wundt + origins of psychology

Question 1

What was Wundt’s approach?

Answer 1

Structuralism: to study the structure of the human mind - by breaking down behaviour into their basic elements: thoughts, images and feelings

Question 2

What is introspection

Answer 2

the examination/observation of one’s own cognitive and emotional processes

Question 3

What was Wundt’s experiment?

Answer 3

• highly trained assistants were given a stimulus such as a ticking metronome and would reflect on the experience
• they would report what the stimulus made them think and feel

Question 4

What are strengths of Wundt’s experiment?

Answer 4

• showed that psychology could be a valid experimental science
• His lab based empirical methods elevated the status of psychology
• He did his research in carefully controlled conditions
• 1873 - published the first book on psychology
• 1879 - opened the first psychology laboratory in Germany

Question 5

What are weaknesses of Wundt’s experiment?

Answer 5

• Validity: introspection relies on non-observable responses - can’t be measured/experimented accurately –> not scientific
• ppts are unable to comment on unconscious thoughts that might be affecting them - they may be lying or unable to express thoughts and feelings
• Subjectivity: introspection is a subjective experience - makes data incomparable and the whole investigation subjective not objective which isn’t scientific –> can’t reproduce the result