Introduction to Psychology Flashcards
Wilhelm Wundt
Father of Psychology
Used Introspection
Psychology
Investigation of behaviour and mental processes and how they interact
Biopsychology
Examines the physical basis of psychological phenomena
Mind Body problem
How mental and physical events interact
Positive psychology
A subdiscipline of psychology with focus on understanding positive emotions
Structuralism
Investigating the structure of consciousness through introspection
Functionalism
Investigates psychological processes in terms of their role /function
Psychodynamic Perspective
Sigmund Freud
Behaviour is the result of unconscious motives and early experiences
Analogous to the visible tip of an iceberg and the vast, submerged hulk that lies out of sight beneath the water
Behaviourist Perspective
Pavlov and Skinner
Environment shapes behaviour through learning
Humans and other animals are like machines; the mind is like a black box they cannot study as they cannot observe it
Humanistic Perspective
Carl Rogers
Self-actualisation: people are motivated to reach their full potential and achieve personal growth
Life is like a bottle of milk — the cream always rises to the top.
Cognitive Perspective
Rene Descartes
Focuses on the way people perceive, process, and retrieve information
The mind is like a computer; enduring patterns of thought are like software.
Evolutionary Perspective
Charles Darwin
Natural selection: adaptive behavioural traits are passed through generations to adapt and survive
Life is like a race for survival and reproduction.
Ethology
Studies animal behaviour
Psychologists vs Psychiatrists
Psychologists are interested in the thought processes in human behaviour in general.
Psychiatrists are interested in the narrower field of mental illness.
