An Introduction to the stuff you
will be learning this year.
Difference Between Notes “As written”
and “Short-Hand Notes”
• Example sentence:
Sigmund Freud was an
extraordinary
psychologist who was
most known for
publishing the
Interpretation of
Dreams, which was a
major theoretical work
on psychoanalysis
Difference Between Notes “As written”
and “Short-Hand Notes”
• “Short-Hand” Notes
example:
Sigmund Freud = great
psychologist most known
for publishing
Interpretation of Dreams
(major theoretical work
on psychoanalysis)
• Create your own NOW
Difference Between Notes “As written”
and “Short-Hand Notes”
• When writing “shorthand,” EXCLUDE:
- pronouns (who, you,
me, he)
- prepositions (at, as,
for, with, etc.)
- other words that are
not necessary for
successful sentence
FRAGMENTS
Difference Between Notes “As written”
and “Short-Hand Notes”
• However, INCLUDE
IMPORTANT words such
as:
- subject of the sentence
- word relative to the
subject of the sentence
- vocabulary term
- any other term YOU
consider to be important
- you can also CAPITALIZE
or underline specific
terms you consider to be
important
Difference Between Notes “As written”
and “Short-Hand Notes”
• YOUR NOTES can be
written however YOU
see fit
• Only YOU need to
understand YOUR notes
What is it?
Psychology
The study of our inner
feelings and behaviors.
Do our feelings always match our behaviors?
If you call me a
failure, I may feel
sad inside.
But I will
still act
tough.
(but I will be
crying on the
inside)
History of Psychology
• Although the science of psychology
started in the late 1800’s, the concept has
been around a lot longer.
• There was evidence of trephination
(cutting holes into a skull to let evil
spirits out) back in the stone age.
It was like a bad SAW movie!!!!
Optical Illusion Slides
Look at the following slide. After seeing
the picture, say aloud the first concept or
classification that comes to your mind
Ready……..
Set……….
Critical Thinking
Critical Thinking
• Critical Thinking = method of examining assumptions,
discerning hidden values, evaluating evidence, and
assessing conclusions
• Two important concepts that drive the field of psychology
– Perception
– Questioning
Critical Thinking
• Perception = Act/faculty of apprehending by means of the
senses or of the mind
• In other words……what is YOUR definition of this sentence?
Critical Thinking
• Questioning = major form of human thought and interpersonal
communication, which is employed through a series of
questions to explore an issue, idea, or intriguing thought.
• In psychology, actions and ideas are often questioned using
the 5 W’s
– Who?
– What?
– Where?
– When?
– Why?
Prescientific Psychology
• Psychology was derived
from the modern form
of empiricism
• Empiricism = View that
knowledge originates in
experience and that
science should rely on
observation and
experimentation
Psychological Science is Born
• William Wundt, a professor at the
University of Leipzig, was the first
to conduct a psychological
experiment (measured time
between ball hitting a platform
and reaction)
• Wilhelm Wundt = Considered to
be “Father of Modern
Psychology”
• Opened first psychology lab in
1879
• Organized psychology into three
schools of thought
– Structuralism
– Functionalism
– Behaviorism
Structuralism
• Edward Bradford Titchener
introduced the concept of
structuralism
• Structuralism = Early school
of psychology that used
introspection to explore the
elements of the human
mind
• Why does a rose look that
way? Smell that way? Why
can I hear the bell ring?
Functionalism
• William James
introduced the idea of
functionalism
• Functionalism = School of
psychology that focused
on how our mental and
behavioral processes
function
• Includes adaptation,
survival, and flourishment
Behaviorism
• Behaviorism was born
after the dismissal of
introspection by John B.
