Psychology

The scientific study of both behavior and the mind

What two disciplines is psychology a union of?

philosophy and physiology

Who introduced the term "tabula rasa" or "blank slate"

Aristotle

Tabula Rasa

"Blank slate"-- the belief that we start off with no pre-determined character traits or qualities

Empiricism

a philosophical view that knowledge arises directly from what we observe and experience

What is the primary form of evidence in psychology?

Behavior

Rene Descartes

argued that the mind is inherently immaterial-- the belief in dualism and the concept of reflex.

Dualism

the philosophical position that the mind and the body are separate entities

Reflex

the body acting without conscious action--without the mind

Embodied mind theory

provides a framework for how psychologists understand the link between unobservable mental processes and the physical world

physiology

provides evidence about the biological functioning of bodies and brains

inferential reasoning

provides a process for how observable evidence should be used to draw conclusions about psychological processes

behavior

provides a definition of the kinds of observable phenomena psychology is interested in understanding

Basic research

attempts to understand the fundamental principles of behavior and mind

applied research

attempts to discover new or more effective ways to solve specific practical problems in the world

applied practice

the actual application of basic psychological principles and applied research findings to solve specific problems

psychopathology

subfield interested in explaining how and why unusual and maladaptive behavior patterns develop by examining mental illness

behavioral genetics

research attempts to explain individual differences in behavior patterns through variation in genetic structure and expressions

cognitive psychology

research is broadly interested in how people process information and includes areas such as attention, perception, memory, problem solving, language, and thought

comparative psychology

the study of the behavior of nonhuman animals. it is often (but not always) interested in comparing human psychology to discover underlying universals

developmental psychology

studies how people develop across the lifespan, including how our thoughts and behaviors change as we age

behavioral neuroscience (cognitive neuroscience or neuropsychology)

tries to understand how specific brain regions or activities produce behavior, allowing psychologists to understand the physical underpinnings of their observations

personality psychology

studies individual differences, investigating how and why people act differently based on their enduring characteristics or traits

social psychology

interested in how an individual's thoughts and actions are influenced by their social environment and the presence of others

translational research

asks the question of "how can we use our understanding of the fundamental principles that govern thoughts and behavior to solve problems with psychological components?"

evidence-based practice (the gold standard)

a process that integrates the best available research with clinical expertise and patient preferences.

consumer behavior

understanding the decisions consumers make about products and services

educational psychology

improving learning in the classroom and other educational settings

human factors

designing products or processes in ways that improve usefulness or comfort for the people using them

forensic & legal psychology

applying psychological principles to the features of the legal system

political psychology

understanding the role of psychology in the political process, and the role of politics in psychology

school psychology

using psychology to improve the academic and social experiences of children in school

health psychology

improving physical health and healthcare by applying psychological principles

industrial & organizational psychology

helping organizations improve member performance, motivation, or other role-related outcomes

clinical psychology

defined by its focus on identifying, preventing, and relieving psychological distress or dysfunction

clinical psychologists

identifying, preventing, and relieving distress or dysfunction that is psychological in origin

what is the different between clinical psychologists and psychiatrists

psychiatrists have to complete medical school, not just graduate training, because they prescribe medication

psychiatrists

medical doctors who focus on the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness

counseling psychology

focus on helping people with ongoing life problems or stressors or with the transition from one life situation to another

career counseling

helps individuals explore interests, strengths, and opportunities to make informed career choices

group counseling

facilitating supportive group environments where individuals share experiences and coping strategies

addiction counseling

guiding individuals in understanding and overcoming patterns of substance use or compulsive behavior

school/youth counseling

supporting the academic, emotional, and social development of children and adolescents

trauma counseling

assisting individuals in processing and healing from distressing or life-threatening events

couples/marriage counseling

helping partners improve communication, resolve conflicts, and strengthen relationship bonds

family counseling

improving family dynamics by addressing communication patterns and shared challenges among family members

grief counseling

supporting individuals coping with the emotional impact of loss and bereavement

nativism

argues that some form of knowledges is innate, to its extreme this is referred to as biological determinism

biopsychosocial model

an effort to recognize how biological, psychological, and social factors all impact human functioning

