1. Psychology 110 Crystal Ehresman Office: Room 530

2. Syllabus Participation 10% Assignment 15% (2 parts @ 7.5% each)
Quizzes 45% 15% each)
Final Exam 30%
Total = 100%

3. What Is Psychology? Chapter 1 Prepared by Cheryl Techentin, Ph.D.
These slides © 2013 Pearson Education Canada.

4. Chapter Outline Psychology, Pseudo-science & Popular Opinion
Thinking Critically and Creatively about Psychology
Psychology’s Present
What Psychologists Do

5. Psychology
The discipline concerned with behaviour and mental processes and how they are affected by an organism’s physical state, mental state, and external environment
Empirical
Evidence gathered by careful observation, experimentation, or measurement

6. Pop Psychology
left
right

7. Psychology, Pseudoscience, & Psychobabble
Can you distinguish between psychobabble and empirical psychology?
Psychobabble confirms unsupported popular opinion
Empirical approach makes use of research evidence and challenges opinion

8. Pseudoscience associates itself with true science
relies on and accepts anecdotal evidence

9. Pseudoscience ignores disproof (countering evidence)
a theory is not a good theory if it can never make specific predictions
dangerously reduces complexity to simplicity (to a consumer society)

10. Clues for a Pseudoscience
The use of psychobabble – words that sound scientific and professional but are used incorrectly, or in a misleading manner.
A substantial reliance on anecdotal evidence.
Extraordinary claims in the absence of extraordinary evidence.
Claims which cannot be proven false.
Claims that counter established scientific fact.
Absence of adequate peer review.
Claims that are repeated despite being refuted.

11. Psychology
Uses research and the scientific method to challenge popular opinions and things that are considered common sense…

12. Examples of Pseudoscience
Astrology - Belief that humans are affected by the position of celestial bodies

13. Examples of Pseudoscience
Mental Powers – ESP, mind reading, palm reading, crystal balls, tarot card reading
Conspiracy theories

14. Empirical Science
Peer review

16. Thinking Critically & Creatively
Critical thinking
The ability and willingness to assess claims and make objective judgments on the basis of well-supported reasons and evidence, rather than emotion or anecdote.
8 critical thinking guidelines

17. Critical Thinking Guidelines
Ask Questions: Be Willing to Wonder
- how, why
Define Your Terms
- Vague terms lead to incomplete answers

18. Critical Thinking Guidelines
3. Examine the Evidence
Check the facts available
Identifying bad sources
CRAP test (see hand-out)

19. Critical Thinking Guidelines
4. Analyze Assumptions and Biases
- assumptions are beliefs taken for granted
- biases occur when we ignore the alternatives despite evidence
Michael Zehaf-Bibeau

20. Critical Thinking Guidelines
Avoid Emotional Reasoning
- Emotional conviction alone cannot settle arguments
Don’t Oversimplify
- Argument by anecdote – generalizing to everyone based on personal experience or a few examples

21. Critical Thinking Guidelines
7. Consider Other Interpretations
- Consider many explanations

22. 7. Consider other interpretations
People who floss regularly live longer
More crime occurs at lower elevation in San Fransisco than at higher elevation.
Junkscience.org

23. Critical Thinking Guidelines
8. Tolerate Uncertainty
- Realize not everything has an answer…yet 8

24. Critical Thinking 1. Ask questions; be willing to wonder.
2. Define the problem.
3. Examine the evidence.
4. Analyze assumptions and biases.
5. Avoid emotional reasoning
6. Don’t use either/or thinking or overgeneralize
7. Consider other interpretations
8. Tolerate uncertainty.

25. Psychology’s Present Major Psychological Perspectives:
Biological perspective
Learning perspective
Cognitive perspective
Socio-cultural perspective
Psychodynamic perspective

26. Biological Perspective
Approach that emphasizes how bodily events affect behaviour, feelings, and thoughts
This perspective involves:
Hormones
Brain chemistry
Heredity/genetics
Evolutionary psychology
How past adaptive behaviours are reflected in present behaviours

27. Learning Perspective
Approach that is concerned with how the environment and experience affect a person’s (or animal’s) actions
This perspective involves:
Behaviourism: how environmental rewards and punishments influences behaviour
Social-cognitive learning theories: combine elements of behaviourism with thoughts, values, expectations, and intentions.

28. Cognitive Perspective
Approach that emphasizes mental processes in perception, memory, language, problem solving, and reasoning

29. Socio-cultural Perspective
Approach that emphasizes social and cultural influences on behaviour
This perspective involves:
Social psychology – study of rules, roles, groups, and relationships
Cultural psychology – study of cultural norms, values, and expectations

30. Psychodynamic Perspective
Sigmund Freud
4 minutes 50 seconds

31. Psychodynamic Perspective
Approach that emphasizes unconscious dynamics within the individual, such as inner forces, conflicts, or instinctual energy
This perspective involves:
Unconscious thoughts, desires, conflicts
Connected to all other areas of psychology, but distinct in its language, methods, and standards of evidence

32. How do you become a Psychologist?
Undergraduate Degree – psychology or related field, with an Honours thesis, art or science
Master’s Degree – approximately 2 years, funding available and paid some
PhD – approximately 4 years, funding available and paid some (now you are a psychologist!)
Post-doctoral placements – funding available and paid $

33. What Psychologists Do
Three categories of professional activities for psychologists:
Teaching and doing research in colleges and universities
Providing health or mental-health services
(psychological practice)
Conducting applied research for non- academic settings
(business, sports, government, law, and military)

34. Psychological Practice
Counselling psychologists: help with everyday problems
School psychologists: work with students, parents & teachers to enhance performance and resolve emotional difficulties
Clinical psychologists: diagnose, treat, & study mental and emotional problems

35. Clinical Psychologists are NOT:
Psychotherapists
Anyone who does any kind of psychotherapy
Psychoanalysts
Individuals who have trained in and practice psychoanalysis
Psychiatrists
Medical doctors who diagnose and treat mental disorders
Psychotherapist – term is not regulated
Psychoanalyst – requires special training at a psychoanalytic institute, one inToronto

36. End of Chapter 1