AP Psychology
Approaches to Psychology
Psychology is...
• the science that studies mental processes and
behavior in humans and other animals.
• the profession which applies the knowledge
of this science to practical problems.
Contemporary
Approaches to Psychology
• Behaviorism studies
the effects on the
environment on
behavior. Only
observable events are
studied scientifically.
Sometimes called
stimulus-response (SR) psychology.
Contemporary
Approaches to Psychology
• Psychoanalytic
Theory studies the
influence of the
unconscious on
behavior.
Contemporary
Approaches to Psychology
• Humanism
studies the
unique aspects
of humans.
Humans are
free, rational,
and have
potential for
personal
growth.
Contemporary
Approaches to Psychology
• Cognition
studies
mental
processes.
Contemporary
Approaches to Psychology
• Biological
studies the
biological
bases of
mental
processes and
behavior.
Contemporary
Approaches to Psychology
Evolutionary studies
the evolutionary bases
of mental processes and
behaviour. Behaviour
has evolved to solve
adaptive problems.
Research Areas in Psychology
 Cognitive Psychology focuses on
higher mental processes such as
memory, reasoning, problem solving,
decision making, creativity, language,
and information processing.
 Developmental Psychology studies
human development across the life
span.
Research Areas in Psychology
 Experimental Psychology focuses on
sensation/perception, motivation,
emotion, and learning. However,
psychologists in all areas of research
do experiments.
 Personality studies individual’s
consistency in behavior and factors
which shape personality.
Research Areas in Psychology
 Physiological Psychology (Biological) studies
genetics, chemistry, and the role of the nervous
and endocrine systems in behavior.
 Psychometrics is the measurement of behavior
and mental processes, usually through the use
and development of psychological tests.
 Social Psychology studies interpersonal
behavior and the social forces which govern
behavior.
Professional Specialties
in Psychology
 Clinical Psychologists evaluate,
diagnose, and treat people with
psychological disorders, as well as less
severe behavioral and emotional
problems.
Professional Specialties
in Psychology
• Do not confuse a PSYCHOLOGIST with a
PSYCHIATRIST!
• A psychologist normally has a PhD in
psychology and approaches therapy from a
mostly non-medical standpoint.
• A psychiatrist is a medical doctor (who has an
MD) who has specialized in psychiatry and
approaches therapy from a medical standpoint.
Professional Specialties
in Psychology
 Counseling Psychologists do similar
work as clinical psychologists, but tend
to work with people dealing with more
common and less severe problems.
 Some of the areas counselors are
specialized in include marriage, family,
grief, and career counseling.
Professional Specialties
in Psychology
 Educational Psychologists improve
curriculum, teacher education, and
standardized tests.
 School Psychologists test and counsel
children with school related problems.
Professional Specialties
in Psychology
 Industrial and Organizational
Psychologists work in business and
industry to improve HR departments,
improve staff morale, and increase
worker productivity.
Weiten’s Seven Key
Themes in Psychology
• Psychology is empirical.
• Psychology is theoretically diverse.
• Psychology develops in a sociohistorical
context.
• Behavior is determined by multiple causes.
Weiten’s Seven Key
Themes in Psychology
• Behavior is shaped by culture.
• Both heredity and environment influence
behavior.
• People’s experience of the world is highly
subjective.
Advanced Placement Psychology
The History of Psychology
The New Science
Wilhelm Wundt
made psychology
independent of
philosophy and
physiology.
The New Science
• Wundt insisted that psychology be a science
and that the scientific method be used to
study consciousness.
• Wundt is considered the founder of
psychology.
• Wundt opened the first psychology lab in
Germany in 1879.
The New Science
• G. Stanley Hall
studied under Wundt.
• Hall opened the first
psych lab in the USA.
• Hall established the
American
Psychological
Association (APA).
Structuralism vs Functionalism:
The First Debate in Psychology
• The goal of
structuralism was to
break consciousness
down into its basic
parts so it could be
analyzed.
Structuralists tended
to work in labs, using
techniques like
introspection.
•Functionalists believed
that psychology should
study the function of
consciousness, not analyze
its parts. Functionalists
began studying
intelligence, child
development, sex roles, and
other aspects of the real
world.
Structuralism vs Functionalism:
The First Debate in Psychology
• The most prominent
functionalist was William
James.
• James was influenced by
Charles Darwin’s work on
natural selection & evolution.
• James argued that
consciousness serves a
purpose, and that purpose or
function should be
investigated.
Watson & Behaviorism
• John B. Watson
argued that
consciousness
couldn’t be studied,
but behavior could.
• Watson wanted
psychology to be
the “science of
behavior.”
Watson & Behaviorism
Behaviorism focuses
on relating a
behavior (a
response) to the
environment (a
stimulus).
Pavlov & Behaviorism
Ivan Pavlov first demonstrated the strength of
behaviorism by teaching dogs to salivate at
the sound of a bell.
Nature or Nurture?
• Behaviorism led to one of the fundamental
questions in psychology:
Is behavior determined by heredity (nature)
or by environment & experience (nurture)?
• How big a role does each play in
determining a certain behavior?
Freud & Psychoanalyis
• Psychoanalytic
theory was
developed by
Sigmund Freud.
• Psychoanalysis is a
therapy that focuses
on unconscious
conflicts, motives,
and defenses.
Freud & Psychoanalysis
• The unconscious
contains thoughts,
memories, and
desires of which we
are not consciously
aware but still
influence behavior.
Freud & Psychoanalysis
Freud’s approach was
controversial because
1) it is antithetical to
behaviorism and 2) it
often has an emphasis
on sex, a topic which
scientists were
uncomfortable studying
at the time.
Psychology & World War I
• The First World War led
to psychological tests
being administered to
soldiers.
• Alfred Binet had
developed the first
practical intelligence test
for educational use in
France before the war.
Psychology & World War II
• World War II led to an
increase in clinical
psychology as many
veterans required
mental health care.
• By the 1950s, clinical
and counseling
psychology had
developed into a
profession.
Skinner & Behaviorism
• BF Skinner argued that
organisms tend to repeat
responses that lead to
positive outcomes and tend
not to repeat responses that
lead to negative outcomes.
• In other words, all behavior
can be understood and
modified by examining the
patterns of rewards and
punishments.
Humanism
• Humanism developed as a
reaction to behaviorism and
psychoanalytic theory.
• Humanism holds that humans
are fundamentally different than
animals.
• Humanism argues that people
are governed by a self concept
and grow toward their potential.
• Carl Rogers was one of the
early humanists. He developed
client-centered therapy and the
idea of the self-concept.
Cognition & Biology
• Also a reaction to behaviorism, cognitive
psychologists argued that behavior can’t be
understood without understanding the
underlying mental processes that control
behavior.
• Biological psychologists insist that we also
have to understand the physical structures
and biochemistry that allow cognition.
Famous Cognitive Psychologists
• Jean Piaget studied
mental
development in
children.
Famous Cognitive Psychologists
• Noam Chomsky
studied how child
acquired language.
Famous Biological Psychologists
• Roger Sperry
studied split brain
patients to
determine such
things as cerebral
hemispheric
specialization.
Cultural Diversity & Psychology
• Psychology has been primarily a western
European and North American science.
• In the last 25 years, more effort has gone
into studying the behavior and mental
processes of people from other cultures.