Watson and B.F. Skinner
• Behaviorism = View that
psychology should be an
objective science that
studies behavior without
reference to mental
processes
Psychology is Born
• After much debate,
researchers were able to
come to a compromise
and created the social
science known as
Psychology
• Psychology = Science of
behavior and mental
processes
Nature vs. Nurture
• Psychology has wrestled
with many issues over it’s
short history
• The biggest and most
persistent is the naturenurture issue
• Nature-Nurture Issue =
Controversy over the
relative contributions that
genes and experience make
to the development of
psychological traits and
behaviors
Psychological Analysis
• Psychology is composed of
three different levels of
analysis
• Levels of Analysis =
Differing complementary
views for analyzing any
given phenomenon
• Composed of analyzing
biological (body),
psychological (thinking),
and social-cultural
(environment) influences
Psychological Analysis
• In addition several
different approaches
were created to
supplement the new,
proposed biopsychosocial
approach
• Biopsychosocial
Approach = Integrated
approach that
incorporates biological,
psychological, and socialcultural levels of analysis
Psychological Analysis
• These include:
• Biological Psychology =
Studies link biological and
psychological processes
• Evolutionary Psychology =
Studies roots of behavior and
mental processes using natural
selection
• Psychodynamic Psychology =
Studies how unconscious
drives and conflicts influence
behavior
• Behavioral Psychology =
Studies observable behavior
and learning
Psychological Analysis
• Cognitive Psychology =
Studies mental activities
associated with thinking,
knowing, remembering, and
communicating
• Humanistic Psychology =
Studies growth potential of
healthy people and the
individual’s potential for
personal growth
• Social-Cultural Psychology
= Studies how situations
and cultures affect our
behavior and thinking
Psychology’s Subfields
• Some psychologists conduct
basic research
• Basic Research = Pure science
that aims to increase the
scientific knowledge base
• Includes various fields:
• Developmental Psychology =
Scientific study of physical,
cognitive, and social change
throughout the life span
• Educational Psychology =
Study of how psychological
processes affect and enhance
teaching and learning
Psychology’s Subfields
• Personality Psychology =
Study of an individual’s
characteristic pattern of
thinking, feeling, and
acting
• Social Psychology =
Scientific study of how we
think about, influence,
and relate to one another
Psychology’s Subfields
• Psychologists may also conduct
applied research that tackles
practical problems
• Applied Research = Scientific
study that aims to solve practical
problems
• Includes various fields:
• Industrial-Organizational
Psychology = Application of
psychological concepts and
methods to optimizing human
behavior in workplaces
• Human Factors Psychology =
Study of how people and
machines interact and the design
of safe and easily used machines
and environments
Psychology’s Subfields
• Psychology is also devoted to
helping people through very
stressful situations
• Includes various fields:
• Counseling Psychology = Branch
of psychology that assists people
with problems in living and in
achieving greater well-being
• Clinical Psychology = Branch of
psychology that studies, assesses,
and treats people with
psychological disorders
• Psychiatry = Branch of medicine
dealing with psychological
disorders
Major Contributors in Psychology
•
•
•
•
Wilhelm Wundt
Edward Bradford Tichener
William James
Mary Whiton Calkins = First
female president of the
American Psychological
Association (APA) in 1905
• Margaret Floy Washburn =
First woman to receive a
psychology Ph.D; second
female president of APA
Major Contributors in Psychology
• Sigmund Freud = Developed
the psychoanalytic theory of
personality (sub-conscious and
dreams)
• Ivan Pavlov = Pioneered study
of learning and classical
conditioning
• Jean Piaget = Pioneer of
developmental psychology
(birth thru adolescence)
• John B Watson/Rosalie
Rayner = Known for exposing
classical conditioning and
behavior in humans (Little
Albert)
Major Contributors in Psychology
• Carl Rogers/Abraham
Maslow = Pioneers of
humanistic psychology
• B.F. Skinner = Pioneer
of operant conditioning
(rewards and
consequences)
Research Methods
It is actually way more exciting
than it sounds!!!!
Why do we have to learn this
stuff?
Psychology is first and foremost a science.
Thus it is based in research.
Before we delve into how to do research, you should be
aware of three hurdles that tend to skew our logic.
Critical Thinking
Critical Thinking
• Critical Thinking = method of examining assumptions,
discerning hidden values, evaluating evidence, and
assessing conclusions
• Two important concepts that drive the field of psychology
– Perception
– Questioning
Critical Thinking
• Perception = Act/faculty of apprehending by means of the
senses or of the mind
• In other words……what is YOUR definition of this sentence?
Critical Thinking
• Questioning = major form of human thought and interpersonal
communication, which is employed through a series of
questions to explore an issue, idea, or intriguing thought.
• In psychology, actions and ideas are often questioned using
the 5 W’s
– Who?
– What?
– Where?
– When?
– Why?
Hindsight Bias
• Hindsight Bias: The
tendency to believe,
after learning the
outcome, that you
knew it all along
After the Chris Brown/Rihanna
incident….a lot of people said
they knew Chris Brown was a
violent kid!!! Did they really?
Monday Morning
Quarterbacking!!!
Hindsight is 20/20
Scientific Method
• After a specific thought or action is perceived a certain
way, a THEORY is created
• Theory: explanation using an integrated set of principles
that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events
• Good theories often produce several testable HYPOTHESES,
or testable predictions
• Hypothesis: Testable prediction
• THEORIES lead to testable HYPOTHESES which lead to
RESEARCH AND OBSERVATIONS which either confirm/reject
the theory, or cause it to be revised
Scientific Method
• In order to control bias, psychologists often utilize two
concepts:
• Bias = An internal/external factor that can cause
research to be inaccurate
• Operational Definitions: A statement of the procedures
used to define research and all included variables or
components
• Replication: Repeating the essence of a research study,
in order to see if it can be re-created by other
researchers
How Do You Determine There is a
Need For An Experiment?
