MIDYEAR REVIEW!

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Mind-Body Problem

1. Dualism: Dualists believe that mind (non-physical) and body (physical) are two distinct entities that interact. Hippocrates

2. Monism: Monists believe that mind and body are different aspects of the same thing. Aristotle

Near-death experiences raise the mind-body issue. Can the mind survive the dying body?

HISTORICAL ORIGINS-Charles Darwin (1809-1882)

-Origin of the Species introduces theories of natural selection and evolution

- his ideas will give rise to the evolutionary approach to psychology

WAVE ONE:Introspection

PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE IS BORNWilhelm Wundt’s –credited as the father

of scientific psychology-uses methods of introspection

to explore the human mind

Mind combines subjective emotions with objective sensations

Titchner- school of Structuralism

William James

• Rejects structuralism

• Functionalism- focuses on the evolved function of mental and behavioral processes

WAVE TWO:Gestalt Psychology

Gestalt Psychology• Max Wertheimer- examines total

experience

• The whole is different from the sum of the parts

• Consciousness can only be studied holistically

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WAVE THREE:Psychodynamic

Psychodynamic Approach•Sigmund Freud (1856- 1939) is the founder

•Unconscious thought isin conflict with conscious behavior

•Defense mechanisms- repress unconscious

Psychodynamic Approach

Psychoanalysis

Free Association

Dream Interpretation

WAVE Four:Behaviorism

Behavioral Approach• John B Watson (late 1800’s) founder

of Behaviorism• Believes any behavior can be shaped

and controlled• “Nurture”- we are born a blank slate• Rejects study of consciousness• Skinner and Pavlov- behaviorists

Contemporary Approachesand Methods

Biological Approach• Psychobiology- assumes mind and

body are interrelated

• Sociobiological/Evolutionary- Influenced by Darwin

• Influenced by Evolutionary Theory

Cognitive Approach• Receiving, storing, and processing

information• Serial and Paralleling Processing

Cognitive Approach

• Natural Science

• Serial Processing- step-by-step processing of information

• Parallel Processing- many stimuli processed simultaneously

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Humanist Approach• Emphasizes the potential for individual

growth and self-awareness

• Carl Rogers- focuses ones self-concept, or how a person defines their own reality

-Mazlow- Self-concept is a strive forself-actualization

Humanist Approach

Hindsight Bias

The tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it

Subfields of Psychology

Basic Psychology- research

Applied Psychology- research put into practice as therapist

Psychiatry- a medical field- deals with mental disorders- prescribe medication

There are three main types of research methods in psychology: Descriptive

Correlational

Experimental

Descriptive Study:

1) Case Study- psychologists study one individual in great depth in hopes of revealing universal principles

Case Study Pros

Detailed information

Unusual Cases

Inexpensive

Few ethical considerations

The Problem with the Case Study:

An individual may be atypical

Cannot generalize results

Difficult to Manipulate Variables

Difficult to quantify data

Naturalistic Observation

Observe subjects in natural habitats without interacting

Naturalistic Observation

Pros ConsRealistic No manipulat-Inexpensive Ion of

variablesFew ethicalconsideration

Observer Bias

Survey Method

Relies on questions answered by a group of people in interviews or questionnaires

Survey Method•Experimenter must identify the population to study

•Random sampling picking members from a population randomly to ensure a representative sample

Survey Method

Pros ConsCan gather lots of data

Honest answers?

Few ethical considerations

Need many participants

Inexpensive Wording Effects

Wording Effects

Poorly worded questions, order of choicesIn a study by AMNH, 88% of all respondents said that they were interested in plants and trees, but only 39% said they were interested in botany.

Correlational Studies

•Correlational studies assess the association between two or more characteristics of interest without ascribing causes

•Is a correlational study an experiment?

Correlation coefficient

Example: R= + .37

Correlational Studies

Correlational StudiesPros ConsInexpensive Confounding

variablesFew ethical considerations

Illusory correlation

Time Does notObjective I mply

causation

Illusory Correlation

When we believe there is a relationship between two things, we are likely to notice and recall instances that confirm our belief

Research MethodsDescriptive Correlational ExperimentalExplains behavior using natural observations

assess the association between two or more characteristics of interest

Researcher manipulates one variable and observes the effect on another variable

1) Case studies2) Naturalistic3) Surveys

1) Causation2) Illusory correlation3) Correlational Coefficient

Experimental DesignConfounding Variables, double-blind

Experimental Method

Researcher manipulates one variable (independent variable) and observes the effect on another variable (dependent variable)

Confounding variable:

external differences between the experimental group and the control group

Confounding Variables

1) Placebo Effect experimental results caused by expectations alone

Confounding Variables

Demand Characteristics- participants form an interpretation of the experiment's purpose and unconsciously change their behavior accordingly

How can we control for confounding variables?

How can we control for confounding variables? 1) Random Assignment method of assigning subjects to groups to minimize pre-existing differences between those groups This is an example of Between subjects design: Participants in the experimental and control group are different individuals

How can be control for confounding variables? 2) Within subjects design Technique where subjects serve as control and experimental group.

Confounding Variables

Experimenter bias- researcher’s expectations about the outcome of a study influence the results

Q: How can we eliminate experimenter bias?

What is the difference between double blind and single blind procedure?

Double blind procedure- research design in which neither the experimenter or the participants know who is in the experimental versus control group

Single-blind procedure- research design in the participants do not know who is in the experimental or control group

Operational definition- Operational definition- way of defining a variable objectively

Operational definition for intelligence- SAT score?Operational definition for fitness- heart rate

How do psychologists present data?

Frequency Distributions

StatisticsStatistical significance (p) is the likelihood that the observed difference between groups results from a real difference rather than chance alone

What’s a good p value?

When is data statistically significant?

1) Large difference between the two means

) Large difference between the two means

When is data statistically significant?

When is data statistically significant?

2) Small standard deviationsdegree by which a score varies from the mean

Mean, Median, Mode

6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 10, 10, 11, 11, 11, 11, 12, 12, 13

What’s the mode?

What’s the median?

Normal Distribution

Skewed Data