Schools of Psychology - users.ipfw.edu

Early “Schools” of Psychology

“Schools” of Psychology n

A “school” of psychology is a group of individuals who share a common vision about psychology. This includes a shared view of u How psychology should be defined u What its goals should be u What methods of research are appropriate

Psychology’s Early Schools n n n n

Structuralism Functionalism Gestalt Psychology Behaviorism

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Structuralism n n n

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Founded by Wilhelm Wundt Psychology as the science of the mind Goal: Identify the elements of conscious experience Methods u Introspection u Objective experiments

Functionalism n n n n n

Leading proponent: William James Psychology as the science of mind Goal: Identify the functions of mind Methods: Introspection, Objective Experiments Strongly influenced by Darwin u Other animals besides humans have minds u Human instincts?

Gestalt Psychology n n n

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Leading Proponent: Max Wertheimer Psychology as the science of mind Goal: Identify the innate organizing principles of mind Methods: Introspection, Objective observation

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Behaviorism n n n n n n

Founded by John B. Watson Psychology as the science of behavior Goal: Discover the laws of learning and behavior Method: Laboratory Experiments Causes of behavior lie in the environment – mental activity plays no causal role The (human) mind as a tabula rosa

Psychology Today n

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The “cognitive revolution – reasserted the importance of mental processes Evolutionary psychology – reasserted the importance of inborn or instinctive patterns of behavior.

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