CONCEPT I: Aspects of Psychology

Psychology can be defined as the study of behavior and mental processes. Psychology is a science which means it relies on empirical data that are systematically observed, measured, and recorded. As a science, psychology is characterized not so much by what it studies as by how it studies a given topic.

Theories are formulations that attempt to fit all the known relevant facts concerning phenomena into a logical explanation. Psychologists believe there are patterns underlying behavior and that by determining these patterns through experimentation, we can better explain and predict human behavior. Scientific knowledge grows by adding more detailed and more accurate information and adjusting theories accordingly. Sometimes findings of research in psychology contradict common sense, indicating that our intuition about human nature is not always correct.

Like any science, psychology is an ongoing field of study, with new findings leading to new possibilities. Oftentimes, an initial study will generate the interest and response of other researchers who may criticize how the original study was conducted, offer alternative interpretations of the initial results, or conduct further research to help clarify the original research question or answer new questions about the same topic. Scientific knowledge grows through this relatively slow, incremental fashion.

The American Psychological Association (APA) is the principal professional organization for American psychologists, and it has as a major goal the application of psychological findings to the promotion of public welfare. Oftentimes basic science, which aims at understanding a subject without regard to whether that understanding will have immediate practical effects, leads to applied science findings, which are intended to solve practical problems or improve the quality of life. Many people are skeptical of the value of basic research, but they should understand that oftentimes basic research leads to breakthroughs with major applied impact. Psychologists are also involved in promoting human welfare in their work as counselors and clinicians.

CONCEPT II: Psychology's Past and Present

In 1890, William James at Harvard published an influential text titled Principles of Psychology which criticized the structuralist approach. James believed that consciousness was not a series of component parts, but rather was a continuous whole. James' view was consistent with Charles Darwin's focus on function and evolution, and led to a view called functionalism, which stressed the functions that our mental processes serve.

Five perspectives have come to dominate psychology in the twentieth century: the neurobiological, the behaviorist, the psychoanalytic, the humanistic, and the cognitive. Although all are very different, they are not necessarily opposed to each other, but rather take different perspectives in understanding the same events.

Behaviorists argued that psychology should study only observable, measurable events, and they focused on how stimuli produced responses. Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936) documented how an association could be learned between a previously neutral stimulus and a reflex by pairing these events in time. John B. Watson (1878-1958) first delineated the behaviorist position in America and declared that an organism's responses could be controlled by controlling environmental stimuli. E. L. Thorndike (1874-1949) discovered the principles of trial-and-error learning, which emphasize the importance of rewards. B. F. Skinner refined and popularized these behaviorist views and expanded them to apply to society as a whole. Skinner's views are called "radical" behaviorism because he believed that the concept of mind or consciousness was totally unnecessary in understanding what a person does, which he felt was completely the result of the rewards and punishments which applied to various behaviors. Albert Bandura, on the other hand, believes that how one interprets events makes a difference in how one behaves.

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) emphasized the role of unconscious (or unobservable) conflicts in outward behavior. By using his psychoanalytic approach in the study of patients and the techniques of free association (unguided talking) and dream analysis, he attempted to extract clues to the nature of the patient's unconscious conflict and to help the patient consciously recognize the psychological roots of a problem. Freud believed that most adjustment problems stem from the conflict between sexual impulses and society's moral standards. He also emphasized the importance of early life events in shaping adult personality. More recent psychoanalytic thinkers have placed less emphasis on innate biological urges and more on the thinking, rational side of the human psyche. Erik Erikson, for example, has proposed a theory which suggests that each person moves through a sequence of challenges in life, each challenge arising from new demands that society makes as people mature.

The humanistic approach opposes the strict determinism present in both behaviorism and the Freudian view; it emphasizes the positive side of human nature. This approach sees humans as naturally striving for self-fulfillment, or self-actualization, and psychological growth and also sees humans as free to be whatever they can. Carl Rogers, for example, believed that people can be helped to move toward self-actualization when a therapist treats them with empathy and understanding and gives them support. Although criticized as unscientific, humanistic therapies have had a strong impact on modern-day thinking.

Cognitive psychology, which began to take a major hold in American psychology in the 1950s, builds on the importance of mental processes, or cognitions. Several important concepts have been incorporated into the cognitive view. Schemas are the results of active interpretation of experience. Mental strategies involve hypothesis testing as we refine our understanding of things. Plans allow us to initiate behaviors that will close the gap between our current state and the goal we want to reach. The useful analogy between the human mind and an information-processing system has become a major interest in cognitive psychology. As such, it has generated research aimed at developing computer programs to simulate human thought.

The neurobiological perspective focuses on the idea that understanding how the brain works will allow us to explain human behavior and mental processes. Neurobiologists are interested in both the structure and the chemistry of the brain.

This book takes an eclectic approach to understanding behavior, drawing insights from all five of these perspectives.

Psychologists attempt to satisfy three goals: to accurately describe how people think, feel, and act; to explain why people act the way they do, and to predict how people might feel and behave in the future.

CONCEPT III: Contemporary Fields of Specialization

Psychology is made up of many highly specialized subfields.

Experimental psychologists (as well as most other psychologists) rely on experimentation. They focus on basic areas of behavior that are shared by humans and other animals, such as sensation, perception, learning, memory, problem solving, communication, emotion, and motivation.

Neuropsychologists also study basic processes, but focus on how they are controlled by the nervous system. Like experimental psychologists, they often use animals in their research. Psychopharmacology, the study of the link between drugs and behavior, is a rapidly growing field.

Personality psychologists study individual differences in behavior. Social psychologists emphasize the role of environmental factors, especially the presence and actions of others, on behavior. Developmental psychologists study how people change as they move through the life cycle. They also may evaluate children who are not developing normally.

Industrial and organization psychologists focus on the relationship between individuals and their work. They are concerned with all aspects of behavior in the workplace. One subfield is personnel psychology, in which psychologists match a person's qualifications to a job. Most industrial and organizational psychologists work in business and industry. Educational psychologists are concerned with all aspects of the learning process, whereas school psychologists work in the applied area of solving specific or individual problems in the school situation.

Clinical psychologists specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of behavior disorders and have earned a Ph.D. and completed special training. Psychiatrists first earn an M.D. and then serve a residency in psychiatry. They sometimes work with psychologists and can prescribe drugs and other medical treatment for therapy. Some psychiatrists become psychoanalysts and practice therapy similar to that developed by Freud. Counseling psychologists typically help people who are experiencing mild problems in social or emotional adjustment.

Health psychologists study the relationship between mental state and physical health. Some health psychologists believe psychological factors are implicated in all diseases.

New fields of study presently emerging in psychology include artificial intelligence (AI), the science of programming computers to perform tasks formerly requiring human capabilities, environmental psychology, which focuses on the relationship between people and their surroundings, and peace psychology, which studies how war can be avoided.

CONCEPT IV: Psychology's Value to You

Psychology is a popular vocation in the United States. About 10 percent (3,000) of the 30,000 doctoral degrees awarded each year in science and engineering are in psychology. About 8,000 students annually earn psychology master's degrees as well.

Coursework in psychology can contribute to job success in many fields. Even if you do not plan a career in psychology, you can expect to learn more about yourself and others by studying psychological findings and principles. Furthermore, studying psychology will give you a method of evaluating contemporary and widely publicized findings and research conclusions and will make you a sophisticated consumer of information affecting your life.