history of Psychology Flashcards
who was wilhelm Wundt
- campaigned to make psychology an independent discipline
- established the first lab for the study of psychology in 1879 at university of Leipzig, Germany
PSYCHOLOGY WAS BOOORN
Wilhelm Wundt’s International Influence?
graduates of Wundt’s program set up new labs across Europe and North America
why was america so OOOOOOH about psychology?
- America is good! because it’s still a new country and there’s less influence
- they’re hungry to distinguish themselves!
- Psychology gives them the ability to distinguish themselves in a new field
- Little study of Psych in Europe!
G. Stanley Hall (1846-1924)
- established the first psychology lab in the US in 1883 at the John Hopkins University
- between 1883 and 1893, 24 new laboratories in North America
First president of the APA
who helped establish the APA? (American Psychological Association)
James Mark Baldwin and James Gibson Hume from the U of T
consciousness
- the quality or state of being aware, especially of something within oneself
- it is your awareness at the present moment
- example:
- you are aware that you are in school, that you are breathing, that you are sitting in a chair right now*
structuralism
one of the first two schools of thought
- led by Edward Titchener
- focused on analyzing CONSCIOUSNESS into its basic elements and investigating how these elements are related
- investigation on how the brain’s mental processes directly affect our sensations, images, and feelings
- physical senses—sight, sound, touch
Introspection
relates to structuralism
careful, systematic observations of one’s own conscious experience
Naturalistic Observation
a research method in which people or other subjects are observed in their natural setting.
functionalism
- led by William James
- focused on investigating the FUNCTION or PURPOSE of consciousness
- inspired by Darwin’s theory of natural selection!!
- views consciousness as a flow, not as static structures
- Stream of Consciousness
- led to investigations of mental testing, developmental pattern, and sex differences
- the study of sex differences may have led to women becoming interested in psychology
who is considered the winner of the conflict of structuralism vs functionalism?
- most historians give the edge to James and the functionalists because depending on introspection does not allow for any independent objective evaluation of a claim
what is applied psychology and behaviourism descended from?
functionalism
today, psychologists aren’t really categorized as structualists or functionalists
who was the founder of behaviourism?
John B. Watson (1878-1958)
behaviour
the way in which one acts
- overt/obervable responses or activiies
- ex: when a child drops their ice cream, their behaviour will change
Psychology after behaviourism?
- big reorientation of psych as a science of observable behaviour
- study of consciousness abandoned
John Watson’s stance on the Nature-Nurture Debate and how was this revolutionary
- John Watson thought that if he took a child and give it a certain stimulus, then he’ll be able to train him to become any specialist
- revolutionary because of racial and gender stuff
- WHAAAT YOU CAN TAKE A WOMAN AND TURN THEM INTO A DOCTAH?!?!?
behaviourist’s stance on nature-nurture?
they emphasize ENVIRONMENT! NURTURE!
Nature-Nurture debate
- once they thought it was one way or another
- born or made?
- science is still hmmm about which degree our personalities are formed by our DNA
Sigmund Freud
1856-1939
emphasis on unconscious processes influencing behaviour
- believed that our distant thoughts, memories, and desires influence the way we act and what we do
- Ex: a traumatic event involving a dog or animal may lead you to feel fear when you encounter the same animal as an adult even if you don’t remember the trauma from your childhood
Austrian
founded the psychanalytic school!!
Psychoanalytic school of thought
emphasized the influence of the unconscious mind
talking therapy
- the stereotypical therapy! “ooh la la doctor let me talk talk talk”
emphasized the influence of the unconscious mind
why did Freud choose the topic of how unconscious sexual conflict plays a central role of behaviour
he believed it was an underlying behaviour that everything else builds up upon
Freud’s belief on behaviour
Freud believed that the sexual drive is so powerful in people that it is working under the surface to influence/impact how people conduct themselves
Oedipus Complex
- ppls relationships with their parents were key psychological developmental moments
examines the role of parents in the development of a child’s sexuality/sexual persona
- “YOUNG MEN WANT TO MARRY THEIR MOTHAS”
Freudian Slip
- “See you loser! wait, later!’
- accidental slips of the tongue that shows how you really feel
- The unconscious reveals itself through an accident of speech
Free Association
- way to access the unconscious
- a process of discovering your genuine thoughts, memories, and feelings by freely sharing all the seemingly random thoughts that pass through your mind.
