A B RIEF H ISTORY OF P SYCHOLOGY 1/19/11

A NNOUNCEMENTS Course Contract due now Research Requirement “A Sleep, Memory, and Your Health study” Assignment 1 is now posted on websitewebsite Due next Friday (1/28) Questions?

M AJOR P OINTS Various schools of thought emerged in psychology throughout its history, many in reaction to disagreements with previous schools of thought. ALL of them influenced the development and current status of the field of psychology.

T HE B IRTH OF P SYCHOLOGY Psychology has a short formal history (approx. 130 years) but a long germination period Wilhelm Wundt Established first psych lab in Germany in 1879 Trained many psychologists, many of whom came to the U.S. and established labs here As psychology developed as a discipline, many different “schools of thought” or ways of thinking emerged

S TRUCTURALLSM Key Figure: Wilhelm Wundt, Edward Titchener Time frame: Late 1800s Focus: Break down conscious processes into basic elements, interested in the basic components (or structure) of sensations, feelings, images Method: Introspection – A systematic examination of subjective experience that requires you to inspect and report on the content of your thoughts

F UNCTIONALISM Key Figure: William James Time frame: Late 1800s Focus: Investigate the function or purpose of mental processes rather than their tiny components; Real-world applications such as development of mental testing, education

G ESTALT Key figure: Max Wertheimer, Wolfgang Köhler Time frame: Early 1900s Focus: The whole is different from the sum of its parts ; Perception is subjective

P SYCHOANALYSIS Key Figure: Sigmund Freud Time frame: End of the 1800s, peaked during first few decades of the 1900s Focus: Unconscious processes and the ways in which they influence behavior; Emphasis on unconscious conflict related to sexuality Method: Psychoanalysis (dream analysis, free association)

L ASTING I MPACT OF F REUD Unconscious processes are meaningful Case Studies Analysis of dreams Importance of childhood experiences Our everyday language

B EHAVIORISM Key Figures: John B. Watson, Ivan Pavlov, B.F. Skinner Time frame: Emerged at the turn of the century, dominated psychology into the early 1960s Focus: Observable behavior, stimulus-response relationships Method: Laboratory experiments (esp with animals) Emphasized the role of the environment (outside forces) in guiding human behavior

C OGNITIVE P SYCHOLOGY Key Figures: George Miller and Herbert Simon (among others) Time frame: Emerged in the 1950s and 1960s Focus: How people think, learn, and remember Methods: Use of scientific methods to study internal mental events such as language and problem solving; Methods from neuroscience

S OCIAL P SYCHOLOGY Key Figures: Floyd Allport, Kurt Lewin, Stanley Milgram Time frame: Emerged in the 1920s, gained steam following WW2 Focus: How people are shaped by their interactions with others, group dynamics Methods: Use of scientific methods to study group dynamics, interpersonal processes

H UMANISM Key Figures: Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers Time frame: Emerged in the 1950s Focus: Unique qualities of humans, free will, and personal growth Methods: Reacted against animal studies, focus on individuals’ personal experience

A DDITIONAL S CHOOLS OF T HOUGHT Biopsychology Evolutionary psychology Cultural psychology Positive psychology

P SYCHOTHERAPY Guided by research in these areas Many types of psychotherapy are linked to specific schools of thought Eclecticism – a conceptual approach that does not hold rigidly to a single paradigm, but instead draws upon multiple theories

W OMEN IN P SYCHOLOGY _____________: 1 st woman to have a psych lab _____________: Sigmund’s daughter – carried on his work and extended it, developing stronger theories about women _____________: Pioneered the field of attachment research

M AJOR P OINTS Various schools of thought emerged in psychology throughout its history, many in reaction to disagreements with previous schools of thought. Timeline ALL of them influenced the development and current status of the field of psychology. Ex. eclecticism

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