©Prentice Hall 20031-1 Understanding Psychology 6 th Edition Charles G. Morris and Albert A. Maisto PowerPoint Presentation by H. Lynn Bradman Metropolitan

©Prentice Hall 2003 1-1

Understanding Psychology6th Edition

Charles G. Morris and Albert A. Maisto

PowerPoint Presentation byH. Lynn Bradman

Metropolitan Community College


Chapter 1

The Science of Psychology


What Is Psychology?

• Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes.

• Psychologists are interested in every aspect of human thought and behavior.


Fields of Psychology

• Developmental• Physiological• Experimental• Personality• Clinical and Counseling• Social• Industrial and Organizational


Developmental Psychology

• Studies human mental and physical growth from conception to death– Child psychologists– Adolescent psychologists– Life-span psychologists


Physiological Psychology

• Investigates the biological basis of human behavior– Neuropsychologists– Psychobiologists– Behavioral geneticists


Experimental Psychology

• Learning• Memory• Sensation • Perception• Cognition • Motivation• Emotion


Personality Psychology

• Personality psychologists study the differences among individuals.


Clinical and Counseling Psychology

• Clinical psychologists are interested primarily in the diagnosis, cause, and treatment of psychological disorders.

• Counseling psychologists are concerned primarily with “normal” problems of adjustments in life.


Social Psychology

• Social psychologists study how people influence one another.


Industrial and Organizational Psychology

• Psychology applied to the workplace • I/O psychologists are interested in

selecting and training personnel • Improving productivity and working

conditions• The impact of computerization and

automation on workers


Enduring Issues in Psychology

• Person/Situation• Nature/Nurture• Stability/Change• Diversity/Universality• Mind/Body


Psychology as Science

• Scientific method• Theory• Hypotheses


Scientific Method

• An approach to knowledge that relies on a systematic method of generating hypotheses, collecting data, and explaining the data.


Theory

• The systematic explanation of a phenomenon.


Hypothesis

• A specific, testable prediction derived from a theory.


Goals of Psychology

• Describe • Explain • Predict • Control or Influence behavior


The Growth of Psychology


The "New Psychology:" A Science of the Mind

• Since the time of Plato and Aristotle, people have wondered and written about human behavior and mental processes. – During the late 1800s, they began to apply

the scientific method to questions that had puzzled philosophers for centuries.

– Psychology came into being as a formal, scientific discipline separate from philosophy.


The History of Psychology

• The history of psychology can be divided into three main stages: – The emergence of a science of the mind – The behaviorist decade – And the "cognitive revolution"


Structuralism: Wundt and Titchener

• Structuralism was concerned with identifying the units of conscious experience.

• 1879: Wundt founds psychology’s first laboratory at Leipzig.

• Titchener subdivided consciousness into physical sensations, feelings, and images.


Functionalism: William James

• Functionalism was concerned with the ongoing use of conscious experience.

• James argued that consciousness cannot be broken into elements.

• James coined the phrase “stream of consciousness.”


Sigmund Freud: Psychodynamic

Psychology• Freud focused on the unconscious

determinants of behavior.• Freud developed a method of therapy

called psychoanalysis.


Behaviorism: Watson and Skinner

• Behaviorism is only concerned with behavior that can be observed and measured.

• Watson founded behaviorism.• Skinner focused on the role of

reinforcement.


The Cognitive Revolution

• Wertheimer, Köhler, and Koffka were interested in tricks of perception.

• The Gestalt movement was concerned with the perception of “good form.”

• Coined the phrase “the whole is not equal to the sum of its parts.”


Existential and Humanistic

• Existentialism is concerned with alienation and apathy in modern life.

• Humanism is concerned with helping people realize their full potential.


Cognitive Psychology

• Concerned with memory, thinking, language, learning, decision making

• Expanded the concept of “behavior” to include thoughts, feelings, and states of consciousness


Evolutionary Psychology

• Concerned with the evolutionary origins of behaviors and mental processes

• Their adaptive value and the purposes they continue to serve


Positive Psychology

• Focuses on positive experiences• Looks for a positive relationship

between positive emotions and physical health

• Identifies the factors that allow individuals, communities and societies to flourish.


Multiple Perspectives Today

• Contemporary psychologists tend to see different perspectives as complimentary.

• Most agree that the field advances with the addition of new evidence to support or challenge existing theories.


Where Are The Women?

• Women have contributed to psychology from its beginnings.

