1 Introduction Psychological science the study of mind brain and behavior Mind refers to mental activity o Mental activity results from biological processes actions of nerve cells or neurons Behavior describes a wide variety of actions that occur in all organisms What are the seven themes of psychological science 1 Psychology is an empirical science o Psychological science relies on empirical evidence as a way of knowing about how we think feel and behave 2 Nature and nurture are inextricably entwined o Nature nurture debate cannot be separated 3 The brain and mind are inseparable Nature and nurture depend on each other and their influences o Mind body problem o Dualism the idea promoted by Descartes which stated that the mind and body are separate yet intertwined o Older dualist notions about the separation of the brain and mind have been replaced with the idea that the physical brain enables the mind brain and mind cannot be separated 4 A new biological revolution is energizing research o Brain chemistry o The human genome o Watching the working brain 5 The mind is adaptive o Evolutionary theory a theory that emphasizes the inherited adaptive value of behavior and mental activity throughout the history of a species o Adaptations the physical characteristics skills or abilities that increase the chances of reproduction or survival and are therefore likely to be passed along to future generations o Charles Darwin s On the Origin of Species Natural selection survival of the fittest process by which organisms random mutations that are adaptive are passed along and random mutations that hinder survival are not o Solving adaptive problems Adaptive mechanism o Modern minds in stone age skulls o Culture provides adaptive solutions 6 Psychological science crosses levels of analysis o Biological level of analysis o Individual level of analysis o Social level of analysis o Cultural level of analysis 7 We often are unaware of the multiple influences on how we think feel and act How did the scientific foundations of psychology develop Experimental psychology begins with structuralism o Introspection a systematic examination of subjective mental experiences that requires people to inspect and report on the content of their thoughts Wilhelm Wundt o Structuralism an approach to psychology based on the idea that conscious experience can be broken down into its basic underlying components or elements Edward Titchener Criticized by William James Mind was much more complex than its elements and therefore could not be broken down Mind consisted of an ever changing continuous series of thoughts stream of consciousness Functionalism addresses the purpose of behavior o Functionalism an approach to psychology concerned with the adaptive purpose or function of mind and behavior William James Gestalt psychology emphasizes patterns and context in learning o Gestalt school opposed structuralism o Gestalt theory the whole of a personal experience is not simply the sum of its constituent elements the whole is different from the sum of its parts Max Wertheimer The perception of objects is subjective and dependent on context Women made pioneering contributions to psychology o Mary Calkins Freud emphasized the power of the unconscious o Unconscious the mental processes that operate below the level of conscious awareness o Psychoanalysis it involves trying to bring the contents of a patient s unconscious into conscious awareness so their conflicts can be dealt with constructively Most behavior can be modified by reward and punishment o Behaviorism a psychological approach that emphasizes the role of environmental forces in producing behavior John B Watson Challenged psychology s focus on the conscious and the Cognition affects behavior unconscious mental processes o Cognitive psychology the study of how people think learn and remember o Cognitive neuroscience the study of the neural mechanisms that underlie thought learning and memory Social situations shape behavior o Social psychology the study of group dynamics in relation to psychological process Psychological therapy is based on science o Kurt Lewin founded modern social psychology Schools schools of thought Scholars Structuralism Functionalism Gestalt Behaviorism Cognitive Social Titchener Wundt Dewey James Kohler Wertheimer Skinner Watson Kohler Miller Tolman Lewin How can we apply psychological science Psychological knowledge is used in many professions People are intuitive psychological scientists Psychological science requires critical thinking o Critical thinking a systematic way of evaluating information to reach reasonable conclusions Psychologists adhere to a code of ethics Psychology is relevant to every person s life