1. Introduction to Psychology
Chapter 1:
Introduction to Psychology

2. Frequently Asked Questions
What is the purpose of these handouts?
To structure your reading and help you take notes. For most students, the handouts are very useful when studying for exams
What do the page numbers on the lower right-hand corner of each slide indicate?
The page numbers in the Feist and Rosenberg textbook that correspond to the notes on the handout. Students should absolutely read those pages. Other pages in the textbook are optional

3. Frequently Asked Questions(cont.)
Which pages of the textbook should I read?
ALL pages that appear on the PowerPoint handouts. Other pages are optional
What will be on the exams?
All objectives are fair game for the exams. Exam questions also come from any videos or activities for that unit

4. Frequently Asked Questions(cont.)
How should I use the audio lectures?
Print the study guide for each chapter
Read the chapter, taking notes on the study guide
THEN, listen to the audio lecture as a review, filling in notes as needed

5. Overview
Psychology is the scientific study of _________________ and ________________
Psychology has many subspecialties, and psychologists work in both _______________ and ________________ settings
The history of psychology has two parts: clinical _______________ and ___________________
Entire chapter

6. Overview(cont.)
To understand how psychologists think, we need to examine the ________________/ ________________debate, the concept of mind/body ________________, and the processes of evolution and natural selection

7. Overview(cont.)
Your textbook authors (________________ and __________________) have emphasized connections between
Nature and nurture
Psychologists and scientific discoveries
Topics across psychology
Psychology and the real world
Topics within each chapter

8. Objective 1
Define psychology
Psychology is the _________________ study of ________________ and ________________
What does it mean to say that psychology is scientific?
Another term for thought is mental processes, and includes emotion, language, consciousness, etc.
p. 4-7

9. Objective 1(cont.)
Psychology is both a clinical practice and a science, meaning that psychologists help people improve their lives or functioning, AND conduct research in order to learn more about why we do the things we do

10. Objective 2
Identify and describe common subdisciplines in psychology
The largest subfield (based on number of degrees awarded) is __________________, which focuses on
p. 8-11

11. Objective 2(cont.)
Other common subfields include (describe each)
Cognitive
Developmental
Behavioral neuroscience
Social
Health
Industrial/organizational

12. Objective 3
Describe the history of the clinical practice of psychology
For how long have humans been suffering from, and attempting to treat, psychological disorders?
Across human history, the pendulum has swung from considering psychological problems as being due to supernatural, or natural, causes
Prehistoric times trephination
Ancient times saw connections between mind and body
p. 12-14

13. Objective 3(cont.)
Medieval to early modern times attributed disorders to supernatural causes. Treatment ranged from brutal to humane
Modern times mental illnesses are disorders of the brain and are similar to any other illnesses
By 1950s, we had the three main tools now used to help people with mental illness

14. Objective 4
Describe the early history of the science of psychology (4th century BCE to late 1800s)
Originated from philosophy (asking questions such as, What is the nature of knowledge?) and became a science when it started to
The field grew in German universities, along with physiology, chemistry, and medicine
In 1879, _____________ ____________ opened the first psychology laboratory in Leipzig, Germany
p. 16-18

15. Objective 4(cont.)
An important early psychologist was G. _______________ ________________
Opened the first psychology lab in the U.S.
Founded the American Psychological Association
History of psychology is mostly white and male, with a few exceptions
First African American psychologist was _____________ ____________ ______________, who conducted research on equality and justice
First female president of APA was _______________ ______________ ________________

16. Objective 4(cont.)
Two approaches in early psychology
Edward Titchener believed that psychologists needed to study the elements of experience (also known as the parts or structures of the mind). This approach came to be known as __________________________
William James and others believed that the functions of the mind, and their adaptive purpose, were more important. This approach was called ___________________________
Eventually the focus of psychology turned to ____________________, and now, to behavior and mental processes

17. Objective 5
Describe the major schools of psychology popular in the 20th and 21st centuries (1900s-today)
Behaviorism
Approach is to forget about the mind and focus only on behavior, or what we can see
Well-known advocates are John _________________ and B. F. ____________________
p. 19-22

18. Objective 5(cont.)
Humanistic and positive psychology
Focus on personal growth; proponents include Abraham ___________________ and Carl ___________________
Cognitivism
Mental processes (such as) became interesting to psychologists again in the 1950s and 1960s, and remain so today
Evolutionary psychology and behavioral neuroscience
Lots of focus today on the role of natural selection and the brain in shaping/producing our thoughts and behavior

19. Objective 6
Summarize the three ways of thinking that help us to understand the approach of psychologists
Nature-nurture debate
Nature refers to ___________________; nurture refers to everything else, also known as _______________________
Really not a debate any longer; both matter, all the time
p. 23-28

20. Objective 6(cont.)
We can say that something is influenced more by genetics than by environment when it is universal (seen in all cultures) and seen in non-human species (example = attachment. Human infants all around the world bond with their main caregiver. So do non-human primates, such as chimpanzees and rhesus monkeys)

21. Objective 6(cont.)
Mind-body dualism
This idea originated with the French philosopher and mathematician _______________________, and held that mind and body are separate
Mind-body dualism is primarily a Western idea, and is incorrect (it matters because its been a problem for psychology). Mind and body (including brain) are one

22. Objective 6(cont.)
Evolution of behavior
Darwins big idea was that changes in species over time were due to ___________________ ______________________, or a process by which traits that help an organism to reproduce are passed on to offspring

23. Objective 6(cont.)
Applications of natural selection to human thought and behavior
We like fatty foods (may have helped our ancestors survive during periods of famine)
We like babies (pushing adults to care for children until they are old enough to care for themselves and to reproduce)
Men and women tend to differ in sexual feelings and behavior (the idea is that mens best strategy to get their genes passed on - mate widely - would be different from womens best strategy - mate with one guy and get him to stick around)

24. Objective 7
How might psychologists in various subfields approach the growth of electronic social interactions?
What does each of these folks study in general, and what questions might they ask about online interactions?
Cognitive psychologist
Developmental psychologist
Clinical psychologist
p. 29-31

25. Conclusion
Psychology is a science
Psychology has two historical paths; as a clinical practice and as a science. Which path has a shorter history/is more recent?
Modern-day psychology emphasizes the brain and nervous system and the role of genes, environment, and natural selection in shaping our thought and behavior

26. Useful Websites
History of Psychology
http://www.learner.org/discoveringpsychology/history/history_nonflash.html
Textbook Website (free resources for students using our textbook)
http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0073531839/student_view0/