- Usually, you are given a prompt like a word or image without context then, you say what it makes you think of.
- The person leading the exercise tries to create links between the prompt and your response to learn about how your brain makes connections between ideas.
The three minds
the consious mind
the preconscious mind
the unconscious mind
the conscious mind
- your awareness at the present moment
- you’re in a school! breathing! sitting on chair!
these are things you do not need to stop/think about
the preconscious mind
- consists of accessible info
- become aware of this info once you direct your attention to it
- you can walk to school and talk at the same time! You remember the route to school!
these are things that are easily recalled but do require a small amount of thought
The unconscious Mind
- information we cannot access
- childhood memories and experiences that formed who we are today
- unconscious forces, beliefs, and patterns that drive our behaviours without us even realizing it!
- ex: “slips of the tongue”
Freud’s model of the psyche
Id, Ego, Superego
Id
- primitive features that are driven by an unconscious need for desire (pleasure principle)
- Present at birth
- Displays itself as selfish and demands gratification
the part of our minds that tell us our needs must be met immediately even if it is not the safest or most morally sound decision
Ego
- develops around the age of two
- focuses on the reality principle
- reduces the conflict between id and superego by implementing defence mechanisms
- part of our minds that decides what one will do
“We need to plan and wait in order to have it!!!”
Superego
- develops around the age of 5
- internal morals (morality principle) that we learn from our same-sex parents
- punishes our ego for any wrong through guilt
part of our minds that is concerned with what is morally and socially acceptable
repression defence mechanism
- unconscious, employed by the ego
- keep disturbing or threatening thoughts from becoming conscious
EX: Oedipus complex
denial defense mechanism
- involves blocking external events from awareness
- if situation is too much to handle, the person be like nah I no experience
EX: smokers refusing to admit smoking is bad for health
projection defense mehanism
individuals attributing their own unacceptable thoughts, feeling, and motives to another person
hating someone but superego tells you that this hatred is unacceptable. so, you be like “nah they hate me”
displacement defense mechanism
- satisfying an impulse (ex: aggression) with a substitute object
EX: someone who is angy at boss might go home and kick their dog
regression defense mechanism
- movement back in psychological time when one is faced with stress
EX: a child may suck their thumb or wet the bed when they need to spend some time in the hospital
sublimation defense mechanism
satisfying an impulse (e.g. aggression) with a substitute object in a socially acceptable way
reaction formation defense mechanism
- forming an emotional reaction or attitude that is the opposite of one’s threatening or unacceptable thoughts
EX: matt lika ben but outwardly is like “GAY PEOPEL BAD”
internalized homophobia
rationalization defense mechanism
- making acceptable excuses for unacceptable behaviour
“failed this test because the teacher hates me!!” (actually didn’t study)
intellectualization
- reduces anxiety by thinking about events in a cold, clinical away
- allows for avoiding thinking about the stressful, emotional aspect of the situation and instead focuses only on the intellectual component
- ex: someone who’s been diagnosed with a terminal illness might focus on learning everything about the disease in order to avoid distress and remain distant from the reality of the situation
BF Skinner
1904-1990 US
YOOO BACK TO BEHAVIOURISM?!?!?!?
believed that environmental factors determine behaviour
- responses that lead to positive outcomes are repeated
- responses that lead to negative outcomes are not repeated
controversy regarding free will and the debate between nature vs nurture
he questioned if it existed!
Skinner’s argument on free will
- Skinner argued that everything humans do has a driving force behind it.
- Even things we are doing voluntarily are usually driven by some other outside influence
For Example: you chose to come to Saint John High… but?? what else had influenced it? were your friends there? did your parents want you to go here?
- skinner would argue that you did not make this choice freely!!