Case Studies
• Case Study: Observation
technique in which one
person is studied in
depth in the hope of
revealing universal
principles
• Most often utilized
technique that leads to
experimentation
Surveys
• Survey: Technique for
ascertaining the selfreported attitudes or
behaviors of a particular
group, usually by
questioning a
representative, random
sample of the group
• Utilized when attempting
to explain the behavior of
a mass group of people
Naturalistic Observation
• Naturalistic
Observation: Observing
and recording behavior
in naturally occurring
situations without trying
to manipulate and
controlling the situation
• Utilized as a way to
describe behavior
without having any
direct effect
Now, Let’s Start the Experiment!!
Experimental Method
• Looking to prove
causal relationships.
• Cause = Effect
• Laboratory v. Field
Experiments
Smoking causes health issues.
Conducting the Experiment
• Determine and assign the different variables of the
experiment
• INDEPENDENT VARIABLE: The experimental factor that
is manipulated/changed/being studied
• DEPENDENT VARIABLE: The variable that may change as
a result of the independent variable
Independent Variable
• Whatever is being
manipulated in the
experiment.
• Hopefully the
independent variable
brings about change.
If there is a drug in an
experiment, the
drug is almost always
the independent
variable.
Dependent Variable
• Whatever is being
measured in the
experiment.
• It is dependent on the
independent variable.
The dependent variable
would be the effect
of the drug.
Assigning Groups
• Two types of groups:
– Experimental Group: (Group that is exposed to
treatment of the experiment)
– Control Group (Group that does not receive
treatment)
• RANDOMLY ASSIGNING groups minimizes preexisting
differences and bias
• Using a DOUBLE-BLIND PROCEDURE, experiment where
researchers do not know which groups received
treatment
Sampling
• Identify the
population you want
to study.
• The sample must be
representative of
the population you
want to study.
• GET A RANDOM
SAMPLE
• Stratified Sampling
Conducting the Experiment
• Example: You are doing a study on whether or not drinking
water early in the morning makes a student smarter and
earn better grades in school
• EXPERIMENTAL GROUP: Group that drinks a certain amount
of water at the same time every morning during the
experiment
• CONTROL GROUP: Group that does not do anything, goes
about their regular day with normal actions (being
compared to the experimental group)
• INDEPENDENT VARIABLE: Drinking water in the morning
• DEPENDENT VARIABLE: Grades earned during experiment
Scenarios
• During the following scenarios, as a class, you need to
identify the following components in the study:
1) How would you determine whether or not there
is a need for an experiment? (case study, survey,
naturalistic observation)
2) What are your groups? (who is in your
experimental and control groups)
3) What are your independent and dependent
variables?
Ready……..
Set……….
Scenario #1
You turn on the radio and hear about an idea that certain
foods, such as chocolate and oysters, can be used as
aphrodisiacs. You wonder if that statement is true and
are interested in learning more. How would you
continue?
Scenario #1 Possibilities
1) Determining the experiment:
- Case Studies
- Surveys
2) Assigning Groups:
- Experimental Group: People who are willing to take
aphrodisiacs at a certain time every day
- Control Group: People who are JUST willing to participate and
be studied
3) Conducting the Experiment
- Independent Variable: Amount of aphrodisiac taken at a
certain time, on certain days during the experiment
- Dependent Variable: Actions, emotions, and feelings observed
or recorded
Scenario #2
You see several fights go on within your 5th period class
and begin to wonder why kids in your class act in that
particular fashion. One of your peers shouts out during
a fight, “This stupid class is the reason why we always
fighting!” You wonder if that statement is true and are
interested in learning more. How would you continue?
Scenario #2 Possibilities
1)
Determining the experiment:
- Naturalistic Observation
- Case Studies
- Surveys
2) Assigning Groups:
- Experimental Group: People who are willing to be observed and record their
behavior during that particular class period and another during the
experiment
- Control Group: People who have that same teacher in another class period
who are JUST willing to participate and be studied
3) Conducting the Experiment
- Independent Variable: The particular class in question and the other class
period in which the experimental group will be observed
- Dependent Variable: Actions, emotions, and feelings observed or recorded
during both class periods
What was wrong with the last
study/experiment? (What problems
did it have)
Statistics and the Scientific Method
Statistics
• Recording the
results from our
studies.
