Transcript Unit 1
Unit 1 The History and Science of Psychology Defining Psychology Role of philosophy Influence of biology Importance of outward behavior Psychology is defined as the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. The Birth…and Afterbirth of Psychology Classical origins Wilhelm Wundt First psychology lab, 1879 at the University of Leipzig Examined introspection, or the analysis of one’s conscious experiences Schools of Thought: “Old Skool” Structuralism E.B. Titchener Introspection Break down immediate sensation, past memories, feelings Functionalism William James Darwin’s influence Conscious experience is adaptive Holla! Stream of consciousness Break it down! Titchener No, Beotch! Why is it ADAPTIVE? James Gimme my Ph.D. or I’ll shank ya! Schools of Thought: Old Skool Early contributions of women Limitations on access to education Restrictions on awarding advanced degrees Exclusion from psychological societies Mary Whiton Calkins Margaret Floy Washburn Rosalie Rayner Today, women earn the majority of Ph.D.s in psychology and hold nearly half of the leadership roles in psychological societies Schools of Thought: Classics Psychoanalysis I torture babies! Sigmund Freud Role of the unconscious Sex and aggression Early childhood events Evolved into psychodynamic school Und zen zie child become s neurotic! Behaviorist School John Watson, Ivan Pavlov, B.F. Skinner Observable, measurable behavior Sigmund Freud Behaviorist John B. Watson Schools of Thought: Classics Gestalt Max Wertheimer, Fritz Perls Human tendency to perceive patterns “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts” Useful in understanding process of perception Black spots, or a dalmatian? Schools of Thought: Classics Humanistic School Cognitive School Cognitive psychologist Jean Piaget Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow Human potential for growth Free will Here and now Need for acceptance and love Jean Piaget, Albert Ellis, Aaron Beck Importance of thoughts and thought processes Perception, thinking, memory, language Schools of Thought: New Directions Today, contemporary schools of thought have expanded to also include the following: Neuroscience Evolutionary Psychology Behavioral Genetics Social-Cultural Schools of Thought: The Biopsychosocial Approach Regardless of the particular school of thought, contemporary psychology has come to embrace the biopsychosocial approach Biological influences Psychological influences Social-Cultural influences OBEY . Schools of Thought: The Biopsychosocial Approach Each particular school of thought may emphasize one area more than another Which area/s do you think each school would emphasize? Enduring Issues in Psychology Psychologists representing all schools of thought debate what shapes behavior Some on-going debates include the following: Nature vs. Nurture Person vs. Situation Mind vs. Body Stability vs. Change Diversity The failure to resolve the debates suggests both sides are valid and shed light on behavior An eclectic approach may be most appropriate Psychology Careers: Education The Degrees BA – 4 year study MA – 2-3 Years beyond BA Ph.D./Psy.D./Ed.D. – 6-7 years beyond BA M.D. – Psychiatrists (prescribe medication) – medical school Increased career opportunities for advanced degrees Admission is competitive! Strong GPA and GRE scores Related work or volunteer experience Close relationships with professors Publish if possible! Psychology Careers: Fields of Study Research vs. Applied Psychology? The majority of psychology professionals work as therapists in some capacity Clinical Psychologists Counselors Psychiatrists Psychology’s Diverse Subfields Cognitive Community Developmental Educational Experimental Forensic Industrial/Organizational Neuropsychologists School Social Conducting Research Goals of Psychology Pitfalls of intuition and “common sense” explanations Describe Explain Predict Control Hindsight bias Overconfidence Remember psychology’s definition: “The scientific study of behavior and mental processes” Conducting Research The Scientific Attitude: Rely on Empiricism! Curiosity: passion to explore and understand Skepticism: questioning results; retesting Humility: understanding humans’ limitations and the possibility for error Ultimately, psychologists must be critical thinkers Do not accept “truths” without first testing them Look at evidence, question assumptions, filter out bias The Scientific Method Generate a question Formulate a theory Develop a hypothesis Test hypothesis Operational definitions Clear and concise Replication of results Descriptive Research Methods Case Study In-depth Research Can we generalize? Survey Lots of information – FAST! Population Random sample Stratified Sample Wording Naturalistic Observation Hawthorne Effect minimized Observer bias Interobserver reliability Control? Correlational Methods What is the relationship between two factors? Allows prediction, but NOT cause and effect! Correlation vs. causation A positive or negative relationship does not establish the direction of the relationship It does not PROVE the if-then Measuring the Strength of Relationship Correlation Coefficient Between -1 and 1 Stronger relationships are closer to -1 or to 1, closeness to 0 indicates weak or no relationship Positive correlation vs. negative correlation Scatterplots Reading Scatter Plots: Match the Correlation Coefficient with the Graph! A. .86 B. -1.0 C. 0 D. .99 Correlational Studies: Pitfalls Illusory Correlations We can be influenced to see correlations when we believe they exist Fueled by confirmation bias, or the tendency to only remember examples that support what we already believe is true E.g. “Old people are cheap!” Experimental Method Researcher deliberately manipulates selected variables and then measures the effects of these manipulations Because the researcher has this level of control, the experiment