Psychology Chapters 1 and 2

structuralism

based on the notion that the task of psychology is to analyze consciousness into its basic elements and investigate how the elements were related

empirical

The idea that knowledge should be obtained through observation

Psychology as a Profession

Applies science to solve practical problems

Psychology as a Science

Research Psychology(science that studies) -behavior -underlying processes

Developmental psychology

How we change along the lifetime (emotionally)

Cognitive psychology

The higher mental functions, how we reason through problems, memory, language development, creativity

Personality psychology

What factors lead a person to have characteristic behaviors, lead to consistency of behaviors (How is it developed? What factors?)

Psychometrics psychology

Statistical analysis, number focused, design and verify tests, tests tests, ex. how to measure self esteem, happiness, depression

Social Psychology

the branch of psychology that studies persons and their relationships with others and with groups and with society as a whole

Experimental Psychology

the branch of psychology that uses experimental methods to study psychological issues (Traditional Psychology)

physiological psychology

the branch of psychology that is concerned with the physiological bases of psychological processes (what parts of the brain affect our behaviors?) (Biological Psychology)

Industrial/organizational or IO

Trained to deal with psychological issues within the workplace

Clinical Psychology

Identification and treatment of mental disorders and minor behavioral problems

Counseling Psychology

Focused on everyday problems, marriage, family, work

Educational Psychology

Asks questions like "what should the curriculum be?", "what educational methods should you choose?"

School Psychology

Behavior problems, family problems (very close to counseling, but a separate degree)

Seven Themes: Psychology is

empirical

Seven Themes: Theoretical diversity

different psychologists have different theories on human behavior

Seven Themes: Socio-historical context

Psychology is a product of its times ex. ww2 focused on ptsd etc..

Seven Themes: Multiple Causes

We all have multiple influences on us all the time, theres all kinds of reasons for people's behavior

Seven Themes: Cultural Heritage

Behavior is heavily influenced by Cultural Heritage

Seven Themes: Nature and Nurture

Nature: it's all in the genes, Nurture: How were you raised?

Seven Themes: Experiences are subjective

We are all a product of our experiences and expectations, our past influences how we interpret things and what we pay attention to

Physiology (parent psychology)

Gave psychology the scientific method

Philosophy (parent psychology)

Gave psychology the questions

Wilhelm Wundt

1879, first psych lab, argued for study of conciousness

consciousness

Awareness of the self, Wundt

G. Stanley Hall

1883 first U.S psychology lab

Structuralism founder

Edward Titchner

Structuralism

Based on the notion that the task of psychology is to separate consciousness into basic elements and study the elements

Structuralists used

introspection

Introspection

the careful, systematic self observation of one's own conscious experience

Functionalism founder

William James

Functionalism Definition

Based on the belief that psychology should investigate the function of consciousness as a whole, rather than its structure

What did James think of structuralism?

That splitting the consciousness into pieces was flawed, and it was more like a "flow" of thoughts

What book did William James write?

"Principles of Psychology"

Is functionalism practical?

yes, and they though structuralism was impractical

Which of the two branches flocked to the labs?

Structuralists

Which of the two branches were more interested in how people adapt behavior to the demands of the real world?

Functionalists

What is the modern form of functionalism?

Behaviorism and applied psychology

What is the modern form of structuralism?

neuroscience

Who was Sigmund Freud?

A physician who attempted to treat his patients mental disorders

Who created Psychoanalysis?

Sigmund Freud

Unconscious Self

Thoughts, memories, and desires that are well below the surface of conscious awareness but still affect behavior

What did Freud think that slips of the tongues were?

That they were true feelings. Freudian Slip

What was the road to the unconscious?

Freud's belief that dreams expressed feelings that the dreamer was unaware of

What did Freud think caused psychological disturbances?

Personal conflicts on the unconscious level

How did Freud make his conclusions?

without the help of data collection or analysis, just by looking at his own patients

Why was Sigmund Freud controversial?

He talked about sexual desires and the development of children and their erotic desires, thought child development stopped at age 5 , and that we are not humans of change.

Who was the founder of behaviorism?

John B. Watson

Behaviorism Definition

A theoretical orientation based on the premise that scientific psychology should study only observable behavior

What psychology group removed consciousness from their study and began to test on animals?