Plato and Kant

these men argued that conscious and rational reasoning are central to human processes like moral reasoning and knowledge

David Hume

argued that unconscious processes like emotion and intuition dominate, with reasoning following afterward and being heavily influenced by these unconscious processes

Sigmund Freud

one of the first psychological clinicians, his studies brought to light the extent to which processes below the level of conscious drives toward basic aspects of human experience and repressed experiences were major determinants of an individual's personality, and only through the conscious "excavation" of these unconscious drives could a person achieve understanding of their whole self

dual-process model

the conscious/unconscious divide

fixed mindset

characteristic of people who think of ability as inborn and not very changeable

growth mindset

attitude that focuses on an optimistic sense regarding one's ability to change and grow

social construction

a common understanding of one of the categories of people that exist in the world

neurodiversity movement

championed a view of "difference, not disorder" when it comes to categories of psychological difference. That is, simply because a person has a different way of processing the world, that does not mean that it is inherently worse compared to "neurotypical" individuals

Wilhelm Wundt

established the first psychological laboratory in 1879. Known as the "father of modern psychology" and established psychology as its own discipline

introspection

method refined by Wundt to understand the components of mental processes by relying on trained participants' self-reports of their thoughts, feelings, and mental images

systematic introspection

an attempt to standardize the way conscious experiences were reported so that one person's experiences could be compared to another's

Edward Tichener

one of Wundt's most successful students is also credited in popularizing the study of experimental psychology in North America-- his approach became known as structuralism

structuralism

a method of interpretation and analysis of aspects, asking "WHAT are the contents of the mind?"

functionalism

William James argued that structuralism movement was fundamentally misguided. He believed that psychologists must first understand the function of a behavior or mental process to understand how its parts work together, often asking "WHY does the mind work?"

Darwin's theory of evolution

what theory heavily influenced functionalism?

behaviorism

a systematic approach to understand the behavior of humans and other animals.

John B. Watson

popularized the notion that the mind and internal mental states were beyond the scope of psychology. He rebuked introspection and proposed that psychology should focus its efforts solely on the study of observable behavior

B.F. Skinner

became a lead thinker in behaviorist psychology, focusing on operant conditioning

cognitive revolution

shift away from strict behaviorism that dominated the field for decades

Steven Pinker

wrote "The Blank Slate" about the cognitive revolution

Sigmund Freud

Who was at the forefront of the modern conception of mental illnesses and their treatments?

system psychoanalysis

proposes multiple theories about the unconscious mind that touch on a variety of topics in psychology, including personality, development, and, of course, cause of mental illnesses

Humanist psychology

people have free will and the capacity to realize their own potential; more interested in the maximization of conscious faculties in comparison to psychoanalysis

Rogers and Maslow

two of the most influential humanists

in person-centered therapy

the role of the therapist to support and listen, in contrast to a psychoanalyst's need to analyze and direct

self-actualization

an ideal state of reaching one's fullest potential

martin seligman

studies the more positive aspects of the human condition, through his focus on what he has termed positive psychology

positive psychology

focused not on what can go wrong with human functioning (as is the case with much of clinical psychology) but instead on studying how humans flourish and how positive outcomes can be achieved

electric approach

choosing the most effective therapeutic technique given the present circumstances

ultimate explanations

what caused the phenomenon

functional explanations

proximate explanations that seek to identify a specific problem as the cause of a psychological phenomenon

process-oriented explanations

proximate explanations that focus on how a specific mental or physical process explains a psychological phenomenon

culture

shared set of beliefs, attitudes, behaviors, and customs belonging to a specific group or community of people

intersectional approach

emphasized that people are not defined by any single aspect of their identities