Psychology 202Chapter 1: The Science of PsychologyMonday, January 14, yPsychology 202Chapter 1: The Science of PsychologyWhy Study Psych?-People are fascinated with their own mental activity-Psychological science: The study of the mind, brain, and behavior, but also respon-sible for our memories, thoughts, and feelings-Mind — refers to mental activity The perceptual experiences we have while interactingwith the world-Mental activity results from biological process with the brain; “The “mind is what the brain does”-Behavior — wide variety of observable actions which range from subtle to complex-Psychology is relevant in all aspects of lifePsychological Science Teaches Critical Thinking-One of the hallmarks of a good scientist is amiable skepticism (combines openness and wariness)-Amiable skeptic: Remains open to new ideas, but is wary of new scientific findings. They also develop the habit of carefully weighing the facts when deciding what to be-lieve — the ability to think this way is called critical thinking.-Critical thinking: Systematically evaluating information to reach reasonable conclu-sions1Monday, January 14, y-Critical thinking involves using logic, looking for holes in evidence, seeing if the infor-mation makes sense, considering alternate explanations, and seeing whether the in-formation is biased.The Nature/Nurture Debate-People have wondered why people act and think the way they do and have debated whether the individuals psychology is attributed more to nature or to nurture-That means are psychological characteristics biologically innate or do they acquired through culture?-Culture: The beliefs, values, rules, and customs that exist within a group of people who share a common language and environment and that re transmitted though learning form one generation to the next-Nature/Nurture Debate: The arguments concerning whether psychological charac-teristics are biologically innate or acquired through education, experience, and culture• Nature and Nurture rely on each other. Their influences cannot be separated -Psychologists now widely recognize that both nature and nurture are important to hu-mans’ psychological developmentThe Mind/Body Problem Also Has Ancient Roots-Mind/Body Problem: A fundamental psychological issue: Are mind and body sepa-rate and distinct, or is the mind simply the physical brain’s subjective experience? -The mind has been viewed as residing in many organs of the body, including the liver and the heart-Scholars continue to believe that the mind is separate from and in control of the body-Sensus communis: home of thought and judgment (“common sense”)2Monday, January 14, yExperimental Psychology-Wilhelm Wundt — Wundt founded modern experimental psychology -Established the first psychology laboratory and institute-Developed the method of introspection — a systematic examination of subjective mental experiences that requires people to inspect and report on the content of their thoughtsIntrospection and Other Methods Led to Structuralism-Structuralism: An approach to psychology based on the idea that conscious experi-ence can be broken down into its basic underlying components-Argued that understanding of the basic elements of conscious experience would pro-vide the scientific basis for understanding the mind-General issue with introspection is that experience is subjective-Stream of consciousness: A phrase coined by William James to describe each per-son’s continuous series of ever-changing thoughts-James argued that the mind was much more complex than its elements and therefore could not be broken down-Argued that psychologists ought to examine the functions served by the mind — how the mind operates-Functionalism: An approach to psychology concerned with the adaptive purple, or function of mind and behaviorEvolution, Adaptive, and Behavior-Charles Darwin — Major influence of functionalism. Published a book which intro-duced evolutionary theory.3Monday, January 14, y-Evolutionary theory: A theory presented by the naturalist Charles Darwin; it views the history of a species in terms of the inherited, adaptive value of physical character-istics, of mental activity, and of behavior-Darwin reasoned that species change over time-Changes come through random genetic mutations in individuals-Adaptions: In evolutionary theory, the physical characteristics, skills, or abilities that increase the chances of reproduction or survival and are therefore, likely to be passedalong to future generations-Natural Selection: In evolutionary theory, the idea that those who inherent character-istics that help them adapt to their particular environments have a selective advantageover those who do not.-Darwin’s ideas have profoundly influenced science, philosophy, and society-Many functionalists argued that if a behavior serves a purpose, that purpose ought to be reflected in daily human lifeGestalt Psychology Emphasized Patterns and Context in Learning-Founded by Max Wertheimer in 1912 and expanded by Wolfgang Kohler-Gestalt Theory: A theory based on the idea that the whole of personal experience is different from simply the sum of its constituent elements -In other words, the whole is different from the sum of its parts-Has influenced many psychology perspective, including the study of vision and our human personality -People have different perspectives of objectsWomen Have Helped Shaped The Field4Monday, January 14, y-Mary Whiton Calkins — Calkins was an important early contributor to psychological science, despite having been denied the doctorate she earned in psychology-Margaret Floy Washburn — In 1894, Washburn became the first woman to receive aPhD in psychology. She went onto a distinguished teaching career.Freud Emphasized the Power of the Unconscious -Sigmund Freud: The Father of psychoanalytic theory, Freud highly influenced psy-chology in the twentieth century-Freud deduced that human behavior is determined by mental processes operating be-low the level of conscious awareness, at the level of the unconscious.-Unconscious: The mental processes that operate below the level of conscious awareness-Freud believed these unconscious mental forces produce psychological discomfort and in some cases, even apparent psychological disorders.-Freudians believed these unconscious conflicts typically arose from childhood experi-ences that the person was blocking from memory-Freud developed psychoanalysis-Psychoanalysis: A method