Psychology Exam 1 Flashcards
Definition of Psychology
The scientific study of thought-feeling and behavior.
Applications of Psychology
- Research in universities, government, etc.
- Clinical psychology
- Counseling
- School psychology
- Sport psychology
- Forensic psychology
- Industrial-organizational psychology
Clinical psychology
Treatment of clients with severe mental illnesses
Counseling psychology
Helping clients with problems of adjustment
School psychology
Working with students
Sport psychology
Working with athletes
Forensic psychology
Applying psychology to the legal system
Industrial-organizational psychology
Applying psychology in the workplace
Wundt
First person to be referred to as a psychologist. Wrote a book called Principles of Physiological Psychology (published in 1873)
Wundt’s goal to psychology
To identify components of consciousness and how those components combine to result in our conscious experience.
Introspection
The process by which someone examines their own conscious experience in an attempt to break it into its components.
Used during introspection to produce a scientifically observable (repeatable) experience of the mind.
An outside stimulus
Requirements for experiment:
- “Trained” or practiced observers, who could immediately observe and report a reaction.
- The use of repeatable stimuli always produced the same experience in the subject and allowed the subject to expect and thus be fully attentive to the inner reaction. (Repeated stimuli, expected (no surprises), allowed to focus on inner reaction).
Why were requirements on introspection put in place?
To eliminate “interpretation” in the reporting of internal experiences and to counter the argument that there is no way to know that an individuals is observing their mind or consciousness accurately since it cannot be seen by any other person.
Structuralism
Understanding the conscious experience through introspection.
