HISTORY OF
PSYCHOLOGISTS
AP PSYCH
CHARLES DARWIN-HISTORY (EVOLUTIONARY)
Theory of
natural
selection
influences the
modern
evolutionary
perspective
WILHELM WUNDT-HISTORY (STRUCTURALISM)
First psych
research laboratory
in GERMANY;
pioneered the term
introspection; where
subjects reported
what was happening
to them
WILLIAM JAMES-HISTORY (FUNCTIONALISM)
Prominent in
establishing
psychology in the
US. He emphasized
studying the
purpose or
function of
behavior and
mental processes
G STANLEY HALL-HISTORY
First psych research
lab in the US; first
president of the
American
Psychological
Association (APA);
taught by William
James
MARY WHITON CALKINS-HISTORY
Taught by William
James as well; Denied
a PhD at Harvard due
to sexism; established
a psych lab at
Wellesley and serves
as the first female
president of the
APA
MARGARET FLOY WASHBURN-HISTORY
(ANIMAL BEHAVIOR)
First American
woman to get a
PhD in
psychology; best
known for her
experimental work
in animal behavior
SIGMUND FREUD-HISTORY
Founded the
psychoanalytical
school of thought and
developed the theory of
defense mechanisms,
particularly repression;
believed childhood
experiences influence
adult personality;
believed dreams
provided a particular
important insight into
unconscious motives
JOHN B. WATSON-HISTORY (BEHAVIORISM)
Behaviorist who
believed the only
thing worth
studying is
observable
behavior
PAUL BROCA-BIOLOGICAL BASES OF BEHAVIOR
Discovered speech
production is
located in the
lower left frontal
lobe; coined
Broca’s area
which
revolutionized the
understanding of
speech production
CARL WERNICKE-BIOLOGICAL BASES OF BEHAVIOR
Discovered that
damage to the left
temporal lobe
caused deficits in
language
comprehension;
coined Wernicke’s
area
ROGER SPERRY-BIOLOGICAL BASES OF BEHAVIOR
Best known for
work on split brain
patients;
particularly that
the right and left
hemisphere have
specialized
functions
MICHAEL GAZZANIGA-BIOLOGICAL BASES
OF BEHAVIOR
Continued
Sperry’s work on
split brain
patients
ERNST WEBER-SENSATION AND
PERCEPTION
Discovered just
noticeable
difference and
Weber’s law
GUSTAV FECHNER-SENSATION AND
PERCEPTION
Demonstrated
that mental
processes can be
quantified
DAVID HUBEL-SENSATION AND
PERCEPTION
Discovered
feature
detectorsspecialized
neurons in the
occipital lobe that
have the ability to
respond to specific
features of an
image
TORTON WIESEL-SENSATION AND
PERCEPTION
Teamed with
Hubel to expand
the knowledge of
sensory
processing and
perception
ERNEST HILGARD-STATES OF
CONSCIOUSNESS
Renowned for his
research on
hypnosis and pain
control, created the
term
disassociation
when it came to
hypnosis
IVAN PAVLOV-LEARNING
Originally studied
digestion and is
famous for his
pioneering work on
classical
conditioning
JOHN GARCIA-LEARNING
Famous for pioneering
work on taste
aversion; his
perspective supports
the evolutionary
perspective that being
biologically prepared
to quickly associate
nausea with food or
drink is adaptive
ROBERT RESCORLA-LEARNING
Research indicated
that the CS must
be a reliable
signal that
predicts the
UCS; furthered
Pavlov’s research
EDWARD THORNDIKE-LEARNING
Conducted the first
systematic
investigation of
animal behavior and
coined the term “law
of effect” which
simply stated that
satisfying behaviors
are more likely to be
repeated and vice
versa
BF SKINNER-LEARNING
Like Watson,
believed in
observable
behavior and came
up with Operant
Conditioning
EDWARD TOLMAN-LEARNING
Known for his
work on cognitive
maps and mental
representations;
realized learning is
more complex than
Skinner believed
WOLFGANG KOHLER-LEARNING
Studies included a
Chimp named
sultan who had a
banana outside of
cage and a stick
inside, realized that
animal gains
insight; and
realized that that it
the “aha” moment
ALBERT BANDURA-LEARNING
Famous bobo doll
experiment;
monkey seemonkey do; father
of observation
learning
GEORGE A MILLER-COGNITION
Magical 7 plus
or minus 2 in
STM (working
memory)
HERMAN EBBINGHAUS-COGNITION
Father of
memory
research,
known for the
forgetting
curve
ELIZABETH LOFTUS-COGNITION
Known for
misinformation
effect, key in
noting the
weakness in eye
witness
testimony
NOAH CHOMSKY-COGNITION
Renowned linguist
that noted that
children have an
innate capacity to
learn and produce
speech; coined the
term language
acquisition device
ABRAHAM MASLOW-MOTIVATION AND
EMOTION
Humanist who is
known for his
hierarchy of
needs; believed
highest level is
“self
actualization”
STANLEY SCHACTER-MOTIVATION AND
EMOTION
Known for the
two-factor
theory of
emotion where
emotion; depends
on physical arousal
and then
cognitively labeling
that arousal
HANS SELYE-MOTIVATION AND
EMOTION
Studied stress and
coined “general
adaption
syndrome” (alarm
reaction,
resistance,
exhaustion)
ALFRED KINSEY-MOTIVATION AND
EMOTION
Pioneering
researcher on
human
sexuality
MARY AINSWORTH-DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGISTS
Did research on the
“strange situation”
(relationship
between infant and
mothers) and came
up with the terms
secure attachment
and insecure
attachment
HARRY HARLOW-DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGISTS
Famous for
experiment on
rhesus monkeys and
found that touch
plays a key role in
developing healthy
physical growth and
normal socialization
KONRAD LORENZ-DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGISTS
Studying animals and is
known for his study on
imprinting which is
defined as learning
occurring at a particular
