In your Interactive Notebook: Unit.Day 1.2 Psychological Perspectives Today’s OBJECTIVE(S) -- WRITE THESE DOWN: – I can distinguish between the biological, cognitive, behavioral, and sociocultural perspectives in psychology DAILY COMMENTARY – What makes you you? Apply your knowledge from last nights reading. TURN IN: – Place Discussion Questions in box – Signed Parent letters ON YOUR DESK: 1) reading journal 2) Daily commentary notebook 3) Laptop (at desk but closed) Unit 1 ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS: What is (and isn’t) Psychology? How do psychologists conduct reliable and ethical research?

Today’s Discussion Questions Make sure your name is on the questions you submit, and that your question is unique. – This will be factored into your grade.

DQ’S, Updates & Reminders BIG PICTURE – Friday Quizzes August 30 & September 6 – Projects Due Thursday, September 5 th – Experiment Project – Unit Exam: Monday, September 9 th Tonight’s Homework: – Reading notes on “Power of Birth Order” article Posted to class website Notify me NOW if you need a print copy

4 Psychology’s Roots Prescientific Psychology In India, Buddha wondered how sensations and perceptions combined to form ideas.

5 Prescientific Psychology Socrates ( B.C.) and Plato ( B.C.) Socrates and his student Plato believed the mind was separate from the body, the mind continued to exist after death, and ideas were innate. Socrates Plato

6 Prescientific Psychology Aristotle ( B.C.) Aristotle suggested that the soul is not separable from the body and that knowledge (ideas) grow from experience.

7 Prescientific Psychology Rene Descartes ( ) Descartes, like Plato, believed in soul (mind)-body separation, but wondered how the immaterial mind and physical body communicated.

8 Prescientific Psychology Francis Bacon ( ) Bacon is one of the founders of modern science, particularly the experimental method.

9 Prescientific Psychology John Locke ( ) Locke held that the mind was a tabula rasa, or blank sheet, at birth, and experiences wrote on it. biografieonline.it/img/bio/John_Locke.jpg

10 Psychological Science is Born Structuralism (Wundt & Titchener) focused on trying to break larger mental processes into component parts to better understand them Wundt ( ) Titchner ( )

11 Psychological Science is Born Functionalism (William James) Opposed structuralism; tried to offer systemic explanations of mental processes Focused on purposes behind consciousness & behavior James ( ) Mary Calkins

12 Psychology Today We define psychology today as the scientific study of behavior (what we do) and mental processes (inner thoughts and feelings).

Major Questions in Psychology Nature vs. Nurture – Twin & adoption studies Stability vs. Change

14 Psychological Science is Born The Unconscious Mind Sigmund Freud and his followers emphasized the importance of the unconscious mind and its effects on human behavior. Freud ( )

Psychological Perspectives Different psychologists take different approaches to explaining human behavior and mental processes. – 4 primary schools of thought: Behavioral Biological Cognitive Sociocultural

16 The Behavioral Perspective Behaviorism Studying behavior is the best way to understand the brain o Watson & Skinner are key behaviorists o They applied the scientific method to understand what causes humans to act in specific ways Watson ( ) Skinner ( )

Behaviorism

By the 1950s, Psychoanalysis seemed very unscientific. Behaviorists will bring science back into psychology, even if they overdo it a little. Behaviorism is NOT interested in the unconscious mind since it cannot be observed in a laboratory.

Very telling quote!! Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I’ll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select -- doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief and, yes, even beggar- man and thief, regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations, and race of his ancestors. --John Watson, Behaviorism, 1930

Evolutionary Psychology Evolutionary psychology examines psychological traits — such as memory, perception, or language It seeks to identify which human psychological traits are evolved adaptations. – functional products of natural selection or sexual selection – Attractiveness

Biological Perspective Most respected right now. They focus on our brain, nervous system, neurotransmitters and hormones to explain our behaviors.

Biological Perspective “I don’t know why you are depressed or anxious. But here is some medicine!”

Cognitive Psychology

Cognitive Perspective It is the study of how people perceive, remember, think, speak, and solve problems. Cognitive therapy is about changing the maladaptive thoughts of a person.

Cognitive perspective on depression We are depressed because we are irrational. Our expectations are too high and misplaced. We want everyone to love us and accept us. We want every thing to go our way. We stay angry about stuff that happened a long time ago. – WE MUST CHANGE THE WAY WE THINK TO BE HAPPY AND SUCCESSFUL.

Cognitive Therapy Cognitive therapy is about changing the maladaptive (bad) thoughts. Albert Ellis, Aaron Beck and William Glasser are famous for reality therapy. – They challenged his patients to ask, “Are my thoughts realistic or rational?” – Cognitive therapy also “educates” the client, teaches him/her proper behaviors/thoughts

Social-Cultural Perspective Says that much of your behavior and your feelings are dictated by the culture you live in. Some cultures kiss each other when greeting, some just bow. Does your culture place value on individual or the group?

Humanistic In the 1960s in reaction to psychoanalysis and behaviorism. Focused on each individual’s potential and stressed the importance of growth and self-actualization. The fundamental belief of humanistic psychology was that people are innately good. We are not rats in a cage! We are not id-driven animals! We are humans with free will.

29 Psychological Science Develops Humanistic Psychology Maslow and Rogers emphasized current environmental influences on our growth potential and our need for love and acceptance. Maslow ( ) Rogers ( )

30 Psychology’s Three Main Levels of Analysis

Perspectives Activity 1.Log into edmodo and complete the assignment posted for today. – You may work with a partner While online, please also complete the Student information sheet. This is found at

Partner Activity How might each scenario be interpreted according to the four major perspectives (biological, sociocultural, cognitive, and behavioral) – A repeat drunk driver – A student who is intelligent but does not apply themself in school – The decision by people to play football despite the serious threats of brain injury

DQ’S, Updates & Reminders BIG PICTURE – Friday Quizzes August 30 & September 6 – Projects Due Thursday, September 5 th – Experiment Project – Unit Exam: Monday, September 9 th Tonight’s Homework: – Reading notes on “Power of Birth Order” article Posted to class website Notify me NOW if you need a print copy

34 Psychology’s Current Perspectives PerspectiveFocusSample Questions NeuroscienceHow the body and brain enables emotions? How are messages transmitted in the body? How is blood chemistry linked with moods and motives? EvolutionaryHow the natural selection of traits the promotes the perpetuation of one’s genes? How does evolution influence behavior tendencies? Behavior geneticsHow much our genes and our environments influence our individual differences? To what extent are psychological traits such as intelligence, personality, sexual orientation, and vulnerability to depression attributable to our genes? To our environment?

35 Psychology’s Current Perspectives PerspectiveFocusSample Questions Psychodynamic (Freud) How behavior springs from unconscious drives and conflicts? How can someone’s personality traits and disorders be explained in terms of sexual and aggressive drives or as disguised effects of unfulfilled wishes and childhood traumas? Behavioral (Pavlov, Watson, Skinner) How we learn observable responses? How do we learn to fear particular objects or situations? What is the most effective way to alter our behavior, say to lose weight or quit smoking?

36 Psychology’s Current Perspectives PerspectiveFocusSample Questions CognitiveHow we encode, process, store and retrieve information? How do we use information in remembering? Reasoning? Problem solving? Social-cultural (Rogers, Maslow, Bandura) How behavior and thinking vary across situations and cultures? How are we — as Africans, Asians, Australians or North Americans – alike as members of human family? As products of different environmental contexts, how do we differ?