what is psychology?. outline why study psychology? – behavior and mental processes – the goals...
TRANSCRIPT
What is Psychology?
Outline• Why Study Psychology?
– Behavior and Mental Processes– The Goals of Psychology– Psychology as a Science
• The Job of a Psychologist– Fields Within Psychology– Applied Fields
• History of Psychology– Early Views– Major Players– Modern Psychology
• Psychology Today– Perspectives of Psychology– Perspectives Cont’d
Behavior and Mental Processes• Psychology – scientific study
of human behavior and mental process– Behavior – any action that can
be observed or measured
• Cognitive activities – mental processes– Dreams, memories, etc.– Known only to the individual
• Psychological constructs – used to study things we cannot see, touch, or measure
The Goals of Psychology
• Explain behavior– Struggling with
work/school– “Losing your cool”
• Predict situational outcomes– When will you begin to
struggle/fall apart?
• Control emotions, behavior, etc.– How to maintain control in
situations where you would have normally struggled
Psychology as a Science• Closely related to natural
sciences– Biology, chemistry, physics– Still, considered a social science
• Research– Surveys and experimentation– Human or animal research
• Theories– Statements attempting to explain
why or how something occurs– Discuss principles, or basic truth
or law– Useful theories can be applied in
prediction
Fields Within Psychology• Clinical
– Most common– Child/adult mental health,
learning disabilities– Not psychiatrists (medical
doctors that can prescribe medicine)
• Counseling– Marriage, work,
relationships
• School– Counselors in school– Future goals, peer/family
problems, school issues
Field Within Psychology Cont’d
• Educational– Course planning and
instructional methods for an entire school system
• Developmental– Changes throughout a
person’s life span– Physical, emotional,
cognitive, social
• Personality– Identification and
development of human traits
Fields Within Psychology Cont’d• Social
– Behavior in social situations– Romance, conforming to
standards, prejudice/discrimination
• Experimental– Experiments into basic
processes of the human body– Combined changes in biological
and psychological events– Engage in basic research, or
research that has no immediate application and is done for its own sake
Applied Fields
• Industrial and Organizational– Behavior of people within
organizations
• Human Factors– Best ways to design
products for people to use
• Community– Design social centers like
mental institutions, hospital and school programs
Applied Fields Cont’d
• Forensic– Work with police
investigations
• Health– How behavior is related to
physical health
• Rehabilitation– Work with patients struggling
with the effects of a disability
• Cross-Cultural– Psychological issues across
varying cultures
Exit Slip
• What are the primary goals of psychology?
• Select and describe one of the following fields in psychology: Clinical, Developmental, or Experimental
• Select and describe one of the following applied fields in psychology: Cross-Cultural, Industrial and Organizational, or Rehabilitation
Early Views• Psychological studies date back
to Egyptians– 600s B.C. by Psamtik I
• Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle– Introspection, or looking within– Associationism – our
understanding of the world is associated with prior experiences
• Middle Ages– Believed many disorders to be
caused by the devil– Lack of scientific focus meant
deadly consequences for those deemed “possessed”
Major Players
• Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920)– Structuralism – consciousness
breaks down into objective sensations and subjective feelings
– Objective – portrayed outside world; Subjective – emotional responses and mental images
• William James (1842-1910)– Functionalism – emphasizes the
purpose of behavioral and mental processes and what they can do for the individual
– Instead of looking for structure, wanted to know purpose
Major Players Cont’d• Sigmund Freud (1856-
1939)– Psychoanalysis –
unconscious motives and internal conflicts as reasons behind human actions
– Wanted to unleash the power present in the unconscious mind
– Also known as psychodynamic thinking, he argued that we are constantly fighting sexual and aggressive urges deemed socially inappropriate
Modern Psychology• John B. Watson (1878-1958)
– Behaviorism – Scientific study of observable behavior
– If psychology is to be a science, it must be limited to measurable events
• B.F. Skinner (1904-1990)– Contributed to behaviorism
with concept of reinforcement– Rewarding people or animals
for doing the correct thing
• The Gestalt School– Gestalt Psychology –
Emphasizes the tendency to organize perception of individual parts into meaningful wholes
Exit Slip
• Define Structuralism
• Define Functionalism
• Define Behaviorism
Perspectives of Psychology
• Biological– Biology influences behavior– Mental processes possible
by nervous system, genes affect disorders, etc.
• Evolutionary– People learn behaviors in
order to “adapt” to society
• Cognitive– Investigate the role of
thought processes in human behavior
Perspectives Cont’d
• Humanistic– Personal experiences are
the most important aspect of psychology
• Psychoanalytic– Unconscious parts of
mind shape our responses
– Pulls heavily from Sigmund Freud
Perspectives Cont’d• Learning
– Past experiences and environments impact behavior
– Socio-learning theory states people can change their environment AND learn from others, not just their own mistakes
• Sociocultural– Effects of ethnicity, gender,
culture, and socio-economic standing on behavior
• Biopsychosocial– Mental actions influenced by
combination of biological, psychological, and social factors