age or a particular life
stage that is rapid and
apparently independent of
the consequences of
behavior. It was first used
to describe situations in
which an animal or person
learns the characteristics
of some stimulus, which is
therefore said to be
“imprinted” onto the
subject
JEAN PIAGET-DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGISTS
Focused on
cognitive
development
differs throughout
infancy, childhood,
and adolescence to
understand the
world (small people
can’t fight)
LEV VYGOTSKY-DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGISTS
Famous for his
belief that children
learn their cultures
habits of mind
through a process
called
internalization or
inner speech
DIANA BAUMRIND-DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGISTS
Known for her
work on
parenting styles
(permissive,
authoritative,
authoritarian)
ERIK ERIKSON-DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGISTS
Coined the term
psychosocial stages
of development and
was interested in how
adolescence go
through role confusion
to form identity
LAWRENCE KOHLBERGDEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGISTS
Used hypothetical
moral dilemmas to
study moral
reasoning (Pre
conventionalConventional-Post
Conventional)
CAROL GILLIGAN-DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGISTS
Best known for
critiquing
Kohlberg’s theory
since all participant
were male-argued
women tend to
focus on caring
and compassiontend and
befriend
ALFRED ADLER-PERSONALITY
Neo-Freudian; who
pioneered the use of
psychiatry in both
social work and early
childhood educationurged patients to
through words such
as selfdetermination and
courage to alter
their
interpretations of
life events
CARL JUNG-PERSONALITY
Neo Freudian who
developed the concept
of the collective
unconscious;
believed that the
collective unconscious
includes shared
human experiences
that are embodied in
myths and cultural
archetypes
CARL ROGERS-PERSONALITY
Went against Freud’s
pessimistic view of
human nature and
believed people are
innately good and
are motivated to
achieve their full
potential or self
actualize
PAUL COSTA AND ROBERT MCCREAPERSONALITY
Came up with the
Five Factor Model
of Personality
Conscientiousness,
agreeableness,
neuroticism,
extroversion, and
openness
FRANCIS GALTON-TESTING AND
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Developed the
statistical concept of
correlation and was
the first to
demonstrate that the
“normal
distribution” could
be applied to
intelligence
CHARLES SPEARMAN-TESTING AND
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Proposed that
intelligence is a
single, underlying
factor, which he
coined general
intelligence of the g
factor
ROGER STERNBERG-TESTING AND
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Known for the
triachic model that
distinguishes analytic,
practical, and creative
intelligences
HOWARD GARDNER-TESTING AND
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Disagreed with
Spearman, and
proposed multiple
intelligences that
include linguistic,
logic-mathematical,
musical, spatial,
bodily kinesthetic,
naturalist,
interpersonal, and
intrapersonal.
ALFRED BINET-TESTING AND
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Invented first
usable intelligence
test that noted the
distinction between a
child’s mental and
chronological age
LEWIS TERMAN-TESTING AND INDIVIDUAL
DIFFERENCES
Best known as the
inventor of the
Stanford- Binet IQ
test; simply divided
mental age by
chronological age and
multiplied by a 100
mental age
____________x100
Chronological age
DAVID WECHSLER-TESTING AND
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Instead of Terman’s
approach, Wechsler
determined how far a
person’s score deviates
from a bell shaped
normal distribution
of scores. Most
intelligence tests use
this system
DOROTHEA DIX-TREATMENT OF ABNORMAL
BEHAVIOR
Reformer who
documented how
poor and deplorable
conditions were for
the insane poor.
Helped persuade
state legislatures to
create the first
generation of
American mental
hospitals.
ALBERT ELLIS-TREATMENT OF
ABNORMAL BEHAVIOR
Known for rationalemotive therapy
where he helped his
client’s dispute
irrational beliefs and
replace them with
rational
interpretations of
events.
AARON BECK-TREATMENT OF ABNORMAL
BEHAVIOR
Father of
cognitive
therapy- his
theories are used
to treat clinical
depression
MARY COVER JONES-TREATMENT OF
ABNORMAL BEHAVIOR
Conducted pioneering
research in applying
behavioral techniques
to therapy “known as
the mother of
behavior therapy”
JOSEPH WOLPE-TREATMENT OF ABNORMAL
BEHAVIOR
Furthered Jone’s work
by inventing
systematic
desensitization- where
he taught his patients to
relax deeply and he then
created situations that
would cause anxiety by
working with minor
ones and then with
more top level anxiety
producing situations.
LEON FESTINGER-SOCIAL
PSYCHOLOGY
Best known for his
work on cognitive
dissonance- realized
most people change
attitude when their
attitudes and actions
are inconsistent
PHILLIP ZIMBARDO-SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
Known for the
Stanford Prison
study- showed the
power of
deindividuation
SOLOMON ASCH-SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
Known for line
experiment that
showed the powers of
normative social
influence
STANLEY MILGRAM-SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
Famous for “shock
study” that showed
that humans tend to
be very obedient to
authority