1 - History & Foundations of Psych Flashcards
The idea that knowledge originates from experience and therefore science should rely on observation and experimentation
Empiricism
Early school of thought prompted by Wilhem Wundt and Edward Titchener; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind
Structuralism
Early school of thought prompted by William James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function - how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish
Functionalism
The study of behavior and thinking using the experimental method
Experimental Psychology
The idea that psych (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most research psychologists today agree with 1 but not with 2.
Behaviorism
A historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people
Humanistic Psychology
The interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language)
Cognitive Neuroscience
The science of behavior and mental processes
Psychology
The longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behavior. Today’s science sees traits and behaviors arising from the interaction of nature and nurture.
Nature-Nurture Issue
The principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations
Natural Selection
The differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon
Levels of Analysis
An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis
Bio-Psychological Approach
The scientific study of observable behavior, and its explanation by principles of learning
Behavioral Psychology
The scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes.
Biological Psychology
The scientific study of all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and sommunicating
Cognitive Psychology
The study of the evolution of behavior and mind, using principles of natural selection
Evolutionary Psychology
A branch of psychology the studies how unconscious drives and conflicts influence behavior, and uses that information to treat people with psychological disorders
Psychodynamic Psychology
The study of how situations and cultures affect our behavior and thinking
Social-Cultural Psychology