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Rene Decartes (1596 - 1650)
Decartes directly contributed to the history of modern psychology. He applied the idea of the clockwork mechanism to the human body, which helped to free scientific inquiry from centuries old theology. Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
Mechanism
The idea of mechanism originated from the work of Galilieo Galilei (1564 - 1642) and Isaac Newton (1642 - 1727) and stated that "The doctrine that natural processes are mechanically determined and capable of explanation by the laws of physics and chemistry" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 28). -
John Locke (1632 - 1704)
"Locke's major work of importance to psychology is An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1960), which was the culmination of 20 years of study" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 48). "The theory of Association" - knowledge results from linking or associating simple ideas to form complex ideas. Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
George Berkeley (1685 - 1753)
Mentalism - "The doctrine that all knowledge is a function of mental phenomena and dependent on the perceiving or experiencing person" S(chultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 53). -
David Hartley (1705 - 1757)
"Hartely proposed that repetition of sensations and ideas is necessary for associations to be formed" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 56). -
David Hume (1711 - 1776)
"Hume offered three laws of association: resemblance or similarity, contiguity in time or space, and cause and effect" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 55). -
Auguste Comte (1798 - 1857)
"Positivism" The doctrine that recognizes only natural phenomena or facts that are objectively observable. Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
The Beginnning of Experimental Psychology
Four scientists can be credited with the initial applications of the experimental method to the mind: Hermann von Helmholtz, Ernst Weber, Gustav Theodor Fechner, and Wilhem Wundt. -
Ernst Weber (1795 - 1878)
Primary interest was the physiology of the sense organs. He applied physiology's experimental methods to problems of a psychological nature. -
James Mill
Mill applied the doctrin of mechanism to the human mind. His most important contribution to psychology is his book, "Analysis of the Phenomena of the Human Mind (1829)." Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
Gustav Theodor Fechner (1801 - 1887)
Research on psychophysics - the scientific study of the relations between mental and physical processes. Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
Hermann von Helmholtz (1821 - 1894)
Of major importance to psychology are Hemholtz's investigations of the speed of the neural impulse and his research on vision and hearing. Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
Carl Stumpf (1848 - 1936)
Phenomenology - "Stumpf's introspective method that examined experience as it occurred and did not try to reduce experience to elementary components. Also, an approach to knowledge based on an unbiased description of immediate experience as it occurs, not analyzed or reduced to elements" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 114). -
Frances Galton (1822 - 1911)
Work on mental inheritance ("selective breeding), and the individual difference in human capacities. Modern statistical techniques for determining test validity and reliability, as well as factor-analytic methods, are direct outgrowths of Galton's research on correlation, which were based on his observation that inherited characteristics tend to regress toward the mean" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 163). -
Charles Darwin (1809 - 1882)
Darwin's theory of evolution influenced psychology in the following ways:
- Psychologists realized that the study of animal behavior was vital to their understanding of human behavior.
-Emphasis on the functions rather than the structure of consciousness.
