Professional Documents
Culture Documents
What Is Psychology?
Thinking critically about psychology Psychologys past Psychologys present What psychologists do
Can you distinguish between psychobabble and empirical psychology? Critical thinking
The ability and willingness to assess claims and make judgments on the basis of wellsupported reasons and evidence, rather than emotion or anecdote.
Be willing to wonder Define your terms Examine the evidence Analyze assumptions and biases
Avoid emotional reasoning Dont oversimplify Consider other interpretations Tolerate uncertainty
Psychologys Past
Structuralism
Early approach that emphasized the analysis of immediate experience into basic elements. Interested in what happens. Trained introspection Volunteers were taught to observe, analyze and describe their own sensations, mental images, and emotional reactions.
Functionalism
Early approach that emphasized the function or purpose of behaviour and consciousness. Interested in how and why something happens
Psychoanalysis
A theory of personality and a method of psychotherapy, originally formulated by Sigmund Freud. Emphasizes unconscious motives and conflicts.
Psychologys Present
Biological Perspective Learning Perspective Cognitive Perspective Sociocultural Perspective Psychodynamic Perspective
Psychological approach that emphasizes bodily events and changes associated with actions, feelings, and thoughts. This perspective involves:
A psychological approach that emphasizes how the environment and experience affect a persons or animals actions.
A psychological approach that emphasizes mental processes in perception, memory, language, problem solving, and other areas of behaviour. This perspective involves:
Computer models of human thinking Infant thinking Intelligence testing
Sociocultural perspective
A psychological approach that emphasizes social and cultural influences on behaviour. This perspective includes:
Social psychology, or the study of rules, roles groups, and relationships Cultural psychology, or the study of cultural norms, values, and expectations
Psychodynamic Perspective
A psychological approach that emphasizes unconscious dynamics within the individual, such as inner forces, conflicts or the movement of instinctual energy.
Humanist Psychology
A psychological approach that emphasizes personal growth and the achievement of human potential, rather than the scientific understanding and assessment of behaviour. This approach:
Feminist Psychology
A psychological approach that analyzes the influence of social inequities on gender relations and on the behaviour of the two sexes. This approach:
Recognized years of male bias in data collection and psychotherapy. Questions the use of research in justifying womens lower status or elevating womens status (female bias).
What Psychologists Do
Academic/Research Psychologists
Experimental psychologists Educational psychologists Developmental psychologists Industrial/organizational psychologists Psychometric psychologists
Psychological Practitioners
Counselling psychologists help people deal with problems associated with everyday life. School psychologists work with parents, teachers, and students to enhance student performance. Clinical psychologists diagnose, treat, and study mental or emotional problems.
Public policy Opinion polls Military training Animal behaviour Legal issues
Psychology Other Counselling Education Social work Medicine Law Health Sciences Business Sociology