approaches: emergence of psychology as a science

Question 1

What are key features of science related?

Answer 1

• Objectivity > ensure scientific findings are nit influenced by personal feelings
• general laws of human behaviour
• empirical evidence
• paradigm

Question 2

What does the term ‘paradigm’ refer to in science?

Answer 2

A set of principles, assumptions, and methods agreed upon by people working within that subject

Question 3

(behaviourist approach) What criticism did Watson have regarding introspection?

Answer 3

It produced subjective data, making it difficult to establish general laws > Watson’s criticism led to a focus on observable behaviors in psychology.

Question 4

What approach dominated scientific psychology for the next 50 years after the 1900s?

Answer 4

Behaviourist approach > it emphasized observable behaviors and controlled experiments.

Question 5

What did cognitive psychologists compare the mind to in the 1950s?

Answer 5

saw the mind as a computer > facilitated the understanding of cognitive processes like memory and attention
the cognitive approach ensured the study of the mind was highly scientific

Question 6

What technological advances were utilized in the biological approach during the 1980s?

Answer 6

Sophisticated scanning techniques such as fMRI and EEG to study live brain activity

they used new methods e.g. genetic testing have also allowed us to better understand the relationship between genes and behaviour

Question 7

Fill in the blank: Cognitive psychologists tested their predictions about memory and attention using _______.

Answer 7

experiments

Question 8

True or False: The cognitive approach ensured that studying the mind was considered a non-scientific aspect of psychology.

Answer 8

False > The cognitive approach emphasized scientific methods in psychology.

Question 9

What new methods have researchers within the biological approach started to use?

Answer 9

Genetic testing > this has enhanced understanding of the relationship between genes and behavior

Question 10

What did Watson propose for a truly scientific psychology?

Answer 10

To study phenomena that can be observed objectively and measured > This proposal was foundational for the behaviourist approach

.

Question 11

What has allowed researchers to better understand physiological processes in psychology?

Answer 11

Advances in technology

Technological advancements have improved the methods and accuracy of psychological research.

Question 12

AO3: scientific

Answer 12

One strength is that research in modern psychology can claim to be scientific. Psychology has the same aims as the natural sciences: to describe, understand, predict and control behaviour. The learning, cognitive and biological
approach all rely on scientific methods for example lab studies to investigate theories in a controlled and unbiased way. This suggests that throughout the 20th century, psychology has established itself as a scientific discipline.

Question 13

AO3: no paradigm

Answer 13

No, psychology is best seen as pre-science. As there are multiple theories all contradicting each other. There are too many internal disagreements to qualify as a science. The cause of human behaviour differs. For example the biological approach would suggest phobias is due to genes while the behaviourist approach would suggest it is due to an association. Therefore
psychology can be seen as unscientific.