The Evoloution Of Psychology

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Psychology’s intellectual parents

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philosophy and physiology

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Structuralism

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The notion that the task of psychology is to analyze consciousness into its basic elements and investigate how these elements are related.

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introspection

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The careful, systematic self-observation of one’s own conscious experience

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Functionalism

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Based on the belief that psychology should investigate the function or purpose of consciousness, rather than its structure

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natural selection

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Inheritable characteristics that provide a survival or reproductive advantage are more likely than alternative characteristics to be passed on to subsequent generations and thus come to be “selected” over time.

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Mary Whiton Calkins

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Founded one of the fi rst dozen psychology laboratories in America

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Margaret Washburn

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the first woman to receive a Ph.D. in psychology

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Leta Hollingworth

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she was the first person to use the term gifted to refer to youngsters who scored exceptionally high on intelligence tests

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the unconscious

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contains thoughts, memories, and desires that are well below the surface of conscious awareness but that nonetheless exert great infl uence on behavior

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psychoanalytic theory

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attempts to explain personality, motivation, and mental disorders by focusing on unconscious determinants

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behaviorism

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theoretical orientation based on the premise that scientific psychology should study only observable behavior

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humanism

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a theoretical orientation that emphasizes the unique qualities of humans, especially their freedom and their potential for personal growth

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applied psychology

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the branch of psychology concerned with everyday, practical problems

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clinical psychology

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the branch of psychology concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of psychological problems and disorders

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Cognition

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the mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge

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Evolutionary psychology

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examines behavioral processes in terms of their adaptive value for members of a species over the course of many generations

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positive psychology

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uses theory and research to better understand the positive, adaptive, creative, and fulfi lling aspects of human existence

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Psychology

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the science that studies behavior and the physiological and cognitive processes that underlie it, and it is the profession that applies the accumulated knowledge of this science to practical problems.

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Developmental psychology

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Looks at human development across the life span. Developmental psychology once focused primarily on child development, but today devotes a great deal of research to adolescence, adulthood, and old age.

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Social psychology

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Focuses on interpersonal behavior and the role of social forces in governing behavior. Typical topics include attitude formation, attitude change, prejudice, conformity, attraction, aggression, intimate relationships, and behavior in groups.

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Educational psychology

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Studies how people learn and the best ways to teach them. Examines curriculum design, teacher training, achievement testing, student motivation, classroom diversity, and other aspects of the educational process.

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Health psychology

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Focuses on how psychological factors relate to the promotion and maintenance of physical health and the causation, prevention, and treatment of illness.

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Physiological psychology

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Examines the infl uence of genetic factors on behavior and the role of the brain, nervous system, endocrine system, and bodily chemicals in the regulation of behavior

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Experimental psychology

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Encompasses the traditional core of topics that psychology focused on heavily in its fi rst half-century as a science: sensation, perception, learning, conditioning, motivation, and emotion. The name experimental psychology is somewhat misleading, as this is not the only area in which experiments are done. Psychologists working in all the areas listed here conduct experiments.

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Cognitive psychology

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Focuses on “higher” mental processes, such as memory, reasoning, information processing, language, problem solving, decision making, and creativity.

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Psychometrics

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Is concerned with the measurement of behavior and capacities, usually through the development of psychological tests. Psychometrics is involved with the design of tests to assess personality, intelligence, and a wide range of abilities. It is also concerned with the development of new techniques for statistical analysis.

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Personality

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Is interested in describing and understanding individuals’ consistency in behavior, which represents their personality. This area of interest is also concerned with the factors that shape personality and with personality assessment

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psychiatry

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a branch of medicine concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of psychological problems and disorders

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Clinical psychology

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Clinical psychologists are concerned with the evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of individuals with psychological disorders, as well as treatment of less severe behavioral and emotional problems. Principal activities include interviewing clients, psychological testing, and providing group or individual psychotherapy

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Counseling psychology

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Counseling psychology overlaps with clinical psychology in that specialists in both areas engage in similar activities—interviewing, testing, and providing therapy. However, counseling psychologists usually work with a somewhat different clientele, providing assistance to people struggling with everyday problems of moderate severity. Thus, they often specialize in family, marital, or career counseling.

