Psyc 104 Chapter #1: The Evolution of Psychology

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• A German professor who strived to make psychology a separate discipline. Established the first laboratory devoted to psychology at the university of Leipzig in 1879. Established the first journal devoted to psychology in 1881. Stated that the primary focus of psychology was consciousness, and that the discipline should be modelled after the fields of physics and chemistry. Known as the "founder of psychology".

1. G. Stanley Hall

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   • Hall studied with Wundt for a short time, and established the first American laboratory devoted to psychology at John's Hopkin's university in 1883. Hall established the first psychology journal in America in 1892, and contributed greatly to the establishment of the American Psychological Association(APA), and was later elected as its first president. James Mark Baldwin, and James Gibson Hume also contributed to the establishment of the APA.
   1. Structuralism

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      • Structuralism was founded by Edward Titchener, a graduate of Wundt's Leipzig laboratory. the main goal of the discipline is to analyze the basic elements of consciousness. This discipline relied heavily on the idea of introspection(self-observation of a conscious experience). Since this method produces highly subjective results, it was not widely adopted.
   2. Functionalsim

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      • Functionalism was founded by William James, an American scholar. This discipline focuses on the function of consciousness. James' work was heavily influenced by the theory of natural selection, presented by Charles Darwin. James stated that the "stream of consciousness" was an important element of the discipline. James attempted to analyze the way individuals adapt their behavior to their environment. The discipline mainly focused on mental testing, child development, and behavioral differences between males, and females.
      1. Behaviourism

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         • Founded by John B. Watson, this discipline focused only on studying observable behavior. Watson stated that psychologists should abandon the study of consciousness, and focus on clear and observable behaviors. On the subject of "nature versus Nurture", Watson argued that all behaviors are learned, and stated that behavior determined by the environment. many behaviorists were influenced Ivan Pavlov, and the discovery of the conditioned reflex. Behaviourism can also be referred to as "stimulus response", as the main goal was to relate behaviors to the environment. This discipline heavily relied on the study of animal behaviors.  
         1. Psychoanalysis

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            • Founded by Sigmund Freud, this theory focused on the treatment of various psychological problems. Freud focused on the unconscious, and argued that psychological problems are caused by unconscious conflict within an individual. Freud stated that behavior is governed by unconscious instincts, while implying that people not completely in control of their minds. Freud also argued that many behaviors are influenced by how individuals react to their sexual urges. The primary focus of this discipline was the study of personality, motivation, abnormal behavior, and therapy. This theory was very popular within the field.
            1. Carl Jung
               1. Alfred Adler
         2. B.F. Skinner

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            • Skinner was influenced by the theories of Watson, and Pavlov, and would later become an important source when studying behaviourism. Skinner founded the discipline of "radical bevaviourism", which stated that only observable events should be studied. Skinner also stated that the environment primarily influenced behavior. This theory also lead to the statement that "free will is an illusion". Skinner was also responsible for the development of mechanical teaching machines. This school of thought dominated the 1950's and 1960's.
      2. Applied

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         • the branch of psychology which studies everyday events
         1. Clinical Psychology

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            • this field focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders. Psychological testing is also emphasized.
         2. Counselling Psychology

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            • Engages in testing and providing therapy. Provide help to those dealing with everyday issues of moderate severity.
         3. Educational Psychology

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            • Improve teacher education, achievement tests, and curriculum design. Usually used to help improve the experience of students, parents, and teachers.
         4. Industrial/Organizational Psychology

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            • Present in the world of business and industry. Helps to increase job satisfaction, and provides human resource departments. Also helps increase productivity.
      3. Humanism

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         • This theory was a result of the idea that behaviourism, and psychoanalysis were too "de-humanizing". The supporters of this theory claimed that humans have unique characteristics which can not be observed through the study of animal behavior. This theory emphasized the ability of humans to achieve personal growth, and presented an optimistic side of human nature. Carl Rogers, and Abraham Maslow were the driving forces behind this theory, and argued that behavior is mainly influenced by an individual's "sense of self". They also stated that psychological disturbances could be a result of blocking an individual's ability to grow as a person. Rogers also introduced "person-centered" therapy to treat psychological problems.
      4. Cognition

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         • This theory argues that internal mental events must be studied in order to obtain a full understanding of the mind. The Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget focused on child development, Noam Chomsky strived to understand the principles of language, and Herbert Simon studied problem solving. Canadian psychologist James Olds discovered that electrical stimulation of the brain would produce different behaviors in animals. Roger Sperry stated that the right and left halves of the brain handle different mental processes. David Hubel and Torsten Wiesel studied how images are processed in the brain, and Donald Hebb emphasized the importance of the brain when studying behavior, and introduced the idea of "cell assembly" (repeated stimulation leads to the production of cell assemblies which work together to facilitate behavior). The neuroscience approach to psychology has also risen in popularity with the emergence of cognition.
      5. Evolutionary Psychology

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         • This discipline studies the adaptive value of behaviors over time. The idea that men are better at visual-spatial tasks, and women have better spatial skills comes from the understanding that both sexes developed behaviors that served their purposes over generations. David Buss, Martin Daly, Margo Wilson, Leda Cosmides, and John Tooby collectively studied mating preferences, aggression, jealousy, sexual behavior,  language, decision making, personality, and development.
      6. Positive Psychology

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         • This theory was founded by Martin Seligman during his time as the president of the APA. Along with Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Christopher Peterson, and Barbara Fredrickson, the theory's founder studied the positive aspects of human existence. The three areas of study were: positive subjective experiences(positive emotions), positive individual traits(personal strengths), and positive institutions and communities(how society can foster a positive environment).
      7. Biological Psychology

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         • the idea that behavior can be explained by studying bodily structures, and biochemical processes.

1. #1

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   • Psychology is Empirical: the idea that conclusions should be based on clear observations, and not speculation.
2. #2

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   • Psychology is Theoretically Diverse: the idea that no single theory can explain everything that is know in the field of psychology
3. #3

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   • Psychology Evolves in a Sociohistorical Context: The idea that there are deep connection between what happens in psychology, and what takes place in a society.
4. #4

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   • Behavior is Determined by Multiple Causes: also known as "multifactorial causation of behavior", this idea states that behavior is governed by many interconnected factors.
5. #5

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   • Behavior is Shaped by Cultural Heritage: the idea that an individual's cultural background significantly impacts their behavior.
6. #6

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   • Heredity and Environment Jointly Influence Behavior: the idea that both genetics and experience contribute to the behavior of an individual, and susceptibility to some psychological disorders.
7. #7

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   • People's Experience of the World is Highly Subjective: the idea that sometimes people see things that they want to see, as well as the idea that everyone processes information differently( storing some ideas, while ignoring others).