- Acceptance of methodology and data from many fields
- Focus on the description and measurement of individual differences. -
John Stuart Mill (1806 - 1873)
Creative Synthesis - "The notion that complex ideas formed from simple ideas take on new qualities; the combination of the mental elements creates something greater than or differen from the sum of the original elements" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 59). -
Franz Brentano (1838 - 1917)
Bentano's most famous book, "Psychology from an Empirical Standpoint." "Intellectual precursor of the Gestalt psychology and Humanistic psychology schools" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 112). -
Structuralism
Elements of Conciousness Introspection Research methods, based on observation, experimentation, and measurement. Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
Wilhem Wundt (1832-1920)
"The Founding Father of Modern Psychology" Wilhelm Wundt founds the first psychology lab in Leipzig, Germany. The event is considered the starting point of psychology as a separate science. Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
G. Stanley Hall (1844 - 1924)
G. Stanley Hall became the first American to earn a Ph.D. in psychology. Hall eventually founded the American Psychological Association. Opened the first experimental psychology lab in the United States at John Hopkins University. Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
George John Romanes (1848 - 1894)
Formalized and systematized the study of animal intelligence. "Romanes is respected for his pioneering efforts in stimulating the development of comparative psychology and preparing the way for the experimental study of animal behavior" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 171). -
Hermann Ebbinghaus (1850 - 1909)
Ebbinhaus published his famous work "On Memory, A Contribution to Experimental Psychology." In the work, he describes his learning and memory experiments that he conducted on himself. Schultz and Schultz (2008) -
Edward Bradford Titchener (1876 - 1927)
Founder of Structuralism "Titchener focused on mental elements of contents, and their mechanical linking through the process of association, but he discarded Wundt's doctrine of apperception" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 122). -
Oswald Kulpe (1862 - 1915)
"Kulpe developed a method he called systematic experimental introspection, which involved, first, performing a complex task (such as establishing logical connections between concepts), then having the subjects provide a retrospective report about their cognitive processes during the task" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 115). -
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)
In 1895, Freud published "Studies of Hysteria:" the book considered the root to the beginning of psychoanalysis. -Sexual basis of neurosis (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Functionalism
"Functionalists studied the mind not from the standpoint of its composition - its menal elements or its structure - but rather as a conglomerate or accumulation of functions and processes that lead to practical consequences in the real world" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 143). -
Psychoanalysis (1900)
3 major influences:
1) Previous philosophical ideas about the unconscious process
2) Discovery of psychopathology
3) Darwin's theory of evolution Id, Ego, and Superego (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Herbert Spencer (1820-1903)
"Social Darwinism" - "Spencer argued that the development of all aspects of the universe is evolutionary, including human character and social institutions" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 177). -
Gestalt Psychology (1910)
"People perceive objects in the same way they perceive apparent motion, as unified wholes rather than clusters of individual sensations" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 379). -Focus on Concious experience. -
William James (1842 - 1910)
James published "The Principles of Psychology" - "the goal of psychology is not the discovery of the elements of experience but rather the study of living people as they adapt to their environment" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 187). -
Kurt Koffka (1886-1941)
"Most inventive of Gestalt psychology's founders" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 373). -
Karen Horney (1885-1952)
-Founded the American Institute of Psychoanalysis.
-Lack of affection during childhood created "basic anxiety."
-Feminist ideals -
Carl Jung (1875-1961)
Strayed from Freud's ideas and created analytical psychology. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Binet, Terman, and the IQ Test
Alfred Binet developed the first psychological test of mental ability. Lewis Terman developed the version of the test that has since become the standard. (Stanford-Binet IQ Test) -
Hugo Munsterberg (1863 - 1916
-Promoter of industrial psychology -Research served the purposes of buisness. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Industrial-Organizational Psychology Movement
Walter Dill Scott applied psychology to advertising and business. -Making the marketplace and workplace more efficient. -Determining how business leaders could motivate employees and consumers. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Max Wertheimer (1880-1943)
Gestalt psychology grew out of research conducted by Wertheimer. Phi phenomenon: The illusion that two stationary flashing lights are moving from one place to another. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Alfred Adler (1870-1937)
-Social psychological theorist -Major tenants: unity of personality, social interest, sex-role sterotypes, birth order, creativity and style of life, and inferiority complex. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Granville Stanley Hall (1844 - 1924
-Received the first American doctoral degree in psychology. Recapitulation Theory - the psychological development of children repeats the history of the human race. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Anna Freud (1895-1982)
