Psychology 101Summer 2010Syllabi, First Day Handout, Introduction, Module 1 & 2

Where did Psych. come from?

PhilosophyHow did I get here?

What should I go while I’m here?

What happens to me when I’m gone?

While Philosophy is pondering the metaphysical realities, psychology studies the reasons why individuals do things.

A question of paradigms

Objective

Single Paradigm

One theory

Easy to predict anomalies

ExamplesBiology

Physics

Chemistry

Subjective

Multiple Paradigms

Many theories

Divergent solutions

ExamplesPsychology

Sociology

Education

Definition

Psychology is the systemic, scientific study of behaviors and mental process.

Behaviors—observable actions or responses in both human and animals.

Mental Process—not directly observable, refers to a wide range of complex mental process, such as thinking, imagining, studying and dreaming.

Goals

Describe—the first goal of psychology is to describe the different ways that organisms behave.

Explain—the second goal of psychology is to explain the causes of behavior.

Predict—the third goal of psychology is to predict how organisms will behave in certain situations.

Control—the fourth goal of psychology is to control and organism’s behavior.

Approaches

Biological Approach—focuses on how our genes, hormones, and nervous system interact with our environments to influence learning, personality, memory, motivation, emotions and coping techniques.

Cognitive Approach—examines how we process, store, and use information and how this information influences what we attend to, perceive, learn, remember, believe, and feel.

Approaches, cont.

Behavioral Approach—studies how organisms learn new behaviors or modify existing ones, depending on whether events in their environments reward or punish their behavior.

Psychoanalytic Approach—stresses the influence of unconscious fears, desires, and motivations on thoughts, behaviors, and the development of personality traits and psychological problems later in life.

Approaches, cont.

Humanistic Approach—emphasizes that each individual has great great freedom directing his or her future, a large capacity for personal growth, a considerable amount of intrinsic worth, and enormous potential for self-fulfillment.

Cross-Cultural Approach—examines the influences of culture and ethnic similarities and differences on psychological and social functioning of a culture’s members.

Historical Approaches

Structuralism—the study of the most basic elements, primarily sensations and perceptions, that make up our conscious mental experiences.

Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920)

Introspection—the method of exploring conscious mental processes by asking subjects to look inward and report their sensations and perceptions.

Historical Approaches, cont.Functionalism—the study of the function rather than the structure of consciousness, was interested in how our minds adapt to our changing environment.

William James (1842-1910)

Gestalt Approach—emphasized that perception is more than the sum of its parts and studied how sensations are assembled into meaningful perceptual experiences.

Max Wertheimer (1883-1943)

Historical Approaches, cont.Behaviorism—emphasized the objective, scientific analysis of observable behaviors.

J. B. Watson (1878-1958)

Discrimination in the Field

WomenWomen not admitted into graduate schoolsFirst woman Ph.D. 1908More women receive Ph.D.’s than men, but job options seem to be fewer

MinoritiesFirst minority Ph.D. is psych, 1934Professional memberships very small for minorities

Righting the wrongs

Careers

Psychologist—has a Ph.D., PsyD., or Ed.D. in Psychology

Clinical Psychologist—has specialized in clinical work

Counseling Psychologist—same as above, but focuses on individual and family issues

Psychiatrist—an MD, years of clinical training, diagnosis, neurological training, prescribes medication

Percentages

49%--work in clinical settings

28%--academic settings

13%--other career settings

6%--industrial settings

4%--secondary schools and other settings

Research Areas

Social and Personality

Developmental

Experimental

Biological

Cognitive

Psychometrics

Social and Personality

Social Psychology involves the study of social interactions, stereotypes, prejudices, attitudes, conformity, group behaviors, and aggression

Personality psychology involves the study of personality development, personality change, assessment, and abnormal behaviors

Development

• Developmental Psychology examines moral, social, emotional, cognitive development throughout a person’s entire life

Experimental

• Experimental Psychology includes areas of sensation, perception, learning, human performances, motivation, and emotions.

Biological

• Biological psychology or psychobiology involves research on the physical and chemical changes that occur during stress, learning, and emotions, as well as how our genetic makeup, brain and nervous system interact with our environments and influence our behaviors

Cognitive

• Cognitive psychology involves how we process, store, and retrieve information and how cognitive processes influence our behaviors.

Psychometrics

• Psychometrics focuses on the measurement of people’s abilities, skills, intelligence, personality and abnormal behaviors.

Module 2

Answering Questions• Survey—a way to obtain information by

asking many individuals—either in person, by phone, or by mail, a fixed set of questions about particular subjects.

• Case study—an in-depth analysis of the thoughts feelings, beliefs, experiences, behaviors, or problems of a single individual.

• Experiment—a method for identifying cause and effect relationships by following a set of rules and guidelines that minimize the possibility of error, bias, and chance occurrences.

Correlation

Correlations is an association or relationship between the occurrence of two or more events.

Correlation coefficient is a number that indicates the strength of the relationship between two or more events: the closer the number is to -1.00 or +1.00, the greater the strength of the relationship.

Correlation terms• Perfect positive correlation coefficient

(+1.00) means that an increase in one events is always matched by an equal increase in a second event.

• Positive correlation coefficient indicates that as one event tends to increase, the second event tends to, but does not always increase.

• Zero correlation indicates that there is no relationship between the occurrence of one event and the occurrence of a second event

Correlation terms, cont.

• Negative correlation coefficient indicates that as one event tends to increase, the second event tends, but does not always, decrease

• Perfect negative correlation coefficient means that an increase in one event is always associated with an equal decrease in a second event

Correlation v. Causation

• Just because an event is correlated, it does not mean that the first event caused the second event.

• Although correlations cannot indicated cause-and-effect relationships, they do serve two very useful purposes: Correlation helps predict behavior and also points to where to look for possible causes.

Choosing Research Techniques

• An interview is a technique for obtaining information by asking questions, ranging from open-ended to highly structured, about a subject’s behavior, and attitudes, usually in a one-on-one situation

• A questionnaire is a technique for obtaining information by asking subjects to read a list of written questions and check of specific answers

• A standardized test is a technique to obtain information by administering a psychological test that has been standardized, which means that the test as been given to hundreds of people and show to be reliably measure thought patterns, personality traits, emotions, or behaivors

Choosing Research Techniques, cont.

• Laboratory experiments are techniques to gather information about the brain, genes, or behaviors with the least error and bias by using a controlled environment that allows careful observation and measurement.

• Animal model involves examining or manipulating some behavioral, genetic, or psychological factors that closely approximate some human problem, disease, or conditions.

Settings

• A naturalistic setting is a relatively normal environment in which researchers gather information by observing individuals’ behaviors without attempting to change or control the situation

• A laboratory setting involves studying individuals under systematic and controlled conditions, with many of the real-world influences eliminated

The Scientific Method

• Ask

• Identify

• Choose

• Assign

• Manipulate

• Measure

• Analyze

Ethics

• The American Psychological Association has published a code of ethics and conduct for psychologists to follow when doing research, counseling, teaching and related activities