EARLY AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGY (4 STAGES)

What are the four stages of early American psychology?

1. Moral and Mental Philosophy 2. Intellectual Philosophy 3. U.S Renaissance 4. Functionalism

What is the key idea of Stage 1 (Moral and Mental Philosophy)?

Psychology was tied to religion and used to support theology and logic

Which philosopher influenced early psychology with ideas about mind and learning?

John Locke

What changed in Stage 2 (Intellectual Philosophy)?

Psychology became more independent and focused on mental processes and self-reflection.

What did Thomas Reid contribute to psychology?

Idea of naive realism (senses give direct knowledge of reality).

What defines the U.S. Renaissance period?

Psychology becomes an empirical science influenced by evolution and adaptation

Name two major figures from the U.S. Renaissance period.

William James and Edward Bradford Titchener

What is functionalism focused on?

How mental processes help organisms adapt to their environment.

Functionalism began with what key idea/article?

Dewey’s “Reflex Arc in Psychology” (1896).

What did early psychology originally support in Stage 1 (Moral and Mental Philosophy)?

Religious belief and logical reasoning.

What was psychology sometimes called in Stage 2 (Intellectual Philosophy)?

The science of the human soul

WILLIAM JAMES

Why is William James important?

He helped found functionalism and emphasized practical, real-world psychology

What is James’s major work?

The Principles of Psychology (1890)

What crisis did James experience?

Depression caused by conflict over determinism vs free will.

What helped James recover from his crisis?

Choosing to believe in free will (influenced by Charles-Bernard Renouvier).

What is stream of consciousness?

Consciousness flows continuously and cannot be broken into parts.

What is the James-Lange theory of emotion?

Emotions come after bodily reactions.

What are habits according to James?

Learned automatic behaviors formed through repetition.

What are the two parts of the self?

“I” (pure ego) and “Me” (empirical self).

What is pragmatism?

Truth is judged by what works in real life.

What is ideomotor theory?

Ideas naturally lead to actions.

What did James criticize about Wundt?

Too focused on small mental elements instead of real experience

What are the three parts of the empirical self?

Material, social, and spiritual self.

What is James’s view of free will?

Science may be deterministic, but human experience includes real choice.

HUGO MÜNSTERBERG

Why is Hugo Münsterberg important in psychology?

He founded applied psychology and brought psychology into real-world fields like law, work, and clinical practice.

What university did Münsterberg work at in the U.S.?

Harvard University.

What major idea did Münsterberg have about voluntary action?

Conscious will is not a true cause of action but a by-product of bodily readiness.

What does Münsterberg argue about conscious will?

It is an epiphenomenon (a side effect of brain/body processes).

APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY

What three applied fields is Münsterberg known for?

Clinical psychology, forensic psychology, and industrial psychology.

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY

What approach did Münsterberg use in clinical psychology?

He treated behavioural symptoms using suggestion and strengthening opposing thoughts

How did Münsterberg view unconscious causes of mental illness?

He rejected Freud’s unconscious and focused on observable symptoms.

FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY

Why is Münsterberg important to forensic psychology?

He showed that eyewitness memory is unreliable and influenced by stress and suggestion

What did Münsterberg argue about confessions?

People can give false confessions due to authority pressure or desire for punishment.

What book did Münsterberg write on forensic psychology?

On the Witness Stand (1908)

INDUSTRIAL PSYCHOLOGY

What is Münsterberg’s contribution to industrial psychology?

He studied job performance, worker selection, and efficiency.

What did Münsterberg believe about job selection?

People should be tested to match specific job requirements.

MARY WHITON CALKINS

Why is Mary Whiton Calkins important?

She contributed to memory research, self-psychology, and became the first female APA president.

What discrimination did Calkins face?

Harvard refused to grant her a PhD because she was a woman, despite completing all requirements.

What technique did Calkins invent?

Paired-associate learning (a memory task where individuals learn to link pairs of items (e.g., words, numbers, or images) so that presenting one item acts as a cue to recall the other.)

How does paired-associate learning work?

Participants learn pairs of items and later recall one based on the other

What factor most improved memory in Calkins’ research?

Frequency of repetition.

