Origins of Psychology

Question 1

Wundt and Introspection

Wundt’s Lab

Answer 1

• In 1879, Wundt opened the first lab dedicated to psychological enquiry.
• His work is significant because it marked the beginning of scientific psychology, separating it from its philosophical roots.
• Wundt aimed to analyse the nature of the human consciousness and thus represented the first systematic attempt to study the mind under controlled conditions.
• His pioneering method became known as introspection.

Question 2

Wundt and Introspection

Standardised Procedures

Answer 2

• One of Wundt’s main objectives was to develop an understanding of mental processes (e.g. perception).
• He and his co-workers recorded their experiences of various stimuli, objects, sounds.
• They divided their observations into 3 categories: thoughts, images and sensations.
• For instance, participants might be played a ticking metronome and they would report their thoughts, images and sensations.

Question 3

Wundt and Introspection

Structuralism

Answer 3

• Wundt’s way of isolating the structure of the consciousness into three categories is known as structuralism.
• The stimuli Wundt and his coworkers experienced were always presented in the same order, and the same instructions were issued to participants.

Question 4

Wundt and Introspection: Evaluation

Scientific

Strength

Answer 4

• His methods were systematic and well-controlled.
• All introspections were recorded in the controlled conditions of the lab so that extraneous variables were not a factor.
• Procedures and instructions were standardised so that everyone recieved the same information and were tested in the same way.

This suggests that Wundt’s research could be considered a forerunner for later scientific approaches in psychology (e.g. behaviourism)

Question 5

Wundt and Introspection: Evaluation

Subjective Data

Limitation

Answer 5

• Wundt’s research would be considered unscientific today.
• He relied on participants to report on their own feelings, which is subjective data.
• Also participants may have hidden certain thoughts.
• It is difficult to establish meaningful ‘laws of behaviour’ from such data.
• General laws are useful to predicting future behaviour.

This suggests that some of Wundt’s early efforts to study the mind and were flawed and would not meet today’s criteria of scientifc enquiry.

Question 6

Emergence of Psychology as a Science

1900s Behaviourists

Answer 6

• The value of introspection was questioned by many.
• John B Watson proposed that a truly scientific study should only study phenomena that can be objectively measured and observed.
• For this reason, behaviourists focused only on behaviours they could see and used carefully controlled experiments.

Question 7

Emergence of Psychology as a Science

1950s Cognitive Approach

Answer 7

• The digital revolution of the 1950s gave psychologists a new methaphor for the human mind.
• Cognitive psychologists likened the mind to a computer and tested their predictions about memory and attention using experiments.
• The approach ensured that their studies were legitimate and highly scientific.

Question 8

Emergence of Psychology as a Science

1980s Biological Approach

Answer 8

• Researchers within this area have taken advantage of advances in technology to investigate psychological processes as they happen (e.g. fMRI, EEG).
• New methods have also helped us to understand the relationship between genes and behaviour.

Question 9

Emergence of Psychology as a Science: Evaluation

Modern Psychology

Strength

Answer 9

• Research in modern psychology can claim to be scientific.
• The learning approaches, cognitive approach and biological approach all rely on the use of scientific methods (e.g. lab studies).

This suggests that throughout 20th century, psychology established itself into a scientific discipline.

Question 10

Emergence of Psychology as a Science: Evaluation

Subjective Data

Limitation