what is psychology?
is the scientific study of mental processes and behaviour (thinking and doing)
what is mental processes?
activities of our brain when thinking, observing and using language
what is behaviour?
observable activities of an organism
what are the 3 levels of analysis?
1.) the brain - brain structure and function
2.) the person - thoughts and feelings
3.) the group - family, friends, culture
what are the roots (3 parents) of psychology?
philosophy, physiology, psychodynamics
philosophy
- aristotle, plato and socrates asked questions about the mind
- the first to wonder nurtured vs natured; birth vs acquired
- developed scientific methods, asking and posing questions
physiology
- descartes contemplated mind-body dualism (the mind is separate from the body)
- locke argued we learn by experience: everything we know today is a result of learning, and were born as a “blank slate”
psychophysics
- the relationship between the things out in the world and how it gets to your system
- how people respond to the same stimuli over time
- fechner quantified mental events
what did William Wundt do?
- opened the first psychology lab in 1879 in Leipzig, Germany
- make psychology into a science by performing experiments and measuring observations
- measured and studied consciousness by having people push a button when they heard a ball drop vs when they were aware of hearing the ball drop
what did G. Stanley Hall do?
- in 1883, established the first psychology lab in North America
- in 1887, launched America’s first psychology journal
- in 1892, a major played in establishing the American Psychology Association (APA)
what did James Mark Baldwin do?
- in 1890, established the first psychology lab in Canada at U of T (birth of psychology in Canada)
- was influenced by the scientific perspective
what was the battle of the schools?
- deciding what to study and the focus on psychology should be
- structuralism (Edward Titchener) vs functionalism (William James)
what is structuralism?
- study the structure of the mind and the basic elements of consciousness (different parts of your brain)
- relied on introspection (going inside yourself and reporting on yourself)
- NOT scientific
what is functionalism?
- sought to understand the function or purpose of consciousness (how people adapt their behaviour to the world around them)
- In 1980, wrote and published Principles of Psychology
- led to other schools of thought - behaviourism, applied psychology
what did Gestalt Psychologists say?
- said consciousness cannot be broken down into elements
- the whole is fundamentally different than its parts (not just a sum)
- learning is tied to what we perceive
what are the 5 different perspectives on behaviour?
psychoanalysis, behaviourism, humanistic psychology, cognitive psychology, and psychobiology/neuroscience
who was involved with psychoanalysis?
Sigmund Freud, 1900s
what did Sigmund Freud say about psychoanalysis?
- focused on the role of the consciousness (drives, wishes, needs, desires of which were not aware)
- sexual drive and aggressive urges
- emphasized the importance of early childhood experiences (things that happen to you when you are young can change you for the rest of your life, even if you don’t remember it)
who was involved with behaviourism?
John B Watson, Ivan Pavlov, B.F Skinner, Albert Bandura
what did John B. Watson about behavourism?
- emphasized psychology’s focus on observable behaviour changed from mental processes
- showed that phobias can be learned (Little Albert & mice)
what did Ivan Pavlov say about behaviourism?
- studied classical conditioning on dogs
what did B.F Skinner say about behaviourism?
- showed how consequences of behaviour can influence future behaviour → what comes after a behaviour affects what you do next time
- studied rats and pigeons
what did Albert Bandura say about behaviourism?
described learning by social observation → you can watch other people and determine consequences from others
who was involved with humanistic psychology?
Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers
