Introduction to Psychology Topic I An Overview of Psychology Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes Behavior refers to observable actions Ex hitting someone or a change in heart rate Mental processes refers to internal experiences such as thinking and feeling which are not observable Scientific method is a set of rules that helps us draw accurate conclusions Common sense provides conflicting answers to a question Common sense leads to conclusions that are the opposite of what scientific evidence suggests Psychology determines why that answer is correct The Development of Modern Psychology Early Beginnings in Philosophy and Physiology Philosophers such as Aristotle suggested that differences in behavior were the result of differences in experience Philosophers relied on logic to develop their explanations Physiologists such as Hippocrates thought differences in behavior were caused by differing levels of body fluids called humors or biles Physiologists used observations and some rudimentary experiments Birth of a Science 1879 a professor of physiology named Wilhelm Wundt established a new laboratory in which he brought philosophers and psychologists together to form psychology established the first laboratory of psychology the first psychology laboratory in the United States was founded at Johns Hopkins University in 1883 The Structural Approach Wundt and Edward Titchner wanted to determine what components went together to form an experience For example they were interested in how colors and sensations went together to form the image of an apple This approach is called structuralism The structuralists wanted to identify the psychological particles of experience Used a method called introspection which involves having individuals describe what they did when they were thinking The Functional Approach Psychologist William James focused on the question of how experiences helped humans adapt to situations Influenced by Charles Darwin who pointed out that animals that are better adapted for their environment are more likely to survive Functionalism wanted to understand how humans function The Gestalt Approach an experience can be best understood when its parts are considered as a unified whole the whole is different from or greater than the sum of the parts structuralists would focus on the individual aspect Gestalt approach step back and see how the dots went together to form the picture Only when you combine separate elements does an experience take form or shape Structuralists wanted to take an experience apart and study its separate components Gestaltists wanted to learn how the components of an experience worked together to create the experience Functionalists wanted to learn what the experience did for the individual Other psychologists study how we use intelligence to solve problems and live effective lives a functional approach Development of Competing Explanations for Behavior States of Consciousness Consciousness thinking being aware of what is going on around you thoughts are based on electrical activity in the brain different levels of consciousness different states of consciousness where you are more or less effective in processing information o those states are often related to your level of arousal at low levels of arousal sleep consciousness is reduced because you do not process information at moderate levels of arousal normal wakefulness consciousness is maximized because you are able to process information effectively at very high levels of arousal brought on by excitement or strong stimulants consciousness is reduced because you experience disruptions in your ability to process information consciousness involves complex neurological processes different levels and different states the study of consciousness was based on introspection a method used by early psychologists to study mental processes involved subjective descriptions of what individuals were thinking or feeling thought processes could not be observed directly verbal condition condition people to think by rewarding them with specific responses behaviorists psychologists who focused their attention on behaviors and observable factors such as rewards and punishments consciousness is important to our ability to function we try to change our states of consciousness with hypnosis drugs or meditation Topic I Hypnosis Franz Mesmer physician whose treatment of disease was based on suggestion his work led to what today we call hypnosis o an early term for hypnosis was Mesmerism Two Explanations for Hypnosis Hypnosis a procedure which suggestions are used to change sensations perceptions thoughts feelings and behaviors does not explain why the suggestions are effective Two widely held explanations for hypnosis 1 altered state of consciousness 2 role playing Altered State of Consciousness Trance and Dissociation traditional explanation is that hypnotic procedures result in an altered state of consciousness the individual enters a trance state they are given posthypnotic suggestions through those suggestions the individual comes under control of the hypnotist after coming out of the trance state the individual does not consciously remember that the suggestions were given but they follow the suggestions divided consciousness part of the individual is aware of everything going on while the other part is not aware of posthypnotic suggestions hypnosis is said to involve a dissociation part of the individual is a hidden observer Role Playing the other explanation for hypnosis is role playing the individual understands what is expected in the role of a hypnotized person and implicitly agrees to play that role the hypnotic situation is an as if situation o individuals are asked to temporarily set aside what they know is the case and to imagine or pretend something else is the case o they are aware that they are playing roles the role playing explanation does not imply an altered state of consciousness Who Can be Hypnotized wide individual differences with which individuals can be hypnotized some people can be easily and deeply hypnotized others can not be hypnotized at all Hypnotizability the ease with which an individual can be hypnotized usually measured by assessing the degree to which an individual will respond to suggestions stable over time and seems to be a personality trait two primary components o high degree of imagination and fantasy proneness hypnotizable individuals have vivid
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