historic movements

Question 1

rationalism

Answer 1

•definition: truth is based on thinking, not on the information from the senses; humans have an innate knowledge that can be recovered through deductive reasoning. Furthermore, knowledge is obtained by means of reasoning. Opposes to Empiricism 
•year:
•major players: 
_socrates
_plato
_descartes

Question 2

empiricism

Answer 2

•definition: knowledge is obtained by means of perceptual experiences, usually involves the idea of associations between ideas to combine the the individual perceptions, also emphasis on inductive reasoning. Opposes to Rationalism
•year: 1600
•major players:
_(precursor) Bacon
_Locke (father)
_Berkeley
_Hume

Question 3

scientific revolution

Answer 3

•definition: series of events that marked the emergence of modern science during the early modern period, when developments in mathematics, physics, astronomy, biology (including human anatomy) and chemistry transformed the views of society about nature.
changes:
_demographic changes
_no pressure from church or authority
_new inventions (clock, compass, telescope, printing
_existence of universities
_enrichment from Greek/Arab civilizations
it lasted because
_absence of disaster
_no religious pressure
_more universities established learned societies

•year: 1543 (copernicus publication)
•major players:
_bruno
_copernicus
_galileo
_kepler

Question 4

mind-body problem

Answer 4

•definition: issue on how the mind is related to the brain, three main views
1. dualism (mind and brain are two independent entities)
2. materialism (mind is a by-product of the biological workings of the brain)
3. functionalism (mind is realized in the brain, but the info can be copied to another machine with the same structure
•year: 1600
•major players:
_descartes

Question 5

dualism & monism

Answer 5

•definition: 
_dualism: mind is immaterial and completely independent of the body (Descartes)
•year: 1600
•major players:
descartes (dualism)

Question 6

experimental psychology

Answer 6

•definition: the branch of psychology concerned with the scientific investigation of the responses of individuals to stimuli in controlled situations
Needs:
_empiricism
_testability
_determinism (assumption that any state of an object or event is determined by prior states)
_parsimony (the search for simplicity)
_Operational definition (Tolman & Hull -
implies that a concept be defined in terms of concrete, observable procedures. Experimental psychologists attempt to define currently unobservable phenomena, such as mental events, by connecting them to observations by chains of reasoning)
•year: 1800
•major players:
_Wundt
_Fechner
_Weber
_Würzburg School
_Peirce

Question 7

enlightenment

Answer 7

• definition: autonomous thinking and observation became advocated as the primary sources of knowledge, rather than reliance on authority
• year: 1700

Question 8

evolution theory

Answer 8

•definition: Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes that are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction
_misconceptions
-no direction in genetic changes
-organisms get better or stronger
•year: 1800
•major players:
_Darwin 
_Galton

Question 9

eugenics

Answer 9

•definition: social philosophy claiming that the fate of a nation can be improved by selective breeding of the inhabitants.
It can be positive/negative
positive: favouring could take the form of facilitating the reproduction of some—those with desirable traits
negative:it could take the form of inhibiting the reproduction of others—those with undesirable traits.
•year: 1883
•major players:
_influenced by Darwin’s ideas
_Galton

Question 10

behaviorism

Answer 10

•definition: movement in psychology arguing that observable behaviors are the most important aspect of human functioning to be understood, denies to various extents the relevance of information processing going on in the mind, particularly strong in the USA in the first half of 1900
•year: 1913 (behaviorist manifesto) 
•major players:
_influenced by Pavlov
_Watson  (father)
_Hull
_Skinner 
_Tolman

Question 11

introspection

Answer 11

• definition: Introspection is the examination of one’s own conscious thoughts and feelings. In psychology, the process of introspection relies exclusively on observation of one’s mental state
• major players:

support:
_Titchnener
_Freud
_Wundt
_Wolff
_James

against:
_Comte
_Kant

Question 12

inductive reasoning

Answer 12

•definition: form of reasoning in which one starts from observations and tries to reach general conclusions on the basis of convergences in the observations; is needed in science to turn observed phenomena into scientific laws, but does not guarantee that the conclusions are true
_conclusion drawn from a series of convergent observations
_conclusions are not necessarily true
_used to:
1.generalize from a limited number of observations to a general conclusion
2. to detect correlations between events
3.to make causal inferences
4. to bring order to our many expreiences by noticing SIMILARITIES and CORRELATIONS between events in daily life
5. work out explanations for observed phenomena in science
•important for:
empiricism
•major players:
_bacon
_Locke
_Berkeley
_Hume
_Kant

Question 13

deductive reasoning

Answer 13

•definition: form of reasoning in which one starts from a number of indisputable premises from which new, true conclusions can be drawn if the rules of logic are followed
_used in science to formulate hypotheses on the basis of existing theories , so that theories can be tested
_syllogisms (aristotle)
•important for:
_rationalism: humans have an innate knowledge that can be recovered through deductive reasoning - reality can be known by reasoning from innate knowledge (plato and descartes)
•major players:
_plato
_aristotle
_descartes
_Galilei & Newton convince audience that new way of scientific thinking is close to traditional deductive reasoning

