psych 101

• Psychology


  The scientific study of human mind and behavior
• Origins of psychology


  Psychology and Philosophy - a philosophical inquiry into the nature of human mind
• Psyche


  "Human soul"
• Is there a consciousness separate from our body?

  Does that soul have an existence beyond the death of our physical bodies?
• John Mulaney: '"I don't know what my body is for other than for taking my head from room to room."'
• Dualism or The Mind-Body Problem


  "...the mind is separate from the brain but somehow controls the brain and therefore, the rest of the body"
• Mind-body Problem (Dualism) vs Monism


  "Did brain activity cause thoughts or did thoughts cause brain activity?"
• Mind-body Problem (Dualism) vs Monism


  "philosophical question of how experience relates to the brain"
• Free will vs Determinism


  Are you really free to choose? Or are your choices determined by causes?
• Medicine and Psychology


  Is our personality connected to our physiology?
• Wundt, The Father of Psychology


  I am medical doctor turned physiologist who is interested in sensory experiences and first coined the term "psychology"
• Wundt, The Father of Psychology


  • Experience can be broken down into elements much like in chemistry - sensations and feelings
  • Presented various sensory stimuli and ask participants to observe the intensity and quality of experiences
  • Took note of changes in introspection with changes in stimulus
• Wundt, The Father of Psychology


  He used objective introspection, a more "scientific method" of inquiry about how the mind works
• Wundt, The Father of Psychology
• Edward Titchener

  Wundt's student

  He called his approach “Structuralism” and described it as an “attempt to describe the structures that compose the mind”
• Functionalism


  -Consciousness is in a state of flux and thus difficult to capture it’s structure

  -studying the function of minds
• Aims of Research in Psychology


  • Describe: What is happening?
  • Explain: Why is it happening?
  • Predict: Under what conditions will it happen again?
  • Control: How could it be changed?
• Descriptive Research


  To describe phenomenon of interest. Can be qualitative or quantitative. Methods: Observation, Case studies, Survey, Interview
• Correlational Research


  To determine quantitative relationships between two or more variables. Methods: Observation, Survey (longitudinal, cross-sectional)
• Experimental Research


  To determine causal relationships. Ensure that only the Independent Variable causes change in the Dependent Variable. Control or account for other variables.
• Ethical Principles


  • Respect for the Dignity of Persons and Peoples
  • Competent Caring for the Well-being of Persons and People
  • Integrity
  • Professional and Scientific Responsibilities to People
• Origins of Psychology

  Medicine and Philosophy
• Early psychologists were more concerned with studying perception, rather than personality.
• Disorders were the province of psychiatrists in the field of medicine
• Study of sensation

  -Easier to study

  -How does physical properties of stimulus correspond to psychological perception?
• Francis Galton (Darwin’s Cousin), was among the first to study human intelligence
• He wanted to see if individual differences could be traced to heredity
• Measured intelligence using simple sensory and motor activities
• Experience cannot be directly measured
• Rise of Behaviorism

  Movement within psychology towards a more scientific approach
• Behaviorism - a field of psychology that concentrates on observable, measurable behaviors and not on mental processes.
• Psychodynamic - influence of early childhood experiences, social & interpersonal relationships, development of self
• Behavioral - human behavior and its consequences
• Humanistic - focuses on individual’s free will and ability for self-determination
• Cognitive - focuses on memory, intelligence, thought processes, problem solving
• Sociocultural - effect of other people and culture on individual
• Biopsychological - physiological processes that affect human mind and behavior
• Evolutionary - human mind and behavior developed out of natural selection
• Quantitative research

  Experimental

  Correlational
• mind-body dualism- philosophical issue in psychology that is concerned with the correspondence between conscious experience and brain activity