Introduction to Psycholgy Introduction to Psycholgy

Common MisconceptionsPsychology is about giving advicePsychology is common sensePsychology is the study of mental illness

The “Truth” About PsychologyIt’s more than just giving people advice

Around 55% counsel or treat clients but also must do research

Psychology is rooted in scientific study and research

Another truth about psychologyIt is science.

Psychologists test ideas using the scientific method

Research findings don’t always confirm everyday observations

Ideas and observations must stand up to scientific scrutiny

What’s Next: Psychologists at Work

What is the science of psychology?

What are the major specialties in the field of psychology?

Where do psychologists work?

PsychologyPsychology

The scientific study of behavior and mental processes

Subfields of Psychology: Psychology’s Family Tree

Separated by the basic questions about behavior that they address: How do our social networks affect

behavior?How do people sense, perceive, learn,

and think about the world?What are the sources of change and

stability in behavior across a life span?How do psychological factors affect

physical and mental health?How do our social networks affect

behavior?

How Do Our Social Networks Affect Behavior?

Social PsychologyThe study of how people’s thoughts,

feelings, and actions are affected by others

You Tube Connection

How Do Our Social Networks Affect Behavior?

What Are the Biological Foundations of Behavior?Behavioral Neuroscience

Examines how the brain and the nervous system, in addition to other biological processes, determine behavior

How Do Our Social Networks Affect Behavior?

Cross-Cultural Psychology Investigates the similarities and differences in

psychological functioning in and across various cultures and ethnic groups (e.g., universal emotions)

Forensic PsychologyStudies criminal behavior and legal

systemAnalyze data to make scientific

conclusions

How Do People Sense, Perceive, Learn, and Think about the World?

Experimental Psychology Studies the processes of sensing,

perceiving, learning, and thinking about the world

SubspecialtyCognitive psychology

Studies higher mental processes such as thinking, memory, reasoning, problem solving, judging, decision making, and language

What Are the Sources of Change and Stability in Behavior Across the Life Span?

Developmental PsychologyStudies how people grow and

change from the moment of conception through death

Personality Psychology Focuses on the consistency in

people’s behavior over time and the traits that differentiate one person from another

Health Psychology Explores the relationship

between psychological factors and physical ailments or disease

Clinical Psychology Deals with the study, diagnosis,

and treatment of psychological disorders

Counseling Psychology Deals with the study, diagnosis,

and treatment of psychological disorders. Focuses primarily on educational, social, and career-adjustment problems

Our Bodies, Our Minds

Expanding Psychology’s Frontiers

Evolutionary Psychology Considers how behavior is influenced

by our genetic inheritance from our ancestors

Behavioral Genetics Seeks to understand how we might

inherit certain behavioral traits and how the environment influences whether we actually display such traits

Expanding Psychology’s Frontiers

Clinical NeuropsychologyUnites the areas of neuroscience and clinical

psychologyFocuses on the origin of psychological disorders in

biological factors

18Figure 1 of Chapter 1

Where Psychologists WorkWhere Psychologists Work

Psychologists: A PortraitBy 2010 women will outnumber men in the fieldVast majority of psychologists in the United States

are whiteSix percent are members of racial minority groups

Limits diversity of the field

20

The Education of a Psychologist

PhDDoctor of philosophy

PsyDDoctor of psychology

MA or MS Master’s degree

BA or BSBachelor’s degree

What’s Next: A Science Evolves: The Past, the Present, and the Future

What are the origins of psychology?

What are the major approaches in contemporary psychology?

A Science Evolves: The Past, the Present, and the Future

What are psychology’s key issues and controversies?

What is the future of psychology likely to hold?

The Roots ofThe Roots of Psychology Psychology

Structuralism Wilhelm Wundt Focused on uncovering the fundamental mental components of

perception, consciousness, thinking, emotions, and other kinds of mental states and activities

Wundt and his students used an experimental version of introspection -- the careful observation of one’s  perceptions -- and outlined some pretty specific details to the method: 1.  The observer must know when the experience begins

and ends. 2.  The observer must maintain "strained attention." 3.  The phenomenon must bear repetition. 4.  And the phenomenon must be capable of variation -- i.e. experimentation.