Question 14

Ancient Egypt contributions

Answer 14

Geometry (archimedes - greek) & calendar

Question 15

Ancient Mesopotamia contributions

Answer 15

Math & astronomy (Ptolemy- roman - agrees with aristotle)

Question 16

Ancient Greece contributions

Answer 16

Philosophy

Question 17

Dark Ages

Answer 17

name given in the Renaissance to the middle Ages, to refer to the lack of independent and scientific thinking in that age

Question 18

Renaissance

Answer 18

•definition: cultural movement based on a rediscovery and imitation of the classical Greek
_growing interest in behavioral consequences of brain injury and in reflexes
and roman civilizations
•year: 1300-1600
•major players:
_influenced by Galton

Question 19

biases in history writing

Answer 19

_centered too much on people
_matthew effect (give more credit to well-known scientists than they deserve
_hindsight bias - assume they know more than they actually did
_ethnocentrisim
_zeitgeist - time was right for a certain discovery - discovery didn’t originate from a single genius but from a much wider development leading to the discovery
_history review are summaries of summaries

Question 20

geocentric vs heliocentric universe

Answer 20

geocentric
_aristotle
_ptolemy - criticises movement of Aristotelian stars - adds epicycles
heliocentric
_bruno
_copericus
_galilei (telescope)

Question 21

experimental history

Answer 21

Method introduced by Bacon in which the natural philosopher extracts the truth from nature by active manipulation and examining the consequences of intervention

Question 22

industrial revolution

Answer 22

• definition: socioeconomic and cultural changes caused by the invention of machines; involved, among other things, the replacement of labor of peasants and craftsmen by mass production in factories and the resulting massive relocation from the countryside to the towns
• year: 1800
• major players:

Question 23

positivism

Answer 23

•definition: view that authentic knowledge can only be obtained by means of the scientific method; saw religion and philosophy as inferior forms of explanation
•year: 1800
•major players:
_Comte

Question 24

romantic movement

Answer 24

• definition: movement that reacted against the mechanistic world view and the emphasis of reason preached by Enlightenment; it saw the universe as a changing organism and stressed everything that deviated from rationalism: the individual, the irrational, the imaginative, the emotional, the natural and the transcendental.
• year: 1700-1800
• major players:

Question 25

individualisation

Answer 25

``` •definition: trend in society towards looser social relations and greater focus by individuals on themselves than on the groups they belong to why? _increased complexity of society _increased control by the state _individuality promoted by Christianity _mirrors, books and letters •year: 1900-2000 •major players: ```

Question 26

idealism

Answer 26

``` view within philosophy that human knowledge is a construction of the mind and does not necessarily correspond to an outside world, the truth of knowledge depends on the coherence with the rest of the knowledge in the social group. Opposes to realism •year: 1700 •major players: _Berkeley _Hume _Kant ```

Question 27

realism

Answer 27

view within philosophy that human knowledge tries to reveal real properties of the outside world, the truth of knowledge is determined by the correspondence of the knowledge with the real world. Opposes to Idealism •year: 1800 •major players: _hobbes

Question 28

functionalism

Answer 28

•definition: approach in early american psychoogy research, that examined the practical functions of the human mind inspired by the evolutionary theory •year: 1800-1900 •major players: _James

Question 29

structuralism

Answer 29

``` •definition: approach to psychology, consisting of trying to discover the structure of the human mind by means of introspection •year: 1800-1900 •major players: _Titchener _Lacan ```

Question 30

Gestalt psychology

Answer 30

•definition: group of psychologists who argued that the human mind could not be understood by breaking down the experiences into their constituent elements, perception is more than the sensation of stimuli, it involves organisation •year: 1800-1900 •major players: _Titchener

Question 31

Phrenology, Mesmerism & Spiritualism

Answer 31

•definition: _mesmerism: Mesmerism is the act of non-verbally using a trance-like state and shifting the energy field within a client. Cure patients by restoring their animal magnetism _Spiritualism: spirits of the dead could be contacted by mediums •year: 1800-1900 •major players: _Gall _Mesmer

Question 32

Scepticism

Answer 32

•definition: philosophical view that does not deny the existence of a physical reality, but denies that humans can have reliable knowledge of it •year: 300 BC •major players: _Pyrrho

Question 33

logical positivism

Answer 33

•definition: philosophical movement claiming that philosophy should stop thinking about metaphysics, and instead try to understand the essence of the scientific approach _central tenet was the verification principle - a proposition is meaningful only if it can be verified as true or false - with respect to science states that a proposition is scientific only if it can be verified trough objective, value-free observation _full of objections (e.g. doesn't solve induction problem, scientific theories vary, verifiable observations do not guarantee a correct understanding) •year: 1929 manifesto •major players: _vienna circle

Question 34

pragmatism

Answer 34

•description: view within philosophy that human knowledge is information about how to cope with the world; the truth of knowledge depends on the success one has in engaging with the world •year: end of 1800 •major players: _Peirce, James & Dewey (fathers)

Question 35

humanistic psychology

Answer 35

•description: opposed to behaviorism and psychoanalysis - stressed that people are human, inherently positive, endowed with free will and living within a socio-cultural context •year: 1900 •major players: _Maslow

Question 36

Psychoanalysis major players

Answer 36

