Psychology Perspectives

Hippocrates The Greek physician known as the founder of modern medicine, observed patients with head injuries and deduced that the brain must be the ultimate source of our emotions. John Locke English philosopher who argued that the mind works by associating ideas arising from experience. Early thinkers who influenced psychology. Rene Descartes Promoted scientific thinking by searching for physical explanations of behavior. Early characters who influenced psychology. Structuralism An early psychological approach that emphasized the analysis of immediate experience into basic elements. Functionalism An early psychological approach that emphasized the function or purpose of behavior and consciousness. E.B. Titchener is one of the founders of structuralism. Wilhelm Wundt Formally founded the first psychological laboratory in 1879, in Leipzig, Germany. He is the first person to announce that he intended to make psychology a science. E.B. Titchener One of Wundt’s students, and popularized Wundt’s ideas and gave Wundt’s approach a name. Psychoanalysis The belief that the unconscious mind controls much of our thought and action. Biological perspective A psychological approach that emphasizes bodily events and changes associated with actions, feelings, and thoughts. Cognitive perspective A psychological approach that emphasizes mental process in perception, memory, language, problem solving, and other areas of behavior. Psychodynamic perspective A psychological approach that emphasizes unconscious dynamics within the individual, such as inner forces, conflicts, of the movement of instinctual energy. Sigmund Freud is the father of psychoanalysis. Feminist psychology A psychological approach that analyzes the influence of social inequities on gender relations and on the behavior of the two sexes. Different approaches to psychology. William James is the founder of the idea of functionalism. Differing perspectives within psychology. Differing perspectives within psychology. Viewpoints within psychology that emphasize the inner self. William James An American philosopher, physician, and psychologist who argued that searching for building blocks of experience was a waste of time. Sigmund Freud Founder of psychoanalysis and wrote The Interpretation of Dreams. Learning perspective A psychological approach that emphasizes how the environment and experience affect a person’s or animal’s actions. Sociocultural perspective A psychological approach that emphasizes social and cultural influences on behavior. Humanist psychology A psychological approach that emphasizes personal growth and the achievement of human potential, rather than the scientific understanding and assessment of behavior. Humanist psychology A psychological approach that emphasizes personal growth and the achievement of human potential, rather than the scientific understanding and assessment of behavior. Basic psychology The study of psychological issues in order to seek knowledge for its own sake rather than for its practical application. Clinical psychology A branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders. The study of psychological issues. Charles Darwin Proposed evolutionary psychology was an English naturalist. Charles Darwin is the founder of the evolutionary perspective. Psychology The science of behavior and mental processes. Mental processes The internal subjective experiences we infer from behavior. Psychology studies behavior. Animal Research Ethical psychological studies using animals must met the following requirements: must have a clear scientific purpose, must care of the animals in a humane way, must acquire animals legally, and they must design experimental procedures that employ the least amount of possible suffering. Guidelines set by the APA (American Psychological Association) when working with living (humans or animals) organisms. Differing branches of medicine and psychology that deals with psychological disorders. Deals with the internal workings of the mind. Applied psychology The study of psychological issues that have direct practical significance and the application of psychological findings. Psychiatry A branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical treatments as well as psychological therapy. Evolutionary How nature selects traits that promote the perpetuation of one’s genes. Behavior Anything an organism does. Neuroscience How the body and brain create emotions, memories, and sensory experiences. Human Research Research involving humans must meet the following standards: informed consent, deception, coercion, anonymity, risk, and debriefing procedures.