Behaviorists

What group was B.F. Skinner a part of?

The radical behaviorists

What were B.F. Skinners most controversial thoughts?

Free will is an illusion, all behavior is governed by external stimuli

Operant Conditioning

behaviors that are followed by good outcomes tend ti be repeated, and behaviors followed by bad outcomes tend to not be repeated

What caused the humanist revolt?

Behaviorists and Freudians theories were thought to be dehumanizing

Why was behaviorism condemned by humanists?

They studied animal behavior, not humans

Why were Freudians condemned by humanists?

They believed behavior is dominated by primal sexual instincts

Humanists thought there were:

Unique human qualities, freedom, personal growth, self direction

Who were Carl Rodgers and Abraham Maslow?

The most influential humanists

What did Abraham Maslow create?

The pyramid of needs

What's at the bottom tier of the Pyramid of Needs?

Food, sleep, warmth, other basic needs

What's at the middle tier of the Pyramid of Needs?

Safety, belongingness, self esteem

What's at the top tier of the Pyramid of Needs?

Self Actualization

What was the main goal of humanism?

To reach self actualization

When did Psychology return to its roots? What roots?

1950s-1960s, Cognition and Physiology

Cognitive psychology

Decision making, reasoning, problem solving, language, and creativity

Physiological psychology (neuroscience)

Looked at how behavior is influenced by brain function, injuries to the brain, genetics, hormones, neurotransmitters

What are the contemporary views of psychology?

Cultural diversity, Evolutionary psychology, and Positive psychology

Why is Cultural diversity in Psychology important?

studies/experiments used to be exclusively on rich, white young men before the 1980s, now they're much more inclusive More focus on how behavior is the product of cultural experience

What is Evolutionary Psychology?

The study of the adaptive value of behaviors, (why do we do this?) A modern version of functionalism

What is positive psychology? and why is it important

Looks at what kind of experiences in our lives lead to positive outcomes. We used to only look at "what's wrong with us?"

Hypothesis

tentative prediction on the relationship between variables

Variable

any condition, even, or behavior that can be measured

Theory

organized system of ideas that explain a set of observations, must be testable

Operational definition

a precise definition in how the variables are defined in a study will be observed and measured

Naturalistic observation

behavior occurring in its natural environment

What are benefits of survey data collection? What's a disadvantage?

You can collect lots of data easily, adequately test opinion and attitude. People tend to answer in a socially acceptable manner, may not tell the truth.

What are the benefits of standardized tests data collection? What is a disadvantage?

You can generate lots of data and make easy comparisons. There's inevitable cultural bias.

What does a phsyiological measure determine?

What parts of the brain are being used, via FMRI scan

Social Desirability Bias

to answer self questions in a socially approved manner

Descriptive Research Design

Seeks to identify/describe behavior, lowest level/starting point of research

Correlation Research Design

Seeks to predict behavior, identify strength of relationships between 2 or more variables

Experimental Research Design

Seeks to understand behavior, researchers manipulate one variable to discover its effect on another

What are the disadvantages of Experimental research design?

Artificial settings, and ethical problems

What is the biggest advantage of Experimental Research?

you get a cause and effect statement

Sample

people who provide the data, try to have the closest to the set of the people we are trying to draw conclusions about

Population

whole set of people we are trying to draw conclusions about

Sampling bias

sample that doesn't accurately reflect the population

Placebo Effect

sometimes people behave in a certain way because they believe they should

Self Report Errors

social desirability bias, some people don't answer questions correctly

Experimental Bias

not fraud, usually unintentional, reason to use double blind experiments

Does science prove things?

no

Control

no treatment, ex placebo drug

Experimental

treatment, ex real drug in a drug trial

extraneous variables

anything that may affect subjects behavior, ex age differences between subjects

Deception in Research

sometimes knowing too much skews the results

Animal Research in Psychology

very rarely used, also many complicated restrictions to "protect" the animals

APA Guidelines

Set of ethic rules for human participation in studies

APA: Human participation in research must be:

Voluntary, do no harm, if deception is used, you must debrief them at some point, confidentiality, IRB approved

IRB (institutional review board)

Any institution that receives federal funding must have an ethic review board before anyone is allowed to recruit human subjects for the study