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60 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Some timeline perspective... |
Time (Not to scale...) 1859. Darwin publishes On the Origin of the Species 1875. Wundt founds field of Psychology with first textbook 1892. Titchener heads to Cornell to form Structuralism 1896. Dewey’s reflex arc begins Functionalist movement 1904. Pavlov wins Nobel Prize in physiology 1920. Watson runs famous Little Albert study |
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Setting the stage for behaviorism |
– Academic psychology included diverse methodologies, including introspection, reaction time, clinical methods, and animal psychology – Spread of applied psychology |
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A revolution was coming thanks to this man |
John Watson (1878-1958) A strong leader drew from existing ideas: • Philosophical ideas of objectivism, mechanism • Comte’s positivism (The doctrine that recognizes only natural phenomena or facts that are objectively observable) • Ideas of Darwinism and animal psychology He promoted scientific psychology that only considered stimulus and response... especially wanted to reject consciousness! |
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Back story: Clever Hans (Berlin, early 1900s) |
• Owner William von Osten had the goal of proving Darwin’s idea that animals and humans were similar • Horse known world-wide for his ability to do math, spell, recognize objects • Shown off in public performances, hired for advertising |
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Increasing objectivism about animal psych leads to doubt... was Clever Hans really so clever? |
German government decided to form a committee to investigate Clever Hans This included a circus manager, a veterinarian, horse trainers, an aristocrat, the director of the Berlin Zoo, and psychologist Carl Strumpf from University of Berlin They decided he was not receiving intentional signals or cues from his owner... |
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Stumpf and student keep investigating... |
• Clever Hans was able to answer questions from people other than his trainer • However, it was found he could not answer questions asked by people who did not know the answers themselves... • He had been conditioned with reinforcement during training to pay attention to subtle cues of human questioners |
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Animal psychology becoming more experimental |
• George Romanes – Anecdotal and introspection by analogy methods • C. Lloyd Morgan - – Law of parsimony – Refrained from assigning higher level processes to animals – Started using experiments by observing animals in the wild, sometimes with artificial modifications |
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Further objectivity in animal psychology |
Jacques Loeb (1859-1924)
• German physiologist and zoologist • Worked at various schools in the United States, including University of Chicago • Watson took his courses, but he was warned not to do research with Loeb • Did the most scientific work on animals to date, but still discussed consciousness |
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Loeb’s important contributions: Tropism |
An involuntary forced movement |
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Loeb’s important contributions: Associative memory |
An association between stimulus and response, taken to indicate evidence of consciousness in animals |
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Animal psychology evoked consciousness at first |
• Behavior of rats described using terms like ideas, images • Titchener’s student Margaret Floy Washburn wrote The Animal Mind, and wrote “We are obliged to acknowledge that all psychic interpretation of animal behavior must be on the analogy of human experience.” • Even Watson, who would go on to found Behaviorism, discussed the conscious experience of rats with his dissertation titled “Animal Education: The psychical development of the White Rat” and continued to do so until 1907 |
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Inspiration to focus on behavior |
Charles Henry Turner (1867-1923)
- First African American to earn a PhD from University of Chicago (it was in zoology) - Published much of his work on comparative psychology - While a grad student, published an article “A Preliminary Note on Ant Behavior” - Watson reviewed this paper and praised it, emphasizing the word behavior (and its use as a measure) |
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Comparative psychology was growing... |
• By 1910, there were eight comparative psychology labs in the US • Many courses on the topic taught (such as by Washburn at Cornell) • Journal of Animal Behavior began publication in 1911 (later Journal of Comparative Psychology) • The work of Pavlov and Thorndike also further increased the objectivism and popularity of animal psychology |
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But it was a tough road for comparative psychology |
• But Harvard’s president said “it was smelly and expensive and seemed to have no relation to practical public service” • Students in the field encouraged to pursue educational psychology or other applied endeavors |
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Behaviorism says out with the mind... |
Changing way of framing research: • From intelligence to learning... • From consciousness to stimulus/response
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Behaviorism |
