1. Chapter 1: Introduction to Psychology & Its Research Methods
Psychology in Action
Chapter 1: Introduction to
Psychology & Its Research Methods

2. Introducing Psychology
What is Psychology?
The scientific study of behavior & mental processes.
Psychology focuses on critical thinking & is scientific.
Pseudopsychologies (e.g., psychics, mediums) are nonscientific.

3. Introducing Psychology: Psychology’s Four Goals
Description: tells “what” occurred
Explanation: tells “why” a behavior or mental process occurred
Prediction: identifies conditions under which a future behavior or mental process is likely to occur
Change: applies psychological knowledge to prevent unwanted behavior or to bring about desired goals

4. Applying Psychology To Work: Examples
Biopsychology/ Neuroscience
Clinical & Counseling Psychology
Cognitive Psychology
Developmental Psychology
Educational & School Psychology
Experimental Psychology
Forensic Psychology
Gender/Cultural Psychology
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Social Psychology

5. Careers in Psychology: Percentage of Psychology Degrees by Specialty

6. Origins of Psychology
Wilhelm Wundt: Considered to be the “father of psychology”
Developed the first psychological laboratory in Germany in 1879
Trained the first scientific psychologists
His ideas would lead to multiple different psychological perspectives:

7. Structuralism
Functionalism
Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic
Behavioral
Humanistic
Cognitive
Neuroscience/Biopsychology
Evolutionary
Sociocultural

8. Your Job…
Create point form notes on each of the major perspectives identified on pages of your textbook
Be sure to identify how each perspective seeks to explain human behavior, as well as particular scientists associated with each perspective

9. Origins of Psychology
Structuralism: sought to identify the basic building blocks, or structures, of the mind through introspection – looking inward at basic sensations and feelings
Edward Titchener = key leader
Doomed to fail – no scientific way existed with which to settle disputes

10. Origins of Psychology Cont’d
Functionalism: studied how the mind functions to adapt organisms to their environment
Asked Why? and How?
Strongly influenced by Darwin’s Theory of Evolution and the concept of natural selection
William James = key leader

11. Origins of Psychology (Continued)
Psychoanalytic/ Psychodynamic Perspective: unconscious processes & unresolved past conflicts between “acceptable” and “unacceptable” behaviors
Freud = key founder
Behaviors based on sexual impulses
Believed most of our development occurred during childhood
Sigmund Freud ( )

12. Origins of Psychology (Continued)
Behavioral Perspective: objective, observable environmental influences on behavior
Watson, Pavlov, & Skinner were key figures
Believed we could use external stimuli to shape human behavior
B. F. Skinner ( )

13. Origins of Psychology (Continued)
Humanistic Perspective: free will, self-actualization, & a positive, growth-seeking human nature – self-actualization (when we reach our full potential)
Opposite to behaviorists
Rogers & Maslow were key figures
Carl Rogers ( )
Abraham Maslow ( )

14. Origins of Psychology (Continued)
Cognitive Perspective: studies how we gather, encode and store information such as problem solving, memory, language, & information processing
Neuroscience/ Biopsychology Perspective: studies how genetics & other biological processes in the brain & nervous system affect behavior

15. Origins of Psychology (Continued)
Evolutionary Perspective: argues that natural selection, adaptation, & evolution help to explain behavior
Sociocultural Perspective: social interaction & cultural determinants
Show how factors such as ethnicity, religion, occupation and SES impact behavior

16. Origins of Psychology: One Unifying Theme of Modern Psychology
Biopsychosocial model: combines all seven major perspectives
Views biological processes, psychological factors and social forces as interrelated influences on behavior

17. Pause & Reflect: Critical Thinking
Why do you think psychologists & other scientists may need multiple perspectives when it comes to understanding the unknown?

18. Do See a Vase Or Two Faces?
Multiple perspectives allow psychologists to better understand research & complex behavior & mental processes.

