A Short History of Psychology A Short History of Psychology

Origins of PsychologyOrigins of Psychology• Phrenology • Greeks- 5th & 6th centuries

B.C. – People’s lives were

dominated not so much by gods but their own minds

• People are rational

• Aristotle = Asked Why?– Began to compare the sensations,

wonder how the thought process worked, and even why we slept

Origins Continued…Origins Continued…• During Renaissance people began to

experiment and observe results

• Rene Descartes first to pose dualism-idea that a link existed between the mind and body– Nativism- is the view that certain

skills or abilities are 'native' or hard

wired into the brain at birth.

(1596-1650)

John Locke (1632-1704)John Locke (1632-1704)

– An Essay Concerning Human Understanding–Tabula rasa

– Empiricism• Knowledge

originates in experience and that science should rely on observation and experimentation

Psychological Science Is Born Psychological Science Is Born

–Wilhelm Wundt• (1832-1920)

• Established modern

psychology as a formal

field of study

–1st “Psychologist”–Developed the first psychology

lab/experiment• Measuring reaction time

• E.B. Titchner- brought Wundt’s

psychology to U.S. – Structuralism-study the basic elements that

make up human mental experiences– Introspection

• Looking inward- analyzing immediate sensations and how they related to one another.

• Results varied and were unreliable• For example…

• Using structuralism and the idea of introspection I would need to analyze everyone’s immediate sensations.

• Did this picture make you smile?

• Did this picture make you want to cry?

• Once again with structuralism, results varied and were unreliable

Functionalism Functionalism • Functionalism- study how animals

and people adapt to their environments..– Influenced by Charles Darwin

• William James- father of psychology in U.S.– Taught first psychology class at Harvard

University in 1875.• Why does the brain think? Why does the nose

smell?

• Wrote “The Principles of Psychology”– Took 12 years!

1842-1910

LadiesLadies

• Margaret Washburn– First PhD 1894,

Cornell– The Animal Mind-

animal behavior research

• Mary Calkins– Denied degree by

Harvard in 1895– First woman president

of the APA– Renowned memory

researcher Between

1996-2009 Females

claimed two-thirds of U.S. Psychology

Ph.D.s

Contemporary ApproachesContemporary Approaches• Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic-

Unconscious motives and conflicts

determines human behavior, feelings,

and thoughts• Sigmund Freud (1856- 1939)

• Dream Analysis• Emotional responses to childhood experiences• Pretty much linked everything to sex! • Free Association- say anything that comes to

mind.

• LETS PRACTICE FREE ASSOCIATION

Behaviorism Behaviorism

• Learn/modify behavior based on response to environment– Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936) & Classical

Conditioning

• (The Dog Dude)

John Watson (1878-1958)John Watson (1878-1958)

• Behaviorism• Psychology as the

science of behavior! • Little Albert

Experiment– Classical Conditioning

• Watson later had a successful career in…

Behaviorism Continued… Behaviorism Continued… • Defined psychology as “the scientific study

of observable behavior.” – Can record a person’s behavior as a

response to different situations.

• Skinner Thorndike

1904-19901874-1949

Operant Conditioning

CognitiveCognitive

• How people process, store, retrieve, use info and how thought processes influence our behavior.

Jean Piaget-Observed Children

Behavior is more than a simple response to a stimulus. Behavior is influenced by a variety of mental processes.

Processes include perceptions, memories, and expectations.

1896-1980

HumanisticHumanistic• Each person has freedom in directing his

or her future and achieving personal growth.

• Importance of current environmental influences on our growth potential and the importance of having our needs for love and acceptance satisfied.

1902-1987

Psychology Defined 2012Psychology Defined 2012

• The definition has evolved over time.

*The science of behavior and mental *processes.

• Behavior = any action we can observe and record.– Examples: Yelling, smiling, sweating…

• Mental Processes = internal, subjective experiences we infer from behavior.– Examples: Sensations, perceptions, feelings…

Nature versus NurtureNature versus Nurture

• The longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors.

PlatoDescartes Darwin

AristotleLocke

Nature versus NurtureNature versus Nurture

• How are humans alike but diverse?• Are gender differences biologically predisposed

or socially constructed?• Is children’s grammar mostly innate or formed by

experience?• How are differences in intelligence and

personality influenced by heredity and by environment?

• Are sexual behaviors more pushed by inner biology or pulled by external incentives?