History Of Psychology Timeline

Front 1

Thales (ca. 625-547 B.C.)

Back 1

Begins to replace supernatural explanations of the universe with naturalistic ones; encourages criticism and improvement of his teachings.

Front 2

Heraclitus (ca. 540-480 B.C.)

Back 2

Observes that everything in the empirical world is in a constant state of flux and therefore can never be known with certainty.

Front 3

Anaxagoras (ca. 500-428 B.C.)

Back 3

Proposes a universe consisting of an infinite number of elements or "seeds." Each seed contains all the others, but objects become differentiated depending on which seed dominates. Mind is an exception because it contains no other seeds and is responsible for life.

Front 4

Protagoras (ca. 485-410 B.C.)

Back 4

Argues that "truth" can be understood only in terms of an individual's perceptions and beliefs.

Front 5

Hippocrates (ca. 460-377 B.C.)

Back 5

Argues that both mental and physical disorders have natural causes; a physician's primary task is to facilitate the body's natural healing ability.

Front 6

Democritus (ca. 460-370 B.C.)

Back 6

Proposes a completely materialistic universe wherein everything consists of atoms.

Front 7

Antisthenes (ca. 445-365 B.C.)

Back 7

Preaches Cynicism or a back-to-nature philosophy whereby life is lived free from wants, passions, and the conventions of society.

Front 8

Plato (ca. 427-347 B.C.)

Back 8

Postulates a dualistic universe consisting of abstract forms and matter. Because only the forms are changeless, they alone can be known with certainty.

Front 9

Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)

Back 9

Argues that an understanding of nature must begin with its direct examination. Everything in nature has an inherent purpose that seeks to manifest itself.

Front 10

Pyrrho of Elis (ca. 360-270 B.C.)

Back 10

Observes that because the arguments for or against any belief are equally valid, the only reasonable position is Skepticism or the withholding of belief in anything.

Front 11

Epicurus of Samos (ca. 341-270 B.C.)

Back 11

Encourages living a simple life of moderation and one that is free of superstition. Such a philosophy came to be called Epicureanism.

Front 12

Zeno of Citium (ca. 335-263 B.C.)

Back 12

Founds the philosophy of Stoicism with his beliefs that nature is governed by a divine plan and that living in accordance with that plan with courage and dignity is the ultimate good.

Front 13

Philo (ca. 25 B.C.-A.D.50)

Back 13

A Neoplatonist, preaches that God will reveal knowledge to souls properly prepared to receive it.

Front 14

Galen (ca. 129-199)

Back 14

Perpetuates the naturalistic medicine of such Greeks as Hippocrates into the Roman empire and extends the theory of four humors into a rudimentary theory of personality.

Front 15

Constantine (ca. 272-337)

Back 15

Signs the Edict of Milan in 313, making Christianity a tolerated religion in the Roman empire.

Front 16

Augustine (ca. 354-430)

Back 16

Combines Stoicism, Neoplatonism, and Judaism into a powerful Christian teleology, according to which evil exists because people choose it and God can be experienced personally through introspection.

Front 17

400-1000 A.D.

Back 17

The Dark Ages. Europe is generally dominated by mysticism and superstition.

Front 18

Avicenna (980-1037)

Back 18

A Muslim philosopher/physician, applies Aristotelian philosophy to a wide range of topics and attempts to make it compatible with islamic theology.

Front 19

Anselm (ca. 1033-1109)

Back 19

Adds reason to the ways of knowing God witth his ontological argument for the existence of God.

Front 20

Peter Lombard (ca. 1095-1160)

Back 20

Argues that God can be known through the scriptures, through reason, or by studying nature.

Front 21

Maimonides (1135-1204)

Back 21

A Jewish scholar and physician, attempts to reconcile Judaism and Aristotelian philosophy.

Front 22

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

Back 22

Succeeds in making Aristotelian philosophy the basis of Christian theology.

Front 23

William of Occam (ca. 1285-1349)

Back 23

Argues that explanations should always be as parsimonious as possible (Occam's razor). In the realist-nominalist debate, he sides with the nominalists, therby encouraging Empiricism.

Front 24

Francesco Petrarch (1304-1374)

Back 24

Sometimes considered the father of the Renaissance, argues for the full exploration and manifestation of human potential.

Front 25

Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536)

Back 25

Opposes fanaticism, religious ritual, and superstition. Argues that fools are better off than "wise" persons because fools live in accordance with their true feelings.

Front 26

Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543)

Back 26

Writes De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium (The Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres; published in 1543), in which he proposes the heliocentric theory of the solar system.

Front 27

Cornelius Agrippa (1486-1535)

Back 27

The first physician to urge that witch hunts be stopped because those accused of being witches, or of being bewitched, are actually mentally disturbed.

Front 28

1487 Heinrich Kramer and James Sprenger

Back 28

Publish Malleus Maleficarum (The Witches' Hammer).

Front 29

Philippus Paracelsus (1493-1541)

Back 29

Among the first physicians to suggest that the unusual behavior displayed by "witches" and those bewitched have natural rather than supernatural origins.

Front 30

1517 Martin Luther (1483-1546)

Back 30

Nails his Ninety-Five Theses on the door of Wittenberg Castle Church, thereby beginning the Reformation.