Pavlov’s dog
experiment that discovered classical conditioning
whenever food is brought to the dog, a bell is rung. This conditions the dog to salivate at the sound of a bell
classical conditioning
neutral stimulus is conditioned into eliciting a response
operant conditioning
conditioning a behaviour by associating a behaviour with a consequence
the law of effect
1913
Edward L. thorndlike
if stimulus leads to satisfying effect, response is strengthened
B.F. skinner impact on operant conditioning
the principle of reinforcement** — rewarding consequences
- emission of response (instead of eliciting a response)
- reinforcement contingencies — rules that determine if the response leads to the presentation of reinforcers
reinforcement contingencies
rules that determine if the response leads to the presentation of reinforcers
continuous reinforcement
behaviour is reinforced every time
intermittent (partial) reinforcement
- reinforcement DOES NOT occur every time
- the response is more resistant to extinction than continuous
ratio schedules
- reinforcement occurs after a certain number of responses
- fixed
- variable
interval schedules
- reinforcement occurs after a certain time has passed
- fixed
- variable
Humanism
- led by Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) and Carl Rogers (1902-1987)
- Emphasis on the unique qualities of humans: FREEDOM AND PERSONAL GROWTH
- humanistic psychologists stress that people have the ability to control their lives and avoid being manipulated by the environment
- they believe people can choose to live by higher human values, such as altruism and free will
(altruism—unselfish devotion to the welfare of others)
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
self actualization self esteem love/belonging safety/security physiological need
Shut Stupid Loser Sucker Phillip
(poor Phillip)
cognition
mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge
biological perspective
- behaviour explained in terms of physiological processes
Studying the chemicals that may change behavior. Brain studies. If someone is depressed, they may receive medication to elevate their mood
one is left brained or right brain true or false?
FALSE YA LOSER IT’S A MYTH THERE’S NO EVIDENCE FOR IT IN BRAIN IMAGING
the left and right brain do specialize in specific tasks
- logic and thought — left - music and creativity — right
positive psychology
uses theory and research to better understand the positive aspects of human existence
has a strong emphasis on:
- the experiences that people value (such as happiness)
- positive individual traits (such as the capacity for love)
- positive group values (such as responsibility)
- positive subjective experiences
- individual traits
- positive institutions and communities
why did american psychologists start positive psychology
decided after analysis that the study of psychology had become far too negative
- they felt it had been focused too much on what could go wrong in people’s lives
- they hope to switch the focus to more of what positive things psychology can accomplish
record the evolution of psychology
- structuralism
- functionalism
- behaviourism
- psychoanalysis
- behaviourism—the sequel
- humanism
- cognition
- biological
- positive
S o F ucking B ummed P robably B ecause H e C alled B obby P etunia
psychology
THE SCIENCE THAT STUDIES BEHAVIOUR AND THE PHYSIOLOGICAL AND COGNITIVE PROCESSES THAT UNDERLIE IT.
sociocultural perspective
It examines the ways that the social and cultural environments influence behaviour.
Argues that to understand someone’s behaviour, they also need to know about the cultural context!!!
An example is in assertiveness in women—it’s acceptable in Canada, but not in Iran. Therefore, women are less likely to be assertive in Iran.
cognitive approach
It approaches the mind as an information processor
concerns the way that we take in information from the outside world and how we make sense of that information.
Cognitive psychologists try to build up cognitive models of the information processing that goes on in people’s minds.
Change the way people think. Studies learning, memory & perception
problem with studying consciousness?
how do you empirically gather data about people’s awareness of the present moment?
behaviourism
states all behaviors are learned through interaction with the environment through a process called conditioning.
behavior is simply a response to environmental stimuli.
Behaviorism is only concerned with OBSERVABLE stimulus-response behaviors, as they can be studied in a systematic and observable manner.
stimulus-response theory
behavior manifests as a result of the interplay between stimulus and response.
In other words, behavior cannot exist without a stimulus of some sort, at least from this perspective.
free will
freedom of humans to make choices that are not determined by prior causes
why was Humanism formed?
Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers felt that both behaviourism and psychoanalysis were dehumanizing (They felt people had no free will)
What is another name for the behavioural approach in psychology?
stimulus-response psychology
According to John Watson, behaviour is governed primarily by which of the following?
environment
oral stage
stage 1
0-1 years old
erogenous zone: mouth
issues caused by fixation: smoking, gum chewing, nail biting
anal stage
stage 2
2-3 years
erogenous zone: bowel and bladder
issues caused by fixation: rigidity, orderliness, obsessiveness
phallic stage
stage 3
3-6 years
erogenous zone: genitals
issues caused by fixation: pride, vanity, exhibitionism
latency stage
stage 4
6 - until puberty
erogenous zone: none, sexual feelings are inactive
issues caused by fixation: not applicable
Genital stage
Stage 5
puberty and onwards
erogenous zone; matured sexual interests
issues caused by fixation: not applicable
gestalt psychology
ooks at the human mind and behavior as a whole. When trying to make sense of the world around us, Gestalt psychology suggests that we do not simply focus on every small component. Instead, our minds tend to perceive objects as elements of more complex systems.
