Part 1 Schools of Thought in Psychology
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Schools of Thought in Psychology1 Early Scientific Approaches to Psychology The German Physiologist Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920) is often regarded as the founding father of modern psychology. Modern psychology was born in December, 1879 at the University of Leipzig when Wundt and two young students perform an experiment to measure the time lag between the instant at which the person heard a sound and the instant at which the person actually press a telegraph key to signal that he had heard. The experiment was one of many attempts to measure human behavior through physiological instruments. What was so special about this experiment? Wundt’s experiment was about the working of the brain: he was measuring the amount of time it took the human brain and the nervous system to translate information into action. At the heart of this experiment was the idea that mental processes could be studied quantitativelythat is, mental processes could be measured. This focus ushered in the new science of psychology. Structuralism An early school of psychology that emphasized the study of the conscious mind and its basic structures: sensations, images and affective states. The most common method to study human mind was introspection (literally looking inside). Introspection refers to observing and recording the nature of one’s perceptions, thoughts and feelings. These studies focused mainly on sensation and perception because these were the easiest processes to breakdown into component parts. On the other hand, the reliance on introspection, particularly for very rapid events, proved to be unworkable. Functionalism An early school of psychology that emphasized the interaction between the mind and the outside environment, how the mind and behavior function in adapting to the environment. In contrast to structuralists who were looking inside the mind, searching for its structures, the functionalist were looking more at what was going on in the person’s interaction with the outside world. William James and other functionalists did not believed in the existence of elementary rigid structures of the mind. James saw the human mind as flexible and fluid, characterized by constant change and adaptation in response to a flow of information or a stream of consciousness. Gestalt Psychology Gestalt, a German word meaning “form” or “configuration.” Gestalt psychologist’ primary interest was on perception, and they believed that perceptual experiences depend on the patterns formed by stimuli and on the organization of experience. What we actually see is related to the background against which an object appears as well as to other aspects of the overall pattern of stimulation. The whole is different from the sum of its parts, because the whole depends on the relationships among the parts.
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Condensed by Roland L. Aparece, MA, from Santrock, John W. Psychology 7th ed. (Singapore: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2003.) pp. 8-18; Smith, Edward E. et. al. Atkinson & Hilgard’s Introduction to Psychology, 14th ed. (Singapore: Wadsworth, a division of Thompson Learning, Inc., 2003.) pp. 5-14, see also Morris, Charles & Maisto, Albert. Psychology: an Introduction 12th ed., (New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc., 2005.) pp. 13-21; Kassin, Saul. Psychology 4th ed. (New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc., 2004.) pp. 5-11.
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Contemporary Approaches to Psychology The two approaches we have just discussed-structuralism and functionalismare no longer considered among psychologists main approaches. However, psychology has reframed some aspects of these approaches. Psychologists today realized that human thought and behavior are influenced by many factors including common biological heritage, biological variations from person to person, and experience. In addition to immediate environmental influences such as our physical and social surrounding, psychologist also recognized the broader influence of culture. Efforts to understand the complexity of human behavior and mental processes have given rise to a number to broader approaches in psychology. The Behavioral Approach The behavioral approach emphasizes the scientific study of behavior and asserts that behavior is shaped by the environment. In other words, the behavioral approach focuses on interactions with the environment that can be seen and measured. The principles of behavioral approach have also been widely applied to help people change their behavior for the better. Under the intellectual leadership of John B Watson (1878-1958) and B. F. Skinner (1904-1990), behaviorism dominated psychological research during the first half of the 20th century. Skinner emphasized that what we do is the ultimate test of who we are. He believed that rewards and punishments determine our behavior. We do things not because of an inborn motivation to be competent people but because of the environmental conditions that we continue to experience (Skinner 1938). The Social Cognitive Theory as proposed by Albert Bandura stresses that behavior is determined not only by