Approaches to the History of Psychology Ψ = Psychology “Psychology has a long past, but a short history.”

Approaches to the History of Psychology Role of Philosophy: -Psychology wanted to take philosophical issues and study them in a scientific way. Example: the concept of the mind Epistemology- how do we know / understand human nature Metacognition- thinking about thinking

Approaches to the History of Psychology “Great Person Theory”: -focusing on the achievements and contributions from individuals - Looking at the history of Ψ in terms of great discoveries

Approaches to the History of Psychology Schools of Thought: - Groups of Psychologists who became associated ideologically, work on a common problem or share theories.

Approaches to the History of Psychology Naturalistic: - The conditions were right in society of this change (from philosophy to science) to occur. Zeitgeist- “spirit of the times” - The spirit or intellectual climate of the times.

Approaches to the History of Psychology What is Psychology? Def. – The scientific study of behavior and mental processes. The text states:“ Psychologists seek to explain how we perceive, learn, remember, solve problems, communicate, feel and relate to other people, from birth to death, in intimate relationships and groups. They attempt to understand, measure, and explain the nature of intelligence, motivation and personality, as well as individual and group differences. Some focus on mental and emotional disturbances, personal & social problems, psychotherapy, or improving group morale & intergroup relations.”

Approaches to the History of Psychology The Fields of Psychology -You are going to broken into small groups to summarize an assigned field of Psychology from the text book. -Please just provide the key ideas to your classmates. You need your information organized for class tomorrow- be prepared to share with the other groups.