1. Founding of Psychology

2. 1 st Psychology laboratory – Wundt 1879 Not the 1 st psychologist Not the first to do psychological experiments 1 st recognized laboratory to do psychological experiments

3. Issues with historical accuracy and Wilhelm Wundt The use of translations – most languages do not translate exactly –Translations can be biased by the beliefs of the translator Issue with archival data – what is translated may not be representative of the individuals works –Much of Wundt’s work not translated until years later

4. Wundt’s interest in psychology Assistant to von Helmholtz for 18 years – studying physiological basis of sensation and perception Helmholtz most interested in sensation; Wundt became more interested in the more psychological part – perception Helmholtz left and recommended another person for his professor position Wundt decided to leave and eventually took a position at the University of Leipzig as a professor of philosophy

5. Wilhelm Wundt (cont.) His move from medicine to physiology to philosophy/psychology set a precedent followed by many others His laboratory is credited as the 1 st because it was the 1 st to be officially sanctioned by a university

6. Wundt’s psychology Most important for the break from philosophy was his methods –Experimentation was important if not critical –Introspection could be used under controlled situations –Study mental processes and sensory experiences

7. Wundt’s psychology (cont.) Psychology should be studied as a pure science investigating the basic laws of the mind –Not a predecessor for clinical or other applied areas of psychology –Was not to study individual differences

8. Psychological theories of Wundt In his 3 volume textbook Principles of Physiological Psychology, he defined what psychology should be: –The investigation of conscious processes in modes of connection peculiar to them Methods to be used are modified physiological methods –Psychologist directly measure immediate experiences –Physiologist indirectly (use equipment) measure mediated experiences

9. Psychological theories of Wundt Principle Method for measuring conscious processes was “experimental self- observation” AKA introspection Also used reaction time and word associations Of 180 papers written between 1883 and 1903 only 4 used only introspection

10. Psychological theories of Wundt Wundt argued against reductionism, structuralism, or elementism – the mind can be broken down into its basic elements or structure He never defined psychology as the science of the mind. This implies the mind is separate from the body Wundt not a dualist This is the complete opposite of what most believe about Wundt

11. Wundt’s Research 50% involved studying sensations and perceptions 20% were reaction time studies 10% involved attention; 10% involved associations; and 10% involved feelings Subjects in his lab were highly trained members of the laboratory

12. Contributions of Wundt His students – in 1900, there were 40 psychology laboratories in the U.S. 12 were founded by students of Wundt. His success at Leipzig led to recognition of psychology at other major institutions His theoretical works were not as important as they should have been because of translation problems Two students who made major contributions to applied psychology