19. Assignment: Outrageous Celebrities
Choose one celebrity who has demonstrated some “not-so-normal” behaviors in recent years
Summarize the behaviors (explain what they have been doing; identify at least 3 behaviors)
Using the chart on page 14, explain how each of the seven modern perspectives would explain the celebrity’s behaviors
Ex. Freud may explain drinking or drug use to a past conflict between the individual and their parent

20. The Science of Psychology
Research Methods
“What is research, but a blind date with knowledge” – William Henry

21. The Science of Psychology
Basic Research: conducted to advance scientific knowledge
Knowledge for its own sake
Typically conducted in universities or research labs
Meets the first three goals of psychology – description, explanation and prediction
Applied Research: designed to solve practical problems
Meets the fourth goal of psychology – to change existing real world problems

22. The Scientific Method

23. The Science of Psychology: Ethical Guidelines
Ethical Guidelines for Human Research Participants:
Informed consent
Voluntary participation
Restricted use of deception & Debriefing
Confidentiality
Alternative activities (for college credits)

24. The Science of Psychology: Ethical Guidelines (Continued)
Rights of Nonhuman Participants: Advocates believe nonhuman research offers significant scientific benefits. Opponents question these benefits & suggest nonhuman animals cannot give informed consent.
General Guidelines: Psychologists must maintain high standards for both human & nonhuman animal research.

25. Research Methods Four key research methods: Experimental Descriptive
Correlational
Biological

27. Four Key Research Methods
1. Experimental Research: carefully controlled scientific procedure that manipulates variables to determine cause & effect
Key features of an experiment:
Independent variable (factor that is manipulated) versus dependent variable (factor that is measured)
Experimental group (receives treatment) versus control group (receives no treatment)

28. Does TV increase aggression
Does TV increase aggression? Only an experiment can determine cause & effect.

29. Research Methods—Experimental
Potential researcher problems:
Experimenter bias - researcher influences the research results in the expected direction
Solution = Double Blind Study
Ethnocentrism - believing one's culture is typical of all cultures
May see impact of personal stereotypes

30. Research Methods—Experimental
Potential participant problems:
Sample bias - research participants are unrepresentative of the larger population
Solution = random sampling and random assignment
Participant bias - research participants are influenced by the researcher or experimental conditions
Ex. May be embarrassed so may lie

31. Research Methods—Experimental (Continued)

32. Research Methods—Descriptive
2. Descriptive Research: observes & records behavior without producing causal explanations
Three types of descriptive research:
Naturalistic Observation - observation & recording of behavior in natural state or habitat
Survey - assessment of a sample or population
Case Study - in-depth study of a single participant

33. Pause & Reflect: Psychology at Work
What could be the advantage of studying psychological research methods like naturalistic observation?
What could be the disadvantage?

35. Research Methods—Correlational
3. Correlational Research: observes or measures (without directly manipulating) two or more variables to find relationships between them
Be Aware: Correlation does not imply causation
Example Pg. 31 – ice cream consumption and drowning are highly correlated. Does this mean eating ice cream causes people to drown? Of course not! A third factor, such as time of year, affects both ice cream consumption and time spent in the water

36. Research Methods—Correlational
Positive Correlation: two variables move (or vary) in the same direction—either up or down
Ex. Studying for a test is positively correlated with higher test scores

37. Research Methods—Correlational
Negative Correlation: two variables move (or vary) in the opposite direction—either up or down
Ex. Missing more school decreases grades

38. Research Methods—Correlational
Zero Correlation: no relationship between two variables (when one variable increases, the other can increase, decrease, or stay the same)

39. Research Methods—Correlational

40. Research Methods—Correlational
Can you see why correlation can never show cause & effect?

41. Research Methods—Biological
4. Biological Research: scientific studies of the brain & other parts of the nervous system

42. Research Methods—Biological
Methods of Biological Research:
Lesioning (systematically destroying brain tissue to study the effects on behavior and mental processes)
Dissection
Observation & Case Studies – particularly of living people who have had injuries, diseases and disorders that affected brain functioning
Electrical Recordings of brain activity