Week 1- Introduction and History of Psychology Flashcards
1
Q
Define Psychology
A
- The scientific investigation of mental processes (thinking, remembering and feeling), behaviour and the interaction between them
- Science that studies behaviour and the biological and cognitive processes that underlie behaviour
- Profession that applies the accumulated knowledge of this science to practical problems
2
Q
Define overt behaviour (with example)
A
Behaviour which is directly observable e.g. eating, sleeping, talking, moving, looking
3
Q
Define covert behaviour (with example)
A
Processes that are internal- cognitive/mental/emotional processes e.g. how we perceive, learn, remember, think, reason, feel etc
4
Q
What are the boundaries and borders of Psychology?
A
- Psych is a vast field with many disciplines all addressing questions about the mind and behaviour in different ways
- Shares some boundaries with related disciplines, including study of the biology of the brain, the biological boundary of Psychology, known as biopsychology or behavioural neuroscience
5
Q
Discuss Wilhelm Wundt
A
- Physiologist who established psych as separate discipline
- “Father of Psychology”- first established Psych research lab in Leipzig, Germany, 1879
- Established first journal publishing psych research 1881
- Defined psych as scientific study of conscious experience
- Investigated topics such as vision, touch, hearing, attention and emotion, using method called introspection
6
Q
Discuss Edward Titchener
A
- Took Wundt’s ideas to the USA
- Advocated using introspection to examine consciousness structure
- Identifying basic elements and their relationship- sensations, feelings and emotions
- Criticism
- Reductionist
- Elemental
- Reliance on verbal reports
7
Q
Discuss William James
A
- Proponent of functionalism
- Asked “what is the purpose of consciousness?”- how do people adapt their behaviour to the demands of demands of the environment?
- More practical (or applied) slant
- Topics investigated:
- Patterns of development during childhood
- Effectiveness of educational practices
- Behavioural differences between males and females
8
Q
How can Psychology be approached?
A
- Psychology lacks a unified paradigm, but has a number of schools of thought or “isms”
- Any psychological issue can be approached using a number of perspective
9
Q
Define paradigm
A
A broad system of the assumptions employed by the scientific community
10
Q
Define introspection
A
The first systematic approach, focused on subjective experiences. Analyses basic elements of consciousness
11
Q
Give limitations of introspection
A
- Subjectivity
- Inaccessibility of unconscious process
- Limited scope
- Social desirability bias
- Inability to generalise
12
Q
List the 5 perspectives in Psychology
A
- Psychodynamic approach
- Behaviourism
- Humanistic perspective
- Cognitive perspective
- Evolutionary perspective
13
Q
Outline the Psychodynamic approach
A
- Focuses on the unconscious
- Attempts to explain personality, motivation and mental disorders in terms of unconscious determinants
- We are not masters of our own minds, but at the mercy of the unconscious, especially sexual urges
14
Q
Outline the 3 key premises of the psychodynamic approach
A
- People’s actions are determined by the way thoughts, feelings and wishes are connected in their minds
- Many mental events occur outside of conscious awareness
- Mental processes may conflict with each other
15
Q
What sources of evidence are used to support the psychodynamic approach?
A
- Case studies of patients
- Reflection on Freud’s own anxieties, conflicts and desires
16
Q
Outline behaviourism
A
- J.B. Watson
- Psych should study only observable behaviours
- Abandoned study of consciousness
- Mental processes:
- are private events
- not a proper subject of scientific inquiry
- cannot be verified
- Strong emphasis on environment, experience (nurture) and argued we are controlled by environmental factors
- Dominant in 1950s and 60s
17
Q
How was psych defined in behaviourism and how is behaviour defined?
A
- Psych redefined as science of behaviour
- Behaviour- any overt response or activity by an organism
18
Q
How was behaviour studied in the behaviourism approach and how was this beneficial?
A
- Focus on learning- changes in behaviour based on experience
- Lab based research involving non human animals increased
- Greater experimental control possible
- “Humans and animals are mechanistic”
- We show reflexive responses elicited by external stimuli
19
Q
Outline the humanistic approach
A
- Objected to claim that people have no control over their destinies
- Argued other approaches were dehumanising, failing to recognise unique qualities of human behaviour
- More optimistic
- emphasises humans’ unique qualities
- human behaviour governed primarily by each individual’s “sense of self” (self concept) and human drive toward self-actualisation
20
Q
How was the humanistic approach studies?
A
- Animal research has little relevance to human behaviour
- “Life is like a bottle of milk- the cream always rises to the top”
- People are innately good and will strive to realise goals and ambitions
- Person centred perspective- new treatments created
21
Q
Outline the cognitive perspective
A
- Cognitive revolution- renewed interest in consciousness and physiological bases of behaviour
- “The mind is like a computer; enduring patterns of thought are like software”
- Inputs from environment are transformed, stored and retrieved using mental programs leading to specific response outputs
- The mind is likened to the brain itself
- A concept (e.g. a bird) conceived as a network of activated cells
22
Q
List contributing factors to the cognitive perspective
A
- Cognitive development (Piaget)
- Memory (Miller)
- Language (Chomsky)
- Problem solving (Newell, Shaw and Simon)
23
Q
What is the assumption of the cognitive perspective?
A
We must study internal mental events in order to understand behaviour
24
Q
Define cognition
A
Mental processes involved in perceiving, processing and retrieving information
25
What processes does the cognitive perspective include?
* Memory
* Concept formation
* Reasoning
* Problem solving
* Decision making
* Language
* Abstract thought
26
Outline the evolutionary perspective
* Human behaviours evolved because they helped our ancestors survive and reproduce
* Some behaviours are biologically determined
* Charles Darwin's theory of evolution is applied to human behaviours- natural selection, adaptive traits, reproductive success
* "We are all runners in a race, competing for resources"
* Often start with a known behaviour in a species then attempt to explain it on the basis of evolutionary principles
27
What patterns of behaviour (4) are products of evolution?
* Mating preferences (jealousy)
* Aggression (sexual behaviour)
* Language (decision making)
* Sex differences in spatial abilities
28
How was evolutionary theory used?
* More recently- to make predictions about behaviours, which are then tested in experiments
* Was used to predict the extent to which grandparents invest in their grandchildren
* Paternity uncertainty (is this offspring really mine?)
- Females always certain- more resources invested
- Males never totally certain
- Extends to grandparents (mother's mother highest, mother's father and father's mother intermediate, father's father lowest)
- Prediction: maternal grandmothers will invest the most
