Chapter 1: What Is Psychology?
Learning Outcomes
• Define psychology.
• Describe the various fields of psychology.
Learning Outcomes
• Describe the origins of psychology and identify
people who made significant contributions to
the field.
• Identify the theoretical perspectives from
which today’s psychologists view behavior
and mental processes.
Learning Outcomes
• Explain how psychologists study behavior and
mental processes, focusing on critical thinking,
research methods, and ethical considerations.
Psychology as a Science
What is Psychology?
• Psychology is the scientific study of behavior
and mental processes.
Goals of Psychology
• Psychology seeks to:
– describe
– explain
– predict
– control behavior and mental processes
What is a Theory?
• A theory allows you to
– propose reasons for relationships
– derive explanations
– make predictions
What Psychologists Do
What Do Psychologists Do?
• Research
– Pure research
– Applied research
• Practice
• Teaching
Fields of Psychology
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Clinical
Counseling
School
Educational
Developmental
Personality
Social
Environmental
• Experimental
• Industrial
– Organizational
– Human Factors
– Consumer
• Health
• Forensic
• Sport
Where Psychology Comes From: A History
Truth or Fiction?
• More than 2,000 years ago, Aristotle wrote a
book on psychology with contents similar to
the book you are holding.
Truth or Fiction?
• More than 2,000 years ago, Aristotle wrote a
book on psychology with contents similar to
the book you are holding.
• TRUE!
Ancient Contributors to Psychology
• Aristotle
– Peri Psyches
• Democritus
Truth or Fiction?
• The ancient Greek philosopher Socrates
suggested a research method that is still used
in psychology.
Truth or Fiction?
• The ancient Greek philosopher Socrates
suggested a research method that is still used
in psychology.
• TRUE!
Ancient Contributors to Psychology
• Socrates
– Introspection
Psychology as a Laboratory Science
• Gustav Theodor Fechner
– Elements of Psychophysics (1860)
• Wilhelm Wundt
– First psychology laboratory (1879)
Structuralism
• Wilhelm Wundt
• Structuralism breaks
conscious experiences into
– objective sensations (sight,
taste), and
– subjective feelings (emotional
responses, will)
– mental images (memories,
dreams)
• Mind functions by
combining objective and
subjective elements of
experience
Functionalism
• William James
• Functionalism focused on
behavior in addition to
mind and consciousness
• Used direct observations
to supplement
introspection
• Influenced by Darwin’s
theory of evolution
– Adaptive behavior patterns
are learned and
maintained
Behaviorism
• John Broadus Watson
– Focuses on learning
observable behavior
• B.F. Skinner
– Learned behavior is
behavior that is
reinforced
Psychoanalysis
• Sigmund Freud
• Psychoanalysis
– Influence of
unconscious ideas and
conflicts that originate in
childhood
How Today’s Psychologists View Behavior
and Mental Processes
Biological Perspective
• Seek relationships
between brain and
behavior and mental
processes
– Role of heredity
– Evolution
Cognitive Perspective
• Concerned with ways we mentally represent
the world and process information
– Learning, memory, problem-solving, judgments,
decision-making, and language
Humanistic — Existential Perspective
• Humanism stresses human capacity for selffulfillment
– Role of consciousness, self-awareness, decision
making
• Existentialism stresses free choice
and personal responsibility
– Carl Rogers
– Abraham Maslow
Psychodynamic Perspective
• Neoanalysts focus more on conscious choice
and self-direction then unconscious processes
– Karen Horney
– Erik Erikson
Perspective on Learning
• Social Cognitive
– People modify and create their environment
– Cognition plays a key role
– Observation
Sociocultural Perspective
• Focuses on the influence of differences among
people on behavior and mental processes
– Ethnicity, gender, culture, socioeconomic status
How Psychologists Study Behavior and
Mental Processes
Principles of Critical Thinking
•
•
•
•
Be skeptical
Insist on evidence
Examine definitions of terms
Examine the assumptions or premises of
arguments
• Be cautious in drawing conclusions from
evidence
Principles of Critical Thinking
(continued)
• Consider alternative interpretations of
research evidence
• Do not oversimplify
• Do not overgeneralize
• Apply critical thinking to all areas of life