• CHAPTER ONE:

INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY

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Psychologists at Work

• What is the science of psychology?

• What are the major specialties in the field of psychology?

• Where do psychologists work?

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Psychology

• The scientific study of behavior and mental processes

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Subfields of Psychology: Psychology’s Family Tree

• Separated by the basic questions about behavior that they address: – How do our social networks affect behavior?– How do people sense, perceive, learn, and think

about the world?– What are the sources of change and stability in

behavior across a life span?– How do psychological factors affect physical and

mental health?– How do our social networks affect behavior?

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How Do Our Social Networks Affect Behavior?

• Social Psychology– The study of how people’s thoughts, feelings, and actions

are affected by others

• Cross-Cultural Psychology– Investigates the similarities and differences in

psychological functioning in and across various cultures and ethnic groups

• What Are the Biological Foundations of Behavior?– Behavioral Neuroscience

• Examines how the brain and the nervous system, in addition to other biological processes, determine behavior

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How Do People Sense, Perceive, Learn, and Think about the World?

– Experimental Psychology• Studies the processes of sensing, perceiving, learning,

and thinking about the world• Subspecialty

– Cognitive psychology» Studies higher mental processes such as

thinking, memory, reasoning, problem solving, judging, decision making, and language

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What Are the Sources of Change and Stability in Behavior Across the Life Span?

• Developmental Psychology– Studies how people grow and change from the

moment of conception through death• Personality Psychology

– Focuses on the consistency in people’s behavior over time and the traits that differentiate one person from another

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How Do Psychological Factors Affect Physical and Mental Health?

• Health Psychology– Explores the relationship between psychological

factors and physical ailments or disease• Clinical Psychology

– Deals with the study, diagnosis, and treatment of psychological disorders

• Counseling Psychology– Focuses primarily on educational, social, and

career-adjustment problems

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Expanding Psychology’s Frontiers

• Evolutionary Psychology– Considers how behavior is influenced by our genetic

inheritance from our ancestors• Behavioral Genetics

– Seeks to understand how we might inherit certain behavioral traits and how the environment influences whether we actually display such traits

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Expanding Psychology’s Frontiers

• Clinical Neuropsychology– Unites the areas of neuroscience and clinical

psychology– Focuses on the origin of psychological disorders in

biological factors

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Figure 1 of Chapter 1

Where Psychologists Work

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The Education of a Psychologist

• PhD– Doctor of philosophy

• PsyD– Doctor of psychology

• MA or MS – Master’s degree

• BA or BS– Bachelor’s degree

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A Science Evolves: The Past, the Present, and the Future

• What are the origins of psychology?

• What are the major approaches in contemporary psychology?

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A Science Evolves: The Past, the Present, and the Future

• What are psychology’s key issues and controversies?

• What is the future of psychology likely to hold?

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The Roots of Psychology

• Structuralism– Wilhelm Wundt– Focused on uncovering the fundamental mental

components of perception, consciousness, thinking, emotions, and other kinds of mental states and activities

• Introspection

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The Roots of Psychology

• Functionalism– William James– Concentrated on what the mind does and how

behavior functions

• Stream of consciousness

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The Roots of Psychology

• Gestalt Psychology– Emphasized how perception is organized – “The whole is different from the sum of its parts”

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The Neuroscience Perspective: Blood, Sweat, and Fears

• Neuroscience Perspective– Considers how people and nonhumans function

biologically

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The Psychodynamic Perspective: Understanding the Inner Person

• Psychodynamic Perspective– Sigmund Freud– Behavior is motivated by inner forces and conflicts

about which we have little awareness or control.

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The Behavioral Perspective: Observing the Outer Person

• Behavioral Perspective– John B. Watson– B.F. Skinner– Focuses on observable behavior that can be

measured objectively

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The Cognitive Perspective: Identifying the Roots of Understanding

• Cognitive Perspective– Focuses on how people think, understand, and know

about the world

• Information processing

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The Humanistic Perspective: The Unique Qualities of the Human Species

• Humanistic Perspective– Carl Rogers– Abraham Maslow– Emphasis is on free will– Achieving self-fulfillment

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Key Issues

• Nature (Heredity) versus Nurture (Environment)

• Conscious versus Unconscious causes of behavior

• Observable Behavior versus Internal Mental Processes

• Free Will versus Determinism

• Individual Differences versus Universal Principles

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Research in Psychology

• What is the scientific method?• How do psychologists use theory and research to

answer questions of interest?• What research methods do psychologists use?• How do psychologists establish cause-and-effect

relationships using experiments?

