PSYA01H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Johann Spurzheim, Gustav Fechner, Scientific Literacy
Document Summary
Psychology: the scientific study of behaviour, thought, and experience, and how they can be affected by physical, mental, social, and environmental factors. The scientific method: a way of learning about the world through collecting observations, developing theories to explain them, and using the theories to make predictions. Hypothesis: a testable prediction about processes that can be observed and measured: can be supported or rejected (cannot be proved) Pseudoscience: an idea that is presented as science but does not actually utilize basic principles of scientific thinking or procedure (eg. astrology) The biopsychosocial model: a means of explaining behaviour as a product of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors. Biological factors: brain structures, chemicals, hormones, and external substances (drugs) Psychological factors: memories, emotions, and personalities, and how they shape the way we think about and respond to people and situations. Science is a philosophy of knowledge that stems from two fundamental beliefs: empiricism: a philosophical tenet that knowledge comes through experience.