• Scientific psychology should only deal with observable behavioral acts • Everything should be described with terms such as stimulus and response • Mentalistic concepts such as image, sensation, mind, consciousness were considered meaningless • Watson said consciousness had “never been seen, touched, smelled, tasted, or moved. It is a plain assumption just as unprovable as the old concept of the soul” |
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A fully American psychologist |
Edward Lee Thorndike (1874-1949)
• Inspired by reading James’ Principles of Psychology as an undergrad and went on to work with him at Harvard • Wanted to study children, but settled for chicks instead (which he kept in William James’ basement) • Fled Boston area after heartbreak, and went to work with Cattell at Columbia with two best chicks (birds) in hand • First psychology PhD dissertation to use animal subjects (1898) |
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Thorndike’s research |
• Connectionism–idea that learning was based on “connections of varying strength between (a) situations, elements of situations, and compounds of situations, and (b) responses, readiness to respond, facilitations, inhibition, and directions of responses” • He also however still invoked mental processes, using terms like satisfaction, discomfort, annoyance, etc. • Still supported a mechanistic, elemental account supported by experimental evidence |
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Thorndike’s puzzle box |
Food-deprived cat put in box with food outside Behavior random at first trial, but became directed over time once learning occurred Trial-and-error learning: learning based on the repetition of response tendencies that lead to success. (or trial-and-accidental success) |
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Thorndike’s laws: Law of effect |
Acts that produce satisfaction in a given situation become associated with that situation; when the situation recurs, the act is likely to recur |
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Thorndike’s laws: Law of exercise |
The more an act or response is used in a given situation, the more strongly the act becomes associated with that situation |
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Rat maze developed in |
1900 |
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Behaviorism is becoming central to psychology…
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• Scientific psychology should only deal with observablebehavioral acts
• Everything should be described with terms such as stimulusand response • Mentalistic concepts such as image, sensation, mind,consciousness were considered meaningless • Watson said consciousness had “never been seen, touched,smelled, tasted, or moved. It is a plain assumption just asunprovable as the old concept of the soul” |
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Contributing factors to behaviorism becoming central to psychology
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• Physiologists are addressing similar questions, but notdiscussing mentalistic ideas
• Functionalism has opened the door for animalpsychology • Many new applications of psychology relate tobehavior and learning, more than consciousness |
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Thorndike was a major contributor in the US
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“Some years after the beginning of the work with our newmethod I learned that somewhat similar experiments had beenperformed in America, and indeed not by physiologists but bypsychologists. I must acknowledge that the honor of havingmade the first steps along this path belongs to E.I. Thorndike. Bytwo or three years his experiments preceded ours and his bookmust be considered a classic, both for its bold outlook on animmense task and for the accuracy of its results.”- Pavlov, 1928
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Physiological work on learning
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Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936)
• Russian physiologist • Was going to attend seminary, but read Darwin’s theory and changed his mind • Became part of the rising intelligentsia in Russia, distinct from the peasantry and aristocracy • Strong temper, ran a lab like a “mechanism of a watch” • 3 main research areas: – Nerves of the heart – Primary digestive glands (Nobel prize on this)– Conditioned reflexes |
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Pavlov’s dogs
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“We must painfully acknowledge that precisely because of itsgreat intellectual development, the best of man’sdomesticated animals – the dog –most often becomes thevictim of physiological experiments.” - Pavlov
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An accidental discovery
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-Working on digestive glands in dogs-Interested in saliva secretion
-Pavlov noticed dogs began salivated well before food was actually delivered - “Psychic reflexes” at first, then conditioned reflexes |
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Conditioning and reinforcement
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The Conditioned stimulus was a light was turned on and immediately the experimenter presents the unconditioned stimulus - the food. After a number of pairings of the light and the food, the animal will salivate at the sight of the light alone. An association bond has been formed between the light and the food, and the animal has become conditioned to respond to the conditioned stimulus. The conditioning or learning will not occur unless the light is followed by the food a sufficient number of times. This is where reinforcement (actually being fed) is necessary for learning to take place. |
