5 Questions
Who is associated with the development of the structuralist approach in psychology?
William Wundt
What is the primary focus of the functionalist approach in psychology?
Explaining how mental experiences are adaptive and functional
Which approach in psychology focuses on the physiological and biochemical explanation of behavior?
Biological approach
What is the primary drive, according to Sigmund Freud, that influences personality?
Sexual and aggressive urges
What is the ID, according to the psychodynamic approach?
The biological part of the personality, operating according to the pleasure principle
Study Notes
Psychology Definition
- Psychology is the scientific study of human behavior and mental processes
- It encompasses actions, thoughts, emotions, and impulses
Structuralist Approach
- Focuses on the consciousness and its elements
- Founded by William Wundt (1832-1920)
- Aims to discover the form or basic elements of mental experience
- Uses introspection, a process of internal perception, to examine conscious experience
- Limitation: subjective method, not applicable to children or animals
Functionalism
- Focuses on the function of human behavior and mental processes
- Explores how mental experiences and processes are adaptive for people
- Founded by William James
- Relies on objective measures
Biological Approach
- Examines physiological and biochemical explanations of behavior
- Studies how genes, hormones, and neurotransmitters influence behavior
- Focuses on understanding how physiological and biochemical processes produce psychological phenomena
Behavioral Approach
- Emphasizes responding to environmental stimuli
- Focuses on learned responses to predictable patterns of environmental stimuli
- Includes classical conditioning and operant conditioning
- Influential thinkers: Pavlov and Skinner
Psychodynamic Approach
- Explores how unmet childhood needs influence personality
- Focuses on the interaction between innate drives and society's restrictions
- Also known as the Psychoanalytic Approach
- Founded by Sigmund Freud
- Emphasizes the role of the unconscious, including the ID, EGO, and SUPER-EGO
ID, EGO, and SUPER-EGO
- ID: biological part of personality, operates according to the pleasure principle (do what feels good, do it now)
- EGO: rational, realistic part of personality, operates according to the reality principle (do what will get your needs met effectively, efficiently, and without getting hurt)
- SUPER-EGO: social part of personality, operates according to the morality principle (do what is right, and don't...)
Learn about the scientific study of human behavior and mental processes, including the structuralist approach and its limitations.
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