Origins of psychology

Question 1

Who set up the first experimental psychology lab

Answer 1

Wilhelm Wundt

Question 2

Where and when did he start his experimental research?

Answer 2

Leipzig, Germany 1879

Question 3

Why was Wundt’s work considered significant and what did it mark the beginning of?

Answer 3

Scientific psychology

Question 4

Standardised procedures

Answer 4

One of his main objectives was to try and develop theories about mental processes such as language and perception. He and his coworkers recorded their experiences of various stimuli they were presented with, such as different objects or sounds. They would divide their observations into categories: thoughts, images and sensations.

Question 5

Structuralism

Answer 5

Isolating the structure of consciousness in this way is called structuralism. The stimuli that Wundt and his co-workers experienced were always presented in the same order and the same instructions were issued to all participants.

Question 6

Introspection

Answer 6

Wundt brought participants into his lab, presented them with a stimulus and asked them to examine and describe their own mental processes.

Question 7

Reductionism

Answer 7

Complex things can be explained in terms in smaller and simpler parts.

Question 8

How did Wundt use reductionism

Answer 8

Wundt believed he could apply reductionism to studying the mind.

Question 9

AO3- Strength (scientific)

Answer 9

• First to apply the scientific method to psychology.
  -For instance, he controlled all his situational variables using stnadardsisation.
• All introspections were recorded in a the controlled environment of the lab, ensuring that possible extraneous variables were not a factor.
• His studies were all replicable because he noted down his method throughout.

Question 10

AO3- Limitation (subjective data)

Answer 10

Wundt’s research would be considered unscientific today.
-Wundt relied on participants self-reporting their mental processes.
Such data is subjective (influenced by a personal perspective).
Some participants may have hidden some of their thoughts.
It is difficult to establish meaningful laws of behaviour’ from such data.
And general laws are useful to predict future behaviours, one of the aims of science.
This suggests that some of Wundts early efforts to study the mind were flawed and would not meet the criteria of scientific enquiry.