Does psychology have roots in physiology?

Presentation on theme: "PSYCHOLOGY Two basic roots Philosophy Physiology"— Presentation transcript:

1 PSYCHOLOGY Two basic roots Philosophy Physiology
Philosophy is the study of reality, knowledge and existence. Physiology is examining the functions of living organisms and their parts. Psychology fuses those two. Early thinkers: Plato: Each person has our own perception of the world that is unique to our life experiences. “subjective reality” Essence of a thing exists beyond observable nature Aristotle: The way to understand something was to study specific examples of it in nature. Drew distinction between KNOWING and THINKING

2 Rene Descartes Father of Modern Philosophy
Dualism—mind (nonphysical) and body (physical) are separate. What did Descartes mean by “I think; therefore I am?” He was wondering how he could prove his own existence, and his answer was that he is alive because he’s able to think. Dualism Mind and body are separate (brain is distinct from “the mind.”) Body is physical, mind is nonphysical. We are more than just biological creatures.

3 John Locke Tabula Rasa Empiricism
Believed nothing was inherited; we are equal at birth Empiricism Philosopher and Doctor All people born a “blank slate” and the experiences in the world shape a person. Precursor to behaviorism Like Aristotle, fan of Empiricism –examine DATA rather than using intuition or reason.

4 Physiology Johannes Muller Hermann von Helmholtz
Doctrine of Specific Nerve Energies Nerve Impulse Speed Muller recommended removal/isolation of organs to see how they worked Doctrine of Specific Nerve Energies – each sensory organ and its nerve fiber receive and transmit just one modality of sensation and these terminate in a specific part of the brain. Led to belief that brain is specialized. Helmholtz Supported idea that mental events could be the subject of scientific investigation.

5 Psychology Is Born! Subjective Reality Tabula Rasa Psychology: science of behavior and mental processes Dualism Psychology is the scientific study of human thought and behavior. From the Greek psykhe (mind, soul, or spirt) and Logia (“the study of”) Empiricism Study of the Nervous System

6 Structuralism: Wilhelm Wundt
Set up first psychological laboratory in Leipzig, Germany, in 1879 Considered the father of psychology Wrote Principles of Physiological Psychology First person to study humans in a laboratory setting. Wanted to differentiate psychology from philosophy and make it more measurable and scientific. Wundt determined 3 basic elements of all consiousness: sensations, images, and feelings.

7 Edward Titchener Student of Wundt’s Coined the term “structuralism”
Brought structuralism to America

8 Structuralism Science of immediate experience
Goal is to break down consciousness into its most basic elements to see how they’re related Detailed analysis of consciousness called introspection Introspection Looking inward to observe one’s psychological processes exhaustive process for the subject, who had to give very specific, detailed descriptions of everything in immediate consciousness They conducted studies on color vision, illusions, attentions, and feelings. Wundt’s students became very influential and founded some of the first psychology labs and departments in the U.S. Problems with introspection as a technique? Not reliable. A lot of our experiences are beyond our awareness.

9 G. Stanley Hall Student of Wundt’s, but not a true structuralist
First psych lab in U.S. in 1892 at Johns Hopkins 1st president of APA Father of developmental psychology APA= American Psychological Association

10 Functionalism: William James
Function of thought and feelings Influenced by Darwin Wrote Principles of Psychology SOR Model Heavily influenced by Charles Darwin (what helps us survive and reproduce?) Did not see consciousness as a bunch of structures; instead saw it as a flow (“stream of consciousness”) Looked at the functions of our thoughts and how they help us survive.

11 Gestalt Psychology Three founders
Max Wertheimer Kurt Koffka Wolfgang Kohler “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” Perception is constructed. Arose in opposition to the structuralists’ preoccupation with the minutiae of consciousness. Criticized the idea of introspection. Believed that the mind fills in the gaps of missing knowledge, based not just on our perceptions but on our motivations, expectations, and past experiences. Known for the laws of perceptual organization—laws of similarity, closure, proximity, and continuity. WE CONSTRUCT PERCEPTION.

12 MODERN APPROACHES Eight major research paradigms: Biological
Behavioral Evolutionary Humanistic Psychodynamic Cognitive Sociocultural Biopsychosocial MODERN APPROACHES

13 Biological Perspective
Emphasizes internal factors Focus on brain and nervous system Genetics & evolutionary factors also important Everything psychological is ultimately physiological Brain and nervous system are viewed as the biggest cause of human behavior and mental processing Genetics & evolutionary factors are also important. “Everything psychological is ultimately physiological” according to this perspective. Example: Mental disorders are seen as having a biological cause (e.g., neurotransmitter imbalances).

14 Influenced by Darwin Evolutionary Perspective
Thoughts and behavior as linked to survival Deal with nature vs. nurture issues. Behavior genetics – how to our different genes make us behave differently? Are we attracted to certain physical traits because they are associated with survival?

15 Behavioral Perspective
Emphasizes external factors S-R Model instead of S-O-R Focus on observable behavior Cognition irrelevant No free will We behave as we do because of past conditioning by the environment. Replaced functionalism. John B. Watson’s Behaviorist Manifesto (1913) called for psychologists to study only overt behavior The S-O-R (stimulus-organism-response) model became the S-R model (stimulus-response) because cognitive processes (the “O”) were not studied. Really caught on because psychologists were tired of trying to pin down elements of consciousness

16 Important Behaviorists
Edward Thorndike Ivan Pavlov John B. Watson B.F. Skinner Albert Bandura Thorndike: studied behavior of cats Pavlov—studied classical conditioning in dogs Watson—got the behavioral perspective started Skinner—studied operant conditioning Bandura—observational learning

17 Sex and Aggression as drivers of behavior
Psychoanalytic Perspective Sigmund Freud Sex and Aggression as drivers of behavior Emphasized unconscious Developed in Europe as behaviorism developed in America. Emphasized the unconscious, which are memories, feelings, and drives beyond the reach of conscious awareness. Wrote Interpretation of Dreams Three conflicting parts of our personality: Id – wants and desires; primarily motivated by sex and aggression Superego – conscience Ego – negotiates between id and superego; allows up to get what we want within constraints of society.

18 Humanistic Perspective
Human Fulfillment and Growth Key Theorists: Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow Positive Psychology Reactionary Disagreed with Freud’s focus on sex and aggression. Disagreed with behaviorist’s assertion that humans have no free will and are driven by rewards and punishments. More optimistic People do have free will. Focus on human potential and drive to be the best. Your choices are influenced by your self-concept and self-esteem. You need unconditional positive regard from your parents and others to be able to reach your full potential (self-actualization). Led to the development of positive psychology (focused on human flourishing…discovering what makes humans and communities thrive.

19 Cognitive Perspective
Most successful challenge to behaviorism Arose in the 1960s One of the most popular viewpoints in psychology today Reestablished the study of consciousness Aided by computers—they help us study mental processes more precisely Critics of behaviorism said that by failing to examine thought processes, psychologists were not studying the entire individual. Cognitive Approach: studies how thinking and perception influence behavior.

20 Cognitive Perspective
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy CBT is the most popular method of therapy used today.

21 Socio Cultural Approach
Emphasizes impact of culture, religion, ethnicity, gender, income level, environment, etc.

22 Bio Psycho Social Approach
Interaction of these three areas can explain behavior. Smoker: grew up in a family of smokers (social) + desire to belong (psychological) + biological propensity toward addition (biological)

What does psychology have roots in?

How is psychology related to physiology?

What are the 2 roots of psychology?