PSYCH 1115- Week2 Flashcards
Define Psychology
scientific study of behaviour and mental processes, based on empirical approach
(Internal thoughts and feelings)
Us ‘evidence-based’ decison making in Psychology
Scientific Psychology started in Leipzig, Germany when Wihelm Wundt opened the 1st psychology lab.
What is ‘post-truth’?
Relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion appeals
why important?
Questions to ask yourself: ‘What is the Source, What is the Evidence, Does the issue require multiple perspectives, Does bias contaminate the Conclusion’
1 of 2 Early Schools of Psychology:
What is structuralism?
the mind is composed of building blocks (sensation, feelings) Dr. Edward Titchener
Engaged people in introspection: asked them to report elemets of their experiences as they smelled stuff, looked at stuff, listened to stuff.
CONS: unreliable. test subjects need to be smart and verbal with precise words and results varied too much from person to person (who has different experiences). Self reports varied too much between people.
1 of 2 Early Schools of Psychology:
What is Functionalism?
considered the functions of people.
Dr. William James
Went beyond putting labels on our thoughts and feelings by considering why we thought or did stuff, based on evolution.
Wrote 1st psychology book: Principles of Psychology (1890)
Can be found online, via Google books, and is free to read!
What is Behaviourism?
In the 1920’s, 2 eminent psychologists, John Watson & B.F. Skinner dismissed ‘introspection’ and defined Psychology as “the scientific study of observable behaviour”
Can’t observe a sensation or feeling or thought, but can observe a person’s behaviour
What is Psychoanalytic Psychology?
Sigmund Freud
The Psychoanalytic Theory: attempts to explain personality, mental disorders & motivation in terms of unconscious and conscious forces, determinants of our behaviour (and also stemming from childhood)
Also called Freudian Psychology
What is Humanistic Psychology?
In the 1960’s, Carl Rogers/Abraham Maslow found psychoanalysis and behaviourism limiting.
Focuses on growth potential, needs for love and acceptance, and the environments that nurture our personal growth.
What is Cognitive Psychology?
the study of mental processes: how we perceive, earn, remember, think, communicate, and solve problems.
Cognitive Neuroscience (the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition, including perception, thinking, memory and language). Studies the brain activity underlying mental activity.
What is Evolutionary Psychology?
the study of the evolution of behaviour and the mind using principles of natural selection
What is Positive Psychology?
Newest form of psychology
the scientific study of human flourishing, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive.
Happiness is a by-product of a pleasant, engaged, and meaningful life (engages our skills, and a life that points beyond ourselves)
Most Eminent Psychologist?
- Sigmund Freud= unconscious forces and conscious forces form our everyday. The Psychoanalytic Theory: attempts to explain personality, mental disorders & motivation in terms of unconscious determinants of behaviour
- The Humanist Theory: something to foster and grow, human potential
- John B Watson & Skinner: should focus on observable behaviour. No need to discuss something called the ‘mind’. Consciousness is neither definable nor a usable concept, that it is merly another word for the ‘soul’ of more ancient times. Behaviourism Theory
- Cognitive Theory: brain like a computer. stimulus –> cognition–> feeling
What 3 things encompass the Scientific Attitude?
- Curiosity
- Skepticism
- Humility: an awareness of our own vulnerability to error and an openness to new perspectives. What matters is the truths revealed by our questioning. Knowing what we don’t know is good.
What is critical thinking?
Thinking that does not automatically accept arguments and conclusions.
It examines assumptions, appaises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions.
What is considered the ‘testing effect’?
When we retain information better when we actively retrieve it by self-testing and rehearsing.
Natural Selection by Darwin?
the principle that inherited traits (made by chance) that better enable an organism to surve and reproduce in a particular environment will most likely be passed on to the next generation
What is the biopsychosocial approach?
an integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis. (3 different levels of analysis but still complementary )
Why use this approach? Using these 3 levels of analysis, this approach can provide a more complete view than any one perspective could offer.
Summary
Subfields of Psychology:
1. Basic Research (biological, developmental, cognitive, personality, social psychology)
2. Applied Research (solve practical prolems)
3. Cousellors/psychologists
