Psychology
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Part I foundations for the study of psychology
Chapter 1: background to the study psychology
Psychology is the science of behavior and the mind
Individuals sensations, perceptions, memories, dreams ...
Observable actions of a person or an animal
attempts to answer questions through systematic collection and logical analysis of objectively observable data
Three fundamental ideas for psychology: A historical overview
Founding of psychology → 1879 Wilhelm Wundt in Germany
Ideas: 1. Behavior and mental experiences have physical causes that can be studied scientifically
2. The way people behave, think, and feel is modified overtime by their experiences in their environment.
3. The body's machinery, which produces behavior and mental experiences, is a product of evolution by natural selection.
1.1. The idea of physical causation of behavior.
Dualism: human body = material body + immaterial soul
Natural law Own free will
1.1.1. Descartes' version of dualism: focus on the body. (1596 - 1650) Still focus on the body
One essential ability that humans have but animals don't is thought Conscious deliberation and judgement
Complex behaviors = mechanical means. No involvement of the soul. Later seen as reflexes as eating, drinking, sleeping... Pure mechanically
Soul acts on the body at a particular physical location: a small organ between the two hemispheres of the brain
→ role of sense organs → nerves → muscles
Limitations: as a philosophy: how can a nonmaterial entity have a material effect or how can the body follow natural law as the soul does not
as a psychology: Strict limits on what can and cannot be understood scientifically
1.1.2. Thomas Hobbes and the philosophy of materialism (1588 - 1679)
Leviathan → soul = meaningless concept, nothing exists but matter and energy = materialism
Conscious thought = product of the brain's machinery → subject to natural law
Body + brain = machine → promote physiology
Increased understanding of reflexes Carry messages into the central nervous system from the skin's sensory
François Magendie: nerves entering spinal cord contain two different pathways
Carry messages out to operate muscles
, Suggestion that all human behavior occurs through reflexes → stimulated by nature.
Stimuli → sensory receptors → chain of events in the nervous system → muscle movement → action
The concept of localization of function in the Brain.
Specific parts of the brain → specific functions Injury to a specific area = lose ability to speak but don't lose other mental abilities.
1.2 The idea that the mind and behavior are shaped by experience
Empiricism = idea that human knowledge and thought derive ultimately from sensory experience
John Locke (1632 - 1704) A child's mind is a blank slate → experience fills this slate
"Human nature is the ability to adapt one's behavior to the demands of the environment."
1.2.1. The empiricist concept of association by contiguity
Thoughts ≠ free will but reflections of a person's experience in the physical and social environment.
Law of association by contiguity by Aristotle One event + other event = associated in the mind → thought of one event will elicit the thought of the other
Example: bite in apple = taste, texture, color,
Closeness in space or time sound of "apple", so later if you encounter "red"
you think automatically of apple.
John Stuart hill (1843 - 1875) = mental chemistry
1.2.2. The nativist response to empiricism
Empiricism >< nativism Nativism = most basic forms of human knowledge are inborn ≠ experience
A priori: built into the human brain and does not have to be learned
Immanuel Kant (1724 - 1804) A posteriori: gains from experience
Without a priori you don't have a posteriori Example: learning a language
1.3. The idea that the machinery of behavior and mind evolved through natural selection
1.3.1. Natural selection and the analysis of the functions of behavior
Charles Darwin (1809-1882): living things evolve gradually by a process of natural selection
Tendencies to behave in ways to promote their survival and reproduction.
Physiologist → neural mechanisms of behavior Empiricist → lawful relationship between behavior and environment Darwin → functions of behavior to help survive and
reproduce
Darwin's ideas to psychology
Darwin = first evolutionary psychologist → evolutionary thinking can contribute to scientific understanding of human behavior
Basic forms of human emotions are inherited → came gradually because they promoted survival and reproduction
Natural selection = scientific foundation for nativist views of the mind.