What is Calkins’ main idea about psychology?

Psychology should study the self as a whole experiencing person.

Why did Calkins criticize mainstream psychology?

It ignored the concept of the self.

What is self-psychology?

The idea that psychology must study conscious personal experience and identity.

GRANVILLE STANLEY HALL

Why is G. Stanley Hall important?

He built institutions in American psychology and pioneered developmental psychology.

What university did Hall lead?

Clark University.

What major organization did Hall help found?

The American Psychological Association (APA).

What theory influenced Hall’s view of development?

Recapitulation theory (development repeats evolutionary stages).

What is Hall’s view of adolescence?

A “storm and stress” period of emotional and behavioural change.

What book is Hall famous for on development?

Adolescence

What later life stage did Hall study?

Aging (Senescence), contributing to lifespan psychology.

What was Hall’s view on coeducation?

He opposed it, believing males and females develop differently.

Why did Hall oppose coeducation?

He believed it interfered with natural sex differences and development.

How did Hall view religion psychologically?

As a process of moral and psychological development.

What does Hall believe about adolescent religious conversion?

It reflects a shift from self-focus to concern for others.

FRANCIS CECIL SUMNER

Why is Francis Cecil Sumner important in psychology?

He was the first African American to earn a PhD in psychology and is considered the “father of Black psychology.”

What university awarded Sumner his PhD?

Clark University.

What did Sumner focus on in his career?

Academic rigor, scientific psychology, and training Black psychologists.

What institution became a major center for Black psychology because of Sumner?

Howard University (“Black Harvard”).

What field is Sumner most associated with building?

African American psychology as an academic discipline.

What was Sumner’s broader impact on psychology?

He trained many Black psychologists and strengthened scientific standards in psychology education.

KENNETH CLARK

Why is Kenneth Bancroft Clark important?

He studied the psychological effects of racism and helped end school segregation in the U.S.

What research is Kenneth Clark best known for?

The doll studies on racial identity and internalized racism.

What did the Clark doll studies show?

Many Black children preferred white dolls and associated them with positive traits, showing internalized racism.

Why were Clark’s findings important legally?

They were used as evidence in Brown v. Board of Education to end school segregation.

What major position did Kenneth Clark later hold?

First African American president of the APA (1971).

MARY + SUMNER --> LINE OF INFLUENCE

What is the significance of the Hall → Sumner → Clark academic lineage?

It shows how early institutional psychology influenced later civil rights psychology and social justice research.

Why is G. Stanley Hall important in this context?

He built Clark University into a major psychology training center and shaped early American psychology institutions.

What major organization did Hall help found?

The American Psychological Association (APA).

Why was Hall’s invitation of Freud important?

It helped introduce psychoanalysis to America.

What was Hall’s major contribution to psychology as a field?

He built institutions, trained psychologists, and connected U.S. psychology to Europe.

JOHN DEWEY

Why is John Dewey important in psychology?

He founded functionalism and introduced the reflex arc concept and progressive education.

What is Dewey’s reflex arc concept?

Stimulus and response are not separate—they form a continuous, goal-directed process.

What is the main idea of functionalism according to Dewey?

Psychology should study how behavior helps organisms adapt to the environment.

What is progressive education?

Learning through experience (“learning by doing”) rather than memorization.

What did Dewey believe education should focus on?

Problem-solving, creativity, and student-centered learning.

What is Dewey’s pragmatist philosophy?

Ideas are only meaningful if they have practical value.

JAMES ROWLAND ANGELL

Why is James Rowland Angell important?

He developed functional psychology and helped establish the University of Chicago as a center of functionalism.

What is Angell’s main idea in functionalism?

Mental processes help the organism adapt to its environment.

What does Angell say about mind and body?

They work together as an integrated system.

What role did Angell play in psychology history?

He systematized functionalism and trained major psychologists like Watson.

HARVEY CARR

Why is Harvey A. Carr important?

He refined functionalism through the concept of the adaptive act.

What is Carr’s adaptive act?

Behavior is driven by a motive, shaped by environment, and ends in a response that satisfies the motive.

How did Carr explain learning?

Through repetition of successful adaptive responses.

What research methods did Carr use?

