PSYC 100 Lecture Notes - Mary Whiton Calkins, American Psychological Association, B. F. Skinner
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Published on 19 Nov 2012
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Psychology 100 9/16/2012 8:18:00 AM
Chapter I – The Science of Psychology
1.1 What is psychology?
The study of mind, brain and behavior.
How the two are connected.
It‟s technically a science.
Psychology is about you and I.
o Personally relevant.
o Relevant to us all.
Human behavior in real life contexts.
Determined by human interaction.
Psychological processes can surprise us – it‟s not just common sense!
OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE WITH GRADUATE DEGREES IN
PSYCHOLOGY ARE EXPECTED TO GROW APPROXIMATELY 12%
BETWEEN 2009 AND 2018!!! HOPE IS THERE!
Humans are intuitive psychologists:
Fact or fiction?
o We have to systematically evaluate information to reach
reasonable conclusions.
What am I supposed to believe?
What‟s the evidence?
Example of Critical Thinking:
1. A statement is made based on some evidence.
2. You carry out other experiments regarding the statement.
3. A FINAL conclusion is made about the statement.
1.2 The Scientific Foundations of Psychology:
Psychology:
Dated back to 1870s.
Originated in philosophy – Chinese, Muslim philosophers (ex.
Confucius).
19th century – emerged as a scientific discipline.
Nature/ Nurture Debate:
Innate or cultural phenomenon?
Influence each other and is inseparable.
Mind/body problems – Separate and distinct?
Introspection:
Wilhelm Wundt – first psychological laboratory.
John Stuart – argued psychology should be a science of
observation and experiment.
Introspection – you can absorb behavior, but you can‟t determine
the cognitive processes.
o You have to revert it back to yourself – what‟s going on in
your head?
o Used to study consciousness (self awareness).
o ISSUE WITH INTROSPECTION: experience is subjective,
reporting of the experience changes the experience itself.
Structuralism – Edward Titchener – Breaking down into basic
underlying components.
Consciousness – FIRST MAJOR DEBATE BETWEEN
PSYCHOLOGISTS!
o Psychologists thought consciousness was not always present
– debated about it.
Functionalism:
William James
o Argued the mind consisted of a stream of consciousness
o Looked at the big picture – not just components but what it
all led to.
Consciousness could not be frozen in time, broken down
and analyzed- its a constant flow.
Functionalism – examining the functions of the mind
Evolutionary theory – Charles Darwin:
Adaptation – genes pass along from generation to generation.
Natural selection – mutations facilitate survival.
Survival of the fittest – better adapted survive, less adapted die
off.
Gestalt Theory – whole of conscious experience is different from the sum of
its parts.
Women Psychology Field:
Mary Whiton Calkins:
o 1st woman president of the American Psychological
Association despite no PhD.
Margret Flow Washburn:
o First woman with Psych PhD.
o 2nd woman president of the American Psychological
Association.
Sigmund Freud:
Mental processes below the level of awareness determine much of
human behavior.
o Introduced notion of unconscious.
Developed psychoanalysis
o Unconscious forces can produce discomfort in the conscious
sense.
Impulses, tendencies that you act upon, but not really sure why.
Behaviorism:
John B. Watson:
Challenged focus on conscious and unconscious mental processes.
o Developed behaviorism:
Environmental stimuli affect behavioral responses.
Behavior is learned (nurture).
B.F. Skinner:
Mantle of behaviorism: