Goals of Psychology

Module One introduces the field of psychology. Information in Module One includes the definition of psychology and the goals of psychologists--essentially, the questions they seek to answer about human behavior. These goals (questions) are the same goals (questions) that all scientists have--describe, explain, predict, and control.

Research Methods The ways that psychologists answer these questions is through specific research methods. These methods include:

Naturalistic observation Case study Survey Correlational Experimental.

Some methods are better than others at answering specific questions. The trick is picking the right method to answer the specific question the psychologist is asking. Each of these research methods has weaknesses causing the answers they provide to be potentially flawed and limited. It is important to know these weaknesses because it makes you a better consumer of the research findings that are so often sensationalized in the media.

Research Ethics There is one last concern about research--ethics. Unfortunately or fortunately, however you may see it, there are some things we cannot do to humans or animals in the name of science. We have to leave the person no worse off than before the research. We have to do everything possible to minimize any pain or discomfort that may befall the subject during the research procedures. If euthanasia is called for, it must be the quickest, most painless method possible--were talking about animals here! We also have to get the persons consent to participate in research. That can be a problem if the hypothesis (educated guess) requires deception. Deception is allowed under certain circumstances.

Historical Perspectives Psychology has considered itself a science for a long time. A discipline is considered a "science" if it employs the scientific method to answer the questions it seeks to answer. Taking a look back in history, there are several changes that the field of psychology has experienced. Structuralism studies the most basic elements, sensations we experience and perceptions we have about those sensations. It sees our conscious mind as a jigsaw puzzle, combining all the little sensations into a integrated conscious experience. Introspection was the method used to examine every little sensation and perception the person experiences.

Wilhelm Wundt established the first psychology laboratory in 1879 for just this purpose. Another founding theory in psychology is functionalism, which believes our mental activities have developed through evolution because they have adaptive functions hence "functionalism." Gestalt theory says that perception is "more than the sum of its parts" and believes that sensations are combined to lead to a totally new, unique combined result. Structuralism was interested in breaking down our experiences and mental life into its parts to learn about the behavior while Gestalt believed the end product was different

than the sum of the parts. These theories lost favor, however, and more modern theories took their place.

Modern Theories Currently, there are six major theoretical perspectives in the field of psychology.

Learning theory states the only thing worth studying in psychology is the behavior we can see and quantify. These behaviors are learned through life experiences. Cognitive theory states the covert thinking processes are the cause of all our behaviors. We think depressed thoughts, so we feel depressed and act depressed -- thoughts come first. Psychodynamic theory focuses on childhood experiences and the unconscious, commonly (incorrectly) called the subconscious. We are unaware of the impulses, desires, and urges that reside in our unconscious, yet this is the cause of all of our behavior. Most students find this theory fascinating. Humanistic-existential theory thought the psychodynamic theory portrayed a negative view of peoples motives. It proposed that we are striving to be the best we can be, to

reach our fullest potential as humans, and to seek out the reason for our existence. You can probably think of examples of people who have had bad experiences in life that could have caused them to end up in jail, but they actually turned out to be very high-functioning people with a great concern for others. Sociocultural perspective looks to explain human behavior through examining the influences of society and culture. Pluck us at birth and place us in another country, another culture, and we would be a totally different person.

Subfields of Psychology It is important to understand the difference between a psychologist and psychiatrist. Psychiatrists are medical doctors who prescribe medication as the form of treatment for psychological disorders; psychologists treat psychological disorders via therapy. The most common subfield of psychology--clinical and counseling--trains the person to be a therapist. Clinical psychology focuses on major mental disorders--disorders that severely disrupt a persons life, such as schizophrenia. Counseling psychology studies "minor mental disorders"--problems that are not as disruptive to someones life, such as adjusting to a divorce.

The other subfields of psychology do NOT train a person to be a therapist. These subfields focus on a specific interest in the area of psychology. Industrial/Organizational psychology studies workplace behavior--what motivates employees, what criteria to assess in the hiring process, etc. Educational psychology is interested in the academic process. Educational psychologists research teaching strategies, assessment methods, and classroom management issues to train educators and school administrators. School psychologists test children who have been identified through the school system as having difficulty in academic performance. They do a battery of tests, summarize the findings and report the results to the appropriate school personnel. Developmental psychologists study how we physically, cognitively and socially change as we age throughout our life. There are many more subfields of psychology with these being some of the more popular. Neurons Neurons are specialized cells making up the nervous system. The communicate using chemical neurotransmitters and electricity. There are more than 100 billion of them in the brain and they are structured somewhat like trees with the following parts:

Cell body (soma): Contains nucleus, which directs work of cell Dendrites: Perhaps hundreds, extend from cell body to receive messages from other neurons; multiply during maturation Axon: One per neuron, send messages to other neurons; get longer during maturation, may extend several feet in length, have several branches Terminals: Bulb-shaped ends of axons; deliver messages to other neurons Myelin: White, fatty tissue insulating many neurons in sausagelike segments. Speeds up the transmission of information and protects the axons that are used the most.

