The Scope of Psychology Historical Background

The Psychological Century Psychology touches us all, and yet there are many misconceptions “Psychologist” doesn’t just mean “clinician” 42% APA 11% APS Assignment: Visit these sites

How old is the discipline of Psychology? What is your best guess? As old as the existence of humankind? 400 years? 100 years?

What factors led to the development of Psychology? Shifts from External to Internal explanations for behavior The Age of Reason The Scientific Revolution The Plague

Paradigm Shift Science of “behavior and mental processes”, with both being measurable Our behavior is part of the natural world Natural laws could govern behavior as they do other “forces of nature” Our mental experience is just a “model of reality”

Changing values – the 19 th Century Openness to change Challenges to authority (church, academics, etc.) Art, music, etc.

Industrial Revolution Faith in technology Logic + technology=understanding the mind? Weber and Fechner – psychophysics Wundt and the “atomic elements” of the Mind Shift away from “Mind” to technology of behavior (John Watson)

So what is Psychology today? A richly diverse discipline Includes a wide variety of applications A field few people leave BUT... Public opinion has been slow to change – treating mental disorders (clinical psychology) is the popular perception Didn’t begin with Freud and psychotherapy

The American connection A strong focus on the application of research A tendency to emphasize: Practicality Making money Laboratory vs. Field research Balance between control and applicability

Pure vs. Applied A real “pecking order” problem! Example: Hugo Munsterberg and Harvard University “scholarly” studies not for public consumption – often misunderstood Ex. Planaria and Skinner boxes

Why didn’t Applied Psychologists give up? Employment options were expanding Business and industry, schools, mental health clinics, etc. sometimes offered better-paying options than the traditional academic settings Opportunities were available for women that were unavailable in academia

Many problems remained... Applying psychology – “intellectual prostitution”? American Psychological Association didn’t want the “riff raff” so required: Ph.D. Publication in two “respectable” journals

Eventually, the riff raff took over! By 1924, America was suffering from “an outbreak of psychology” Why? Mobility of society Changing values (e.g. desire for fulfillment) Interest in child rearing Compulsory education Businesses wanted ability assessments Military wanted to match people with tasks, etc.

Growth in Applied Psychology Its own respectable publication: The Journal of Applied Psychology An increase in concern about the importance of values of psychology (just because you CAN do something doesn’t mean it is the moral thing to do Ethics has become an important focus, with APA publishing guidelines