History of Nature-Nurture
Debate

Plato
 Rationalist- serious
contemplation can
derive rational
answers
 knowledge is innate
 gave rise to
introspection

Aristotle
 Empiricist- observe
external causes of
behavior
 gave rise to
materialismexperience is the
source of knowledge


how does the “soul/mind”
give rise to memory,
sensation, movement, etc.
where is the “soul/mind”
located
“Mind-Body Problem”

Decartes (1596-1650) was a
Rationalist





Proponent of Dualism: body
(material) and soul
(immaterial) are independent
Body acts according to laws
of physics
Soul cannot be studied (source
of knowledge)
mechanistic view (e.g., reflexes)
pineal gland as the interface
between soul and body
Hobbes

Hobbes (1588-1679)
was an Empiricist

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Proponent of Monism:
all we are can be
explained by physical
characteristics
Led to British
Empiricists (18th
Century)
British Empiricists



Supported method of
observation to study
mental processing
John Locke - “Tabula
Rasa”
all thought can be
explained in terms of
sensory experience
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Industrial Revolution


Asylums became “theatre”
for the rich (e.g. Bedlam
(Bethlem and Maudesley))
Un-scientific treatments
proposed e.g.



MHP is excess of blood,
therefore
Blood letting
Other “treatments”:


Fright
Forced vomiting
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Bedlam
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Phrenology: Franz Gall (1758-1828)
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cranioscopy
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Mesmer
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Magnets
"The workings of
dilation and
contraction of the
vessels, on the liquor
which they contain, is
the cause of animal
life."

Hyponosis
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Towards Enlightenment:
Humanitarianism and social revolution
Locke (late 1700’s) in UK proposed a “reasoning” argument for
mental health problems
“madmen put wrong ideas together, and so make wrong
propositions but argue reason right from them…”
Quaker movement in UK
started retreats for the vulnerable for rest and some mild work
Pinel (1745-1826) in France
In line with egalitarian ideals of the French Revolution, proposed a
Social theory of vulnerability, e.g.
Those with MHP were normal people who should be
approached with compassion, as their reasoning was affected
by severe personal and social problems…
Added that institutionalising people “denying light and air”
exacerbated their problems
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Into the Victorian era
but social exclusion rather than humane
interventions continued
J.S. Mill in 1859 warned of the danger to vulnerable
people of being:
“in peril of a commission de lunatico, and of having their
property taken away from them and given to their relatives”
Exacerbated by the Eugenic movement:
“Discredited theory ranked human groups with…white
Europeans at the top and people dwelling in their conquered
colonies at the bottom” SJ Gould
People with intellectual/physical disabilities or were mentally
unwell were seen as “not fit” to fit in and, again, scapegoated
Fernauld “the feeble minded…[are] parasitic..never capable..most
dangerous element in society”
Advances in understanding mental health (19c-20c)
A biological Approach:
Kraeplin (1856-1926)
Proposed chemical imbalance (e.g. in metabolism) as causal of
MHP
Established systems of classification according to medical knowledge
not social prejudice e.g.
E.g. dementia praecox (later schizophrenia)
Manic-depressive psychosis
Delusions & general paresis (general weakness)
Advances in identification and treatment made e.g.
syphilis is caused by germs, is transmitted, & can damage areas of brain,
leading to delusions & general paresis
If treated early, does not lead to brain injury and MHP symptoms
Advances in understanding mental health (19c-20c)
A psychological Approach
“biological” symptoms of psychological distress (psychogenic)
described by Neurologists and Physicians
Charcot (1825-1893) & Breuer (1842-1925)
A sub-group of adult patients with intermittent paralysis of limbs or loss of
hearing could have episode triggered by precise discussion of early trauma
Foundations of psychoanalysis
Weber (1795-1878)

Weber studied perceptions of weight and tried
to relate these to actual physical weight.



