AS AN ACADEMIC DISCIPLINE

Psychology

This course is all about why?

Why do individuals do things?Why do individuals like things?Why do individuals say things?Why?Why?Why?

Why is Psychology?

Psychology – Study of the individual. More specifically the study of the mind and behavior

Psychology literally translated means “study of the soul”

Questions that arose since the beginning

What topics and issues should psychology be concerned with?

What research methods should be used to study psychology?

Is psychology really a science?Should psychology focus on observable

behaviors or on internal, mental processes?Should psychologists use research to

influence public policy, education, and other aspects of human behavior?

Psychology is not…

Mind reading, manipulation, self-analyzingSelf-help, recovery, 12-step programsWeird stuff: past lives, psycho killers, ESPToday on Maury

Psychology is

The study of human issues that begin before birth and continue until death

The science of how we: See and hear (perception) Move (motor control) Think and speak (cognition and language) Learn and grow (development) Feel (emotion) Relate to one another (social psychology) Differ from one another (personality)

Perception

Motor Control

Cognition and Language

Development

Emotion

Social Psychology

Personality

7 Themes of Psychology

Psychology is EmpiricalPsychology is Theoretically DiversePsychology Evolves in a Sociohistorical

ContextBehavior is Determined by Multiple CausesOur behavior is Shaped by our Cultural

HeritageHeredity and Environment Jointly Influence

BehaviorOur Experience of the World is Highly

Subjective

Approaches to psychology

EvolutionaryBiologicalBehavioralCognitiveHumanisticPsychodynamicSociocultural

Psychodynamic

Emphasizes the role of the unconscious mind, early childhood experiences, and interpersonal relationships to explain human behavior

Cognitive

Focuses on mental processes such as memory, thinking, problem solving, language, and decision making

Compare the human mind to a computer

Behavioral

Focuses solely on observable behaviorsLearned behaviors

Humanistic

Emphasizes the role of motivation on thought and behavior

Focuses on the way that humans are driven to grow, change, and develop their personal potential

Biological

How genetics influence different behaviorHow damage to specific areas of the brain

influence behavior and personality

Sociocultural

Focus on human behavior across different cultures

Evolutionary

The study of how evolution explains the physiological processes

This approach suggests that these mental processes exist because they serve an evolutionary process

They aid in survival and reproduction

Application

How do you explain the causes of depression?How do you examine the personality of an

assassin?