Chapter 1
Section 1 – Why study Psychology?
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Psychology can provide useful insight into
behavior
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Example
 You may not be shy all the time
 You may just be uncomfortable in certain settings
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You may learn how you are shaping the
behavior of those around you
You may learn how development in your
childhood impact your actions today
You may learn why you have certain fears or
phobias
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Psychology is the scientific study of behavior
and mental processes
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Psychology covers everything people
 Think
 Feel
 Do
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The study of behavior is systematic
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Goals of Psychology
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Describe behavior
Explain behavior
 Develop a hypothesis
 Develop a theory
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Predict behavior
Influence behavior
 Basic science – research/long-term studies
 Applied science – using psychological principle to solve
immediate problems
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Scientific method – psychologists used this to
make sure they are collecting and analyzing
data accurately
William Wundt set up the first psychology lab
in Germany in 1879
 Said psychology was two kinds of elements
 Sensations
 Feelings
 Wundt’s beliefs led to the theory of introspection or the
SCIENTIFIC METHOD
Section 2 – A Brief History of Psychology
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Greeks
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5th and 6th Centuries
 Decided people were not dominated by the gods, but
by their own minds – people were rational
 Tried to interpret the world through human
perceptions
 Set the stage for the sciences, including psychology, by
using observation
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Copernicus – mid 1500s
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Galileo – 1500s & 1600s
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Earth was not the center of the universe, it revolved
around the sun
Used a telescope to confirm predictions about star
position and movement base on Copernicus’s works
17th Century Philosophers gave us DUALISM
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The mind and body are separate and distinct
Descartes disagreed
 The mind controlled the body’s movements, sensations
and perceptions
 Mind and body work together to influence each other
and crate a person’s experiences
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Hilgard (1987)
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Modern science began to emerge by combining
philosophers’ reflections, logic, and mathematics with the
observations and inventiveness of practical people
19th century – biologists announced the discover of
cells as the building blocks of life
Chemists developed the periodic table of elements
Physicists made great progress in our
understanding of atomic forces
Natural scientists were studying complex
phenomena by reducing them to simpler parts
Psychology was formed

Structuralism (Wundt) – established his
Laboratory of Psychology
Became known as the founder of modern
psychology
 Was interested in the basic elements of human
experience
 Introspection is self-observation where Wundt tried
to map out the basic structure of thought processes.
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Functionalism – William James – father of
psychology in the U.S.
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Wrote the first Psychology textbook, The Principles of
Psychology, in 1890
Theorized that all activities of the mind serve one
major function
 To help us survive as a species
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Focused on the functions or actions of the conscious
mind and the goals or purposes of behaviors
Functionalists study how animals and people adapt
to their environment
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Inheritable Traits – Sir Francis Galton –
mathematician and scientist – wanted to
understand how heredity influenced a person’s
abilities, character, and behavior
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Traced ancestry of famous people and found that
greatness runs in families – thus heredity
Invented tests to assess the abilities and
characteristics of a wide range of people – these are
the forerunners to today’s personality and IQ tests
Faults found because it was discovered that
heredity and environment impact how a
person behaves
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Gestalt Psychology
German scientists: Wertheimer, Kohler, and Kofka
argued that perception is more than the sum of its
parts – it involves a whole pattern – Gestalt in
German
 They studied how sensations are assembled into
perceptual experiences.
 This is the forerunner for Cognitive approaches to
Psychology
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Psychoanalytic – Freud – was interested in the
unconscious mind.
Biological urges conflict with society and morality
 Use free association to delve into his patients minds
 Psychoanalyst’s role was to be objective – just sit and
listen then interpret the associations
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Behavioral Psychology – Pavlov – behavior can
be influenced by conditioned responses
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Pavlov’s Dogs Experiment
Psychologists who wanted to investigate observable
behavior became known as Behaviorists
 Watson said psychology should only concern itself with
observable facts
 Skinner came up with the concept of reinforcement
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Humanistic Psychology – Maslow, Rogers, &
May – each person is unique and has a selfconcept and potential to develop fully
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Cognitive Psychology – Piaget, Chomsky, &
Fetinger – focuses on how we process, store, and
use information; how this information influences
out thinking, language, problem solving, and
creativity
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They believe behavior is more than a single response to a
stimulus
Biological Psychology – emphasizes the impact of
biology on our behavior
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Psychobiologists study how the brain, the nervous
system, hormones, and genetics influence our behavior
 PET Scans
 CAT Scans
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Sociocultural Psychology – The newest
approach, studies the influence of cultural and
ethnic similarities and differences on behavior
and social functioning
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Also study the impact of immigration and
integration in the U.S. society
Look at gender and socioeconomic status
Section 3 – Psychology as a Profession
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Psychologists are people who have been trained to
observe, analyze, and evaluate behavior.
Psychiatry is a specialty of medicine – where one
learns to treat people with disturbed behavior
Clinical Psychologists help people deal with their
person problems
Private offices
 Mental hospitals
 Prisons
 clinics
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Counseling Psychologists usually work in
schools or industrial firms advising and
assisting people with the problems of everyday
life
Developmental Psychologists study physical,
emotional, cognitive, and social changes that
occur throughout life.
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Children
Elderly
Process of dying
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Educational Psychologists deal with topics
related to teaching children and young adults
Intelligence
 Memory
 Problem solving
 Motivation
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Community Psychologist may work in a metal
health or social welfare agency operated by the
state or local government or by a private
organization
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May help design, run, or evaluate mental health
clinics
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Industrial/Organizational Psychologists are
employed by business firms and government
agencies.
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They study and develop methods to
 Boost production
 Improve working conditions
 Place applicants in the best jobs
 Reduce accidents
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Environmental Psychologists work in business
settings or within the government to study the
effects of the environment on people
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Forensic Psychologists work in legal, court and
correctional systems.
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Health Psychologists study the interaction
between physical and psychological health
factors
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The help police by developing personality profiles of
criminal offenders or help law enforcement
understand problems like abuse
Stress
Depression
Physical Ailments
Experimental Psychologists perform research
to understand how humans and animals
operate physically and psychologically.
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American Psychological Association (APA)
founded in 1892 is a scientific and professional
society of psychologists and educators