,The scope of psychology
Prior Influence of
Brain Genes experiences Age-related
other people
1.4. Varieties of explanations in psychology and their application to sexual jealousy
Level of analysis = level/ type of causal process that is studied 9 levels : neural, physiological, genetic, evolutionary, learning, cognitive, social, cultural, developmental
Internal chemical Natural Knowledge Culture
Biological cluster Effects of experience and knowledge
functions (hormones) selection /beliefs
1.4.1. Explanations that focus on biological processes
Neural explanations→ all behaviors and mental experiences are products of the nervous system.
Behavioral neuroscience Specific brain areas became active when experiencing sexual jealousy.
Physiological explanations → Biopsychology: how do hormones and drugs act on the brain → e.g. Puberty hormones
Genetic explanations → differences in genes = differences in brain = differences in behavior and mental experiences.
Behavioral genetics
Evolutionary explanations → evolutionary psychology: how did species evolve in function of survival and reproduction
Jealousy promotes long-term mating bonds.
1.4.2. Explanations that focus on environmental experiences, knowledge, and development.
Learning explanations → Learning psychology = Behavioral psychology: human behavior can be influenced by past experiences. This can effect emotions, drives, habits...
4 Understand most efficient ways to learn new skills
Cognitive explanations → information in the mind = stored and activated by the workings of the brain
Thoughts, beliefs, memories = conscious, person is aware can describe it
= cognitive psychology → focus on the mind. Relate learning experiences directly to behavioral changes
Learning = change in environment → change in behavior
Cognitive = change in environment → change in knowledge/beliefs → change in behavior
Social explanations → behavior is strongly influenced by our perceptions of others
Social psychology: behavior = social pressure influences e.g. Social norms, obedience to authority, living up to others' expectations
= social cognition: beliefs about others influences what a person does.
Cultural explanations → general customs and beliefs of a social group
Immediate social influences (conformity and obedience)
Cultural psychology: differs from social psychology in emphasis.
Entire cultures in typical ways that people within them feel, think, act... (History, economy, religion...)
Developmental explanations → age-related
Developmental psychology: processes to look at age-related changes (physical maturation of the body etc.)
Brings all the other levels together → how experiences at any given stage of development can influence behavior at later stages
1.4.3. Levels of analysis are complementary
Combined levels give us a complete picture of important aspects of psychology
,1.5. A comment on psychological specialities
Psychology research on 9 different levels of analysis
Also topic related psychology e.g. Sensor, perceptual, motivation, emotion General ways of thinking, feeling and behaving => personality traits
Two major specialities for understanding individual differences. → personality psychology and abnormal psychology.
Extreme and disruptive traits => mental disorders
Leads to clinical psychology = helping people with mental disorders
1.6. Psychology connects with other scholarly fields
Spectrum of disciplines
Psychology is the study of all that people do.
1.7. Psychology as a profession
Academic departments in uni and colleges → basic research
Clinical settings → clients with psychological problems/disorders
Elementary and secondary schools → supervise programs for children with special needs
Business and government → conducting research, screening job candidates, work-related problems...
Chapter 2: Methods of psychology
Lessons from clever Hans
2.1. The mystery
Mr. Von Osten → horses are as intelligent as people Trained his horse → yes/no or tapping with hoof taps
Many scientist did research but conclusion that Hans was intelligent and could answer all the questions.
2.2. The solution Learned to respond on gestures instead of being as intelligent as humans.
Oskar Pfungst → Hans did not understand the questions, responds by visual signals produced by observer or questioner
Movements were subtle until pointed out. Head movements or body movements.
2.3. Observations, theories, and hypotheses.
Observation = objective statement that reasonable observers agree to be true e.g. Behaviors, reliable patterns..
Theory = an idea or conceptual model, that is designed to explain existing observations and make predictions about new observations.
Hypothesis = any prediction about a new observation that is made from a theory
Cycle of science = observations → theories → hypotheses → experiments → observations →...