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Pavlov’s legacy
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• This work increased the precision of laboratoryscience
• Affirmed behavior as the basic element of study• Motivated much of John Watson’s work • Somewhat ironic that his work was so influential onpsychology, as he did not generally consider himselfto be a psychologist |
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A less well known Russian researcher
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Vladimir Behkterev(1857-1927)
• Russian physiologist, neurologist, psychiatrist• Interested in mental diseases and ran amental hospital • Great enemy of Pavlov • Political activist who was openly critical of theCzar and Russian government • Asked to treat Stalin who was suffering fromdepression, diagnosed him with extremeparanoia. Died mysteriously the next day, noautopsy was permitted, quickly cremated |
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Bekhterev’s work
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• Pavlov looked at conditioning largely with regard toglandular secretions, while Bekhterev’s looked at themuscles instead
• Associated reflexes • Higher level behaviors could be explained in thesame way, an accumulation of lower-level motorreflexes |
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Trending opinion…
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-All animals, humans and otherwise, were machines
-According to Pavlov, complicated ones, but “just assubmissive and obedient as any other machine” -Machines operated based on previous learning,current stimulus, and physiology -These ideas became the norm in physiology andanimal psychology |
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US moves toward objective psychology
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• American psychologists were “slowly coming down withbehaviorism … as more and more of them, from 1904 on,expressed a preference for defining psychology as thescience of behavior rather as an attempt to describeconsciousness” – Woodworth
• Angell predicted that the word consciousness woulddisappear from psychology much as the term soul hadgone out of use |
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The bold leader…
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John Watson(1878-1958)
• Born on a farm in South Carolina, with anintensely religious mother and analcoholic abusive father who ran off whenhe was 13 • Attended Baptist-affiliated FurmanUniversity and intended to go to seminary • Told story of how he purposely failed aclass (which wasn’t true) • When his mother died, he no longer hadto be a clergyman and went to theUniversity of Chicago for graduate school |
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Watson at University of Chicago
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• Worked as a waiter, a janitor responsible for dustingAngell’s desk, a rat caretaker…
• Went through period of anxiety, fear of the dark, took10 mile walks in the middle of the night… • Received his PhD at 25, but always felt inferior toWoolley, who Angell & Dewey said had a betterdoctoral exam • Married his 19 year-old student who had written him alove poem as her examination paper |
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Watson’s interests…
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“I never wanted to use human subjects. I hated toserve as a subject. I didn’t like the stuffy, artificialinstructions given to subjects. I always wasuncomfortable and acted unnaturally. With animalsI was at home. I felt that, in studying them, I waskeeping close to biology with my feet on theground. More and more the thought presenteditself: Can’t I Find out by watching their behavioreverything that the other students are finding out[human observers]?”- Watson
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Conditioned reflexes |
Reflexes that are conditional or dependent on the formation of an association or connection between stimulus and response. |
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Reinforcement |
Something that increases the likelihood of a response. |
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Associative reflexes |
Reflexes that can be elicited not only by unconditioned stimuli but also by stimuli that have become associated with the unconditioned stimuli. |
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True/False: The owner of Clever Hans honestly believed his horse was capable of higher thought, and was quite upset when it became clearer what was going on. |
True |
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True/False: Because of the changing field of psychology, research in animal psychology was considered a safe career path that was guaranteed success. |
False |
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True/False: Much like the birth of Functionalism, Behaviorism came about due to gradual changes that evolved the field without the force of a strong leader.
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False |
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Multiple Choice: Charles Henry Turner wrote an article called “A preliminary note on ant behavior”. What did we discuss that this article directly inspired? |
A turn to focusing on the study of behavior |
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Multiple Choice: Which one of these psychologists is the main researcher who brought about the behaviorist revolution in American psychology?
