Contemporary Psychological Perspectives

Psychological Perspectives

• Method of classifying a collection of ideas

• Also called “schools of thought”• Also called “psychological

approaches”• To view behavior from a particular

perspective

Perspectives

• Perspective is a way of viewing phenomena

• Psychology has multiple perspectives– Biological

– Psychodynamic

– Behavioral

– Humanistic

– Cognitive

– Cross Cultural

– Evolutionary

Cognitive Perspective

• Focus: On how people think and process information

• Behavior is explained by how a person interprets the situation

• How is knowledge acquired, organized, remembered, and used to guide behavior?

• Influences include– Piaget – studied intellectual development– Chomsky – studied language– Cybernetics – science of information processing

Biological Perspective

• Focus: How our biological structures and substances underlie a given behavior, thought, or emotion

• Behavior is explained by brain chemistry, genetics, glands, etc.

• Focus may be at various levels– individual neurons– areas of the brain– specific functions like eating, emotion, or learning

• Interest in behavior distinguishes biological psychology from many other biological sciences

Social-Cultural Perspective• Focus: How thinking and behavior

change depending on the setting or situation

• Behavior is explained by the influence of other people present

Cross-Cultural Perspective

• The study of psychological differences among people living in different cultural groups

• How are people’s thoughts, feelings and behavior influenced by their culture?

• What are the common elements across culture? Are these innate?

Behavioral Perspective

• Focus: How we learn through rewards, punishments, and observation

• View of behavior based on experience or learning– Classical conditioning - Pavlov– Operant conditioning – Skinner– Founded by James Watson

Humanistic Perspective

• Focus: How healthy people strive to reach their full potential

• Behavior is explained as being motivated by satisfying needs (safety, hunger, thirst, etc.), with the goal of reaching one’s full potential once basic needs are met.

• Developed by Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers– behavior reflects innate ‘actualization’ – focus on conscious forces and self perception– more positive view of basic forces than Freud’s

Psychodynamic Perspective

• Focus: How behavior is affected by unconscious drives and conflicts

• Behavior is explained through unconscious motivation and unresolved inner conflicts from one’s childhood.

• Modern version of psychoanalytic perspective (Sigmund Freud)

Psychodynamic Perspective

• View of behavior is based on experience treating patients

• Psychoanalytic approach (Sigmund Freud)– both a method of treatment and a theory of the mind

– behavior reflects combinations of conscious and unconscious influences

– drives and urges within the unconscious component of mind influence thought and behavior

– early childhood experiences shape unconscious motivations

Perspectives Timeline

Psychology’s Horizon

Behavior Genetics

• Focus: How behavior is affected by genes and the environment

• Combines biology and behaviorism

• Emphasis on the importance of both genetic and environmental factors on behavior

Evolutionary Psychology

• Influenced by Darwin and the emphasis on innate, adaptive behavior patterns

• Combines aspects of biological, psychological, and social perspectives

• Behavior is explained by how the behavior may have helped our ancestors survive long enough to reproduce successfully.

Positive Psychology

• Focus: To study and promote optimal human functioning

• Martin E.P. Seligman is a major advocate

• Should promote building positive qualities of people rather than focus on what’s wrong with people

Review

Psychology should study how behavior and mental processes allow organisms to adapt to their environments

School/Approach Evolutionary perspective

Founder Charles Darwin

Psychology should emphasize people’s unique potential for psychological growth

School/Approach Humanistic

Founder Maslow

Psychology should only study observable behavior

School/Approach Behaviorism

Founder Watson/Skinner