Unit One – What is Psychology?

1. Unit One – What is Psychology? Mitchell – Spring 2012

2. The Origins of Psychology “Psychology has a long past, but a relatively short history.” - Herrman Ebbinghaus • Psychology: commonly defined today as “the study of human thought and behavior” • Written records of psychological thought can be traced back over 1000 years ago • Ancient Egypt studied the brain and its illnesses • Greeks (Plato) philosophized on the mind/body link • China, 600AD: first record of intelligence tests • Arabia, 7th cen.: first insane asylums, identified both physical and mental causes to physical ills • Other Arab contributions: dream interpretation, experiments in sensation & perception, many others • European Renaissance and Enlightenment philosophy debated the nature of the mind/soul • 19th Century Psychology: “pseudo-science” • Mesmerism, animal magnetism, phrenology • 1879: W. Wundt opens first psychological research laboratory in Leipzig, Germany • Marks the beginning of modern era of psychology

3. Historic Schools of Thought • Structuralism (Wilhelm Wundt) • Argues the mind consists of sensations, feelings, & images that combine to form experience. • Introspection: one’s own thoughts & emotions • Functionalism (William James) • Focuses on the uses or functions of the mind rather than the elements of experience • Notes evolutionary principles of adaptive behaviors • Behaviorism (John B. Watson) • Psychology ought to be a natural science, thus only observable behaviors should be studied • Centers on learning (reinforcement, punishment) • Gestalt Psych. (Wertheimer, Koffka, Kohler) • Emphasizes tendency to organize perceptions into wholes integrate separate stimuli into patterns • Psychoanalysis (Sigmund Freud) • Emphasizes the importance of unconscious motives and conflicts as the root of our behaviors

4. Contemporary Approaches • Evolutionary & Biological Perspectives • E: Interested in influence of heredity, instincts • B: focused on brain structures & chemistry, hormones, & their effects on thought & behavior • Arguably the most-popular approach today • Cognitive Perspective • Focus on mental processes like perception, learning, memory, problem solving, language, etc. • “Cognitive Revolution”: rapid expansion in past couple of decades • Humanistic/Existential Perspectives • Cognitive in nature, emphasizes a more subjective (personal) experience of consciousness • Humanism: capacity to chose, “invent ourselves” • Existentialism: people free to choose, responsible • Psychodynamic Perspective • Psychotherapy focused less on unconscious mind, more on conscious choice and direction • See value in dreams, unusual thoughts & desires

5. Psychological Research Psychological theory Daily experiences Commonly held beliefs • Process of scientifically collecting data to test hypotheses & form psychological theories • Psychology aims to be an empirical science… • must be tested, supported by observable evidence • Scientific Method: Putting Ideas to the Test • An organized way of using experience and testing ideas in order to expand of refine knowledge • Experiments attempt to identify cause-and-effect • Hypothesis: specific statement about behavior or mental processes that is tested through research • Independent variable: change that occurs in an experiment directly controlled by the experimenter • Dependent variable: change that occurs as a result of the I.V. that are measured by experimenter • Experimental group: receives independent variable • Control group: does not receive independent variable • Correlational Method: identify statistical links • Measure the degree in which variables are linked • Can be positive or negative, range from +1 to -1 • DO NOT indicate cause and effect relationships Research Question Hypothesis Test Research Question Hypothesis Testing Evidence (observations) Drawing Conclusions Theory Construction or Modification New Research Question/Hypothesis

6. Issues in Experimental Design • Researchers go to great lengths in hopes that their findings generalize to non-participants • Sample: individuals that are being studied • Population: a group that is being targeted for study • Problems in Generalizing from Research • Sampling Error: study participants do not reflect the intended population one or more characteristics • Volunteer Bias: those who offer to participate may be substantially different than those who refuse • Methods of Observation • Case study: carefully drawn biography that may be obtained through interviews, questionnaires, tests • Often used to investigate rare occurrences that would impossible or unethical to create in laboratory setting • Survey: a large sample answers questions (interview, questionnaire) about their attitudes or behavior • Used to learn about behavior and mental processes that cannot be observed or studied experimentally • Naturalistic Observation: organisms closely watched in their natural environments (least obtrusive) “All generalizations are dangerous, even this one.” - Alexandre Dumas

7. Ethical Issues in Psychological Research • Commitment to a belief in human dignity • Right to make their own decisions, choose behavior • Psychologists aim to better understand—not control—influences on how we think and act • Pop culture, historic experiments create stigma • Ethical Safeguards in Research with Humans • Institutional review boards weigh potential risks • Informed consent: subjects agree to participate after learning of the purpose and nature of research • The use of deception is acceptable when the potential gains outweigh the potential harms (Milgram Study) • Subjects are debriefed often completion of study • Collected personal data is confidential, in most cases • Ethics in Research with Nonhuman Animals • Used when human subjects impractical, unethical • i.e. monkeys used to study maternal attachment • Major advances have resulted from animal research • APA guidelines: animals may be harmed only when no alternative & belief that benefits outweigh harm