Regarding sensations, for example, it was determined that there are seven "qualities" of sensations:  The visual, auditory,  olfactory, gustatory, cutaneous, kinesthetic, and organic.  

Class Class DemonstrationDemonstration

Introspection and the Lollipop

The Roots of PsychologyFunctionalism

William James Functionalists are interested in

why and how our thoughts and feelings lead us to behave as we do.

Functionalism focuses on studying the functions/purposes that mental processes serve in enabling people to adapt to their environment. Stream of consciousness

The Roots of Psychology Gestalt Psychology

Emphasized how perception is organized “The whole is different from the sum of its parts” Two persons can be perceived, an old woman and a young

woman.   As you study the picture you may be able to change your

perceptions from one figure to the other in order to appreciate the process of emerging figures and receding grounds as it occurs in your everyday life.

To arbitrarily change one's focus is an experiment in perception.   Such a change in perceptual focus represents more than a trick of

the eye.   The perception of a figure emerging from the ground is a

consequence of an internal choice that, although momentary, involves a complex of internal processes. 

Today’s PerspectivesToday’s Perspectives

The Neuroscience Perspective: Blood, Sweat, and Fears

Neuroscience PerspectiveConsiders how people and

nonhumans function biologically

The Psychodynamic Perspective: Understanding the Inner Person

Psychodynamic PerspectiveSigmund FreudBehavior is motivated by inner

forces and conflicts about which we have little awareness or control.

The Behavioral Perspective: Observing the Outer Person

Behavioral PerspectiveJohn B. WatsonB.F. SkinnerFocuses on observable behavior

that can be measured objectively

The Cognitive Perspective: Identifying the Roots of Understanding

Cognitive PerspectiveFocuses on how

people think, understand, and know about the world Information

processing

The Humanistic Perspective: The Unique Qualities of the Human Species

Humanistic PerspectiveCarl RogersAbraham MaslowEmphasis is on free willAchieving self-fulfillment

What’s Next: Key Issues

Nature (Heredity) versus Nurture (Environment)

Conscious versus Unconscious causes of behavior

Observable Behavior versus Internal Mental Processes

Free Will versus Determinism

Individual Differences versus Universal Principles

Key Issues

Psychology’s FuturePsychology will become increasingly

specialized and new perspectives will evolve.Neuroscientific approaches will likely influence

other branches of psychology.Influence on issues of public interest will grow. Issues of diversity will become more important

to psychologists providing services and doing research.

What’s Next: Research in Psychology

What is the scientific method?How do psychologists use theory and research

to answer questions of interest?What research methods do psychologists use?How do psychologists establish cause-and-

effect relationships using experiments?

37

Scientific MethodApproach used by psychologists to systematically

acquire knowledge and understanding about behavior and other phenomena of interest

Four main steps1. Identifying questions of interest2. Formulating an explanation3. Carrying out research designed to support or

refute the explanation4. Communicating the findings

ScientificScientific MethodMethod

Theories: Specifying Broad Explanations

TheoriesBroad explanations and predictions

concerning phenomena of interestIn science, a theory is an explanation that

generally is accepted to be true.

Hypotheses: Crafting Testable PredictionsHypothesis

Prediction stated in a way that allows it to be tested

Stems from theoriesA hypothesis is an educated guess, based on

observation. Usually, a hypothesis can be supported or refuted through experimentation or more observation. A hypothesis can be disproven, but not proven to be true.

Class Class ParticipationParticipation

Hypothesizing at the airport. Generate hypotheses when observing this couple in plane to the Bahamas

Hypotheses: Crafting Testable Predictions

Operational Definition Translation of a hypothesis into specific, testable procedures that can be

measured and observed There is an old saying that you can never be too rich. When it comes to

operational definitions, you can never be too detailed. An operational definition identifies one or more specific observable conditions or events and then tells the researcher how to measure that event. Typically, there are several operational definition possibilities for variables and values. The operation chosen will often have an immediate impact on the course of the research, especially the findings.

