Download Alchemy or Statistical Precision? Demystifying Assessment

PSYC 2201
Introduction to the
Discipline of Psychology
Chapter 1 Outline for Weiten (2005)
Bill Hill
Kennesaw State University
Historical Perspectives
• Origins arise from Philosophy & Physiology
• Birth year 1879
• Structuralism (Wilhelm Wundt)
• Functionalism (William James)
“Historical,” Yet Current Perspectives
• Behaviorism
– Ivan Pavlov
– J. B. Watson
– B. F. Skinner
• Psychoanalytical Theory
– Freud
– Erikson
– Jung
“Historical,” Yet Current Perspectives
• Humanistic Y
– Maslow
– Rogers
Why did Bill Clinton
jeopardize his political career
by having a fling with Monica
Lewinsky?
How would
• a behaviorist explain this behavior?
• a psychoanalytic psychologist explain this
behavior?
• a humanistic psychologist explain this
behavior?
The Return to Our Roots
• Cognitive Revolution (or William James
rises from the dead)
• Physiological/Biological Psychology
Recent Perspectives
• Diversity
– Psychology of Women
– International (Cross-Cultural) Psychology
– Ethnic Psychology
• Evolutionary Psychology
Dr. Branford believes that to truly understand
emotional responses we must understand what purpose
emotional responses serve. Dr. Branford's views most
closely mirror those of
a. the structuralist approach
b. the behavioral approach
c. the functionalist approach
d. the humanistic approach
The school of thought which emphasizes the unique
qualities of humans and their potential for personal
growth is
a. Psychoanalysis
b. humanism
c. functionalism
d. behaviorism
Recent research trends in psychology involve two areas
largely ignored by early behaviorists. These two areas
are
a. observable and measurable responses
b. cognition (thinking) and physiological processes
c. classical and operant conditioning
d. the effect of environmental events and the behavior
of lower animals
The notion that unconscious motivations can influence
our overt behavior is most consistent with the views of
a. Carl Rogers
b. Wilhelm Wundt
c. B. F. Skinner
d. Sigmund Freud
Which of the following do behaviorism and
psychoanalytic theory have in common?
a. an emphasis on the role of sexuality in behavior
b. a resistance to the use of animal subjects in
psychological research
c. the notion that unconscious motives have a major
influence on behavior
d. the implication that people are not masters of their
own destinies
List 5 traits or characteristics that are
typical of a scientist.
List 5 traits or characteristics that are
typical of a psychologist.
A Definition
scientific study of behavior
and how it is affected by an
organism's biological state,
mental state, and external
environment and the
application of its scientific
understanding to practical
problems
Y’s Main Goals
•
•
•
•
Describe
Understand/Explain
Predict
Change or Modify
Y vs. Other Social Sciences
• Lab Research
• Individual Focus
• Biological Foundation
Major Research Areas in Y
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Developmental
Social
Physiological
Cognitive
Personality
Psychometrics
Experimental
Professional Specialties
• Academic
– Teaching
– Research
• Applied & Theoretical Researchers
• Applied Psychologists
–
–
–
–
Clinical
Counseling
Industrial-Organizational
Educational & School
One of the key changes that has occurred in psychology
over time is that most psychologists have gone from
being specialists to being generalists.
a. True
b. False
Which of the following would be LEAST likely to be
studied by a cognitive psychologist?
a. how we remember things
b. the development of language
c. shaping behavior by reinforcement
d. how people reason to solve problems
The most widely practiced professional specialty in
psychology is
a. clinical psychology
b. experimental psychology
c. educational and school psychology
d. industrial/organizational psychology
A psychologist who was the director of a large human
resources department would most likely have a
background in
a. clinical psychology
b. experimental psychology
c. educational and school psychology
d. industrial/organizational psychology
You meet a psychologist at a party who tells you that
she is employed by the Educational Testing Service to
assist in the development of test items for an upcoming
new intelligence test. She most likely has a background
in
a. clinical psychology
b. experimental psychology
c. psychometrics
d. developmental psychology
Weiten’s 7 Key Themes
Psychology’s Subject Matter
• Behavior is Determined by Multiple Causes
• Behavior is Shaped by One’s Cultural
Heritage
• Heredity & Environment Jointly Influence
Behavior
• Human Experience is Highly Subjective
Weiten’s 7 Key Themes
Psychology as a Field of Study
• Psychology is Empirical
• Psychology is Theoretically Diverse
• Psychology Evolves in a Sociohistorical
Context