phychology

scientific study of behavior and mental processes

scientific method

Wikhelm Wundt

• 1. observe and theorize
• 2.formulate hypothesis
• 3.design a study
• 4.collect and analyze data
• 5.apply results to hypothesis
• (back)

• 1.describe
• 2.explain
• 3.predict
• 4.influence

• behaviorism
• psychoanalysis
• humanistic psychology
• cognitive psychology
• evolutionary psychology
• biological (physiological) psychology
• socio-cultural psychology

environment shapes and controls behavior

unconscious motivation and early childhood experiences determine behavior and thought 

• individual's subjective experience is key to understanding behavior
• human uniqueness, based in capacity for choice, growth and and psychological health

• mental process underlie behavior
• product of two steams of thought (gestalt psychology & info-processing psychology)

human behaviors are required for survival and have adapted in the face of environmental pressures over the course of evolution

biological processes structures and heredity explain behavior

social and cultural influences on behavior 

points of view used for explaining people's behavior and thinking, wether normal or abnormal

choosing a combination of approaches to explain behavior

• independent thinking
• suspension of judgement
• willingness to modify or abandon prior judgemente

• Naturalistic and laboratory observations
• case study
• survey research
• cor-relational method
• experimental method

behavior studied in everyday natural setting

• little or no control over condition
• observer vias

• allows researcher more control
• use of precise equipment to measure responses

observations may not generalize

• great source of information about unusual conditions or events
• can provide info that leads to testing hypotheses

• lack of generalization (not the same for everyone)
• doesn't establish  cause of behavior

• most popular 
• interviews used to gather info about attitudes, beliefs, experiences, or behaviors

• can provide info about a large group of people
• can track changes in attitudes and behaviors over time

• responses may be inaccurate
• sample may not be representative
• interviewer's characteristics may influence responses
• can be costly and time consuming 

used to determine relationship (cor-relation) between two events, characteristics, or behaviors [ex. hrs of tv and aggressiveness] 

• can assess strength of relationship between variables
• can be done quickly 
• provides basis for prediction
• can be done when it's not possible to manipulate the situation 

does not demonstrate cause and effect. 

is measure from -1 to 1

used to test a casual hypothesis between two variables

identification of cause and effect relationships

• unnatural setting
• generalizabity
• some experiments are unethical or impossible to do

factor that is manipulated to determine if ti causes a change in another behavior or condition

exposed (one that receives the drug or experiment)

• used as a point of comparison 
• (similar to experimental group, does not receive the drug)

• captures brain activity
• place electrodes on the scalp 
• records brain-wave activity of the brain
• can show activity every millisecond on surface of brain