Today, most psychologists reject a rigid dualist position: many years of research indicate that the physical and mental aspects of human experience are deeply intertwined.
The fields of psychoneuroimmunology and behavioral medicine explicitly focus on this interconnection. The term did not come into popular usage until the German idealist philosopher Christian Wolff used it in his Psychologia empirica and Psychologia rationalis — The late 19th century marked the start of psychology as a scientific enterprise.
Psychology as a self-conscious field of experimental study began in , when German scientist Wilhelm Wundt founded the first laboratory dedicated exclusively to psychological research in Leipzig. Often considered the father of psychology, Wundt was the first person to refer to himself as a psychologist and wrote the first textbook on psychology, entitled Principles of Physiological Psychology. Wundt believed that the study of conscious thoughts would be the key to understanding the mind.
His approach to the study of the mind was groundbreaking in that it was based on systematic and rigorous observation, laying the foundation for modern psychological experimentation.
He systematically studied topics such as attention span, reaction time, vision, emotion, and time perception. This approach is still used today in modern neuroscience research; however, many scientists criticize the use of introspection for its lack of objectivity. Wilhelm Wundt is considered by many to be the founder of psychology. He laid the groundwork for what would later become the theory of structuralism.
Edward B. This theory attempted to understand the mind as the sum of different underlying parts, and focused on three things: 1 the individual elements of consciousness; 2 how these elements are organized into more complex experiences; and 3 how these mental phenomena correlate with physical events.
Titchener attempted to classify the structures of the mind much like the elements of nature are classified in the periodic table—which is not surprising, given that researchers were making great advancements in the field of chemistry during his time.
He believed that if the basic components of the mind could be defined and categorized, then the structure of mental processes and higher thinking could be determined. Like Wundt, Titchener used introspection to try to determine the different components of consciousness; however, his method used very strict guidelines for the reporting of an introspective analysis.
Structuralism was criticized because its subject of interest—the conscious experience—was not easily studied with controlled experimentation. Critics argued that self-analysis is not feasible, and that introspection could yield different results depending on the subject. As structuralism struggled to survive the scrutiny of the scientific method, new approaches to studying the mind were sought. One important alternative was functionalism, founded by William James in the late 19th century.
In functionalism, the brain is believed to have evolved for the purpose of bettering the survival chances of its carrier by acting as an information processor: its role is essentially to execute functions similar to the way a computer does. Psychology —Wundt and James: structuralism and functionalism : Here, the foundations of structuralism and functionalism are contrasted. Debates and controversies in psychology have spanned the decades and continue to change over time.
Psychological debates have spanned the decades and continue to change over time. With the release of the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-5 , psychologists continue to debate controversial issues in their field.
What is normal or healthy behavior for one person may be unhealthy or ineffective for someone else. Behavior can be normal for an individual intrapersonal normality when it is consistent with the most common behavior for that person, even if that behavior leads to negative consequences. Definitions of normality vary by person, time, place, and situation, and are overwhelmingly shaped by cultural and societal standards and norms. These standards and norms change over time, and perceptions of normality change along with them.
Critics argue that perceptions of normality are inherently subject to value judgments, biases, and assumptions, and can have social ramifications. In , the British Psychological Society argued that the DSM-5 should consider mental disorders on a spectrum along with normality:. One of the central debates in psychology involves the origin of human behavior. Is behavior caused by biological factors present in the human body nature , or is it caused by interactions between the individual and his or her environment nurture?
Strict adherents of the nature philosophy often use genetic code as support for their theory. Psychologists today generally believe that human behavior is affected by a combination of both biological and environmental factors. Many of the current debates in psychology can be seen in the recent changes to the DSM Thomas M. Stainton - unknown. Lisa Sowle Cahill - - Modern Theology 28 3 Ausonio Marras - - Philosophy of Science 52 June Roland J.
Teske - - Modern Schoolman 53 2 Phil Parvin - - History of European Ideas 37 3 Martin Hollis - - London: Fontana. Added to PP index Total views 89 , of 2,, Recent downloads 6 months 12 53, of 2,, How can I increase my downloads?