``` _Freud _Erikson _Lacan _Adler _Breuer ```

Question 37

essential differences between aristotle - galileo & descartes

Answer 37

Aristotle: The world is as we perceive it. There is no gap between appearance and reality. What you observe is what there is. Galileo, Descartes: There is an immense gap between reality and appearance. Reality hides behind the appearances.

Question 38

how can we know hidden world (galileo, descartes, bacon)

Answer 38

Galileo and Descartes: by abstract mathematical thinking = mathematical (or classical) sciences  Bacon: by forcing nature to reveal her secrets by torturing her and putting her on the rack of the experiment = experimental (or Baconian) sciences  Both Platonian: our perception is a mere reflection of the true nature of things  Important: reject both physics and method of Aristotle

Question 39

galileo insights

Answer 39

``` Galileo created a domain that:  Is independent of human beings  Exists objectively  Can be analysed in smaller invisible elements  Obeys deterministic laws  Is fit for the mathematical approach ```

Question 40

scientific revolution & psychology

Answer 40

New way of explaining: Mechanism  Formerly universe = “giant living organism striving towards a goal”, now “huge machine working according to pure mechanical principles”  If physics only deals with matter, how will we account for subjective experience?  Color, smell, taste, pain…  Galileo: These are not part of the natural science, as they are subjective  Physics does not deal with the subjective

Question 41

descartes problems

Answer 41

``` Epistemological problem: Why should we believe modern science and reject Aristotle?  Mind body (= ontological) problem: What to do with the heterogeneous residual category of subjective experience of color, odor, taste etc.? ```

Question 42

matter & mind for descartes

Answer 42

``` Matter =  Extension in space  Infinitely divisible  Res extensa  Mechanism  Laws of nature  Determinism Mind:  Not extended in space  Not divisible (Unity)  Res cogitans  Reason and language  Not determined (free will) ```

Question 43

consciousness levels

Answer 43

``` Any conscious state has three aspects/ levels: FUNCTIONAL State of information processing that allows subsequent behavior/ processing PHYSICAL “Stuff’ the state is made of, e.g. Neural firing, electrical impulses PHENOMENAL What the state feels like, ‘What it is like to be’ in that state ```

Question 44

MONISM VS DUALISM

Answer 44

Monism: it’s all just the same (ontological) ‘stuff’ Dualism: phenomenal is non-physical (ontological) ‘stuff’

Question 45

INTERACTION IN THE BRAIN

Answer 45

Where and how can brain interact with body?  Descartes: pineal gland (small singular structure on bottom of brain)  Mind steers particles there to influence body  Direction not yet vectorized (no magnitude yet)  So, no energy needed to change direction of particles  Mind metaphorically as ping-pong bat  When later direction was vectorized this stimulated parallelism

Question 46

PROBLEM OF INTERACTION IN M-B PROBLEM

Answer 46

Implications: Mind-body problem: no energetic interactionism  If mind influences matter, we should have a surplus of energy in the body  No case of such ‘creation’ of energy  Deadly for interactionist dualism a la Descartes  Boost for materialism (often crude forms), but also stimulates parallelist’ solutions to mind-body problem

Question 47

Occasionalism & Parallelism

Answer 47

Reaction to interactionism  Gottfried Leibniz - 1646-1716  Parallelism of mind and matter  Pre-established harmony  God created two chains of events occurring simultaneously  Simile of the two clocks  No interaction, still always give exactly same time  Became more popular as interactionism became implausible  In 19th century Wilhelm Wundt, Founder of experimental psychology

Question 48

Idealism

Answer 48

``` Early representative Bishop Berkeley, 17th century  Combines theory of knowledge and notion of body mind problem  Esse est percipi  Experience is all there is  We have no access to a world behind sensations  We still would only have sensations  Whole world is mental ```

Question 49

Materialism

Answer 49

Old style  Radical inheritance of Descartes  Materialism and atheism  Problem of being an atheist  One substance only  Definition of perfect substance forbids that there are 2  But what is this one substance?  Panpsychism or materialism?

Question 50

main ideas on M-B interaction

Answer 50

 Materialism (or what we now call neuroscience)  Dualism: Cartesian dualism (Brain and mental states are different substances) and Property dualism (There are no different substances but different properties)  Neutral monism (Ernst Mach, William James, Bertrand Russel, David Chalmers…)  Mysterianism: We do not understand relation and we never will