Answer the following: What is behavior??

Introduction to Psychology

Objectives Describe what psychology is What psychologists do The main types of psychology Explain why the psychology of the past is important today, particularly the work of key pioneers

Compare the seven different contemporary approaches to psychology

Gain a better understanding of your own behavior Why study psychology? Gain a better understanding of your own behavior own identities thinking process actions

Definition Psychology is the study of behavior and mental processes. Covers everything people think, feel, and do. Many different approaches are necessary to understand the complex richness of human behavior.

Scientific Method Reach conclusions by identifying a specific problem or question Formulate a hypothesis Collect data through observation and experiment Analyze the data Hypothesis –educated guess

What do Psychologists do? Conduct research Promote physical and mental health Help people learn Work in the community Contribute to the work environment 1. Gather information about the behavior being studied and present what is known. 3. seek to explain why people or animals behave as they do.

Types of Psychology Basic research- conduct studies with a long-term goal to find out more about human and animal behavior Applied psychology- discovering ways to use what we already know about people to benefit others. Applied psychology tries to solve a problem and basic researchers try to understand and explain the situation. See page 5

Key people Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920) Started his Laboratory of Psychology. Developed self-observation called introspection – looking inside oneself and describing what is going on Voluntarism-free will, choice and purpose. Newer science – the study of behavior began with the ancient Greek Philosophers in the 5th and 6th centuries BC, they began to study human behavior and decided that people’s lives were dominated not so much by the gods as by their own minds: people were rational Early philosophers attempted to interpret the world they observed around them in terms of human perceptions- objects were hot or cold, wet or dry. And these qualities influenced people’s experience of them. Greek philosophers set the stage for the development of sciences.

William James-(1842-1910) all activities of the mind (feeling, learning, remembering) serve one main function, to help us survive as a species. Functionalism- how the mind functions. Pragmatism- if an idea works, it is valid or useful Rather than focusing on the structure of the mind as Wundt did, James focused on the functions of the conscious mind and the goals of functions of behaviors

B.F. Skinner (1904-1990) Concept of reinforcement Rewarded for performing an action More likely to perform that action again in the future. People learn in the same way animals.

Kenneth B. Clark Examined the negative effects of segregation on the self-esteem of African-American children. Contributed to psychology’s diversity. Examined quality of education and problems of juvenile delinquency and crime. Researched effects of discrimination.

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) Psychoanalysis- analyzes information contained in the unconscious mind. Free Association Interested in the unconscious mind (1856-1939) He believed that our conscious experiences are only the tip of the iceberg, that beneath the surface are primitive biological urges that are in conflict with the requirements of society and morality. These unconscious motivations and conflicts are responsible for most human behavior. He thought that they were responsible for most human behavior and responsible for many medically unexplainable physical symptoms that troubled his patients. Used free association --- a patient said everything that came to mind- no matter how absurd or irrelevant it seemed- without attempting to produce logical or meaningful statements. He also developed dream analysis

John B. Watson (1878-1958) Behaviorist- investigates observable behavior All behavior is the result of conditioning and occurs because the appropriate stimulus is present in the environment

Albert Bandura His social learning theory stressed the importance of observational learning, imitation, and modeling. "Learning would be exceedingly laborious, not to mention hazardous, if people had to rely solely on the effects of their own actions to inform them what to do," Bandura explained in his 1977 book Social Learning Theory

Erik Erikson's stage theory of psychosocial development helped create interest and research on human development through the lifespan. He expanded psychoanalytic theory by exploring development throughout the life, including events of childhood, adulthood, and old age.

Ivan Pavlov was a Russian physiologist whose research on conditioned reflexes influenced the rise of behaviorism in psychology. Pavlov's experimental methods helped move psychology away from introspection and subjective assessments to objective measurement of behavior.

Carl Rogers placed emphasis on human potential, which had an enormous influence on both psychology and education. He became one of the major humanist thinkers

Do Now: Riddle “I believe that people learn in the same way animals do. Who am I? Create a series of riddles about each of the individuals described in the section.

Contemporary perspectives. Biological Approach- emphasizes the influence of biology on behavior-our thoughts, fantasies and dreams are made possible by the brain Learning Perspective- emphasizes the effects of experience on behavior.

Psychodynamic Approach-Focuses on the way unconscious forces, conflicts, or instincts influence behavior. Biopsychosocial perspective- mental processes are influenced y the interaction of biological processes, psychological dispositions and social factors.

Evolutionary Approach- parts of the mind are evolutionary adaptations arising through natural selection. Humanistic Approach-we all have the potential to become fulfilled and effective people

Cognitive Approach Higher processes studied Thinking, intelligence, problem solving, reasoning, and creativity.

Sociocultural Approach- how behavior is influenced by the social groups we belong to or by the culture in which we live.