Introduction, History and Approaches

Contents:
1) 2) 3) 4) 5)

AP Exam overview About this Course Introduction to Psychology History of Psychology Modern Psychological Perspectives + Fields of Study

AP Psychology Exam Overview

Two hour exam, 2 sections First section: 70 minutes, 100 multiple choice questions. No guessing penalty

Second section: 50 minutes, 2 freeresponse questions. Must answer BOTH m/c = 2/3 of your score. f-r = 1/3

AP Psychology Exam Coverage

This course

Will help you by explaining the important concepts that are covered on the AP Psychology Exam, and giving you practice with exam questions.

Old Blog May be useful http://sghs-psych.blogspot.kr/

Attendance and Effort is very important.

This course

Psychology has a lot of information, a lot of terms.

We will use Barrons AP Psych. 5th Ed. But also many handouts and other resources.

You will have to do some studying outside of class.

Introduction to Psychology

Psychology - Scientific study of behaviour, mental states and processes Uses scientific methods to determine what we believe is right about psychology.

Introduction to Psychology

Applied Research vs. Basic Research

Not just common sense: E.g. Who falls in love faster, men or women? Why?

Not just studying mental disease or disorder.

History of Psychology

Can divide into Waves of dominant thought

Wave one: Introspection Wave two: Gestalt Wave three: Psychoanalysis Wave four: Behaviourism Wave five: Multiple Perspectives

Pre-Scientific Psychology

Humans have always thought about our own thoughts and behaviour Stone Age Trephination

Pre-Scientific Psychology

Many others have thought about the mind, thinking, and behaviour, over human history

E.g. Greek philosophers like Plato, etc.

Wave One: Introspection

However, these were before scientific Psychology.

Start of scientific psych often pegged to 1879 Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920) first psych lab in Leipzig Germany

Introspection

Wundt taught people to introspect, (look within) watching own thinking and recording their responses to simple stimuli Trying to examine simple thinking processes, divide thought and behaviour into different structures

Introspection

E.g. The subject would be presented with an object, such as a pencil. The subject would then report the characteristics of that pencil (color, length, etc.). The subject would be instructed not to report the name of the object (pencil) because that did not describe the raw data of what the subject was experiencing.

Introspection

Created theory of Structuralism structures in our minds combine emotions and objective sensations

Structuralism vs. Functionalism

Introspection

1890 William James (1842-1910) American Psychologist, wrote the first psych textbook Principles of Psychology Was a functionalist, looked at how structures function in our lives, how they can help us function

Introspection: Other Important Early Psychologists

G. Stanley Hall (1844-1924) started study of child development, was 1st president of American Psychological Association (APA) Mary Whiton Calkins (1863-1930) studied with James, later became APA president

Introspection: Other Important Early Psychologists

Margaret Floy Washburn (1871-1939) first woman to get a Ph.D. in Psychology

Introspective theories (structuralism, fuctionalism) were important in establishing psych as a science, But they dont really impact modern psychological thinking

Wave Two: Gestalt Psychology

Gestalt psych didnt want to divide thinking into structures. Instead tried to examine a persons TOTAL experience.

More than the sum of the parts.

Gestalt Psychology

Later, psych therapists used gestalt thinking to examine more than just the persons problem

Importance of the context of the problem, a lot of other information about the persons life.
Gestalt also doesnt touch modern psych thinking very much

Wave Three: Psychoanalysis

Who is the most famous psychologist you know? Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) Treated patients for psychosomatic (mind/body) troubles

Psychoanalysis

Claimed to have discovered the unconscious mind Part of our mind we cant control, and cant directly see/ experience, but that influences how we think and behave.

Psychoanalysis

Thought we pushed negative, anxiety causing memories, thoughts, feelings, etc down into our subconscious (repression)

To understand people, we need to try to understand peoples unconscious minds

Try to see unconscious using sneaky methods: dream analysis, word association, etc.

Psychoanalysis

Sometimes still used in psych. therapy, (but less these days) and in other areas like art. Some psychoanalytic vocab has come into everyday speech e.g. defense mechanism Freud criticized for being unscientific, for creating un-testable theories.

Wave Four: Behaviourism

Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936) Russian, dog behavioural studies

Early behaviourist John Watson (18781958) studied Pavlovs experiments. Thought that to be really scientific, psych needed to only look at observable behaviour

Behaviourism

Very opposite psychoanalysis (a reaction to it) Subconscious is very unobservable. Black box. Stimuli in, behaviour out.

Behaviourism

B.F. Skinner (1904-1990) - Another behavioural psychologist Added idea of reinforcement, something that happens to make behaviours more or less likely.

Punishments, rewards, etc

Behaviourism

Reaction against psychoanalysis Dominated psychology from 1920s to 1960s. Especially in the United States.

Wave Five: Multiple Perspectives

Now, no one way of thinking is dominant. Many views. Many psych. say they are eclectic, using many diff. perspectives to more accurately view the world. All persp. have limitations

Modern Psych- Seven Broad Pers:

1. Humanist Perspective: Partly reaction against perceived dehumanizing, deterministic behaviourism (seeing actors like machines) Importance of individual choice, free will, (not deterministic)

Humanist Perspective:

We choose most of our behaviours, and these choices are based on our needs (physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual) Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) and Carl Rogers (1902-1987) were humanist psychologists

Humanist Perspective:

Humanistic theories are also hard to test with scientific method, so sometimes viewed as less important to psychology But still commonly used in psychological therapy to help people with their problems.

2. Psychoanalytic Perspective:

Described above, unconscious mind, etc. Part of modern psychology, though it is very controversial.

3. Biopsychological Perspective:

(or Neuropsych / neuroscience) Explain behaviour and thought using biological processes. Effects of things like genes, hormones, neurotransmitters, brain structures, etc Rapidly growing perspective

4. Evolutionary Perspective:

Also called sociobiology or Darwinian uncommon Looks at evolution and natural selection processes,

Which psychological traits / behaviours are helpful for survival? Based on Charles Darwin (1809-1882) Theory of Natural Selection

5. Behaviourist Perspective:

Described previously Explain using conditioning, rewards, punishments, learning, And environmental influences that could cause these

6. Cognitive Perspective:

How do humans remember? Mentally process the world? Patterns, ways of thinking, interpretations of the world,

Also interested in how our minds and thinking develops over time as we age Jean Piaget (1896-1980) Swiss psych. Cognitive Development

7. Social-Cultural Perspective:

Interested in variation across cultures. How environment, social factors, and culture influences thoughts and behaviours

Common cultural practices / norms, sex + gender influences, etc.

Other Divisions in Psych:

Developmental Psych changes over peoples lives Educational Psych learning, teacher + student behaviour, teach. methods etc. Ciminal / Forensic Psych related to crime, criminal justice system, etc. Abnormal Psych abnormal behaviour and thinking that causes problems Clinical or Counseling Psych helping people with their problems.

Other Divisions in Psych:

Personality Psych looks at individual differences in peoples mental makeup Industrial/organizational workplace psychology Consumer Psych, Health Psych, Sports Psych, Social Psych, and more.

Jobs in Psych

And there are more divisions within psychologists.

Good to note difference between Applied and Academic work Applied Psych counseling, psychiatry, Academic Psych research, teaching

Psychologist vs. Psychiatrist Psychiatrist is a M.D., can prescribe medication