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CHAPTER 1
What Is Psychology?

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Learning Outcomes

  • Define psychology.
  • Describe the various fields and subfields of psychology.

Learning Outcomes

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Learning Outcomes

  • Describe the origins of psychology and identify those who made significant contributions to the field.

  • Identify theoretical perspectives of modern psychologists toward behavior and mental processes.

Learning Outcomes

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Learning Outcomes

  • Describe modern approaches to research and practice—critical thinking, the scientific method, and ethical considerations.

Learning Outcomes

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Truth or Fiction?

More than 2,000 years ago, Aristotle wrote a book on psychology, with contents similar to your own textbook.

The ancient Greek philosopher Socrates suggested a research method that is still used in psychology.

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Truth or Fiction? More than 2,000 years ago, Aristotle wrote a book on psychology, with contents similar to your textbook. TRUE.

Truth or Fiction? The ancient Greek philosopher Socrates suggested a research method that is still used in psychology. TRUE.

Go to 4ltrpress.cengage.com/psych for an interactive version of this Truth or Fiction feature.

Truth or Fiction?

Men receive the majority of doctoral degrees in psychology.

Even though she had worked to complete all the degree requirements, the first female president of the American Psychological Association turned down the doctoral degree that was offered to her.

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Truth or Fiction? Men receive the majority of doctoral degrees in psychology. FALSE.

Truth or Fiction? Even though she had worked to complete all the degree requirements, the first female president of the American Psychological Association turned down the doctoral degree that was offered to her. TRUE.

Go to 4ltrpress.cengage.com/psych for an interactive version of this Truth or Fiction feature.

Truth or Fiction?

You could survey millions of voters and still fail to predict the outcome of a presidential election.

In many experiments, neither the participants nor the researchers know who is receiving the real treatment and who is not.

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Truth or Fiction? You could survey millions of voters and still fail to predict the outcome of a presidential election. TRUE.

Truth or Fiction? In many experiments, neither the participants nor the researchers know who is receiving the real treatment and who is not. TRUE.

Go to 4ltrpress.cengage.com/psych for an interactive version of this Truth or Fiction feature.

Psychology as a Science

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LO1 Define psychology

What is Psychology?

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

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psychology – the science that studies behavior and mental processes

Goals of Psychology

  • Psychology seeks to:
  • describe
  • explain
  • predict
  • control behavior and mental processes

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What is a Theory?

  • A theory allows you to
  • propose reasons for relationships
  • derive explanations
  • make predictions

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theory – a formulation of relationships underlying observed events

What Psychologists Do

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LO2 Describe the various fields and subfields of psychology

What Do Psychologists Do?

  • Research
  • Pure research
  • Applied research
  • Practice
  • Teaching

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pure research – research conducted without concern for immediate applications

applied research – research conducted in an effort to find solutions to particular problems

Fields of Psychology

  • Clinical
  • Counseling
  • School
  • Educational
  • Developmental
  • Personality
  • Social
  • Environmental
  • Experimental
  • Industrial
  • Organizational
  • Human Factors
  • Consumer
  • Health
  • Sport
  • Forensic

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Where Psychology Comes From:
A History

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LO3 Describe the origins of psychology and identify those who made significant contributions to the field

Ancient Contributors to Psychology

  • Aristotle
  • Peri Psyches
  • Democritus
  • Socrates
  • Introspection

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Truth or Fiction? More than 2,000 years ago, Aristotle wrote a book on psychology, with contents similar to your textbook. TRUE More than 2,000 years ago, Aristotle wrote a book on psychology, Peri Psyches, with contents similar to your textbook.

Truth or Fiction? The ancient Greek philosopher Socrates suggested a research method that is still used in psychology. TRUE Socrates suggested a research method – introspection – which is based on Socrates’ advice to “know thyself” which has remained a motto of psychology ever since.

introspection – deliberate looking into one’s own cognitive processes to examine one’s thoughts and feelings

Psychology as a Laboratory Science

  • Gustav Theodor Fechner
  • Elements of Psychophysics (1860)
  • Wilhelm Wundt
  • First psychology laboratory (1879)

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Gustav Theodor Fechner (1801-1887)

Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920)

Structuralism

  • Wilhelm Wundt
  • Structuralism breaks conscious experiences into
  • objective sensations (sight, taste), and
  • subjective feelings (emotional responses, will)
  • mental images (memories, dreams)
  • Mind functions by combining objective and subjective elements of experience

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structuralism – the school of psychology that argues that the mind consists of three basic elements—sensations, feelings, and images—that combine to form experience

Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920)

Functionalism

  • William James
  • Functionalism focused on behavior in addition to mind and consciousness
  • Used direct observations to supplement introspection
  • Influenced by Darwin’s theory of evolution

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Functionalism – the school of psychology that emphasizes the uses or functions of the mind rather than the elements of experience

William James (1842-1910)

Charles Darwin (1809-1882)

Behaviorism

  • John Broadus Watson
  • Behaviorism focuses on learning observable (measurable) behavior
  • B.F. Skinner
  • Learned behavior is behavior that is reinforced