environmental conditions but also by how thoughts modify the impact of environment on behavior (Bandura 1986, 2001). Bandura Believes that imitation is one of the main ways in which we learn about our world. To reproduce a model’s behavior, we must enter and store the information in memory, which is a mental (cognitive) process. Thus, social cognitive theories have broadened the scope of behaviorism to include not only observe behavior but also the ways in which the mind processes information about the environment The Psychodynamic Approach The psychodynamic approach emphasizes the unconscious aspects of the mind, conflict between biological instincts and society’s demands, and early family experiences. This approach argues that unlearned biological instincts, especially sexual and aggressive impulses, influence the way people think, feel and behave. These instincts, buried within the unconscious mind, are often at odds with the society’s demands. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), its founder, saw much of psychological development as instinctual and believed that early relationships with parents are the chief forces that shape an individual’s personality. The theory was the basis for the therapeutic technique he called psychoanalysis. At the center of Freud’s theory is the concept of the unconscious-thoughts attitudes impulses, wishes, motivations and emotions of which we are unaware. Freud believed that childhood’s unacceptable (forbidden or punished) wishes are driven out of conscious awareness and become part of unconscious, where they continue to influence our thoughts, feelings and actions. Unconscious thoughts are expressed in dreams, slips of the tongue and physical mannerisms. During therapy with patients, Freud, used the method free association, in which the patient was instructed to say whatever comes to mind as a way of bring unconscious wishes into awareness. The analyses of dreams serve the same purpose.
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Unlike the behavioral approach, the psychodynamic approach focuses almost exclusively on clinical applications rather than on experimental research. For this reason psychodynamic approach has always been controversial and difficult to validate. Nonetheless, they are an important part of psychology. Today’s psychodynamic theories tend to place less emphasis on sexual instincts and more on cultural experiences as determinants of behavior. The Cognitive Approach According to cognitive psychologist, the brain houses or embodies a “mind,” whose mental processes allow you to remember, make decisions, plan, set goal and be creative. The cognitive approach then emphasizes the mental processes involved in knowing: how we direct our attention, how we perceive, how we remember and how we think and solve problems. Cognitive psychologists view the mind as an active and aware problem solving system. This positive view contrast with the behavioral view, which portrays behavior as controlled by external environmental forces. The cognitive view also contrast with pessimists views (such as those of Freud) the see human behavior as being controlled by instinct or other unconscious forces. In the cognitive view, an individual’s mental processes are in control of behavior through memories, perception, images and thinking. The Behavioral Neuroscience Approach The behavioral neuroscience approach emphasizes that the brain and the nervous system are central to understanding behavior, though and emotion. Neuroscientists believe that thoughts and emotions have a physical basis in the brain. Electrical impulses zoom throughout the brain cells, releasing chemical substances that enable us to think, feel, and behave. These chemicals are called neurotransmitters which are the ink with which memories are written. Our remarkable human capabilities would not be possible without the brain and nervous system, which constitute the most complex, intricate, and elegant system imaginable. The Evolutionary Psychology Approach The evolutionary approach emphasizes the importance of adaptation, reproduction and “survival of the fittest” in explaining behavior. Evolution favors organisms that are best adapted to survive and reproduce in a particular environment. This view focuses on the conditions that allow individuals to survive or fail. Natural selection in this regard, favors behaviors that increase reproductive success and ability to pass its genes to the next generation. Steven Pinker (1999) believes that evolutionary psychology is an important approach to understanding behavior. According to Pinker, the way the mind works can be summarized in three ways: 1) the mind computes, 2) the mind was designed to compute by evolution, 3) these computations are performed by specialized brain systems that natural selection has designed to achieve specific kinds of goals such as survival. The Sociocultural Approach The sociocultural approach emphasizes the social and cultural influences on behavior. This approach argues that a full understanding of a person’s behavior requires knowing the cultural context in which the behavior occurs. Moreover, this focuses not only on comparisons of behavior across countries but also on the behavior of people from different ethnic and cultural groups within a country.