Animal experiments, introspection, and studies of perception and intelligence.

JAMES MCKEEN CATTELL

Why is James McKeen Cattell important in psychology?

He helped develop applied psychology, mental testing, and made Columbia a major psychology center.

What was Cattell influenced by?

Francis Galton and the idea of measuring intelligence through sensory and motor abilities.

What did Cattell believe psychology should focus on?

Practical, applied uses like education, industry, and society.

What did Cattell mean by “applied psychology”?

Psychology should be used in real-world systems like education, law, and government.

What major institution did Cattell help found?

The Psychological Corporation (with Thorndike and Woodworth).

What was Cattell’s main research focus?

Reaction time, psychophysics, and mental testing.

What was Cattell’s legacy at Columbia?

He helped make it the leading center for applied psychology and PhD training.

ROBERT SESSIONS WOODWORTH

Why is Robert S. Woodworth important?

He developed dynamic psychology and emphasized motivation in behavior.

What is Woodworth’s S–O–R model?

A: Stimulus → Organism → Response (behavior depends on internal states, not just stimulus-response).

What does the “O” (organism) represent?

Internal factors like needs, drives, and motivation.

What is dynamic psychology?

The study of behavior based on motivation and internal drives.

What was Woodworth’s approach to psychology?

Eclectic—he used ideas from multiple schools of psychology.

What major textbook did Woodworth write?

Experimental Psychology (called “the Bible” of experimental psychology).

What did Woodworth emphasize in behavior?

Motivation and adaptive behavior.

COLUMBIA VS. CHICAGO FUNCTIONALISM

How was functionalism at Columbia different from Chicago?

Columbia focused on applied psychology and testing; Chicago focused on adaptation, learning, and theory.

What was the focus of Columbia functionalism?

Mental testing, applied psychology, education, and industry.

What was a key goal of Columbia psychology?

Practical application of psychology in real-world systems.

What was Chicago functionalism focused on?

Adaptation, behavior, learning, and mental processes.

EDWARD THORNDIKE

Why is Edward Thorndike important in psychology?

He founded connectionism and experimental learning theory using animal research.

What was Thorndike’s puzzle box used for?

Studying trial-and-error learning in animals.

What did Thorndike discover about learning?

Learning is gradual and occurs through trial and error, not insight.

What is connectionism?

Learning is the strengthening of connections between stimuli and responses.

What is the Law of Effect?

Behaviors followed by satisfying outcomes are strengthened; unpleasant outcomes weaken behavior.

How was the Law of Effect modified later?

Reinforcement strengthens behavior, but punishment does not reliably weaken it.

What was the Law of Exercise?

Practice strengthens connections and lack of practice weakens them (later rejected).

What is Thorndike’s theory of transfer of training?

Transfer occurs only when tasks share identical elements.

What theory did Thorndike reject?

The idea that practicing one mental skill improves general intelligence (“mental muscle theory”).

What is the educational implication of Thorndike’s theory?

Learning should focus on real-world relevant skills, not general mental training.

JAMES MARK BALDWIN

Why is James Mark Baldwin important in psychology?

He was an early functionalist who studied child development and the interaction between biology and environment.

What was Baldwin’s main focus in psychology?

Development of the self, intelligence, and how children adapt through experience.

What is Baldwin’s main idea about development?

Development is shaped by both biological factors and social/environmental experience.

What did Baldwin contribute to developmental psychology?

He helped establish psychology as a study of how mental abilities develop over time.

What is the Baldwin effect?

Learned behaviors can influence evolutionary development by shaping survival advantages over time.

WHAT HAPPENED TO FUNCTIONALISM?

What happened to functionalism as a movement?

It did not disappear suddenly—it was gradually absorbed into other approaches like behaviorism, applied psychology, and educational psychology.

Why did functionalism decline?

It lacked a single founder or unified theory and was replaced by more structured approaches like behaviorism.

What movement replaced functionalism as the dominant force in psychology?

Behaviorism.

How did functionalism influence later psychology?

It contributed ideas about adaptation, learning, and practical application that shaped behaviorism and applied psychology.

What is the key historical significance of functionalism’s decline?

It transitioned psychology from studying mental processes to focusing on observable behavior and learning.