Psychology 1 1

Psychology 1

General Psychology (UC:CSU) - 3 unitsGeneral Psychology (UC:CSU) - 3 units

Ray Lim, PhD

BEH 1306F

limr@piercecollege.edu

Psychology 1 2

INTRODUCTION• Psychology’s main historical roots are in

philosophy and science.

• Psychology’s philosophical roots reach back to Plato and Aristotle, who were interested in the origin of knowledge.

• Aristotle primarily interested in (reasoning or sensory experience)

Psychology 1 3

• Other philosophers includes:•Descartes, Sir Francis Bacon, John Locke and Immanuel Kant.

• The Scientific Roots of Psychology•In the mid-19th century, Helmholtz and Fechner pioneered the use of scientific methods to answer questions about psychological processes.

Psychology 1 4

• Herman von Helmholtz; neural speed -Helmholtz was particularly interested in the

speed of nerve impulses• Pierre Flourens; brain function

• Gustav Fechner; psychophysics (how much a stimulus change before you notice a change).

• Charles Darwin; evolutionary theory

• Francis Galton; differential psychology

• James Cattell; mental test (First Psych Professor).

• Wilhelm Wundt; Father of Psychology; 1879

Psychology 1 5

SCHOOLS OF PSYCHOLOGY

• Structuralism Edward Titchener (visual elements) and Wilhem

Wundt; sought to analyze the mind into its component parts by studying conscious mental experience through analytic introspection

• Functionalism Popularized by William James, the functionalists

study how the mind affects what people do (e.g. memory, thinking and personality).

Psychology 1 6

• Psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud; psychic determinism (believed that

unconscious conflicts, usually related to sex or aggression, were prime motivators of human behavior).

Approach originated from the treatment of patients with unexplainable physical symptoms (case studies)

• Behaviorism John Watson; stimulus response & B. F. Skinner;

reinforcement behaviorists focus on observable behavior that can be

recorded and verified by other scientists

Psychology 1 7

• Gestalt Psychology Max Wertheimer, Kurt Koffka, and Wolfgang

Koehler; believed that the mind actively organizes stimuli to form a coherent whole or shape; therefore, perception is more than a series of individual sensations (through the use of demonstrations).

• Humanistic Psychology Abraham Maslow & Carl Rogers; human beings

have free will and that the subject matter of psychology should be the individual’s unique perspective of the world (major impact in psychotherapy)

Psychology 1 8

Perspective Object of Study Goal of Study Method of Study

Structuralism Conscious experience

Analyzing the structure of the mind

Analytic introspection

Functionalism Conscious experience

Studying the functions of the mind

Introspection and testing

Psychoanalysis Unconscious motivation

Understanding personality

Clinical case studies

Behaviorism Observable behavior Controlling behavior

Observation and experiments

Gestalt psychology

Conscious experience

Demonstrating the active, holistic nature of the mind

Introspection and demonstrations

Humanistic psychology

Conscious experience

Studying private mental experience

Case studies and assessment of the self

Psychology 1 9

Contemporary Trends in Psychology (The scientific study of behavior and mental process)

The Cognitive Perspective Jean Piaget (Cognitive psychologists attempt to

scientifically study mental processes and the ways in which these processes affect behavior)

• The Biopsychological Perspective

Biological psychologists are primarily interested in studying the ways in which the brain, the hormonal system, and heredity affect psychological functions.

Psychology 1 10

• The Social-Cultural PerspectiveThis perspective reminds us to avoid ethnocentrism and instead view each culture as the outcome of efforts by its members to adapt to particular ecological niches.

Psychology 1 11

Academic Psychology

• Academic Psychology basic vs. applied research

• Experimental Psychology

• Behavioral Neuroscience

• Comparative Psychology

• Developmental Psychology

• Personality Psychology

• Social Psychology

Psychology 1 12

Professional Psychology• Clinical Psychology / Counseling Psychology

• Psychiatry

• Health Psychology

• Industrial/Organizational -(I/O) Psychology

• School Psychology / Educational Psychology

• Sport Psychology

• Forensic Psychology

• Environmental Psychology

• Peace Psychology

Psychology 1 13

Psychology 1 14

Psychology 1 15

PSYCHOLOGY AS A SCIENCE

• Common Sense Assume beliefs from everyday life are trustworthy.

• The Scientific Method

– This method is a step-based approach to finding answers (Develop/acquire new knowledge and understand about behavior and mental process)

Psychology 1 16

• Assumptions Determinism and Lawfulness

Science is guided by the principle that the universe follows laws through two beliefs: critical thinking and deduction

Skepticism and Critical Thinking Rather than accepting or rejecting ideas outright,

look for empirical data, evaluate the data, and look for alternative explanations.

Psychology 1 17

• Steps in Conducting Scientific Research: One: Provide a rationale for the study (creating a

hypothesis) –identify the problem of interest Two. Conduct the Study (laboratory vs. field) Three: Analyze the data (statistics) Four: Communicate the Research Findings (research

articles) Five: Replicate the study

Psychology 1 18

Psychology 1 19

Goals of Scientific Research

• Description Must be systematic and precise Use operational definitions (define behaviors in

terms of the procedures used to measure them)

• Prediction Hypotheses are usually derived from theories.

Psychology 1 20

• Control Done by manipulating factors affecting behavior

(behavior is difficulty to predict because it is hard to know all factors influencing an individual.

• Explanation The discovery of causes of behavior (the ultimate

goal of Psychological studies is to explain behavior)

Psychology 1 21

Methods of Psychological Research

• Descriptive Research Naturalistic observation

- Observations in natural environment (Cannot reveal causes of behavior)

Case studies- In-depth study of a person (Not generalizable)

Surveys- Information about many people- Random sample (every member of population has

equal chance of being selected)

Psychology 1 22

• Psychological Testing Standardization (test taker must receive the same

instructions as other test takers) Reliability (test generates similar results upon

retaking) Validity (true)

• Archival Research Largest potential source of data (published records)

Newspapers, magazines, census data, etc.,

Psychology 1 23

• Correlational Research: Refers to the relationship between variables Positive correlation is change in same direction Negative correlation is change in opposite direction Correlation never implies causation.

Psychology 1 24

Psychology 1 25

• Experimental Research; determines causation Independent variable (the manipulated factors) Dependent variable (the measured factors) Experimental group (with manipulation) Control group (without manipulation)

Psychology 1 26

Psychology 1 27

Psychology 1 28

• Internal Validity

– To ensure the accuracy of an experiment, the researcher must be certain that the only factors that could influence the dependent variables were the independent variables.

• External Validity;

– An experiment has external validity if it can be generalized to other populations, settings, and procedures

Psychology 1 29

Statistical Analysis of Research Data

• Descriptive Statistics Measures of central tendency:

- Mean (average)- Median (half-way mark)- Mode (highest frequently occuring)

Measures of variability:- Range (lowest to highest)- Standard deviation (degree of dispersion of scores

from the mean) - Variance (A measure of dispersion)

Psychology 1 30

• Correlational Statistics Correlational statistics help quantify the degree of

association between two scores

• Inferential Statistics; permit determination of cause Statistical significance

Psychology 1 31

Psychology 1 32

Ethics of Psychological Research

• The APA’s Code of Ethics Specific requirements for treatment of human

participants

• The Issues of Deception in Research Misinformation about research Debriefing