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A Positive Approach to Psychology Psychology deals with both the positive and negative aspects of life. When the tone of psychology was believed to be too negative, two movements emerged to focus on the positive effects psychology can have on peoples’ lives. One of these movements (humanistic) appeared in the middle of the twentieth century; the other (positive psychology) began gaining momentum at the beginning of the twenty-first century. The Humanistic movement The humanistic movement emphasizes a person’s positive qualities, the capacity for growth, and freedom to choose a destiny. Humanistic psychologists that people have the ability to control their lives and avoid being manipulated by the environment (Maslow, 1971; Rogers, 1961). They believed that rather than being driven by sexual and aggressive impulses, as the psychodynamic approach dictates, or by external rewards and punishments as the behavioral approach emphasizes, people can approach to live by higher human values, such as altruism and free will. Humanistic psychologists also think that people have a tremendous potential for conscious self-understanding and that the way to help others achieve self-understanding is by being warm, nurturant, and supportive of them. The Positive Psychology Movement A strong emphasis on the experiences that people value subjectively (such as hope optimism and happiness), positive individual traits (such as capacity for love, work, creativity, talent and interpersonal skills), and positive group and civic values (such as responsibility, nurturance, civility and tolerance).
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Condensed by Roland L. Aparece, MA, from Santrock, John W. Psychology 7th ed. (Singapore: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2003.) pp. 8-18; Smith, Edward E. et. al. Atkinson & Hilgard’s Introduction to Psychology, 14th ed. (Singapore: Wadsworth, a division of Thompson Learning, Inc., 2003.) pp. 5-14, see also Morris, Charles & Maisto, Albert. Psychology: an Introduction 12th ed., (New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc., 2005.) pp. 13-21; Kassin, Saul. Psychology 4th ed. (New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc., 2004.) pp. 5-11.
1
Contemporary Approaches to Psychology The two approaches we have just discussed-structuralism and functionalismare no longer considered among psychologists main approaches. However, psychology has reframed some aspects of these approaches. Psychologists today realized that human thought and behavior are influenced by many factors including common biological heritage, biological variations from person to person, and experience. In addition to immediate environmental influences such as our physical and social surrounding, psychologist also recognized the broader influence of culture. Efforts to understand the complexity of human behavior and mental processes have given rise to a number to broader approaches in psychology. The Behavioral Approach The behavioral approach emphasizes the scientific study of behavior and asserts that behavior is shaped by the environment. In other words, the behavioral approach focuses on interactions with the environment that can be seen and measured. The principles of behavioral approach have also been widely applied to help people change their behavior for the better. Under the intellectual leadership of John B Watson (1878-1958) and B. F. Skinner (1904-1990), behaviorism dominated psychological research during the first half of the 20th century. Skinner emphasized that what we do is the ultimate test of who we are. He believed that rewards and punishments determine our behavior. We do things not because of an inborn motivation to be competent people but because of the environmental conditions that we continue to experience (Skinner 1938). The Social Cognitive Theory as proposed by Albert Bandura stresses that behavior is determined not only by environmental conditions but also by how thoughts modify the impact of environment on behavior (Bandura 1986, 2001). Bandura Believes that imitation is one of the main ways in which we learn about our world. To reproduce a model’s behavior, we must enter and store the information in memory, which is a mental (cognitive) process. Thus, social cognitive theories have broadened the scope of behaviorism to include not only observe behavior but also the ways in which the mind processes information about the environment The Psychodynamic Approach The psychodynamic approach emphasizes the unconscious aspects of the mind, conflict between biological instincts and society’s demands, and early family experiences. This approach argues that unlearned biological instincts, especially sexual and aggressive impulses, influence the way people think, feel and behave. These instincts, buried within the unconscious mind, are often at odds with the society’s demands. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), its founder, saw much of psychological development as instinctual and believed that early relationships with parents are the chief forces that shape an individual’s personality. The theory was the basis for the therapeutic technique he called psychoanalysis. At the center of Freud’s theory is the concept of the unconscious-thoughts attitudes impulses, wishes, motivations and emotions of which we are unaware. Freud believed that childhood’s unacceptable (forbidden or punished) wishes are driven out of conscious awareness and become part of unconscious, where they continue to influence our thoughts, feelings and actions. Unconscious thoughts are expressed in dreams, slips of the tongue and physical mannerisms. During therapy with patients, Freud, used the method free association, in which the patient was instructed to say whatever comes to mind as a way of bring unconscious wishes into awareness. The analyses of dreams serve the same purpose.
