Origins of psychology

• introspection= systematic experimental attempt to study the mind by observing the conscious experiences such as feelings, thoughts, and sensations
• Structuralism- seeks to understand the structure of the mind, breaking down experiences into basic elements
• Introspection- observing and recording one’s own conscious thoughts and experiences
• Process of introspection- participants presented with standardised sensory stimulus like a ticking metronome and systematically report their experiences breaking down their thoughts into separate elements
• Introspection is not a direct observation of mental processes wundt made inferences about the behaviours
• Wundts work was highly scientific primarily because of the controlled observations, large sample sizes and systematic approaches
• wundts introspective methods are considered subjective and are not classified as truly scientific due to the reliance on inferences and self observation
• Psychology had its roots in philosophy and biology, but when Wundt opened the world's first experimental laboratory in Germany in 1879, it marked a turning point: psychology's emergence as a separate and distinct scientific discipline.
• Empirical methods of research are based on actual experience rather than on theory or belief. It involves gathering data in an objective way so that researchers’ preconceptions cannot influence the data. It also measures quantitative details so that patterns can be examined and inferences from the result are credible.
• the use of lab experiments allows for control which means that methods can be standardised and experiments replicated by other researchers to test they are reliable.
• Wundt's work paved the way for later controlled research and the study of mental processes e.g. by cognitive psychologists