Unit #1 History and Approaches I. Introductory Information A) What does the word Psychology mean? 1. Ancient Greek definition: -The study (“logos”) of the soul (“psyche”). -Ancient Greek philosophers focused on introspection, observation, and speculation. I. Introductory Information 2. Modern definition of Psychology: -Study of behavior and mental processes. -Modern Psychology is based on empiricism: -Emphasis on experimentation and systematic observation rather than theoretical speculation. II. History A) Ancient Greeks: several philosophers speculated on the nature of the mind B) Ancient Greek Philosophers: 1. Socrates (469-399 BC) -Knowledge: awareness of one’s own ignorance. -Virtue: focus on selfdevelopment, not on accumulating possessions. II. History B) Ancient Greek Philosophers ct. 2. Plato (428-347 BC) -humans possess innate knowledge: origins of what would later be referred to as the “nature” side of the “nature vs. nurture” debate. II. History B) Ancient Greek Philosophers ct. 3. Aristotle (384-322 BC) -Focused on logic and systematic observation. -Placed emphasis on the power of reason. II. History C)-Ancient Greeks emphasized the concept of Dualism. -Divided humans into two distinct parts (body and spirit). -Dualists believe that one’s spirit can continue on following the death of one’s body. -Socrates and Plato were dualists. D) -Opposing view: Monism -everything derived from matter: no real division between mind and body. -Monists believe that one’s existence ceases once one’s body dies. -Late in Aristotle’s life, he stated Monist beliefs. II. History E) Middle Ages (5th-15th century) 1. Strong belief in the supernatural. 2. Belief in testing for evil spirits and trepanning (cutting a hole in the skull to “release” the evil spirits contained in the mentally ill). Trepanning Tools Trepanning “The Stone Cutting” by Hieronymus Bosch (15th century) II. History F) Enlightenment era (approx. 1620-1780) philosophers emphasized reason, analysis, and individualism. -Several philosophers wrote and spoke about topics that are still relevant to modern Psychology. -They put us on the path to modern Psychology, but did not perform empirical research. II. History F) Enlightenment era ct. 1. Rene Descartes (1596-1650) -”Cogito ergo sum”: “I think, therefore I exist”. -Cartesian Dualism -Mind and body are in constant interaction. -Essence of the mind is thought. -Mind is a substance distinct from the body. Argued that the mind (or soul) may be nonmaterial. -Believed only humans have minds. Descartes’ Meditations on First Philosophy (1641) II. History 2. John Locke (1632-1704) -Empiricism: acquisition of truth through observations and experience. However, Locke did not conduct formal experiments. -Tabula rasa: “blank slate”. Means that all knowledge is learned, nothing is innate or in-born. -Humans can be shaped in positive or negative ways by environmental factors. An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (Locke, 1690) “Let us then suppose the mind (at birth) to be, as we say, white paper, void of all characters, without any ideas. How comes it to be furnished? . . . I answer, in one word, from experience. In that, all our knowledge is founded, and from that it ultimately derives itself”. II. History 3. Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) -Consciousness: by-product of the machinery of the brain (materialism). II. History 3. Hobbes ct. -In Hobbes’ book Leviathan (1651), he famously stated that life in the state of nature is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short”. -In this book, he stated that violence most frequently occurs due to competition (desire for resources), diffidence (distrust or defensiveness), and glory (“honor”- “a word, a smile, a different opinion, any other sign of undervalue”). II. History 3. Hobbes ct. -Hobbes argued that the most significant way to decrease violence is to have a governing body or leviathan (“a common power to keep them all in awe”) that is granted a monopoly on the legitimate use of violence. -In many ways, Hobbes was shown to be correct. The leviathan does decrease crimes of dominance and vendettas. -However, an overly powerful leviathan can be a source of harm as well. Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan (1651) Steven Pinker (1954-present) “Even if we did inherit a propensity for violence, it’s not the only thing we inherited. We have self-control, empathy, reason, and cognition, we have moral norms. There can’t be a debate about whether we can overcome our inclinations towards violence, because we obviously have and do”- Steven Pinker II. History 4. Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) -Disagreed with Hobbes’ on the nature of man. -Argued that man in nature is a “noble savage”, who lives a solitary, peaceable existence. -Society is a corrupting influence: once inequalities emerge, envy and conflict are inevitable. Rousseau’s Discourse on the Sciences and Art (1750) II. History 5. Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) -First philosopher to argue that the mind plays an active role in constituting the objects of knowledge. -Considered to be the founder of psychophysics or research on human perception (how the mind comprehends the physical world). Immanuel Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason (1781) II. History G) Modern era (1800s- onward) 1. Charles Darwin: Origin of Species (1859) and the Descent of Man (1871). i)-Theory of evolution. -Implications -humans regarded as part of the animal kingdom (explore certain impulses or urges)although Carl Linnaeus had actually placed humans in the animal classification system in 1735. ii)-Francis Galton: eugenics movement, nature vs. nurture Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778) II. History 1. Darwin ct. iii)-Evolutionary Psychology: emphasizes how the natural selection of traits promoted the survival of genes. -Efforts to discover what characteristics separate humans from other animalsongoing research regarding intelligence, language, advanced tool usage, and cooperation. Charles Darwin (1809-1882) Charles Darwin statue in Granada, Spain The Origin of Species (1859) Alfred Russel Wallace (18231913) II. History 2. Wilhelm Wundt (18321920). -Established the first psychological laboratory in Leipzig, Germany in 1879. II. History 3. G. Stanley Hall (1844-1924) -Established the first US psychological laboratory at Johns Hopkins University in the 1880s. -Was appointed as the first president of the American Psychological Association (APA) in 1892. II. History 4. Edward Titchener (18671927) -Founded “structuralism” -Aimed to discover the structural elements of the mind. -Method: engage people in selfreflective introspection (looking inward). II. History 5. William James (1842-1910). -Founded the concept of functionalism: focused on evolutionary or adaptive views of behavior. -Published “The Principles of Psychology” in 1890, Psychology’s first textbook. II. History 6. Gestalt psychologists like Max Wertheimer argued against dividing human thought and behavior into discrete structures. -They tried to examine a person’s total experience. -Whole experience is often more than the sum of the parts of the experience. -Very relevant in the study of Sensation and Perception. Max Wertheimer (1880-1943) III. Approaches/Contemporary Perspectives -Contemporary perspectives on Psychology can be placed into six broad categories. A) Psychoanalytic perspective 1. Believe that the unconscious mind controls much of our thought and action. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) A) Psychoanalytic perspective ct. 2. The most famous psychoanalytic psychologist is Sigmund Freud -Freud focused on unconscious sexual and aggressive urges. -Freud was a determinist: believed that every thought, emotion, or behavior has causes (though the causes may be difficult to ascertain). -Freud also emphasized the importance of early childhood experiences. Berggasse in Vienna Famous Sofa in Freud’s Office Sigmund Freud III. Approaches/Contemporary Perspectives B) Behavioral Perspective 1.Look strictly at observable behaviors and what reaction organisms get in response to specific behaviors. 2.Emphasis on environmental influences. 3.Classical conditioning: Ivan Pavlov (18491936) and John Watson (1878-1958). III. Approaches/Contemporary Perspectives B) Behavioral Perspective ct. 4. Operant conditioning: subject learns that a behavioral response will have an environmental outcome (reinforcement and punishment). -BF Skinner (1904-1990): Skinner Box/Operant Chamber. Ivan Pavlov Dog Pavlov’s Dog John Watson BF Skinner Skinner Box III. Approaches/ Contemporary perspectives C)Humanistic Perspective -Sometimes referred to as “Third Force” psychology. -Arose in opposition to both the psychoanalytic and behavioral perspectives. -Stressed individual choice and free will. -Abraham Maslow : hierarchy of needs. -Carl Rogers: client-centered therapy. Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) Maslow’s hierarchy of needs Carl Rogers (1902-1987) Isaac Bashevis Singer (19021991) “We must believe in free willwe have no choice” II. Approaches/Perspectives D) Biopsychology (or Neuroscience) perspective 1. –Seeks to understand the interactions between anatomy and physiology and behavior. 2.-Focus on genes, hormones, and neurotransmitters in the brain. Jean Martin Charcot (1825-1893) Santiago Ramon y Cajal (18521934) AR Luria (1902-1977) Oliver Sacks (1933- 2015) VS Ramachandran (1951present) III. Approaches/Perspectives E) Cognitive Perspective 1. Examine human thought and behavior in terms of how we interpret, process, and remember events. -Study reason, logic, memory, and language. 2. The most famous cognitive psychologist is Jean Piaget: described developmental stages of childhood and adolescence. Jean Piaget (1896-1980) Lev Vygotsky Elizabeth Loftus III. Approaches/Perspectives F) Sociocultural Perspective 1. Examine how our thoughts and behaviors vary from people living in other cultures. 2. Believe that you cannot fully understand an individual’s behavior unless you consider the context (time and place) in which the behavior occurred. Solomon Asch Stanley Milgram