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behaviorism – the school of psychology that defines psychology as the study of observable behavior and studies relationships, between stimuli and responses

reinforcement – a stimulus that follows a response and increases the frequency of the response

John B. Watson (1878-1958)

BF Skinner (1904-1990)

Gestalt Psychology

  • Max Wertheimer, Kurt Koffka, Wolfgang Köhler
  • Gestalt focused on perception and its influence on thinking and problem solving
  • Perception are more than sum of their parts
  • Active and purposeful
  • Insight learning

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Gestalt psychology – the school of psychology that emphasizes the tendency to organize perceptions into wholes and to integrate separate stimuli into meaningful patterns

Max Wertheimer (1880-1943)

Kurt Koffka (1886-1941)

Wolfgang Köhler (1887-1967)

The Importance of Context

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Figure 1.3 The Importance of Context. A. Are the dots in the center of the configuration the same size? B. Is the second symbol in each line the letter B or the number 13? C. Which of the gray squares is brighter?

Some Insight Into Insight

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Figure 1.4 Some Insight Into Insight. At first, the chimpanzee cannot reach the bananas hanging from the ceiling. After some time has passed, the chimp has an apparent “flash of insight” and piles the boxes on top of one another to reach the fruit.

Psychoanalysis

  • Sigmund Freud
  • Psychoanalysis
  • Influence of unconscious motives and conflicts
  • Theory of personality
  • Therapy

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psychoanalysis – the school of psychology that emphasizes the importance of unconscious motives and conflicts as determinants of human behavior

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

How Today’s Psychologists View Behavior and Mental Processes

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LO4 Identify theoretical perspectives of modern psychologists toward behavior and mental processes

Cognitive Perspective

  • Concerned with ways we mentally represent the world and process information
  • Memory, perceptions, learning, problem solving, decision making, language, planning

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cognitive – having to do with mental processes such as sensation and perception, memory, intelligence, language, thought, and problem solving

Humanistic — Existential Perspective

  • Humanism stresses human capacity for self- fulfillment
  • Role of consciousness, self-awareness, decision making
  • Existentialism stresses free choice and personal responsibility
  • Carl Rogers
  • Abraham Maslow

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Carl Rogers (1902-1987)

Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)

Psychodynamic Perspective

  • Neoanalysts focus more on conscious choice and self-direction then psychoanalysis
  • Karen Horney
  • Erik Erikson

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Karen Horney (1885-1952)

Erik Erikson (1902-1994)

Perspective on Learning

  • Social Cognitive
  • People modify and create their environment
  • Observation

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social-cognitive theory – a school of psychology in the behaviorist tradition that includes cognitive factors in the explanation and prediction of behavior; formerly termed social learning theory

Sociocultural Perspective

  • Focuses on the influence of differences among people on behavior and mental processes
  • Ethnicity, gender, culture, socioeconomic status

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sociocultural perspective – the view that focuses on the roles of ethnicity, gender, culture, and socioeconomic status in behavior and mental processes.

Diversity Within Psychology

  • Ethnicity
  • Kenneth Clark and Mamie Phipps Clark
  • Jorge Sanchez
  • Lillian Comas Diaz
  • Richard Suinn

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Kenneth Clark (1914-2005) and Mamie Phipps Clark (1917-1983) Husband and wife African American psychologists known for research on school segregation (research was cited by Supreme Court in Brown Vs. Board of Education ruling). For a video that replicates the Clark’s famous doll study see “Girl Like Me,” a short youth documentary in 2005 (http://www.mediathatmattersfest.org/6/a_girl_like_me/).

Jorge Sanchez (1906-1972) – Latino American, among first to show how intelligence tests are culturally biased

Lillian Comas Diaz – edits journal on multicultural mental health

Richard Suinn – Asian American psychologist studies mental health and identity development among Asian Americans

Diversity Within Psychology

  • Gender
  • Mary Whiton Calkins
  • Mary Salter Ainsworth
  • Elizabeth Loftus

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gender - the culturally defined concepts of masculinity and femininity

Truth or Fiction? Men receive the majority of doctoral degrees in psychology. FALSE Women now receive the majority of doctoral degrees in psychology.

Truth or Fiction? Even though she had worked to complete all the degree requirements, the first female president of the American Psychological Association turned down the doctoral degree that was offered to her. TRUE It is true that the first female president of the American Psychological Association, Mary Whiton Calkins, turned down the doctoral degree that was offered to her.

Mary Whiton Calkins (1863-1930) Studied as a “guest student” at Harvard (men only) and completed the PhD requirements but was not granted the degree because of her sex. Harvard offered her a PhD from Radcliffe (women’s only) but Calkins declined in protest. She went on to become president of APA.

