Psychology Chapter 1 to 3. Perspectives Overview

Psychoanalytic Perspective

• Proposed by Sigmund Freud, an Austrian physician
• Focused on unconscious factors, such as drives and conflicts stemming from childhood, that impact development and behavior
• Contributed to the understanding of the unconscious mind
• Influenced by Neo-Freudians like Carl Jung and Alfred Adler
• Continues to be influential in psychology today

Behaviorist Perspective

• Focused on studying observable actions, in contrast to the psychoanalytic perspective
• Founded by John Watson, who built upon the work of Ivan Pavlov, focusing on classical conditioning
• B.F. Skinner studied the impact of reinforcement and punishment on behavior, focusing on operant conditioning
• Emphasized the scientific study of behavior
• Remains critical in understanding learning, personality, and psychological disorders

Humanistic Perspective

• Emerged as a response to the limitations of the psychoanalytic and behaviorist perspectives
• Takes a holistic approach to individuals, focusing on the higher aspects of human nature
• Key figures: Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers
• Emphasized self-actualization and unconditional positive regard
• Plays a significant role in understanding personality and treating psychological disorders

Scientific Method

• Focuses on testable explanations for phenomena called hypotheses
• The alternative hypothesis predicts a relationship or difference between variables
• The null hypothesis states that there is no significant relationship or difference between variables
• Independent variable: Manipulated by the experimenter
• Dependent variable: The outcome measured by the experimenter

Types of Studies

• Correlational studies: Describe the relationship between variables but cannot demonstrate cause and effect
• Experimental studies: Manipulate the independent variable to determine its impact on the dependent variable, demonstrating cause and effect

Results and Conclusions

• Placebo: An inactive substance or sham procedure used as a comparison to a treatment of interest
• Placebo effect: A change in a recipient due to their expectation of the treatment, even if it is placebo
• Reliability: The consistency of an experiment or measure in producing similar results
• Validity: The accuracy of an experiment or measure
  • Internal Validity: The extent to which a measure or experiment produces a true result
  • External Validity: The extent to which a study can be generalized to real-life situations

Ethical Considerations

• Ethical research protects vulnerable populations, minimizes risks, maintains confidentiality, and respects participants' rights
• Informed consent: The process of informing participants about the study, its risks, and their rights, allowing for informed decision-making

Descriptive Statistics

• Measures of central tendency: Mean, median, mode
  • Mean: The average data point, calculated by summing data points and dividing by the number of data points
  • Median: The middle value when data points are ordered numerically
  • Mode: The most frequently occurring data point
• Measures of variation: Range
  • Range: The difference between the lowest and highest data points

Inferential Statistics

• Pearson correlation coefficient (r): Describes the linear relationship between two variables
  • Ranges from -1 to 1, indicating the direction and strength of the relationship
  • Positive correlation: both variables increase or decrease together
  • Negative correlation: as one variable increases, the other decreases
  • Zero correlation: No linear relationship between variables
• Correlation does not imply causation

Psychoanalytic Perspective

• Sigmund Freud developed the psychoanalytic approach to treat patients with psychological problems.
• Freud proposed the concept of the unconscious mind, which influences human development and behavior.
• Freud's theories focus on unconscious drives and conflicts stemming from childhood.
• The psychoanalytic approach continues to influence psychology today.
• Neo-Freudians, such as Carl Jung and Alfred Adler, expanded upon Freud's ideas.

Behaviorist Perspective

• The behaviorist perspective emerged in the early 1900s, focusing on observable actions.
• John Watson, considered the founder of behaviorism, studied classically conditioned fear.
• B.F. Skinner studied the impact of reinforcement and punishment on behavior.
• The behaviorist perspective emphasizes the scientific study of learning, personality, and psychological disorders.

Humanistic Perspective

• The humanistic perspective arose as a response to the perceived pessimism and mechanistic views of the psychoanalytic and behaviorist approaches.
• It emphasizes the holistic approach to the individual and focuses on the higher aspects of human nature.
• Abraham Maslow proposed the hierarchy of needs, with self-actualization as the highest level.
• Carl Rogers highlighted the importance of unconditional positive regard in individual growth.

The Scientific Method

• Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior.
• A hypothesis is a testable explanation for a phenomenon.
• The alternative hypothesis suggests a significant relationship or difference exists between variables.
• The null hypothesis states that there is no significant difference or relationship between variables.

Variables

• In experiments, the independent variable is manipulated to determine its impact on the dependent variable.
• The dependent variable is the outcome being measured.

Types of Studies

• Correlational studies describe relationships between variables, but cannot demonstrate cause-and-effect.
• Experimental studies manipulate the independent variable to determine its impact on the dependent variable, demonstrating cause-and-effect.

Results and Conclusions

• Placebos are inactive substances or sham procedures used as comparisons in experiments.
• The placebo effect occurs when a person experiences a change due to their expectations about the intervention.
• Reliability refers to the consistency of an experiment or measure in producing similar results.
• Validity refers to the accuracy of a study or measure.
• Internal validity assesses whether a measure correctly measures what it intended to.
• External validity, or generalizability, refers to the applicability of study results to real-life situations.

Ethical Considerations

• Ethical research protects vulnerable populations, minimizes risks, maximizes benefits, upholds confidentiality, and respects participant rights.
• Ethics committees review research involving human and animal subjects.
• Informed consent involves informing potential participants about the study, risks, and rights, allowing for voluntary participation.

Descriptive Statistics

• Descriptive statistics describe data sets using measures of central tendency and variation.
• Mean represents the average data point.
• Median represents the middle value when data points are arranged numerically.
• Mode represents the most frequently occurring data point.
• Range represents the difference between the lowest and highest data points.

Inferential Statistics

• Inferential statistics are used to draw conclusions that extend beyond the sample data set.
• The Pearson correlation coefficient r describes the linear relationship between two variables.
• The r-value ranges from -1 to 1, indicating the direction (positive or negative) and strength of the relationship.
• A positive correlation indicates both variables increase or decrease together.
• A negative correlation indicates as one variable increases, the other decreases.
• A zero correlation indicates no linear relationship between variables.
• Correlation does not imply causation.