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Industrial and organizational psychology

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Psychologists in this area perform a wide variety of tasks in the world of business and industry. These tasks include running human resources departments, working to improve staff morale and attitudes, striving to increase job satisfaction and productivity, examining organizational structures and procedures, and making recommendations for improvements.

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School psychology

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School psychologists strive to promote the cognitive, emotional, and social development of children in schools. They usually work in elementary or secondary schools, where they test and counsel children having diffi culties in school and aid parents and teachers in solving school-related problems.

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Clinical neuropsychology

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Clinical neuropsychologists are involved in the assessment and treatment of people who suffer from central nervous system dysfunctions due to head trauma, dementia, stroke, seizure disorders, and so forth.

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Forensic psychology

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Forensic psychologists apply psychological principles to issues arising in the legal system, such as child custody decisions, hearings on competency to stand trial, violence risk assessments, involuntary commitment proceedings, and so forth.

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Empiricism

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the premise that knowledge should be acquired through observation

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A theory

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a system of interrelated ideas used to explain a set of observations.

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Critical thinking

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purposeful, reasoned, goal-directed thinking that involves solving problems, formulating inferences, working with probabilities, and making carefully thought-out decisions

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biopsychosocial model

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holds that physical illness is caused by a complex interaction of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors

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Health psychology

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concerned with how psychosocial factors relate to the promotion and maintenance of health and with the causation, prevention, and treatment of illness

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Primary appraisal

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initial evaluation of whether an event is (1) irrelevant to you, (2) relevant but not threatening or (3) stressful

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secondary appraisal

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evaluation of your coping resources and options for dealing with the stress

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Acute stressors

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threatening events that have a relatively short duration and a clear endpoint

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Chronic stressors

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threatening events that have a relatively long duration and no readily apparent time limit

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frustration

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occurs in any situation in which the pursuit of some goal is thwarted

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Conflict

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Occurs when two or more incompatible motivations or behavioral impulses compete for expression

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approach-approach conflict

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a choice must be made between two attractive goals

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avoidance-avoidance

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conflict a choice must be made between two unattractive goals

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approach-avoidance

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a choice must be made about whether to pursue a single goal that has both attractive and unattractive aspects

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Life changes

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any significant alterations in one’s living circumstances that require readjustment

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Pressure

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involves expectations or demands that one behave in a certain way

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The fight-or flight response

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a physiological reaction to threat in which the autonomic nervous system mobilizes the organism for attacking (fight) or fleeing (flight) an enemy

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The general adaptation syndrome

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a model of the body’s stress response, consisting of three stages: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion

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Coping

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active efforts to master, reduce, or tolerate the demands created by stress.

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Learned helplessness

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passive behavior produced by exposure to unavoidable aversive events

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Catharis

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the release of emotional tension

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Defense mechanisms

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largely unconscious reactions that protect a person from unpleasant emotions such as anxiety and guilt

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constructive coping

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relatively healthful efforts that people make to deal with stressful events

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Burnout

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physical and emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and a lowered sense of s elf-effi cacy that can be brought on gradually by chronic work-related stress

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Resilience

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successful adaptation to signifi cant stress and trauma, as evidenced by a lack of serious negative outcomes.

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Psychosomatic diseases

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genuine physical ailments that were thought to be caused in part by stress and other psychological factors

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The Type A personality

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(1) a strong competitive orientation, (2) impatience and time urgency, and (3) anger and hostility.

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the Type B personality

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marked by relatively relaxed, patient, easygoing, amicable behavior

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Social support

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various types of aid and emotional sustenance provided by members of one’s social networks

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Optimism

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a generalized tendency to consistently expect good outcomes

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Catastrophic thinking

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involves unrealistically pessimistic appraisals of stress that exaggerate the magnitude of one’s problems