Sign in to use this feature. About us. Editorial team. Find it on Amazon. Applied ethics. History of Western Philosophy. Normative ethics. Philosophy of biology. Philosophy of language. Philosophy of mind. Philosophy of religion. An interest in functionalism opened the way for the study of a wide range of approaches, including animal and comparative psychology Benjamin, William James — is regarded as writing perhaps the most influential and important book in the field of psychology, Principles of Psychology, published in Opposed to the reductionist ideas of Titchener, James proposed that consciousness is ongoing and continuous; it cannot be isolated and reduced to elements.
For James, consciousness helped us adapt to our environment in such ways as allowing us to make choices and have personal responsibility over those choices. At Harvard, James occupied a position of authority and respect in psychology and philosophy. Through his teaching and writing, he influenced psychology for generations.
One of his students, Mary Whiton Calkins — , faced many of the challenges that confronted Margaret Floy Washburn and other women interested in pursuing graduate education in psychology. With much persistence, Calkins was able to study with James at Harvard.
She eventually completed all the requirements for the doctoral degree, but Harvard refused to grant her a diploma because she was a woman. Stanley Hall — made substantial and lasting contributions to the establishment of psychology in the United States.
At Johns Hopkins University, he founded the first psychological laboratory in America in In , he created the first journal of psychology in America, American Journal of Psychology. Influenced by evolutionary theory, Hall was interested in the process of adaptation and human development.
Using surveys and questionnaires to study children, Hall wrote extensively on child development and education. James McKeen Cattell — received his Ph. Like Galton, he believed society was better served by identifying those with superior intelligence and supported efforts to encourage them to reproduce.
Such beliefs were associated with eugenics the promotion of selective breeding and fueled early debates about the contributions of heredity and environment in defining who we are. At Columbia University, Cattell developed a department of psychology that became world famous also promoting psychological science through advocacy and as a publisher of scientific journals and reference works Fancher, ; Sokal, Throughout the first half of the 20th century, psychology continued to grow and flourish in America.
It was large enough to accommodate varying points of view on the nature of mind and behavior. Gestalt psychology is a good example. The Gestalt movement began in Germany with the work of Max Wertheimer — Consider that a melody is an additional element beyond the collection of notes that comprise it.
The Gestalt psychologists proposed that the mind often processes information simultaneously rather than sequentially. For instance, when you look at a photograph, you see a whole image, not just a collection of pixels of color. Using Gestalt principles, Wertheimer and his colleagues also explored the nature of learning and thinking.
Most of the German Gestalt psychologists were Jewish and were forced to flee the Nazi regime due to the threats posed on both academic and personal freedoms. In America, they were able to introduce a new audience to the Gestalt perspective, demonstrating how it could be applied to perception and learning Wertheimer, In many ways, the work of the Gestalt psychologists served as a precursor to the rise of cognitive psychology in America Benjamin, Behaviorism emerged early in the 20th century and became a major force in American psychology.
Championed by psychologists such as John B. Watson — and B. Skinner — , behaviorism rejected any reference to mind and viewed overt and observable behavior as the proper subject matter of psychology. Through the scientific study of behavior, it was hoped that laws of learning could be derived that would promote the prediction and control of behavior.
Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov — influenced early behaviorism in America. His work on conditioned learning, popularly referred to as classical conditioning, provided support for the notion that learning and behavior were controlled by events in the environment and could be explained with no reference to mind or consciousness Fancher, For decades, behaviorism dominated American psychology.
By the s, psychologists began to recognize that behaviorism was unable to fully explain human behavior because it neglected mental processes. The turn toward a cognitive psychology was not new. In the s, British psychologist Frederic C. Bartlett — explored the idea of the constructive mind, recognizing that people use their past experiences to construct frameworks in which to understand new experiences.
Some of the major pioneers in American cognitive psychology include Jerome Bruner — , Roger Brown — , and George Miller — In the s, Bruner conducted pioneering studies on cognitive aspects of sensation and perception. Around the same time, the study of computer science was growing and was used as an analogy to explore and understand how the mind works.
The work of Miller and others in the s and s has inspired tremendous interest in cognition and neuroscience, both of which dominate much of contemporary American psychology. In America, there has always been an interest in the application of psychology to everyday life. Mental testing is an important example. Modern intelligence tests were developed by the French psychologist Alfred Binet — His goal was to develop a test that would identify schoolchildren in need of educational support.
His test, which included tasks of reasoning and problem solving, was introduced in the United States by Henry Goddard — and later standardized by Lewis Terman — at Stanford University.
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