioned response) when presented with food (unconditioned stimulus). Pavlov paired the sound of a bell (neutral stimulus) with the presentation of food. After several pairings, the bell alone (now a conditioned stimulus) caused the dogs to salivate (conditioned response).

Classical conditioning can be used to treat phobias and anxiety disorders. This is achieved through therapeutic techniques such as systematic desensitization and exposure therapy, which are based on classical conditioning principles.

In these treatments, the individual is gradually exposed to the feared object or situation (the conditioned stimulus) in a controlled and safe environment while simultaneously practicing relaxation techniques. Over time, this repeated pairing helps replace the fear response with a relaxation response, effectively reducing or eliminating the phobic reaction

What is the cognitive approach?

Consumer psychology:

Difference between man and animal.