APPROACHES TO
PSYCHOLOGY
UNIT 1
INTRODUCING
PSYCHOLOGY
CH. 1
PSYCHOLOGY
• the scientific study of behavior that is tested through
scientific research
GOALS OF PSYCHOLOGY
• Description
• Explanation
• hypothesis: an assumption or prediction about behavior
that is tested through scientific research
• theory: a set of assumptions used to explain phenomena
and offered for scientific study
• Prediction
• Influence
GOALS OF PSYCHOLOGY
• Basic Science vs. Applied Science
• basic science: the pursuit of knowledge about natural
phenomena for its own sake
• applied science: discovering ways to use scientific findings
to accomplish practical goals
THE SCIENTIFIC BASIS OF PSYCHOLOGY
• scientific method: a general approach to gathering
information and answering questions so that errors
and biases are minimized
A BRIEF HISTORY OF
PSYCHOLOGY
CH. 1.2
THE ORIGINS OF PSYCHOLOGY
HISTORICAL APPROACHES
• Structuralism
• structuralist: a psychologist who studied the basic elements
that make up conscious mental experiences
• Wilhelm Wundt
• establishing modern psychology as a separate, formal field of study
HISTORICAL APPROACHES
• Introspection
• a method of self-observation in which participants report
their thoughts and feelings
HISTORICAL APPROACHES
• Functionalism
• Functionalist
• A psychologist who studied the function of consciousness
• William James
• “father of psychology”
HISTORICAL APPROACHES
• Inheritable Traits
• Sir Francis Galton
• Gestalt Psychology
CONTEMPORARY APPROACHES
• Psychoanalytic Psychology
• Sigmund Freud
• free association
• psychoanalyst:
• a psychologist who studies how unconscious motives and conflicts
determine human behavior, feelings, and thoughts
CONTEMPORARY APPROACHES
• Behavioral Psychology
• Ivan Pavlov
• behaviorist
• a psychologist who analyzes how organisms learn or modify their
behavior based on their response to events in the environment
CONTEMPORARY APPROACHES
• Humanistic Psychology
• humanist
• a psychologist who believes that each person has freedom in
directing his or her future and achieving per- sonal growth
CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING QUESTION: WHY DO YOU SOMETIMES DAYDREAM IN
YOUR CLASSES? COMPARE HOW THE VARIOUS APPROACHES TO THE STUDY OF PSYCHOLOGY WOULD ADDRESS THIS
QUESTION DIFFERENTLY. DESCRIBE THE DIFFERENCES AND SIMILARITIES.
PSYCHOLOGY AS A
PROFESSION
CH. 1.3
WHAT IS A PSYCHOLOGIST?
• A scientist who studies the mind and behavior of
humans and animals
• Psychiatry
• a branch of medicine that deals with men- tal, emotional, or
behavioral disorders
Specialty Fields
of Psychology
Responsibilities