Weight is an objective physical property of objects.
The greater the weight, the greater the
difference between a standard and comparison
must be to be detectable.
Weber’s Law -- Just-noticeable difference
(jnd) is a constant across sensory modalities.
Fechner (1801-1887)

Tried to relate physical properties to
psychological sensations:



Related the objective to the subjective.
Fechner’s Law – each JND corresponds to
one subjective unit of measure, with the
relationship described mathematically.
Credited with founding psychophysics.
The Same Color?
The Same Color?
Webber’s Law
Sensing the World Around Us

Absolute threshold

The smallest intensity of a
stimulus that must be present
for it to be detected
Contrast Sensitivity
0%
1%
2%
3%
Circle
constant
Background
constant
Just noticeable difference (JND) at 2%
4%
Contrast Sensitivity
0%
1%
2%
3%
Circle
constant
Background
constant
Just noticeable difference (JND) at 2%
4%
Contrast Sensitivity
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
Background
different then
both halves
Background
same as
right half
Just noticeable difference (JND): 4% (top) and 2% (bottom)
Contrast Sensitivity
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
Background
different then
both halves
Background
same as
right half
Just noticeable difference (JND): 4% (top) and 2% (bottom)
Brightness versus intensity




standard light at fixed intensity
test light with adjustable intensity
adjust power of test until just begins to differ
just noticeable difference: JND
Brightness versus intensity
Int ensit y = 1 0 W
Int ensit y = 1 2 W
Light 1
Standard
Light 2
Test
A just noticeable difference (JND) at 11W
1 W above standard
Forced-choice Response


A bit more rigorous
Q: brighter light on left or right?
Forced-choice Response


A bit more rigorous
Q: brighter light on left or right?
Forced-choice Response


A bit more rigorous
Q: brighter light on left or right?
Int ensit y = 1 3 W
Int ensit y = 1 0 W
Forced-choice Response


A bit more rigorous
Q: brighter light on left or right?
Int ensit y = 1 3 W
Int ensit y = 1 0 W
Forced-choice Response


A bit more rigorous
Q: brighter light on left or right?
Forced-choice Response


A bit more rigorous
Q: brighter light on left or right?
Forced-choice Response

A bit more rigorous
Q: brighter light on left or right?

Analyse accuracy of response versus intensity of lights

Brightness depends on
wavelength



Light 1: at one wavelength
Light 2: at different wavelength
Adjust power of second light until its brightness is the same as
the first
Brightness depends on
wavelength



Light 1: at one wavelength
Light 2: at different wavelength
Adjust power of second light until its brightness is the same as
the first
Brightness depends on
wavelength


Light 1: at one wavelength
Light 2: at different wavelength

Adjust power of second light until its brightness is the same as
the first
Brightness depends on
wavelength


Light 1: at one wavelength
Light 2: at different wavelength
Power = 1 0 W
Power = 3 W
Light 1

Light 2
Adjust power of second light until its brightness is the same as
the first
Simultaneous brightness contrast:
two squares of the same intensity
Simultaneous brightness contrast:
left one looks brighter
Simultaneous brightness contrast:
pattern increases difference
The Early Era and Roots of
Psychology

Psychophysics


Early psychologists, doing research on sensation
and sensory experience, noticed interesting
aspects of the functioning of the senses.
For example, the perception of a stimulus’
intensity is not directly proportional to the
actual physical intensity of the stimulus.
The Early Era and Roots of
Psychology

Psychophysics


A sound that is half as loud (in physical terms,
in decibels) as another sound may not sound
that way to the listener.
Psychophysics attempts to provide a
mathematical description of the relationship
between the actual physical properties of the
stimulus and its perceived properties.
First Psychologists
(late 1800s-early 1900s)
–Wilhelm Wundt
father of
experimental
psychology

first psychology
laboratory in Leipzig,
Germany, 1879

studied reaction time
to simple and twochoice stimuli

Wundt & Ebbinghaus

Wundt (1832-1920) organized psychology
and helped to establish it as an independent
discipline.



Wrote “Principles of Physiological
Psychology”
Did not believe higher mental processes
(memory, thought, creativity) could be studied
experimentally.
Ebbinghaus (1850-1909) demonstrated that
memory could be studied experimentally.
Stucturalism vs Functionalism

Structuralism – focused on the contents of
mind.




Sensations, images (ideas), affections
Used introspection to identify basic elements.
Introspection proved to be an unreliable
method.
Functionalism – focused on the adaptive
function of psychological processes within a
context.

Not much experimental work done.

