Origins of psychology Flashcards
Who was Wundt ?
- ‘father of modern scientific psychology’
- 1873 - the principle of physiological psychology\
- 1879 - he opened the first psychological lab in Germany - beginning of scientific psychology
- approach was to study the structure of the human mind
What is introspection ?
- Wundt used introspection to examine one’s own mind
- focused one being objective
- systematic analysis of conscious experiences
- participants focus on everyday objects (stimulus), asked to look inwards
- participants are asked to reflect on the sensations and feelings
- forerunner for the cognitive approach `9mental process)
What are the evaluations of Wundts work of introspection ?
Strength = Scientific
Systematic and well-controlled. Ensures that extraneous variables are well-controlled
Carefully standardised so everyones was tested the same way with the same method
Limitation = Subjective
- unscientific as it relied on self reporting
- participants may have hidden their thoughts
- wouldn’t meet scientific enquiry
What are the general rules of science ?
- systematic
- objective
- general laws
What the behaviouralist approach during the emergence of psychology as a science ?
- introspection was subjective
- difficult to establish a general principle
Focus on: - empirical methods
- only directly observable
- controlled environments
What the cognitive approach during the emergence of psychology as a science ?
- 1950’s - digital revolution
- cognitive psychologists likened the mind to a computer
- studied cognitive functions using lab experiments
What the Biological approach during the emergence of psychology as a science ?
1980’s - advancements in technology
- studying physiological processes
- done through brain scanning, genetic testing
What are the evaluations of the origins of psychology ?
Strength: Scientific methods
They were lab studies which were under control
Limitation: Relies on humans
Social desirability and demand characteristics
Limitation: Paradigm
No set way to study behaviour