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John Watson |
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Multiple Choice: Which of these best defines the concept of tropism? |
An involuntary forced movement |
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Behaviorism is becoming central to psychology… |
• Scientific psychology should only deal with observable behavioral acts • Everything should be described with terms such as stimulus and response • Mentalistic concepts such as image, sensation, mind, consciousness were considered meaningless • Watson said consciousness had “never been seen, touched, smelled, tasted, or moved. It is a plain assumption just as unprovable as the old concept of the soul” |
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Contributing factors |
Physiologists are addressing similar questions, but not discussing mentalistic ideas • Functionalism has opened the door for animal psychology • Many new applications of psychology relate to behavior and learning, more than consciousness |
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Thorndike was a major contributor in the US |
“Some years after the beginning of the work with our new method I learned that somewhat similar experiments had been performed in America, and indeed not by physiologists but by psychologists. I must acknowledge that the honor of having made the first steps along this path belongs to E.I. Thorndike. By two or three years his experiments preceded ours and his book must be considered a classic, both for its bold outlook on an immense task and for the accuracy of its results.” - Pavlov, 1928 |
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Physiological work on learning |
Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936) • Russian physiologist • Was going to attend seminary, but read Darwin’s theory and changed his mind • Became part of the rising intelligentsia in Russia, distinct from the peasantry and aristocracy • Strong temper, ran a lab like a “mechanism of a watch” • 3 main research areas: – Nerves of the heart – Primary digestive glands (Nobel prize on this) – Conditioned reflexes |
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Pavlov’s dogs |
“We must painfully acknowledge that precisely because of its great intellectual development, the best of man’s domesticated animals – the dog –most often becomes the victim of physiological experiments.” - Pavlov |
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An accidental discovery |
-Working on digestive glands in dogs -Interested in saliva secretion -Pavlov noticed dogs began salivated well before food was actually delivered - “Psychic reflexes” at first, then conditioned reflexes |
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Conditioning and reinforcement |
Conditioned stimulus After a number of pairings, dog will salivate to light alone
Unconditioned stimulus |
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Pavlov’s legacy |
• This work increased the precision of laboratory science • Affirmed behavior as the basic element of study • Motivated much of John Watson’s work • Somewhat ironic that his work was so influential on psychology, as he did not generally consider himself to be a psychologist |
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A less well known Russian researcher |
Vladimir Behkterev (1857-1927) • Russian physiologist, neurologist, psychiatrist • Interested in mental diseases and ran a mental hospital • Great enemy of Pavlov • Political activist who was openly critical of the Czar and Russian government • Asked to treat Stalin who was suffering from depression, diagnosed him with extreme paranoia. Died mysteriously the next day, no autopsy was permitted, quickly cremated |
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Bekhterev’s work |
• Pavlov looked at conditioning largely with regard to glandular secretions, while Bekhterev’s looked at the muscles instead • Associated reflexes • Higher level behaviors could be explained in the same way, an accumulation of lower-level motor reflexes |
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Trending opinion… |
-All animals, humans and otherwise, were machines -According to Pavlov, complicated ones, but “just as submissive and obedient as any other machine” -Machines operated based on previous learning, current stimulus, and physiology -These ideas became the norm in physiology and animal psychology |
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US moves toward objective psychology |
American psychologists were “slowly coming down with behaviorism … as more and more of them, from 1904 on, expressed a preference for defining psychology as the science of behavior rather as an attempt to describe consciousness” – Woodworth • Angell predicted that the word consciousness would disappear from psychology much as the term soul had gone out of use |
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Multiple Choice: Which of these had the least influence on the development ofBehaviorism? |
Wundt’s New Psychology
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Multiple Choice: How did Thorndike’s puzzle box work?
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A hungry animal was placed in a boxwith food outside and its efforts to escape were measured
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