Wilhelm Wundt
originated one of
the most famous
forms of
introspectionism,
called
structuralism.
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Structuralism
The structuralists tried to examine as
closely as possible their responses to
stimuli.
They believed that one could by careful
introspection isolate and discover the
building blocks of conscious
experience.
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Wundt and Structuralism


Reaction times (duration of apperception)
Introspection




Thinking About Thinking
Extensive training (10,000 observations)
4 dimensions (quality, intensity, duration, clarity)
Limitations:


Different Observers Arrive at Different Results
Alters the Experience.
Difficulties with Introspection
Three of the biggest problems with
introspection are:
 that even when people are trying to
answer accurately, some processes are
non-introspectable.
 Further, people differ in their degree of
introspective ability.
 Finally, most introspections are
impossible to verify.
Structuralism in “New World”

Edward Titchener (1867 - 1927)




Studied in Wundt’s lab
Popularized his Methods in U.S.
Opened a lab at Cornell University
School of Thought Called Structuralism
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Tools of the trade
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Functionalism

William James (1842-1910)





First major American Psychologist.
Combined method of introspection with direct
observation.
Studied how the mind helps us adapt to the
environment
Opposed to Structuralism
Influenced by Darwin (adaptability)
The Early Era and Roots of
Psychology

The enormous impact of Darwin: The origin of species
(1859); The descent of man (1871)
 In his presentation of compelling evidence that humans
and other animal species were related, Charles Darwin
forced scientists and thoughtful people working in
many disciplines to consider the basic features held in
common by many or all animals, such as thinking and
intelligence.
 Comparative psychologists, who use this perspective,
are specialists who compare different animal species.
Darwin


“the Origin of th
Species”
Evolution
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The First Psychologists
–William James
first important textbook:
The Principles of Psychology

the mind is a stream of
consciousness

William James
Principles of Psychology
“We know of nothing … which can be in the remotest
degree compared with the stream of thought that
accompanies the brain’s material
secretions.”
http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/index.htm
Early Contributions of Women

Mary Calkins (1863-1930)



Developed important technique for studying
memory.
First woman president of APA.
Many other accomplished women played
a role in the early history of Psychology.
Outside Report: Behaviorism

Behaviorism is rather an antithesis to
introspectionism

John Watson, the
founder of
Behaviorism, was
solely interested
in observable
behavior. The
question is
always “What
behavioral
evidence . . . ?”
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More than that, though, it is also the position that
one should only study the relationship between
a stimulus and a behavior.

“Psychology as the behaviorist views it is a
purely objective branch of natural science.
Its theoretical goal is the prediction and
control of behavior. Introspection forms no
essential part of its methods, nor is the
scientific value of its data dependent upon
the readiness with which they lend
themselves to interpretation in terms of
consciousness. The behaviorist, in his
efforts to get a unitary scheme of animal
response, recognizes no dividing line
between man and brute” (Watson, 1913, p.
158).
As it will turn out, it is difficult to fully describe
every psychologically interesting property
solely in terms of behavior.
The Early Era and Roots of
Psychology
Women in Psychology
In the early days of psychology,
opportunities for women were
limited.
Mary Calkins was one of the
pioneering women in the field.
She never received the Ph.D. that
she earned from Harvard
She went on to do research, study
the function of memory, and
serve as the president of the
American Psychological
Association 1905.
The Early Era and Roots of
Psychology

Women in Psychology

Other early contributing women in the field of psychology were:





Christine Ladd-Franklin –color vision
Margaret Washburn -first woman to receive Ph.D.
Karen Horney
Anna Freud
The latter two were followers of Sigmund Freud and the
Psychoanalytic school of psychology.
Ethnic Minorities in Psychology




Gilbert Jones - 1901, First black male Ph.D.
Inez Possner - 1933, First black female Ph.D.
Kenneth Clark – 1971, First Black president
APA
Norman Anderson – 2002, First Black CEO APA
The Early Era and Roots of
Psychology

Behaviorism – John B. Watson and B.F. Skinner



structuralism was abandoned because it was difficult to
study the subjective perception of experience.
Behaviorism concentrates on observable, measurable
behaviors and not mental processes.
Behaviorists primarily seek to study the observable
behaviors associated with learning.
The Early Era and Roots of
Psychology

Behaviorism – John B. Watson and B.F. Skinner
“Psychology as the behaviorist views it is a purely objective
experimental branch of natural science. Its theoretical goal is the
prediction and control of behavior.” -- John B. Watson, 1913