• Must use a common
language so we all
know what we are
talking about.
Statistics in Psychology
• Once all data has been
gathered from a study,
it must be organized
into statistical data, or
number form
• Statistical Data =
Number Form
• Usually in the form of
graphs or other
numerical values
Descriptive Statistics
• Descriptive
Statistics =
Describes sets of
data
• You might create a
frequency distribution.
• Frequency polygons or
histograms.
Central Tendency
• The next step is to
summarize the data
using some measure of
central tendency
• Central Tendency = a
single score that
represents a whole set
of scores
• This includes mean,
median, and mode
Central Tendency
• The simplest measure is mode
• Mode = Most frequently occurring scores
• The most commonly reported in research is the
mean
• Mean = Sum of all the scores divided by the scores
• The median is the midpoint
• Median = The 50th percentile
Central Tendency
• Watch out for extreme scores or outliers.
Let’s look at the salaries of the
employees at Dunder Mifflen Paper
in Scranton:
$25,000-Pam
$25,000- Kevin
$25,000- Angela
$100,000- Andy
$100,000- Dwight
$200,000- Jim
$300,000- Michael
The median salary looks good at
$100,000.
The mean salary also looks good at
about $110,000.
But the mode salary is only $25,000.
Maybe not the best place to work.
Then again living in Scranton is kind
of cheap.
Variation
• Knowing the central
tendency is great, but it
can omit some
information
• It helps to know the
amount of variation in
the data
• Variation = Similarity or
diversity of the scores
Variation
• The range of scores provides a general estimate of
variation
• Range = Gap between the lowest and highest scores
• The more useful standard for determining the amount
in which scores deviate from one another is standard
deviation
• Standard deviation tells the amount in which scores
differ from one another
• Usually represented as the square root of the sum of
the squared deviations
How to Compute Standard Deviation
• The standard deviation of data is usually represented as the
square root of the sum of deviations divided by the number
of scores, or
• You first have to calculate the mean of all of the scores in your
data
• Next, place all of your scores in one column and the mean
scores next to those scores in another column
• Then, you will subtract the difference, positive or negative, of
the mean from the reported score (deviation from the mean)
and place that number in the third column
• Lastly, you will square all reported deviations from the mean
(squared deviation) and place them in the last column
Number of MLK
students that go to
the vending machine
per hour
Total:
Mean:
Mean
Mean:
Deviations from the
mean
Squared Deviation
Sum of Squared
Deviations:
Standard Deviation:
Variation
• Large numbers of data
are often used to form a
symmetrical, bellshaped distribution.
• This is known as a
normal curve, or bell
curve
• Used to show the
variation of data
between two numbers
Ready……..
Set……….
Scenarios
• During the following scenarios, as a class, you need to
identify the following components in the study:
1) What data is identified as the mean, median, and
mode?
2) What numbers constitute the range for the
specified scenario?
Scenario #1
After hearing about the constant use of chocolates and
oysters as aphrodisiacs, statistical data is released to
confirm the validity of the statement. It says that
aphrodisiacs are primarily used by adult males
between the ages of 25-40, and adult females
between the ages of 21-35. After conducting a survey
in the Atlanta area of 25 people in these age ranges,
the following results were submitted:
Scenario #1
Males
4 (Age 25)
3 (Age 28)
5 (Age 30)
6 (Age 34)
4 (Age 37)
3 (Age 40)
Females
2 (Age 21)
5 (Age 24)
8 (Age 27)
5 (Age 30)
3 (Age 33)
2 (Age 35)
Scenario #1 Solutions
1) Mean Age of Aphrodisiac Use :
32.24, or 32 (Males)
26.8, or 27 (Females)
2) Median Age of Aphrodisiac Use:
34 (Males)
27 (Females)
3) Mode Age of Aphrodisiac Use:
34 (Males)
27 (Females)
4) Range of Ages of Aphrodisiac Use:
25-40 (Males)
21-35 (Females)
5) Standard Deviation of Aphrodisiac Use:
Ages of Participants
Total:
Mean:
Mean
Mean:
Deviations from the
mean
Squared Deviation
Sum of Squared
Deviations:
Standard Deviation:
Ethics in Psychological Research
• Deception or dishonesty in
research often leads to big
trouble
• The American and British
Psychological Associations
(APA, BPA) created the
following principles in
order to forego any type of
dishonesty within research
Ethics in Psychological Research
• All researchers must obtain the
informed consent of ALL
individuals that are set to
participate within their
research study
• All participants must be
protected from harm and
discomfort during the study
• All information gathered from
and about participants must be
kept confidential
• All participants must be fully
debriefed at the conclusion of
the study