Psychology Exam #1 (Chp. 1, 2, & 3

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Psychology

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Is a broad field with many specialties, but fundamentally psychology is the science of behavior and mental processes.

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Pseudoscience

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Any approach to explaining phenomena in the natural world that does not use empirical observation or the scientific method

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Ex: astrology, fortune telling

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What are the Six main perspectives?

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Biological, cognitive, behavioral, whole person, developmental, and sociocultural

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Experimental psychologists

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Psychologists who do research on basic psychological processes, as contrasted with applied psychologists. Experimental psychologists are also called research psychologists.

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Teachers of psychology

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Psychologists whose primary job is teaching, typically in high schools, colleges, and universities.

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Applied psychologists

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Psychologists who use the knowledge developed by experimental psychologists to solve human problems.

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Anecdotal evidence

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First hand accounts that vividly describe the experiences of one or a few people, but may erroneously be assumed to be scientific evidence.

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Emotional bias

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The tendency to make judgements based on attitudes and feelings, rather than on he basis of a rational analysis of the evidence.

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Confirmation bias

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The tendency to attend to evidence that complements and confirms our beliefs or expectations, while ignoring evidence that does not.

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The Six Critical Thinking Skills

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1. What is the source? (Credibility)

2. Is the claim reasonable or extreme? ("Too good to be true?")

3. What is the Evidence? (Anecdotal or real/credible?)

4. Could bias contaminate the conclusion? (Emotional or confirmational)

5. Does the reasoning avoid common fallacies?

6. Does the issue require multiple perspectives?

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Biological perspective

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View of human nature: we are complex systems that respond to hereditary and environmental influences.

What determines behavior?: Neural structures, biochemistry, innate/biological processes.

Focus of study: nervous system and endocrine systems influence depression.

Founded by Rene Descartes.

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The two variations on the biological theme

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Neuroscience: the field devoted to understanding how the brain crates thoughts, feelings, motives, consciousness, memories, and other mental processes.

Evolutionary: a relatively new specialty in psychology that sees behavior and mental processes in terms of their genetic adaptations for survival and reproduction. Created by Charles Darwin.

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Wilhelm Wundt

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Was the first psychologist. Believed the psyche could be broken down into elements like the periodic table. Was the first to see that the methods of science used to objectively measure and study the natural world, such as in chemistry or physics, could be used to study the mind and body as well.

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Introspection

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Wundt; The process of reporting on one's own conscious mental experiences. Included in the basic "elements" of consciousness, including sensation and perception, memory, attention, emotion, thinking, learning, and language. All mental processes consist of a combination of these elements.

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Structuralism

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Wundt and his student, Edward Titchener; a historical school of psychology devoted to uncovering the basic structures that make up the mind and thought. Structuralists sought the "elements" of conscious experience.

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Functionalism

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William James; a historical school of psychology that believed mental processes could best be understood in terms of their adaptive purpose and function. Much like Darwin's evolutionary psychology. The functionality became the first applied psychologist. Eventually, structuralism and functionalism eventually came together to form the cognitive perspective.

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Cognitive perspective

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Gestalt;

View of human nature: we are information processing systems - how do we process information as a whole and as unique individuals, and how do our thoughts influence us as people.

What determines behavior?: our interpretation of experience through mental processing.

Focus of study: mental processes - sensation and perception, learning, emotion, memory, and language.

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Behavioral perspective

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John B. Watson and B.F. Skinner; Behaviorism

View of human nature: how our behavior is influenced by principles of learning.

What determines behavior?: stimulus cues (environment), our history of rewards and punishment.

Focus of study: behavioral "laws" connecting our responses to stimulus conditions in the environment.

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Whole Person Perspective

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Sigmund Freud;

Psycho dynamic: processes in our unconscious mind. (Freud)

Humanistic: our innate needs to grow, and to fulfill our best possible potential. (Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow)

Trait and temperament: unique personality characteristics that are consistent over time and across situations.

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Psychoanalysis

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An approach to psychology based on Sigmund Freud's assertions, which emphasize unconscious processes. The term is used to refer to broadly both to Freud's psychoanalytic theory and to his psychoanalytic treatment method.

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Developmental perspective

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Mary Ainsworth, Jean piaget;

View of human nature: people undergo predictable patterns of change throughout their lives.

What determines behavior?: interaction between hereditary and environment.

Focus of study: patterns of developmental change and their underlying influences.

Nature vs. Nurture

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The sociocultural perspective

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Stanley Milgram, Philip Zimbardo

View of human nature: we are social animals; human behavior must be interpreted in a social context.

What determines behavior?: cultures, social norms and expectations, social learning.

Focus of study: social interaction, socialization, cross-cultural differences.

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Developing knowledge

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The scientific method, empirical investigation, theory

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Empirical investigation

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An approach to research that relies on sensory experience and observation as research data

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Scientific method

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A process for empirical investigation of a hypothesis under conditions designed to control biases and subjective judgements

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Theory

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A testable explanation for a set of facts or observations. In science, and theory is not just speculation or guess.

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Four steps to the scientific method

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1. Developing a hypothesis (hypothesis, operational definitions)

2. Gathering objective data (Data, independent variable, dependent variable)

3. Analysis the results (Is the hypothesis accepted or rejected based on stats)

4. Publish, criticize, and replicate the results (to test the accuracy and truth of the experiment)

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What can the scientific method NOT answer?

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Ethics, values, morality, preferences, aesthetics, existential issues, religion, and law

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Biopsychology

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The specialty of psychology that studies the interaction of biology, behavior, and mental processes.

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How does the body communicate internally?

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The brain coordinates the body's two communications systems, the nerves system and the endocrine system which use chemical processes to communicate.

Neurons: fundamental unit of the brain.

Nervous system: network of Neurons that extend all through the body.

Endocrine system: a group of glands that is parallel with the nervous system