Sociocultural Behavioral Psychoanalytic APPROACHES TO PSYCHOLOGY Humanistic Biological Cognitive

Psychology Psyche: mind Logos: Knowledge or study of Definition: The scientific study of human and animal behavior and mental processes

Behaviors Observable actions and responses Overt – can be directly observed Covert – cannot be directly observed

Personality An individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting. Trait Psychology Big 5 Traits – inherited/genetic (extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, openness to experience, emotional stability) Internal/External Locus of Control (learned helplessness) Temperments Reciprocal Determinism – traits, environment, and behavior all interact and influence each other

Types of Personalities Type A Type B Feel time pressure. Easily angered. Competitive and ambitious. Work hard and play hard. More prone to heart disease than rest of population. Relaxed and easygoing. But some people fit in neither type.

Goals of Psychology Describe behavior Explain/Understand behavior Predict behavior Influence/Control behavior During the process of trying to explain human behavior, psychologists create hypothesis and test them. A hypothesis is an educated guess. They use the knowledge gained to create theories that will help them predict and influence human behavior. Just like scientists, Psychologists use the scientific method of research Can you think of an example that illustrates each of the goals of psychology?

History of Psychology Phrenology – Examining bumps on the skull to determine intellect and character traits (19th century) Phrenology encouraged psychologists to study the role of the brain, rather than the heart, in human behavior. Past attempts at understanding human behavior (weird or not) have led to what we know today and shaped the current Approaches to Psychology

Wilhelm Wundt “Father of psychology” Started 1st lab to study humans (1879) Established Psychology as formal field of study Introspection – self observation, report thoughts and feelings Tichener – brought Wundt’s ideas to U.S. and renamed Structuralism Wundt would ask individuals to perform activities and then ask them to report their own sensations. Wundt took a scientific approach to human behavior, probably because of his background in the field of science. He wanted to break down the basic elements of human experience and try to understand each part.

William James “Father of MODERN Psychology” or “Father of Psychology in the U.S.” Principles in Psychology = 1st Psychology Textbook Influenced by Darwin Functionalism Principles of Psychology was the 1st Psychology textbook James taught the first psychology class at Harvard in 1875

Gestalt Psychology Led by Max Wertheimer, these guys focused not on how we feel, but on how we experience the world. The whole of an experience can be more than the sum of its parts. 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 3 different faces. Can you find them?

Contemporary Approaches to Psychology Psychoanalytic Behavioral Humanistic Cognitive Biological Sociocultural Phrenology encouraged psychologists to study the role of the brain, rather than the heart, in human behavior.

PSYCHOANALYTIC Key ideas childhood experiences unconscious forces Techniques: Free association Psychoanalysis (Dr. centered) Projection/Projective tests TAT Rorschach Ink Blot Dream analysis Sigmund Freud (1856 – 1939) Unconscious motivations are responsible for human behavior

Sigmund Freud Thanatos vs. Eros Conscious, Subconscious (preconscious), unconscious Iceberg analogy Ego, Superego, ID Libido Freudian Slips Penis envy Fixation

More Freud…. Psychosexual Stages of Personality Development Oral Anal Phallic Oedipus Complex Latent Genital

Defense Mechanism Repression Denial Displacement Projection Reaction formation Regression Rationalization Sublimation

Carl Jung Collective unconscious Archetypes Persona Trickster Hero Anima and animus

Erik Erikson Psychosocial stages of personality development

Other Neo-Freudians Alfred Adler Karen Horney Dominance/overcoming feelings of inferiority Birth order Karen Horney Love Felt Freud was sexist – womb envy

BEHAVIORAL John Watson (1878 – 1958) B.F. Skinner (1904 – 1990) Key ideas Observable Behavior Conditioning/Learning Prior experience (reward and punishment) John Watson (1878 – 1958) Behavior the result of conditioning – “We are what we learn to be” Little Albert experiments with Rosalie Raynor B.F. Skinner (1904 – 1990) Psychology must be tangible and scientific Operant Conditioning - Reinforcement

Behaviorism Continued Pavlov Classical Conditioning Bandura Social Learning Theory Modeling

HUMANISTIC Key ideas Self-directed (Client-Centered) Uniqueness Potential to develop Emphasis on “self-concept” Carl Rogers – Unconditional positive regard Abraham Maslow – Hierarchy of needs

Humanism continued… Abraham Maslow Hierarchy of needs

COGNITIVE Key ideas How we ….. Process, Store, Retrieve information Thought patterns Problem solving Behavior results from memories, expectations Modern approach is to join this with Behaviorism

BIOLOGICAL A.k.a. Behavioral neuroscience Key ideas How the brain, nervous system, hormones, genetics influence behavior

SOCIOCULTURAL Key ideas Cultural influence on behavior Gender Socioeconomic status Traditions

Evolutionary Psychology Stemmed from Darwin Survival of the fittest How does our behavior adapt to our environment and help ensure our survival?

Eclecticism By combining information from all of the approaches, psychologists stand a better chance of describing, explaining, predicting, and controlling behavior.

Psychology as a Profession Psychologist Observe, analyze, evaluate behavior Doctorate degree Psychiatrist Medical degree + training in psychiatric medicine Phrenology encouraged psychologists to study the role of the brain, rather than the heart, in human behavior.

Clinical Psychologist diagnoses and treats people with emotional disturbances Counseling Psychologist help people deal with problems of everyday life Developmental Psychologist Study changes that occur throughout life

Educational Psychologist helps students learn Industrial/Organizational Psychologist employed by businesses to boost production, improve working conditions, make the workplace a more satisfying environment

Research v. Applied Psychology Research Psychologists – study origins, causes, results of behavior Applied Psychologists – make direct use of the findings of research psychologist; deal directly with clients