Mary Salter Ainsworth (1913-1999) Groundbreaking work on attachment in children

Elizabeth Loftus (b. 1944) contemporary researcher on memory

How Psychologists Study Behavior and Mental Processes

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LO5 Describe modern approaches to research and practice—critical thinking, the scientific method, and ethical considerations

Principles of Critical Thinking

  • Be skeptical
  • Insist on evidence
  • Examine definitions of terms
  • Examine the assumptions or premises of arguments
  • Be cautious in drawing conclusions from evidence

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Principles of Critical Thinking (continued)

  • Consider alternative interpretations of research evidence
  • Do not oversimplify
  • Do not overgeneralize
  • Apply critical thinking to all areas of life

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The Scientific Method

  • Formulate a research question
  • State the hypothesis
  • Test the hypothesis
  • Draw conclusions based on findings
  • Publish research
  • Replicate study

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hypothesis – in psychology, a specific statement about behavior or mental processes that is tested through research

Scientific Method

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Figure 1.5 The Scientific Method. The scientific method is a systematic way of organizing and expanding scientific knowledge.

Samples and Populations

  • Sample
  • Segment of population
  • Population
  • Entire group targeted for study
  • Representative samples allow generalization of findings

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sample – part of a population

population – a complete group of organisms or events

Truth or Fiction? You could survey millions of voters and still fail to predict the outcome of a presidential election. TRUE A 1936 poll predicted Republican candidate Alf Landon would defeat the incumbent president, Franklin D. Roosevelt. The Literary Digest, conducted the poll of millions of voters by phone, in a time when phones were only owned by people of a higher income level, also more likely to vote Republican.

Random and Stratified Sampling

  • Random sample
  • Each member of population has equal chance of selection
  • Stratified sample
  • Subgroups are represented proportionally
  • Volunteer bias
  • Bias represented by studying people who volunteer to participate

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random sample – a sample drawn so that each member of a population has an equal chance of being selected to participate

stratified sample – a sample drawn so that identified subgroups in the population are represented proportionately in the sample

volunteer bias – a source of bias or error in research reflecting the prospect that people who offer to participate in research studies differ systematically from people who do not

Methods of Observation

  • Case Study
  • Gather information about individuals or small groups
  • Sometimes used to investigate rarities
  • Survey
  • Used to collect information that cannot be observed directly

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case study – a carefully drawn biography that may be obtained through interviews, questionnaires, and psychological tests

survey – a method of scientific investigation in which a large sample of people answer questions about their attitudes or behavior

Sources of inaccuracies in case studies—Gaps and factual inaccuracies in memory

Sources of inaccuracies in surveys—Inaccurate recall and social desirability (misrepresentations)

Bias in both case study and survey—social desirability

Methods of Observation

  • Naturalistic Observation
  • Observe subjects in their natural environment
  • Unobtrusive measure

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naturalistic observation – a scientific method in which organisms are observed in their natural environments

Correlation

  • Mathematical method of determining a relationship between variables
  • Correlation
  • Expresses strength and direction of relationship between variables
  • Does not prove cause and effect

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Positive and Negative Correlations

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Figure 1.6 Positive and Negative Correlations. When there is a positive correlation between variables, as there is between intelligence and achievement, one increases as the other increases. By and large, the higher people score on intelligence tests, the better their academic performance is likely to be, as in the diagram on the left. (Each dot represents an individual’s intelligence test score and grade point average.)

But there is a negative correlation between stress and health. As the amount of stress we experience increases, the functioning of our immune system tends to decrease. Correlational research may suggest but does not demonstrate cause and effect.

Experimental Method

  • Demonstrates cause and effect through scientific method
  • Independent variable
  • Dependent variable

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experiment – a scientific method that seeks to confirm cause-and-effect relationships by introducing independent variables and observing their effects on dependent variables

independent variable – a condition in a scientific study that is manipulated so that its effects may be observed

dependent variable – a measure of an assumed effect of an independent variable

Experimental Method

  • Experimental groups
  • Control groups
  • Placebos
  • Blind
  • Double-blind study

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experimental groups – in experiments, groups whose members obtain the treatment

control groups – in experiments, groups whose members do not obtain the treatment, while other conditions are held constant

placebo – a bogus treatment that has the appearance of being genuine

blind – in experimental terminology, unaware of whether or not one has received a treatment

double-blind study – a study in which neither the subjects nor the observers know who has received the treatment

Truth or Fiction? In many experiments, neither the participants or the researchers know who is receiving the real treatment and who is not. TRUE For example, the Food and Drug Administration requires double-blind studies before it allows the marketing of new drugs.

Experimental Conditions in the Lang Study

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Figure 1.7 The Experimental Conditions in the Lang study. The taste of vodka cannot be discerned when vodka is mixed with tonic water. For this reason, it was possible for subjects in the Lang study on the effects of alcohol to be kept “blind” as to whether or not they had actually drunk alcohol. Blind studies allow psychologists to control for the effects of subjects’ expectations.

Ethics of Research with Humans

  • Ethical review committee and ethical standards
  • Promote individual dignity, human welfare and scientific integrity
  • Ensure no harm will come to subjects
  • Informed consent
  • Confidentiality
  • Deception
  • Debriefing

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informed consent – a participant’s agreement to participate in research after receiving information about the purposes of the study and the nature of the treatments

debrief – to explain the purposes and methods of a completed procedure to a participant

Ethics of Research with Animals

  • Animals are used when research cannot be carried out with humans
  • Animals may be harmed, only when:
  • there is no alternative, and
  • benefits of the research justify the harm

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