Wilhelm Wundt Flashcards
Who was Wundt considered as?
Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920) is generally considered the father of experimental psychology.
What where Wundt’s contributions to psychology?
- Wrote the first textbook of psychology (Principles of Physiological Psychology, 1873)
- Set up the first laboratory of experimental psychology (1879)
- Used the scientific method to study the structure of sensation and perception
- Showed that introspection could be used to study mental states in replicable laboratory experiments.
What did Wundt mainly study?
He mainly studied sensations and feelings by employing experimental methods.
What is structuralism?
Attempt to understand the structure of the mind
What is introspection?
A process by which someone examines their own conscious experience as objectively as possible.
What is one strength of Wundt’s work?
Example PEEL
Some of Wundt’s methods were scientific, i.e. systematic and well-controlled.
For example, his introspections were recorded in a controlled lab environment and followed standardised procedures.
This is a strength because his work paved the way for later controlled research, e.g. in the behaviourist approach, and the study of mental processes e.g. by cognitive psychologists.
What is one limitation of Wundt’s work?
Example PEEL
Some aspects of Wundt’s methods would be considered unscientific today.
For example, his introspections relied on participants self-reporting their mental processes, which is subjective (influenced by personal perspectives).
This is a weakness because it suggests that some of Wundt’s early efforts to study the mind were flawed and would not meet today’s criteria of scientific enquiry – it would be difficult to establish ‘laws of behaviour’.