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Unlike the behavioral approach, the psychodynamic approach focuses almost exclusively on clinical applications rather than on experimental research. For this reason psychodynamic approach has always been controversial and difficult to validate. Nonetheless, they are an important part of psychology. Today’s psychodynamic theories tend to place less emphasis on sexual instincts and more on cultural experiences as determinants of behavior. The Cognitive Approach According to cognitive psychologist, the brain houses or embodies a “mind,” whose mental processes allow you to remember, make decisions, plan, set goal and be creative. The cognitive approach then emphasizes the mental processes involved in knowing: how we direct our attention, how we perceive, how we remember and how we think and solve problems. Cognitive psychologists view the mind as an active and aware problem solving system. This positive view contrast with the behavioral view, which portrays behavior as controlled by external environmental forces. The cognitive view also contrast with pessimists views (such as those of Freud) the see human behavior as being controlled by instinct or other unconscious forces. In the cognitive view, an individual’s mental processes are in control of behavior through memories, perception, images and thinking. The Behavioral Neuroscience Approach The behavioral neuroscience approach emphasizes that the brain and the nervous system are central to understanding behavior, though and emotion. Neuroscientists believe that thoughts and emotions have a physical basis in the brain. Electrical impulses zoom throughout the brain cells, releasing chemical substances that enable us to think, feel, and behave. These chemicals are called neurotransmitters which are the ink with which memories are written. Our remarkable human capabilities would not be possible without the brain and nervous system, which constitute the most complex, intricate, and elegant system imaginable. The Evolutionary Psychology Approach The evolutionary approach emphasizes the importance of adaptation, reproduction and “survival of the fittest” in explaining behavior. Evolution favors organisms that are best adapted to survive and reproduce in a particular environment. This view focuses on the conditions that allow individuals to survive or fail. Natural selection in this regard, favors behaviors that increase reproductive success and ability to pass its genes to the next generation. Steven Pinker (1999) believes that evolutionary psychology is an important approach to understanding behavior. According to Pinker, the way the mind works can be summarized in three ways: 1) the mind computes, 2) the mind was designed to compute by evolution, 3) these computations are performed by specialized brain systems that natural selection has designed to achieve specific kinds of goals such as survival. The Sociocultural Approach The sociocultural approach emphasizes the social and cultural influences on behavior. This approach argues that a full understanding of a person’s behavior requires knowing the cultural context in which the behavior occurs. Moreover, this focuses not only on comparisons of behavior across countries but also on the behavior of people from different ethnic and cultural groups within a country.
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A Positive Approach to Psychology Psychology deals with both the positive and negative aspects of life. When the tone of psychology was believed to be too negative, two movements emerged to focus on the positive effects psychology can have on peoples’ lives. One of these movements (humanistic) appeared in the middle of the twentieth century; the other (positive psychology) began gaining momentum at the beginning of the twenty-first century. The Humanistic movement The humanistic movement emphasizes a person’s positive qualities, the capacity for growth, and freedom to choose a destiny. Humanistic psychologists that people have the ability to control their lives and avoid being manipulated by the environment (Maslow, 1971; Rogers, 1961). They believed that rather than being driven by sexual and aggressive impulses, as the psychodynamic approach dictates, or by external rewards and punishments as the behavioral approach emphasizes, people can approach to live by higher human values, such as altruism and free will. Humanistic psychologists also think that people have a tremendous potential for conscious self-understanding and that the way to help others achieve self-understanding is by being warm, nurturant, and supportive of them. The Positive Psychology Movement A strong emphasis on the experiences that people value subjectively (such as hope optimism and happiness), positive individual traits (such as capacity for love, work, creativity, talent and interpersonal skills), and positive group and civic values (such as responsibility, nurturance, civility and tolerance).
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