Chapter 4: The New Psychology Lecture Flashcards
What did Wundt test in his lab?
Whether 1 person can receive two stimuli at the same moment- sound of a bell plus sight of a pendulum.
What did Wundt find with his test of stimuli?
That both stimuli register sequentially at about 1/8th of a second.
Who was Wilhelm Wundt?
The first real psychologist- founder of modern psychology. Formalized ideas and began to perceive psych as it’s own discipline- introduced the term experimental psychology.
When was the first psych lab established and when was the first psych journal established?
1875 and 1881 respectively.
What is cultural psychology?
Deals with stages of human mental development through langauge, art, myths, social customs and laws- little impact on American Psychology.
What is the idea of voluntarism?
The idea that the mind has capacity to organize mental contents into higher thoughts. Process of organization in the mind as key- elements are necessary for this to occur.
What is the mediate experience?
Information about something outside the elements of experience- other sciences are based on this (measure something, record data)
What is the immediate experience?
We should study consciousness as it occurs- Wundt believed psych should be studied like this.
What is introspection?
The examination of one’s own mind to inspect/report on personal thoughts or feelings.
What is pure introspection?
Unstructured, self observation used by philosophers.
What is experimental introspection?
Lab techniques and devices that are used to make self-observation more precise.
What were the rules for Wundt’s observers?
Must be able to determine when a process is introduced, must be in a state of readiness, repeat the observations and vary experimental conditions. No pause needed before providing an observation, must do 10000 observations.
What are the goals of introspection?
Conscious processes into basic elements, discover how elements are synthesized and organized, determine laws of connection.
What are the 2 elements of conscious thought?
1) Sensations
2) Feelinga
What are sensations?
Aroused when the sense organs are stimulated and the resulting impulses reach the brain- categorized by modality (visual, oral, olfactory), intensity, and qualities.
What are feelings?
Subjective complements of sensations that do not arise from sensory organs.
What is the tridimensional theory of feeling?
Feeling states are based on 3 dimensions: 1) Pleasure/displeasure 2) Tension/relaxation, 3) Excitement/depression
What is apperception?
The process by which mental elements are organized- new properties are created by combining elements and the mind acts on these elements to make up a whole.
What was Wundt’s influence on psych?
Spread rapidly, but had little long term effects- not appropriate for solving real world problems.
When did American psych start to become more popular?
1910.
What are some of the criticisms of Wundt?
Introspection does not always yield agreement- blamed the British for the 1st WW, Gestalt, psychoanalysis, functionalism and behaviourism dominated.
Who were some of Wundt’s descendants?
Cattell, Kulpe, Spearman, Musterberg, Angell, Titchener, Stanley Hall.
What did Hermann Ebbinghaus study?
First to experimentally study learning and memory as they occurred. Had a deep understanding of language.
What did Ebbinghaus believe?
That associationists had it backwards- associations are already formed.
