1.2 History of Psychology

Lesson 1 1.2 History of Psychology

Essential Question

How can psychology be applied to everyday life? 

Objectives

Upon completion of this section, you will be able to:

  1. Discuss the importance of Wundt and James in the development of psychology.
  2. Analyze Freud’s influence on psychology.
  3. Interpret the basic tenets of Gestalt psychology.
  4. Describe the important role that behaviorism played in psychology’s history.
  5. Summarize the basic tenets of humanism.
  6. Understand how the cognitive revolution shifted psychology’s focus back to the mind.

Readings

Openstax Psychology

Chapter 1

1.3 History of Psychology Links to an external site.

Introduction

Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behavior. When you think of a psychologist, do you think of a specific individual? Do you imagine someone laying on a couch telling their secrets to a doctor? Have you heard of William Wundt, Sigmund Freud, or Abraham Maslow? As society evolves so does psychology.  

Key points

Throughout history, there have been several key schools of thought developed in the field of Psychology.  The most important of these are listed below. Other schools of Psychology include Cognitive, Feminist, and Multicultural Psychology.

Structuralism

Understanding the structure or characteristics of the mind

Functionalism

Studied the function of behavior in the world, and how mental activities helped an organism fit into its environment

Psychoanalysis

Psychoanalytic theory focused on the role of a person’s unconscious, as well as early childhood experiences. This became the dominant theory in clinical psychology for several decades.

Gestalt psychology

Suggests that how individual sensory parts relate to each other as a whole is often what the individual responds to in perception

Behaviorism

This area is only concerned with observable stimulus-response behaviors, and states that all behaviors are learned through interaction with the environment.

  • Behaviorism: Associative Learning
    • Classical conditioning involves learning to associate an unconditioned stimulus that already brings about a particular response (i.e., reflex) with a new (conditioned) stimulus, so that the new stimulus brings about the same response.  
    • Operant conditioning: positive reinforcement (such as food) or a punishment (such as a noise) or a token conditioner (such as a light) affects behavior.

Humanism

  • This is a perspective that emphasizes the potential for good that is innate to all humans.  People are motivated to achieve certain needs, and some needs take precedence over others.

 

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Discussion

After you work through the content in this section, complete the discussion board assignment: Discussion Board 1.2

Quick Check

Psychoanalytic theory focuses on early childhood experiences and which of the following?

Check Answer

Quick Check

The operant conditioning chamber, a device used to study the principles of operant conditioning, is otherwise known as what type of box?

Check Answer

Quick Check

Which of the following psychological movements focuses on the potential for good in all people?

Check Answer