Operational definitions must be valid -- do they measure what they are supposed to measure? It is easy to develop definitions that are easily operational, but which lack meaning and appropriateness.

Operational definitions must be reliable -- the results should be the same when done by different people or by one person at different times.

What’s Next: Descriptive Research

ResearchSystematic inquiry aimed at the discovery of new

knowledge Descriptive Research

Archival Research Naturalistic Observation Survey Research Case Study

Descriptive Research

Archival ResearchExisting data, such as

census documents, college records, and newspaper clippings, are examined to test a hypothesis. Example: Looking at college

records of students’ grades to see if there are gender differences in academic performance

Descriptive Research

Naturalistic Observation An investigator observes some naturally occurring

behavior and does not make a change in the situation Example: Sitting in on a class to see how frequently

male students speak up in class, as opposed to how frequently female students speak up

Descriptive Research

Survey Research A sample of people chosen to represent a larger

group of interest (a population) is asked a series of questions about their behavior, thoughts, or attitudes. Example: Having a sample of people (an equal number

of male and female students) fill out a questionnaire about their study habits and grades

Descriptive Research

The Case StudyAn in-depth, intensive investigation of a single

individual or a small group Often includes psychological testing

Example: Investigating an academically successful student with dyslexia to find out what specific behaviors led to his academic success. The findings of this investigation could then be used to help other students with dyslexia do better in school.

What’s Next: Correlational Research

Two sets of variables are examined to determine whether they are associated, or correlated. Variables

Behaviors, events, or other characteristics that can change, or vary, in some way

Correlation coefficient Positive Negative

Example: Comparing the amount of time spent studying to students’ performance on a test to see if the amount of time students studied affected their test scores

Correlation CoefficientsNumber indicates strength of relationship-1.00 to +1.00Stronger correlations indicate greater

relationship (away from 0), closer to 0 the weaker the relationship

Positive correlationAs one variable increases the other increases

Negative correlationAs one variable increases other decreases;

inverse relationship

Cautions about correlationsDoes not show cause and effect

relationshipOnly shows that variables have a

relationship, not what is the nature of that relationship

Relationship may be caused by a third variable

What’s Next: Experimental ResearchA researcher investigates the relationship

between two or more variables by deliberately changing one variable in a controlled situation and observing the effects of that change on other aspects of the situation. Experimental manipulation

Experimental ResearchExperimental Groups and

Control GroupsTreatment

Manipulation implemented by the experimenter

Experimental group Receives a treatment

Control group Receives no treatment Rules out other reasons for

change

Experimental Research

Independent and Dependent Variables Independent

The condition that is manipulated by an experimenter

Dependent The variable that is measured and is expected

to change as a result of changes caused by the experimenter’s manipulation of the independent variable

Confounding Problematic variables, variables that may

influence relationship-Need to control for these

Experimental ResearchRandom Assignment of

Participants To make the experiment a valid

test of the hypothesis

Random Assignment to Condition Participants are assigned to

different experimental groups or conditions on the basis of chance.

57Figure 6 of Chapter 1

Designing an ExperimentDesigning an Experiment

58

Experimental ResearchSignificant Outcome

Using statistical analysis, researchers can determine whether a numeric difference is a real difference or is merely due to chance.

ReplicationRepeating experiment

Meta-analysis

Necessary Conditions for Experiments

Variables must be controlled or manipulated

Participants are randomly assigned within the study

Then and only then can it show cause and effect

Review: Controlling/ManipulatingTypes of variables

Independent (IV)Manipulated variable; effect

Dependent (DV)Variable that measures results of

having manipulated the IV; effectConfounding

Problematic variables, variables that may influence relationship

Need to control for these

Threats to Experimental Validity: Avoiding Experimental Bias

Experimental Bias

Factors that distort the way the independent variable affects the dependent variable in an experiment Experimenter expectations

Participant expectations Placebo

Willingness to make “risky predictions”

Confirmation bias.Tendency to look for or pay attention only to

information that confirms one’s own belief.Principle of Falsifiability.