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Scientific Method

• Approach used by psychologists to systematically acquire knowledge and understanding about behavior and other phenomena of interest

• Four main steps– 1. Identifying questions of interest– 2. Formulating an explanation– 3. Carrying out research designed to support or refute

the explanation– 4. Communicating the findings

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Scientific Method

Figure 5 of Chapter 1

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Theories: Specifying Broad Explanations

• Theories– Broad explanations and predictions concerning

phenomena of interest

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Hypotheses: Crafting Testable Predictions

• Hypothesis– Prediction stated in a way that allows it to be tested– Stems from theories

• Operational Definition– Translation of a hypothesis into specific, testable

procedures that can be measured and observed

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Psychological Research

• Research– Systematic inquiry aimed at the discovery of new

knowledge

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Descriptive Research

• Archival Research– Existing data, such as census documents, college

records, and newspaper clippings, are examined to test a hypothesis.• Example: Looking at college records of students’

grades to see if there are gender differences in academic performance

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Descriptive Research

• Naturalistic Observation – An investigator observes some naturally occurring

behavior and does not make a change in the situation• Example: Sitting in on a class to see how

frequently male students speak up in class, as opposed to how frequently female students speak up

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Descriptive Research

• Survey Research – A sample of people chosen to represent a larger

group of interest (a population) is asked a series of questions about their behavior, thoughts, or attitudes.• Example: Having a sample of people (an equal

number of male and female students) fill out a questionnaire about their study habits and grades

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Descriptive Research

• The Case Study– An in-depth, intensive investigation of a single

individual or a small group

• Often includes psychological testing– Example: Investigating an academically

successful student with dyslexia to find out what specific behaviors led to his academic success. The findings of this investigation could then be used to help other students with dyslexia do better in school.

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Correlational Research

• Two sets of variables are examined to determine whether they are associated, or correlated.– Variables

• Behaviors, events, or other characteristics that can change, or vary, in some way

– Correlation coefficient• Positive• Negative

– Example: Comparing the amount of time spent studying to students’ performance on a test to see if the amount of time students studied affected their test scores

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Experimental Research

• A researcher investigates the relationship between two or more variables by deliberately changing one variable in a controlled situation and observing the effects of that change on other aspects of the situation. – Experimental manipulation

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Experimental Research

• Experimental Groups and Control Groups– Treatment

• Manipulation implemented by the experimenter

– Experimental group

• Receives a treatment– Control group

• Receives no treatment • Rules out other reasons for change

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Experimental Research

• Independent and Dependent Variables– Independent

• The condition that is manipulated by an experimenter

– Dependent

• The variable that is measured and is expected to change as a result of changes caused by the experimenter’s manipulation of the independent variable

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Experimental Research

• Random Assignment of Participants– To make the experiment a valid test of the hypothesis

• Random Assignment to Condition – Participants are assigned to different experimental

groups or conditions on the basis of chance.

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Experimental Research

• Significant Outcome– Using statistical analysis, researchers can determine

whether a numeric difference is a real difference or is merely due to chance.

• Replication– Repeating experiment

• Meta-analysis

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Threats to Experimental Validity: Avoiding Experimental Bias

• Experimental Bias– Factors that distort the way the independent variable

affects the dependent variable in an experiment

• Experimenter expectations• Participant expectations

–Placebo

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Research Challenges: Exploring the Process

• What major issues confront psychologists conducting research?

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The Ethics of Research

• Informed Consent– Participants sign a document affirming that they have

been told the basic outlines of the study and are aware of what their participation will involve. They are informed about any risks the experiment may hold and the fact that their participation is purely voluntary. They also are told that they may terminate their participation at any time.

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Should Animals Be Used in Research?

• Procedures that cause animals distress are permitted only when an alternative procedure is not available and when the research is justified by its prospective value.

• Researchers are required to promote the psychological well-being of some research animals, such as primates.