HISTORY AND
APPROACHES
THE GROWTH OF PSYCHOLOGY
PSYCHOLOGY—THE OFFSPRING
• Psychology has its roots in two very
different fields
• Physiology
• Philosophy
• It is neither one, nor the other—but
rather a new field that draws from
each
• Sort of like the offspring of the two!
• More heavily leaning towards physiology
THE GREEKS!
• Psychology came from
• Greek words
• Psyche means the Mind
• or Soul
• -ology means:
• the study of…
BELIEFS OF THE TIME
• Hippocrates: Believed in 4 types of
blood called Humors
•
•
•
•
Black Bile – depressed and sad, melancholy
Yellow - bitter, hot tempered, angry, Choleric
White – Dull and sluggish, phlegmatic
Red – happy!
• SO HOW DID THEY GET CURED?
FAMOUS FIGURES—THE BIRTH OF
PSYCHOLOGY
• Plato delved into
cognition
• Aristotle had many
theories most
importantly about
ETHICS
• In Asia, Yoga and
Buddhism explored
consciousness
MEANWHILE, BACK IN EUROPE….
• Catholic Church
• In control of Europe
• No interest in the “world of the flesh”
• Exploration of the human body was
forbidden.
MEANWHILE, BACK IN EUROPE….
• Rene Descartes (DayCart) 1596-1650
• Explored the nervous
system and sensation and
biological processes in
animals
• Not for 2 more centuries
was there true
psychology!
THE “DREADFUL SECRET”
• Charles Darwin
• Not a psychologist
• Directed the study of
humans in a scientific
manner with his
“dreadful secret”
• Humans have evolved over
time—and can therefore be
studied, analyzed and
understood scientifically
• Not a popular idea at
the time
EMPIRICAL APPROACH
• Standard for all psychologists
• Conducted via careful observation
and scientifically based research.
WILHELM WUNDT
• The “Father of
Psychology”
• Founder of modern
psychology
• Opened the first
psychology lab in 1879
• Applied lab techniques
to the study of the
mind/consciousness
Wilhelm Wundt
(1832–1920)
E.B. TICHENER
• Student of Wundt
• Consciousness=
• Three elements
• What we see
• What we feel
• Memories
• Founder of
Structuralism
E. B. Titchener
(1867–1927)
STRUCTURALISM
• Studied the basic elements (structures) of thoughts and
sensations (consciousness).
•basic sensory and perceptual processes
•Introspection – objective recording of
sensations & feelings
• Not scientific – too subjective, not repeatable,
WHAT IS THIS?
WHAT IS THIS?
WHAT IS THIS?
WILLIAM JAMES
• First American
psychologist
• Author of the first psychology
textbook
• Opposed Structuralism
• Founder of
Functionalism
• Fun Fact! Famous
Brother!
William James
(1842–1910)
FUNCTIONALISM
• Emphasized studying the function
of consciousness and how
consciousness helped people
adapt to their environment
• Used naturalistic observation
• Viewed consciousness as a stream of
constantly changing states .
WILLIAM JAMES’ STUDENTS
• G. Stanley Hall – first Ph.D. in psych, started
first U.S. psych lab, started the American
Psychological Association.
• Mary Whiton Calkins – first woman to
complete Ph.D. program but Harvard didn’t
give her a degree! Became first woman
president of the APA.
• Margaret Floy Washburn – first official Ph.D.
in psychology. Studied different animal
species. 2nd female president of APA.
REMEMBERING WILLIAM JAMES
• He is the father of
American
psychology
• Think of Jamestown,
the first American
colony
• James was the first
American
psychologist!
SIGMUND FREUD (1856-1939)
• Austrian physician
• Founder of the
psychoanalytic
perspective
• unconscious drives and
conflicts
• Hard to prove/disprove
scientifically
FREUD’S INFLUENCE
• Influence on “pop culture”
• Freudian slips
• Anal-retentive
• Influence on psychology
• Psychodynamic theory
• Unconscious thoughts
• Significance of childhood
experiences
IVAN PAVLOV (1849-1936)
• Behaviorist
• Russian Physiologist
• Studied learning
through associations
• Emphasized the study
of observable
behaviors
JOHN B. WATSON (1878-1958)
• Founder of
behaviorism
• Studied only
observable behavior
• Emphasized objective
scientific methodology
• Performed the “Little
Albert” experiment
B.F. SKINNER
• Behaviorist
• Learning through
rewards and
observation
• Reinforcement and
punishment
• Mind is a “black box”
• Skinner Box
B. F. Skinner
(1904–1990)
CARL ROGERS & ABRAHAM MASLOW
(1902-1987)
(1908-1970)
• Helped to create Humanistic Psychology
• Study of conscious experience and an individual’s free
will to reach their potential
• Healthy individuals strive to reach their potential.
MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
REMEMBERING CARL ROGERS
• Connecting Rogers
to the Humanistic
perspective?
• Think of Mr. Roger’s
from TV
• He wanted to be
your “neighbor”
• Stressed the
importance of being
your unique self
WOLFGANG KOHLER
• Created Gestalt
Psychology
• The whole is different
from the sum of its
parts.
• Integrate pieces of
information into
meaningful wholes.
Wolfgang Kohler
(1865-1965)
WHAT DO YOU SEE?
You See the whole picture first rather than the individual
dots that make it up. – Gestalt Psychology
BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
• Brain chemistry that causes changes in
your behavior, which affects your
social.
BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
Biological
Psychological
Social
• Nerve compression
• Reduced Muscle strength
• Sensitive nervous system
• Reduces concentration
• Worries about what pain means
• Increased irritability
• Family that is worried
• Unsupportive employer
• Colleagues think you’re “pathetic”
CONTEMPORARY PERSPECTIVES
• Neuroscience/Biological
• Evolutionary
• Behavioral
• Cognitive
• Socio-Cultural
• Biopsychosocial
LET’S PRACTICE
• In a small group, identify the
following for each perspective:
• Origins and influence—who or what
helped to create this?
• Area of Interest—what do they focus
on? What do they think is important
to study?
• Possible Research Questions—what
do they want to uncover?
LET’S PRACTICE
• With your small
group, identify how
each perspective
would approach
the area of study
• Love
• Drug Abuse
• Intelligence