SCHOOLS OF PSYCHOLOGY

• SCHOOLS OF PSYCHOLOGY


  -          or school of thought

  -          an organized explanation of a certain phenomena believed by groups of people supporting the principle
• Structuralism


  -          William James and Wilhelm Wundt

  -          believes in the importance of the structure of the mind

  -          breaking down mental process into the most basic components

  -          mind is structured through conscious experiences

  -          primarily used the method called introspection

  -          subjects were trained to observe and report as accurately as the could their mental process, feelings and experiences
• Functionalism


  -          John Dewey, William James, James Rowland Angell, and Harvey Carr

  -          called themselves ‘functionalist’

  -          retract the idea of structuralism

  -          importance of “function of the mind” rather than “structure of the mind”

  -          importance of functional adjustment of an organism to his environment
• Behaviorism


  -          John B. Watson

  -          introduced in 1913

  -          believed that observable behavior was the only reliable source of information, not inner experience

  -          importance of the environment in shaping an individual’s behavior

  -          looked for connections between observable behavior and stimuli from the environment
• Gestalt


  -          Max Wertheimer

  -          founded in 1912

  -          gestalt means “to configure” or “to form or pattern”

  -          believed that human beings and other animals perceive the external world as an organized pattern

  -           “The whole is greater than the sum of its part”
• Psychoanalysis


  -          Sigmund Freud

  -          founded during late 1800s and early 1900s

  -          work of the unconscious behavior

  -          behavior is determined by powerful inner forces, most of which are buried in the unconscious mind

  -          Freud developed psychoanalysis as a form of psychotherapy (free association), theory of personality (id, ego and super ego drives), and theory of development (psychosexual stages)

  -          goal is to help the patient understand and accept repressed feelings and find ways to deal with them
• Cognitive Analysis


  -          use of mind and its behavior

  -          a theoretical perspective that focuses on the realms of human perception, thought and memory

  -          articulated by Jean Piaget, students learn better when they can invent knowledge through inquiry and experimentation instead of acquiring facts presented by a teacher in class

  -          Lev Vygotsky, emphasized the role of social interactions in knowledge construction

  -          social constructivism turns attention to children’s interactions
• Existentialist Psychology


  -          proponent: Brenato and Husserl

  -          believe in both free will and the uniqueness of the individual

  -          individual behaviors are not seen as evil or good, but neutral, interpreted only by the individual

  -          meaning of existence
• Humanistic


  -          proponent: Abraham Maslow

  -          nature of man, importance of being positive and present

  -          believed that an individual’s behavior is primarily determined by his perception of the world around him; individuals are not solely the product of their environment; and individuals are internally directed and motivated to fulfill their human potential