psychology the systematic study of behavior and experience

PSYCHOLOGY

THE SYSTEMATIC STUDY OF BEHAVIOR AND EXPERIENCE

Why do we study psychology?

• To describe

• To predict

• & To change our behavior and experience

• To make sound decisions

• To help people

GOALS

• To challenge “common sense”

• To gain understanding and tolerance

• To prepare for times that will be both good and bad, and all points between

We all know that:

• If it doesn’t kill us it will just make us stronger.

• We would never do that!

• We know the difference between red and blue.

• Our emotions impair our reasoning.

• Couples should stay together for the kids.

• Nice guys finish last.

The systematic study of behavior and experience

• Wide scope

• Emphasis on evidence acquired using the methods of science

• What we do and how we feel about it

How about animals?

• Do animals think?

• Are they smart?

• Do they feel emotions?

How important is psychology?

• Abu Ghraib

Why psychology?

• Katrina victims

• Special Education

• Enhancing performance

Big Questions

• Do we have Free Will?

• Do we really make decisions or are we just playing out a script?

Chaos

Sin

Crime

Another Big Question.

• Mind vs. brain

• Is there anything more than just physics and chemical reactions?

• Do we have a soul?

And finally……

• Nature vs. nurture

Are our personalities and capabilities a result of:

a) how and where we were raised or

b) what we inherited from our parents?

What do psychologists do?

• Explore the connection between psychology and biology.

Hormones Drugs Genetics Evolutionary influences Brain trauma Neurotransmitters

Study our cognitive capabilities and processes.

• How do we think and acquire knowledge?

• How can we treat learning disabilities?

• How can we control our “self talk”?

Study human development

• When should we able to perform various tasks?

• What is the process of our development- from conception to death.

• What causes things to go wrong

Social psychology

• The study of the influences we exert on one another.

• Persuasion.

• The intersection of law and psychology.

the jury system

the death penalty

Clinical psychologists

• Counselors who listen and treat

• Psychiatrists who can prescribe

• Psychoanalysts who analyze

Industrialorganizational

• Using psychology in the work setting• How do employers select, train and pay

their employees• NFL combine

• Ergonomics- making products that the average person can use safely and efficiently

• Compatibility- meeting expectations

• School psychology

special education

bullies and victims

the gifted

• Enrichment- helping captive animals eliminate undesirable behaviors and increase natural behaviors so that society will respect them and work to preserve their natural habitats

• Forensic specialists with sophisticated knowledge of

psychological and legal issues – profilers

• Health coping with stress & maximizing our potential

• Environmental making sustainable choices

Psychology as a Major?

• Suitable for many purposes

• Employment – Without a Master’s

With a Master’s

• P.H.D. programs

• Women - the new majority?

• Professional schools

• Typical classes

The history of psychology

• From the dawn of time …..

• The Bible – Proverbs

• The Greeks tragedies Aristotle- observation and

rational analysis

History cont.

• The Scientific Method – applying the rigor of the physical sciences to behavior and consciousness

• 1880 Wilhelm Wundt• The fist lab devoted to psychology• Ran experiments, collected data• Studied consciousness – with little

success

History Cont.

• 1880 – William James

• Stark contrast to Wundt

• Focus on utility

• The Principles of Psychology

• Inspirational, timeless

• But no research

History iv

• Darwin and the concept of evolution

• Can studying animal intelligence tell us about humans?

• Attempts to scale and rank

animal intelligence

History v

• The search to understand human intelligence• First attempts- Galton in 1870• Lost in nature vs. nurture

• Albert Binet 1905• Why did kids fail at school?• The IQ test• First valid test and more

History vitwo geniuses

• Pavlov- 1905, Moscow• The discovery of Classical Conditioning and the

dawn of behaviorism

• Freud- 1900, Vienna• The birth of psychodynamic theory • Personality and behavior are controlled by

unconscious forces stemming from our childhood

• Dominated treatment and personality theory

History-behaviorism

• Experience? Thoughts? Emotions?• Who cares?!?• In response to frustration with animal IQ

studies and the vague nature and unsettling assumptions of psychodynamics

• GOAL – to observe and quantify without inferences

• FOCUS – use animals to uncover the basic laws of learning and behavior

History of behaviorism ii

• Outlined by Pavlov, but

• Systematized by John Watson

• Laid out methods and

underlying principles

Dominated psychology,

particularly in the U.S. for years

Scandal then success

History of psychology beyond behaviorism

• Albert Ellis – the power of • Irrational thinking – self talk

• “I must be approved or lovedby every significant person in my community”• “If I’m not thoroughly compe-tent in everything I do, I’mworthless.”