What is psychology
Scientific study of behavior and mind, emerging from philosophy and physiology
Uses the scientific method (empiricism) to reach its conclusions
How did aristotle contribute to psychology?
De anima (“On the Soul”) considers topics such as the nature of thought, sensation, and imagination.
He also introduced the term tabula rasa (“blank slate”) to describe the mind, considering it a place of potential for experience to write upon.
Empiricism
The view that knowledge arises directly from what we observe and experience. Psychology and al other sciences are inherently observational in nature
This is important because psychology cannot be observational, same with the concept of the mind.
How does behavior affect psychology?
Since psychology cannot be observed, and neither the mind, behavior comes into play. Behavior, such as actions, words, response time, and brain activity, are used to make inferences
Observable behaviors of all sorts are the primary form of evidence in psychology
Dualism
Relationship between behavior and mind
This is the philosophical position that the mind and body are separate entities
Some people are intuitive dualists, where they believe that themselves and others exist apart rom their physical bodies (like physical body and soul in afterlife)
Rene Descartes argued that the mind is inherently immaterial, meaning that thought cannot be explained in terms of the physical body. But he did believe that the mind could exert its influence over the body through the pineal gland (believed to regulate circadian rhythm). He also gave us the concept of reflex, where he argued that the body can act without conscious action (without mind). We still use reflex as a concept in physiology. All reflexes are entirely handled by spinal cord that came from signals in nerves. He said that human consciousness was evidence for a mind, meaning theres also a soul
Why is dualism not used by psychologists today?
Because it separates the mind and the body, so if we study the body, we cannot know the mind, which is the main purpose of psychology. Instead, they assume that the mind and brain are the same.
Steven Pinker, “the mind is what the brain does” “the mind is the activity of the brain”
What do psychologists do?
Basic research, application, and clinical work
Basic research in psychology
Attempt to understand the fundamental principles that govern behavior and mind. Most basic research in psych is conducted with perfectly healthy people, not clinical populations
Abnormal psychology
Interested in explaining how and why unusual and maladaptive behavior patterns develop by examining thoughts and emotions as well as the underlying biology of mental illness
Researching how depression might develop after a traumatic event
Behavioral genetics
research attempts to explain individual differences in behavior patterns in terms of variation in genetic structure and expression
Searching for genetic markers for autism or schizophrenia
Cognitive psychology
Research is broadly interested in how people process information and includes areas such as attention, perception, memory, problem solving, language, and thought
Figuring out how people transform sensations produced by the eyes into an understandable image
Comparative psychology
Study of the behavior of non-human animals, and is often but not always interested in making a comparison to human psychology in an effort to discover underlying universals
Testing whether a certain chemical affects eating behavior in mice before studying it in humans
Developmental psychology
Studies the way that people develop across the lifespan, including how our thoughts and behaviors change as we age
Investigating how children learn to speak, or why memory declines in old age
Behavioral neuroscience
Sometimes called cognitive neuroscience or neuropsychology
Tries to understand how specific brain regions or activities produce behavior, allowing psychologists to understand the physical underpinnings of their observations
Linking the processing of faces to a specific area of brain cortex
Personality psychology
Studied individual differences, investigating how and why people act differently based on their enduring characteristics or traits
Describing how some people are extraverted and how extraversion predicts specific behavior patterns
Social psychology
Interested in how an individual’s thoughts and actions are influenced by the social environment and the presence of others
Investigating how and why people are persuaded by an argument or advertisement
Applied psychology
Solving practical problems
the goal is to change behavior to solve some practical problem, like resolving mental health issues, improving workplace efficiency, or improving educational outcomes
The opposite can also be applied psychology where the psychologist might alter the environment so that the behaviors can match. For example, improving the design of a keyboard used by helicopter pilots so that text entry is faster and has fewer errors
Divided into two primary areas, research and practice. These two can be cyclical, with psychologists conducting research about a problem and then applying the research to create a solution. Psychologists who do this may also be involved in basic research
Applied research
Done to discover a new or more effective way to solve some specific problem
Applied practice
The actual application of techniques to the problems themselves
Translational research
translate basic findings into practical solutions. Applied research has roots in basic research.
Translational research is applied research, but it is specifically based on an attempt to apply discoveries from basic research into practical problems.
Example: basic research in cognitive psychology suggests that people remember information better over a long term if they have experience successfully remembering the information, like on a quiz. This can be translated into a useful application in education to help solve the problem of improving student learning.
Clinical psychology
focus on identifying, preventing, and relieving distress or dysfunction that is psychological in origin. Another form of applied psychology, but with a focus on mental health and wellness.
Dominant type of work that occurs in psychology
What are psychiatrists?
Medical doctors that focus on the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness
What is nativism?
Hypothesizes that some forms of knowledge are innate, meaning that people are born with some types of knowledge. This logic, when extreme, is also called biological determinism.
What is phrenology?
Pseudoscientific study of the human skull in an attempt to associate brain areas within specific characteristics, thoughts, and abilities
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