• Women presented papers and joined the national professional association as soon as it was formed in 1892.



• Women faced discrimination.• Some colleges and universities did not

grant degrees to women. • Professional journals were reluctant to

publish their work. • Teaching positions were often closed to

them.



• Today women receive more than half of the Ph.D.'s granted in psychology.

• They perform key research in all of the psychology subfields.



Human Diversity

• Today, understanding human diversity is essential.

• Psychologists have begun to examine assumptions based on gender, race, and culture.


Gender Stereotypes

• The study of gender similarities and differences has become part of mainstream psychology.


Feminist Psychology

• The most important research findings from the past were based on all-male samples.

• Gender difference studies tend to focus on the extremes of gender differences.

• Many issues that were not important to male researchers were not studied.


Sexual Orientation

• Origins of sexual orientation• Brain differences between heterosexual

and homosexual men• Impact of gays and lesbians serving in

the military


Race and Ethnicity

• Most ethnic minorities are still underrepresented among the ranks of psychologists.

• New APA programs are in place to attract ethnic-minority students to psychology.

• Psychologists have developed a better appreciation for the unique challenges faced by individuals from various ethnic backgrounds.


Culture

• Culture provides modes of thinking, acting, and communicating about how the world works and why people behave as they do

• Culture influences– Beliefs and ideals– Interpretation of the meaning of natural

events, human actions and life itself.


Research Methods in Psychology


Research Methods

• Naturalistic Observation• Case Studies• Surveys• Correlational Research• Experimental Research


Naturalistic Observation

• Observing and recording the behavior of humans or animals in their natural environment



• Advantages– can observe what occurs before and after

target behavior– insight into the important factors to study– no artificiality of the laboratory



• Disadvantages– less control over variables– cannot imply causality– observer bias and subject reactivity– target behavior only occurs once


Case Studies

• Intensive description and analysis of a single individual or just a few individuals.


Case Studies

• Advantages– rich description of an individual– each individual serves as own control– no large groups of participants– no random assignment


Case Studies

• Disadvantages– generalizability is decreased by small

sample size– the individual being studied may be an

exception– observer bias


Surveys

• A research technique in which questionnaires or interviews are administered to a selected group of people.


Surveys

• Advantages– large quantity of information– relatively inexpensive


Surveys

• Disadvantages– respondents may not be representative– response biases– truthfulness of responses


Correlational Research

• A research technique based on the naturally occurring relationship between two or more variables.



• Advantages – description and prediction possible



• Disadvantages – no control over variables – cannot imply causality


Experimental Method

• A research technique in which an investigator deliberately manipulates selected events or circumstances and then measures the effects of those manipulations on subsequent behavior.


Experimental Research

• Independent variable: – The variable that is manipulated by the

experimenter to test its effects

• Dependent variable: – The variable that is measured to see how it

is changed by the independent variable



• Experimental group: – The group subjected to a change in the

independent variable

• Control group: – The group not subjected to a change in the

independent variable



• Advantages – conclusions about causality can be made



• Disadvantages – more ethical considerations – behavior is constrained to laboratory


Importance of Sampling

• Sample: – Selection of cases from a larger population

• Random sample: – Each potential participant has an equal

chance of being selected

• Representative sample: – The characteristics of the participants

corresponds closely to the characteristics of the larger population


Ethics and Psychology


APA Ethical Guidelines For Human Subjects

• Informed consent must be documented• Awareness of possible risks• Limitations on confidentiality specified• Limitations on the use of deception• Equitable alternatives must be offered if

course credit is given for participation


APA Ethical Guidelines For Animal Subjects

• Researchers must ensure “appropriate consideration of the animal’s comfort, health, and humane treatment.”

• Animals may not be subjected to “pain, stress, or privation” when an alternative procedure is available.


Careers in Psychology

• Psychology is one of the most popular majors in colleges and universities.

• A background in it is useful in a wide number of fields because so many jobs involve a basic understanding of people.



• Careers for those with advanced degrees in psychology include: – Teaching – Research – Jobs in government and private business – A number of occupations in the mental

health field



• Opportunities in the mental health field depend on one's degree of training.– Psychiatrist which requires medical training; – Clinical psychologist, which involves getting

a doctoral degree; – Counseling psychologist and social worker.

Documents

©Prentice Hall 20031-1 Understanding Psychology 6 th Edition Charles G. Morris and Albert A. Maisto PowerPoint Presentation by H. Lynn Bradman Metropolitan