can establish causation However, the level of control can be somewhat artificial, and results may not generalize to the real world outside the lab Also, it may be unethical to manipulate certain variables The Experiment: An Example Situation: New insomnia drug called DROWZ’s…does it work? Want to establish a cause and effect relationship or if-then, SO we must do an… EXPERIMENT! Personnel - Who is involved? Experimenter Subjects/Participants Runs and/or designs the experiment Those being tested Sample - group that represents the larger group we are generalizing about (i.e. insomniacs) Random Selection - everyone has an equal chance of being chosen! Confederates People who help the experimented administer the experiment Variables - What is happening? Independent Variable Dependent Variable The variable being TESTED Experimenter can manipulate it E.g. exposure to DROW-Z’s The RESULT What happens as a result of exposure to the independent variable E.g. do subjects on DROW-Z’s SLEEP better? Confounding Variable Throws off results Unwanted! Experimental vs. Control Groups Experimental Group Control Group The group exposed to manipulation of the independent variable E.g. receives the DROW-Z’s Group NOT exposed to manipulation of the independent variable E.g. does NOT receive DROW-Z’s May instead receive a PLACEBO Random assignment to groups All subjects have an equal chance of being in either the control group or experimental group! Operational Definitions, Etc. Operational Definitions What are we measuring and how? Allows experiment to be replicated by others E.g. what is a “better” night’s sleep? Sample Size: the bigger the better! What is the difference between groups? Replication? Avoiding Pitfalls Double- and Single-blind procedures Single - subject doesn’t know who is in control group and who is in experimental group Double - subject and confederate don’t know who is in which group Placebo Reduces confounding variable Reduces demand characteristics (subject bias) Analyzing Results: Statistical Analysis Statistics Defined A branch of mathematics used to organize and analyze data Necessary to use statistics to understand what results actually MEAN – if they mean anything at all… Be skeptical of sweeping generalizations E.g. “Males are better at math and science than females” How was this measured? Statistical Analysis: Scales of Measurement Nominal Scale Ordinal Scale Scale that indicates relative position; ranks data E.g. class rank Interval Scale Set of categories for classifying E.g. types of cars in the student lot Scale with equal distance between values, but without a true zero E.g. temperature Ratio Scale Scale with equal distance between values, but WITH a true zero E.g. Inches of rain Statistical Analysis: Descriptive Statistics Frequency Distribution A count of the number of scores that fall within each series of intervals Frequency histogram and Frequency polygraph Descriptive Statistics: Measures of Central Tendency This is a single score that represents a set of scores Mode Mean Most frequently occurring score Average Median The midpoint – half the scores fall below, and half are above Sample Data Set: 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4, 5, 5 Mode = ? Mean = ? Median = ? This is a NORMAL CURVE, where all measures of central tendency are equal! Descriptive Statistics: The Skewed Distribution Frequency distribution is asymmetrical Mean, median and mode are different values Negative (left) – just a few very low scores Positive (right) – just a few very high scores How can a few atypical scores distort data? Descriptive Statistics: The Bimodal Distribution As the name implies, a bimodal distribution has TWO modes Descriptive Statistics: Measures of Variation Range – the difference between the highest and lowest score in a distribution What does it tell you? What DOESN’T it tell you? Standard Deviation – how much do scores vary from the mean in a distribution? (see table 1.4 in packet p. 36) 1. Calculate mean 2. Subtract each score from the mean 3. Square that difference 4. Add the sum of the squares 5. Divide by the number of scores in the distribution 6. Take square root of this 7. The number is equal to the value of ONE standard deviation Descriptive Statistics: Measures of Variation So what? In a normal curve, this number reveals the percentage of scores that falls within a particular range 68% fall within one standard deviation from the mean 95% fall within two standard deviations from the mean 99% fall within three standard deviations from the mean What must the standard deviation be for this distribution of IQ scores? Inferential Statistics: Statistical Significance Significant Difference What is the difference between the experiences of the control and the experimental groups? What is the chance that the difference happened due to chance? .05 value generally accepted (1 in 20 due to chance) If it IS a significant difference, how important is that difference (e.g. difference between IQ scores of first- and later-born children is significant, but due to its very small value, it is not important. WITHIN vs. BETWEEN group variation? Inferential Statistics: Reliability When can we generalize about a population based on the results from our sample? Sample is a representative sample The less variation in the data, the more reliable (if variability is high in a distribution, the mean becomes less meaningful) The more examples the better! (ask 2 friends how they like the class vs. asking 25) Research and Ethics Setting Standards Must Haves: APA (American Psychological Association) PsyETA (Psychologists for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) Human Subjects Review Board/Ethics Committee Informed Consent Confidentiality Justified use of deception Protection from harm/discomfort Debriefing How did Milgram, Landis, Watson, and Zimbardo challenge ethical standards?