"Freud's favorite Child." Defense mechanisms and child analysis. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Wolfgang Kohler (1887-1967)
Published "Gestalt Psychology," a comprehensive account of the Gestalt movement. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Mary Whiton Calkins (1863 - 1930)
-First woman president of APA in 1906 -Developed the paired-associate technique used in the study of memory. -
Ivan Petrovitch Pavlov (1849-1936)
Conditioned Reflexes: Reflexes that are conditioned or dependent on the formation of an association or connection between stimulus and response. -
Jean Piaget (1896-1980)
Becomes the foremost cognitive theorist with the publication of his work The Moral Judgment of Children. -
William McDougall (1871-1938
Instinct Theory - human behavior derives from innate tendencies to thought and action. Watson's forceful opponent. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)
"Spirtual father of humanistic psychology" Self-Actualization:The full development of one's abilities and the realization of one's potential. -Hierarchy of needs (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
James McKeen Cattell (1860-1944)
-Promoted a practical, test-oriented approach to the study of mental processes. Coined the term "mental tests." -Concerned with human abilities rather than the content of conciousness. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Helen Bradford Thompson Woolley (1874 - 1947)
First experimental test of the Darwinian notion that women were biologically inferior to men. Results showed no sex differences in emotional functioning and only small nonsignificant differences in intellectual abilities. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
James Rowland Angell (1869 - 1949)
Molded the functionalist movement into a working school of thought. Made the University of Chicago the major training ground for functional psychologists. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Edward Lee Thorndike (1874-1949)
Part of the behaviorism movement, Thorndike develped a mechanistic, objective learning theory that focused on overt behavior. "Thorndike's investigations of human and animal learning are among the most significant research programs in the history of psychology" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 280). (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
B.F. Skinner (1904-1990)
Advocated an empirical system with no theoretical framework within which to conduct research. Concerned with describing rather than explaining behavior. Operant Conditioning: A learning situation that involves beahvior emitted by an organism rather than elicited by a detectable stimulus. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
John Dewey (1859 - 1952)
- Spent 10 years at the University of Chicago
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Clark Hull (1884-1952)
"Hull described his behaviorism and his image of human nature in mechanistic terms and regarded human behavior as automatic and capable of being reduced to the language of physics" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 335). -
Harvey A. Carr (1873 - 1954)
"Carr, maintained that functional psychology was THE American psychology" and stated that "other versions of psychology - such as behaviorism, Gestalt, and psychoanalysis - he regarded as dealing only with limited aspects of the field" (Schultz and Schultz, 2008, p. 211). -
Lightner Witmer (1867-1956)
Offered the first college course on clinical psychology and started the first journal, "Psychological Clinic." (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Cognitive Psychology (1956)
Inspired by work in mathematics and other disciplines, psychologists begin to focus on cognitive states and processes. George A. Miller's 1956 article "The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two" on information processing is an early application of the cognitive approach. -
John B. Watson (1878-1958)
Forefront of the behaviorist movement. Viewed behaviorist's goal to be the prediction and control of behavior. A purely objective experimental branch of natural science. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Edward Tolman (1886-1959)
Purposive Behaviorism: Tolman's system combining the objective study of behavior with the consideration of purposiveness or goal orientation in behavior. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Neobehaviorism (1930-1960
Includes work of Tolman, Hull, and Skinner. These neobehaviorists agreed on the following points: -Psychology is the study of learning
-Most behavior can be accounted for by the laws of conditioning.
-Psychology must adopt the principle of operationism. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Albert Bandura (1925)
Social Cognitive Theory/ Self-efficacy/ Modeling techniques -
Melanie Klein (1862-1960)
Object relations theorist - focused on interpersonal relationships with objects and development of identity. -
Humanistic Psychology (1960)
Strength-based/Conscious experience/Free will/Realization of potential. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Carl Rogers (1902-1987)
-Person-centered therapy
-Self-actualization/Positive regard (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Robert Sessions Woodworth (1869-1962)
Dynamic Psychology - Woodworth's system of psychology, which was concerned with the influence of causal factors and motivations on feelings and behavior. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Julian Rotter (1916)
Locus of control: Rotter's idea about the perceived source of reinforcement. Internal locus of control is the belief that reinforcement depends on one's own behavior, external locus of control is the belief that reinforcement depends on outside forces. (Schultz and Schultz, 2008) -
Ego Psychology (1940-1970)
Psychoanalysis moved away from the ID and psychosexual forces toward the Ego and psychosocial forces. -
Erik Erikson (1902-1994)
Described as an "ego psychologist," Erikson developed 8 stages of psychosocial development.
