Class notes
Introduction to the study of Psychology
- Institution
- University Of Cape Town (UCT)
- Book
- Psychology
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Psychology = the scientic study of behaviour (overt) and mental processes (covert)Goals of Psychology:
Description (what is happening where, to whom?), Explaonation (why?), Prediction (when will it
happen again?), Ciontril (how can it be changed?).
Not all investgatons try to meet all four of these goals.
2 forms of research:
1. Basic Research
Knowledge-driven research
Example: memory test
2. Applied Research
Problem-focused research
Example: new study method
Wundt
Psychological practse started in diferent places around the world.
Wundt created frrt rych lab in 1879, Germany. Known as the ‘father
of psych.’
Wundt believed that conrciournerr could be broken down into
various basic elements such as thoughts, experiences and emotons.
Objective intror ection: students were taught to think objectvely
about and measure their own thoughts and mental actvites.
Wundt was the irst to atempt to bring objectivity and meearuremeent
to the concept of psych.
Titchener & Structuralism
Englishman. Was once Wundt’s student. Eventually took hir idear to New York.
Expanded on Wundt’s original ideas, and called his viewpoint Structuralirme because the focus was
the structure of the mind.
He believed that every experience could be broken down into individual emotons and sensatons,
and that objectve introspecton could be used on thoughtr ar well ar hyrical renrationr.
, Structuralism was a dominant force in the early days of psych, but it eventually died out in the early
1900r as structuralists were arguing over which key element of experience was the most important.
A competng view arose shortly afer Wundt’s laboratory, shortly before structuralism came to the
USA.
William James & Functionalism
First Psychology professor (Harvard)
First taught anatomy and physiology
Drew inspiraton from Darwin’s ‘survival of the itest’
Believed that fuonctions of consciousness are more important than its
structure.
Was more interested in the impirtaonce if cionsciiusoness ion everyday life
as opposed to the analysis of consciousness (Wundt + Titchener).
He believed the scientic study of consciousness was not yet possible.
Focused on how the mind allows people to fuonction in the real world (how
they work, play, and adapt). This viewpoint = functonalism.
Nit a majir viewpiiont ion psych tiday, but one can ind elements of functonalism in educatonal
psych and organisatonal psych, as well as other areas.
Also played a part in development of a more modern perspectve: evolutonary psychology.
Role of Psych. In political life of SA – not for test
Psych as a discipline only had a presence in SA in the end of the 19 th century.
First helped entrench racial segregaton, and then supported the new democratc SA.
RW Wilcocks established irst experimental psych lab in Stellenbosch (late 19 th century, approx. 17
years afer Wundt’s lab)
Psych was initally taught in philosophy departments untl 1917, when they separated.
Wilcocks, Verwoed’s supervisor, recommended job reservaton and criminalised sexual relatons
between blacks and whites.
Joseph Wolpe and Arnold Lazarus (SA born scientsts) made substantal contributons to the
internatonal ield of Psych. During the 60’s (partcularly to ield of behaviourism) .
Wolpe: named and perfected the technique of systematc desensitzaton
Lazarus: irst psychologist to use desensitzaton techniques to treat phobias in group therapy
sessions. Expanded to and developed a form of psychotherapy known as multmodal therapy.
Community psych: focuses on social change and the transformaton of people who aren’t able to
help themselves. Conclusions are infuenced by many factors (economic, social, biological etc).
3 Influential approachest
- Gestalt Psychology
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