How does the neuron work? Information comes into the neuron through the dendrite. The dendrite sends the information to the soma (cell body). Inside and outside the soma is fluid with ions (tiny electrically charged particles) floating in it. The ions on the outside are mostly positive (+) and the ones inside are mainly negative (-). You know opposites attract so the ions are drawn to each other. There is a membrane around the soma to keep the ions apart. There are gates, however, which if opened could let the ions escape or come in. If the information that comes to the soma

from the dendrite is excitatory (excites it) then the gates on the soma membrane will open ---

Whoosh!!! This lets the + ions in and the - ions out. This is an electrical current. For a brief amount of time the ions have switched - the + are on the inside and - on the outside of the soma. The gate then quickly opens up again and the ions go back to their original home. This process of gates opening and closing (action potential) goes on all the way down the axon, through the axon branches and to the end bulbs. Here the electrical current stops. It causes something else to happen. In the end bulb are sacs called vesicles. These vesicles contain chemicals (neurotransmitters). These are the chemicals you hear so much about. The chemicals indicted in many psychological disorders -- depression, ADHD, alcoholism.

This is also where drugs (prescription or not) work. Anyway, when the electrical impulse reaches these vesicles, they are essentially "pushed" to the bottom of the end bulb where it fuses with the floor of the bulb. The bulb then opens up and allows the neurotransmitters to escape. They float across a liquid filled area (synapse) that exists between the end bulb of one neuron and the dendrite of the next neuron. The neurotransmitters are like keys in that they have their own

distinctive "shape". They float across the synapse looking for their "key hole" (receptor)on the dendrite of the next neuron. Once they find it, they lock in and if the neurotransmitters are the excitatory kind, the whole process begins again for the next neuron. If the neurotransmitters are inhibitory, that next neuron will not begin the process. It essentially stops the message. Some people (Parkinson's disease) may not have enough of the inhibitory neurotransmitter so that the message does not stop. Information passes dendrite, soma, axon, terminal branches, end bulbs, synapse, receptor site (then begins again). What is the nervous system? The nervous system is how the body communicates with itself and the outside world. It's the "information highway" for the body. Messages pass from the outside world into the body through sensory receptors in sense organs (skin, eyes, nose, etc). Those sensory receptors send messages to the spinal cord and brain (central nervous system) via the peripheral nervous system (PNS). The brain makes a decision about the information and sends this message along the PNS to muscles and glands to react to the stimulus. This occurs constantly throughout our bodies every second of every day of our lives.

Divisions and functions of the peripheral nervous system

The PNS is much larger a system than the CNS and is divided into two separate parts - the somatic nervous system (SNS) and the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS). The SNS controls voluntary muscles in our bodies. The ANS controls nonvoluntary (automatic) processes of the glands and muscles of internal organs (heartbeat, digestion, unconscious breathing, etc). It contains two divisions - Sympathetic and Parasympathetic. Sympathetic responds to a threat by increasing physiological arousal, while parasympathetic system calms you down, restoring homeostasis.

The divisions and functions of the central nervous system The two parts of the CNS are the spinal cord which is the neural link between brain and peripheral nervous system and the brain which is the central processing unit of entire nervous system except for spinal reflexes

How do researchers learn about the functions of the brain? Such an interesting question - actually interesting ANSWERS! There are several ways we learn about the brain:

Results of brain damage - we wait for unusual things to happen to people's brains (injuries, illnesses) and then study their brain. We can connect the damaged brain region to the alteration of physical or mental functions. Experimenting with lesioning and electrical stimulation of specific areas of brain. We intentionally destroy or excite specific areas of the brain and see what happens (we are talking about animals here!) Electroencephalograph (EEG): Attaching electrodes to scalp and recording natural brain wave activity during certain activities, such as sleep. This measures the electrical activity of those neurons mentioned above. Brain-imaging techniques: Computerized Axial Tomography (CAT); Positron Emission Tomography (PET); Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). These are various techniques that assess the structure and function of the brain.

The structures and functions of the brain The oldest part of the brain is collectively called the hindbrain which contains the medulla (controls vital reflexes such as coughing, blinking, also digestion, respiration, etc), pons (involved in the sleep-wake cycle), and cerebellum (balance,

coordination, tongue movements involved in speech production).

The midbrain located above the pons, connects the hindbrain with forebrain. It contains the reticular activating system (RAS) which alerts us to danger.

Finally the forebrain--the largest, newest, most complex of major structures, includes the thalamus (relay station), hypothalamus (important in motivation), limbic system ("emotional motherboard"), and the cerebrum (the wrinkled, convoluted part of the brain).

What would it mean to be "left-brained" or "right-brained"? The cerebrum is divided into two halves or hemispheres. It is believed that each hemisphere seems to have some "specialties". The left hemisphere functions include verbal ability, logic, and thinking. The right hemisphere functions include intuition, creativity, and emotionality. Most people have a balance between the functions of the two hemispheres and tend to integrate them. Endocrine System

The endocrine system is a series of ductless glands that secrete special chemicals called hormones into bloodstream for circulation in the body. Hormones are similar to neurotransmitters in that they have specific receptor sites and can act only in locations that have their particular receptors. Much hormonal action helps the body maintain steady states of such things as fluid levels, blood sugar levels, etc. It seeks to maintain homeostasis.

Why would psychologists care about the endocrine system? The hypothalamus, in the forebrain, is involved in many behaviors and mental processes, including the endocrine system, through its connections (neural and circulatory) with the pituitary gland, also known as the master gland. The pituitary gland is located directly below the hypothalamus, which controls much of its activity. This secretes hormones that stimulate milk production in women, and labor in pregnancy, for example. The pineal gland secretes melatonin, which primarily affects the sleep/wake cycle, fostering sleep when released. The thyroid gland can cause stunted growth, mental retardation, weight gain, excitability, insomnia or weight loss. These can mimic depression or anxiety symptoms. The adrenal glands are involved in the stress response. Finally, the testes and ovaries are of interest to psychologists because

they are involved in feminine and masculine physical and psychological traits