2. Psychology
What is it?
Simply put, it is the study of individuals’ thoughts, feelings, and behaviors
Seeks answers to questions about us
How we think, feel, and act
Do our feelings always match our behaviors?
If you call me stupid, I may feel sad inside.
But I will still act tough.

3. Remember!...it’s a Science
Systematic and scientific study:
Describe, observe, or gather information
Explain behavior
Hypothesis or Theory
Predict future behavior
Influence behavior
Example: the Weekend Effect

4. History of Psychology
Although the science of Psychology started in the late 1800’s, the concept has been around a lot longer.
There was evidence of trephination (cutting holes into a skull to let evil spirits out) back in the stone age.

5. Roots of Psychology Socrates and Plato (400 B.C) Aristotle (300 B.C.)
Dualism – mind and body are separate
Knowledge is innate
Aristotle (300 B.C.)
Student of Plato
Monism – mind and body are one
Knowledge grows from experience
Rene’ Descartes (1600s)
Link between body and mind
Importance of neural pathways
John Locke (1600s)
An Essay Concerning Human Understanding
Mind at birth is blank slate

6. Wilhelm Wundt
Performed first psychological experiments in first psychology laboratory at the University of Leipzig in Germany (c. 1879)

7. Waves of Psychology Different ways of thinking over time
The science of psychology has gone through about 5 different waves since it started

8. Wave One: Introspection
Edward Titchener (student of Wundt)
Introduced structuralism – aim to discover elements of the mind – “atoms of the mind”
Used introspection – looking inward
Self-reflective method – thinking about mental processes and then reporting them
Proved unreliable
William James (Functionalist)
Taught first psychology class at Harvard (1875)
Wrote The Principles of Psychology
1st Psyc textbook
Activities of thinking, feeling, learning, and remembering all serve one major function… survival
Applied Darwin’s evolutionary theory discussed functionalism.
In reality, these ideas do not have much impact on how psychologists think today

9. Structuralism vs. Functionalism Difficulties with structuralism led to rise of functionalism
“The psychology of the is”
What are the mental processes?
How do they operate?
“The psychology of the is-for”
Why do humans think, feel, and behave like they do?

10. Wave Two: Gestalt Psychology
“The whole is greater than the sum of all parts”
Gestalt = “whole pattern”
Led by Max Wertheimer, these guys focused not on how we feel, but on how we experience the world.
Think for a moment of all the reasons that you love your mom.
If you add all those reasons up, do they equal your love for your mom?
Hopefully not!!!
This may seem like one picture, but it can be perceived as 2 different faces. Can you find them?

11. Gestalt Psychology
PROXIMITY
CLOSURE

13. What do you see in the picture below?

15. Gestalt Activity
I NEED 10 VOLUNTEERS

17. NOW, WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU SAW
NOW LET’S TRY IT AGAIN WITH GROUP 2

19. WHICH GROUP WAS LIKELY ABLE TO RECALL MORE OF THE OBJECTS?

20. Wave Three: Psychoanalysis
Example:
How do unresolved conflicts from one’s childhood affect adult behavior
This wave of thinking started with Sigmund Freud (in the early 1900’s)
Components of the mind included an unconscious
Believed many such urges to be sexual or aggressive in nature
Used free response and dream analysis to reveal operational & unconscious processes

21. Over 40% of convicted serial killers suffered physical abuse as a child
Close to 75% suffered psychological abuse
Aileen Wuornos
Highway prostitute who would pick up men, shoot them, and rob them
Physically and sexually abused as a child

22. Psychoanalysis vs. Psychodynamic What’s the difference?
Relates to Freud’s theories
The original psychodynamic approach
Psychodynamic
Refers to Freud’s theories as well as his followers
Alfred Adler
Carl Jung
Erik Erikson

23. Wave Four: Behaviorism
During this time period (early to mid 1900s), people started to ignore how you feel inside
All that mattered was how you acted (behaved).
If psychologists could change your behavior, they can change the way you think.
Very popular during the conservative 1950’s when social appearance mattered more than self expression.

24. We are now in wave five, which is about variety
Wave Five: Eclectic
We are now in wave five, which is about variety
Psychologists pick and choose what theories to use depending on the situation and the client

25. Wave Five is made up of about 7 different perspectives.
In other words, psychologists today pick and choose from about 7 schools of thought. Thus we have: THE SEVEN SCHOOLS OF PSYCHOLOGY

26. Biopsychology (Neuroscience) Perspective
All of your feelings and behaviors have an organic root.
In other words, they come from your brain, body chemistry, neurotransmitters, etc…
Let us imagine for a second that your dog died (sad but it will happen).
You become depressed
You stop eating and drinking
What would a psychologist from this “school” of psychology say is going on?
How might they seek to help you?

27. Evolutionary Perspective
Focuses on Darwinism
We behave the way we do because we inherited those behaviors.
Thus, those behaviors must have helped ensure our ancestors survival.
Examples:
Language Acquisition
Phobias

28. Psychoanalytic Perspective
Focuses on the unconscious mind.
We repress many of our true feelings and are not aware of them.
In order to get “better”, we must bring forward the true feelings we have in our unconscious.
If a man has intimacy issues and cannot form relationships with others.
What do you think someone from this school may think?

29. Behavioral Perspective
Focuses on observable behaviors while putting feelings to the side
We behave in ways because we have been conditioned to do so
To change behaviors, we have to recondition the client.
Pretend that you fail psychology class. You become depressed. In turn, you begin to binge eat and gain weight.
What do you think a behaviorist may do?
They would probably ignore the fact that you are depressed and just focus on your overeating
Maybe make you run a mile every time you eat over 2000 calories

30. Behavior-Genetics Perspective How genes and environment influence our individual differences
(NATURE)
(NURTURE)
Think about some of your individual traits
Intelligence
Temperament
Personality
Which would you attribute to genetics (nature)?
Which would you attribute to experiences (nurture)?
Which could be attributed to both?

31. Humanist Perspective
Peaked in the late 1960’s and 70’s….so it focused on spirituality and free will
We have to strive to be the best we can be
“Self-actualization”
Happiness is defined by the distance between our “self-concept” and “ideal self”.
WIFI
Battery Life

32. Cognitive Perspective
Focuses on how we think (or encode information)
How do we see the world?
How did we learn to act sad or happy based on events?
Cognitive Therapist attempts to change the way you think.
She rejects you.
You meet a girl…
Hopes are high!!!
How do you react to the rejection?
Some think “What’s the use?” and give up and live a lonely life of solitude.
Some think “Get back up and try again.”

33. Social-Cultural Perspective
Says that much of your behavior and your feelings are dictated by the culture in which you live
Some cultures kiss each other when greeting, some just bow
Consider:
How do people of different genders and ethnicities interact with one another?

35. Psychiatry (Psychiatrists)
M.D. – Medical Doctor
Branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders
Practiced by physicians who sometimes use medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychotherapy

36. Clinical Psychologists
Ph.D. in Psychology
Study, assess, and treat people with psychological disorders without the use of medical interventions
Cognitive therapy
Behavioral therapy