A scientific theory must make predictions that are specific enough to expose the theory to the possibility of disconfirmation; that is, the theory must predict not only what will happen, but also what will not happen.

Let’s Review

64

See additional

What’s Next: The Ethics of Research

APA Code of Ethics

The History of EthicsTHE NUREMBERG CODE [from Trials of

War Criminals before the Nuremberg Military Tribunals under Control Council Law No. 10. Nuremberg, October 1946–April 1949. Washington, D.C.: U.S. G.P.O, 1949–1953.]

65

General PrinciplesTheir intent is to guide and inspire psychologists

toward the very highest ethical ideals of the profession.

Principle A: Beneficence and NonmaleficencePrinciple B: Fidelity and ResponsibilityPrinciple C: IntegrityPrinciple D: JusticePrinciple E: Respect for People's Rights and Dignity

The Ethics of Research Types of psychological research conducted prior

to the development of Institutional Review Boards Emotions. Ax (1953) conducted a study to compare the experience of

fear and anger. In the anger condition, the experimenter criticized the participant and roughly adjusted the electrodes used for measurement; in the fear condition, the polygraph “malfunctioned” emitting sparks, and the experimenters made comments in front of the participant regarding the presence of a dangerous high voltage short circuit.

Conditioned Fear. Watson & Raynor (1920) demonstrated a conditioned emotional response (fear) by 11-month old Little Albert, an unsuspecting infant placed in Watson’s care while his mother was at work. In this study, Watson used the principles of classical conditioning described by Pavlov to demonstrate that fear can be conditioned to a previous neutral stimulus.

The Ethics of Research Types of psychological research conducted prior

to the development of Institutional Review Boards Obedience. Milgram’s (1974) experimental research

examined obedience to authority. Participants, who served as teachers in an apparent study on learning, administered “lethal” shocks to the learners based upon the command of the experimenter.

Milgrim’s

69

The Ethics of ResearchInformed Consent

Participants sign a document affirming that they have been told the basic outlines of the study and are aware of what their participation will involve.

They are informed about any risks the experiment may hold and the fact that their participation is purely voluntary.

They also are told that they may terminate their participation at any time.

You Tube Connection

Should Animals Be Used in Should Animals Be Used in Research?Research?

Procedures that cause animals distress are permitted only when an alternative procedure is not available and when the research is justified by its prospective value.

Researchers are required to promote the psychological well-being of some research animals, such as primates.

72

Social Anxiety

Symptoms of Social Anxiety

The fear of being scrutinized, judged, or embarrassed in public.

You may be afraid that people will think badly of you or that you won’t measure up in comparison to others.

And even though you probably realize that your fears of being judged are at least somewhat irrational and overblown, you still can’t help feeling anxious.

Return

Let’s look at it from different types of research

• Descriptive Research– Archival– Naturalistic Observation– Case Study– Survey

• Correlational Research• Experimental

Research

5 Minutes and 23 5 Minutes and 23 secondsseconds Paper Paper

5 Minutes and 23 seconds PaperThe Nazis are known for using human subjects in their medical experiments to research such fields as medicine and genetics. These unethical experiments were never short on subjects because the Nazis forced the prisoners in concentration camps to participate.These Nazi medical experiments usually subjected these prisoners to a great deal of pain and, in many cases, led to their deaths.

Hypothermia

To prepare the troops for the extreme cold, Nazi doctors conducted experiments on how extreme cold affected the human body and on how to resuscitate someone after someone succumbed to such temperatures. Often, the same subject would be frozen and heated over and over again during one testing session. Another experiment was to heat water to near boiling temperatures and then forcefully rrigating the body by running the water through the stomach, bladder, and intestines.

The medical field benefitted from this research but it is argued by some that the findings from these experiments should NOT be used to improve care at present because these findings came from unethical experimentation.

What is your opinion? Should we take the findings from unethical experiments to inform our work now or should we NOT because these findings came from unethical experimentation?