Approaches

Question 1

Who was Wilhelm Wundt ?

Answer 1

• he is known as the father of psychology
• he set up the first lab in Germany in 1879
• his approach became known as structuralism as he used experimental methods to find basic structures of thoughts.

Question 2

What was Wundt’s objective

Answer 2

To describe the nature of human mental processes - this is known as introspection

Question 3

What did introspection involve ?

Answer 3

Wundt and his researchers recorded their own conscious thoughts with the aim of breaking it down into component parts.

Question 4

What were the conditions for introspection ?

Answer 4

They were recorded under strict conditions
- used the same stimulus everytime (ticking metronome)
- the same standardised instructions allowing procedures to be replicated and gains accurate measurements.
- this approach paved the way for later controlled research for cognitive psychologists.
- Wundt focused on trying to understand psychological processes of perception and structuralism rather than biological and philosophical processes

Question 6

What are the main features of introspection ?

Answer 6

• focus on being objective, reflecting on sensations
• he asked people to focus on an everyday object and then asked them to break the down into their sensations.
• the reporting of the experience was systematic and controlled

Question 7

What are internal mental processes ?

Answer 7

They are private operations of the mind that mediate between stimulus and response which can be studied scientifically.
- they suggest the individual will make sense of a situation before reacting - contrasting behaviourists.

Question 8

How are internal mental processes observed.

Answer 8

As the IMP are private and cannot be observed directly.
- therefore inferences are made