Friday September 11 2001 As a rule we disbelieve all the facts and theories for which we have no use William James US Pragmatist philosopher psychologist 1842 1910 Given a choice between two theories take the one which is funnier Blore s Razor Announcements Email me if you would like to receive the vista materials as a word document Theoretical Perspectives NOLG Today in psych no 1 theory dominates Different theories often focus on different aspects of behavior Actually helpful to have multiple theories to draw from in our attempts to understand behavior Eclectic Recognize that all do some none do it all Theoretical Perspectives We can group the existing theories into 7 broad categories Take away the breadth and diversity of the different theory groups and the fact all help us in some way 7 Key Theoretical Perspectives 1 Psychodynamic psychoanalytic 2 Behavioral Learning 3 Humanistic Viewpoint 4 Cognitive 5 Sociocultural 6 Biopsychological 7 Evolutionary Ethological Psych Today Modern Perspectives 1 Psychodynamic perspective modern version of psychoanalysis F s work suggesting uncon motives and drives sex and aggression determine behavior Now more focused on devo of self and discovery of unconscious motivations behind behavior beyond the sexual ones def mechs Contribution Early recognition appreciation 1 role of early experience on later beh 2 possibility of unc impacting beh Freud Modern Perspectives 2 Behavioral perspective Behaviorism became a major force in the twentieth century Focus solely on things that can be seen 1 thought conscious or unconscious not important 2 belief beh is result of environ Classical and Operant Conditioning Pavlov Watson Skinner Skinner Modern Perspectives 3 Humanistic perspective Humanists hold view that people have free will the freedom to choose their own destiny Emphasize human potential the ability for everyone to become the best person possible self actualization Early founders Abraham Maslow Carl Rogers Growth Group Modern Perspectives Cognitive perspective focus on mental tasks memory attention intelligence perception problem solving language and learning Jean Piaget Information Processing Model Contributions understand thinking and its devo school and other applications Modern Perspectives 5 Sociocultural perspective focuses on impact of social settings and expectations inc culture on social behavior This perspective actually combines two areas 1 social psychology study of groups social roles expectations relationships etc on beh 2 cultural psychology the study of cultural norms values and expectations and beh Modern Perspectives 6 Biopsychological perspective attributes human and animal behavior to biological events occurring in the body such as genetic influences hormones activity of the nervous system Two way beh can impact body too Modern Perspectives 7 Evolutionary perspective focus on bio bases of mental and behavioral characteristics humans share a k a ethological perspective beh tied to bio and to evolution Behavior that has an adaptive or survival value continues gets passed on Modern Perspectives Which interests you If you had to do psychological research today what would you study and from what perspective In class Activity I believe that our genes determine who we become I believe that many of our behaviors are biologically based and based on their ability to help us survive I believe that we cannot understand development unless we look at the cultural context I believe that our attempts to resolve unconscious conflicts drive development I believe that our behaviors are the product of the rewards and punishments we have received or the reflexive associations we have made I believe that our ability to think and solve problems in a result of our ability to take advantage of the environmental stimulation presented to us Answers 1 Biopsychological 2 Evolutionary Ethological 3 Sociocultural 4 Psychodynamic 5 Behavioral Learning 6 Cognitive
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