Psychology: Independent and Dependent Variables

Study Notes

Independent Variable: The variable manipulated by researchers, e.g., temperature affecting moods.
Dependent Variable: The outcome being measured, e.g., moods influenced by temperature.
Extraneous Variable: External factors that can affect the dependent variable, e.g., noise disrupting mood experiments.
Experimental Group: Participants receiving the treatment in a study, e.g., students taught with a new method.
Control Group: Participants not receiving the treatment, used for comparison, e.g., students taught with the old method.
Random Assignment: Randomly placing participants into groups reduces bias and ensures valid comparisons.

Understand Behavior: Explore psychological, biological, social, and environmental influences on behavior.
Predict Behavior: Anticipate when and how behaviors will recur based on past observations.
Control Behavior: Alter behaviors to encourage positive outcomes or discourage harmful actions.

Greek Philosophers: Aristotle's exploration of sleep, senses, dreams, and memory laid foundational concepts around 300 BC.
Rene Descartes: Proposed dualism, suggesting mind and body are separate entities; contrasts with monism, which asserts a singular existence.
Nature vs. Nurture Debate: Explores whether traits are innate or influenced by the environment.

William James: Father of American psychology and founder of functionalism, focuses on why mental processes exist and their role in adaptation.
Purpose Over Structure: Emphasizes understanding mental activities based on their function in adapting to the environment.

Behaviorism: Emerged in the early 1900s, concentrating on observable behavior rather than consciousness.
Major Proponents: Includes figures like B.F. Skinner, Ivan Pavlov, Edward L. Thorndike, and Albert Bandura.
Learning Through Environment: Assumes all behaviors are learned from interactions with the environment.

Psychoanalysis: Focuses on unconscious influences on behavior, emphasizing early childhood experiences and internal conflicts.
Freud’s Contributions: Highlights the role of unconscious drives in shaping personality and behavior.

Experimental Research: Allows replication, enhancing validity; focuses on independence and dependence of variables while recognizing ethical limitations.
Correlational Research: Studies relationships between variables without manipulation; identifies positive, negative, or no correlations.

Clinical Psychology: Focuses on diagnosing and treating mental disorders.
Health Psychology: Examines how psychological factors impact health and encourages healthier behaviors.
Experimental Psychology: Uses scientific methods to study human thoughts and behavior.
Social Psychology: Investigates how social interactions influence thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

Psychology is a multifaceted discipline with various approaches to understanding behavior, influenced by historical figures and diverse branches aimed at addressing different aspects of human experience.