Transcript Forerunners of Functionalism - NAU jan.ucc.nau.edu web server

Forerunners of Functionalism
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Functionalism
• 1st non-German based school of
psychology
• Study of the functions and adaptive value
of the mind
• Heavily influenced by Charles Darwin and
his cousin Sir Francis Galton
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Darwin’s theory of evolution
• Based upon natural selection – not
survival of the fittest
– Characteristics that are advantages for
survival of one’s offspring will be selected to
be passed on
– Adults with these characteristics were more
likely to survive and have offspring that
survive
– Adaptability was seen as important
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“Psychological” contributions of
Darwin
• Descent of man (1871)
– There is no fundamental difference between man and
the higher mammals in their mental abilities
• Expression of the emotions in man and animals
(1872)
– Presented a possible cause of insanity
• A biographical sketch of an infant (1877)
– Recorded his observations of his children’s
development
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Charles Darwin
• 1831 – 1836 – Darwin’s voyage on the HMS Beagle as a
naturalist
• 1859 – finally published his theory of evolution
• Ethical dilemma – Alfred Wallace, another naturalist, sent
Darwin a copy of his theory of evolution to get help
having it published
• Solution – both presented their theories at the same
meeting – Darwin’s had much more data and support for
the theory
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Charles Darwin
• While his theory was controversial, Darwin was
not and did not personally take part in the
vicious debate his theory created
• He remained friends with church officials, and
was buried in a place of honor at his church
• Never knighted
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Opposition to theory of evolution
• Religious leaders who were defending
church dogma
• White supremacists - if all races
descended from a common ancestor how
could the white race be superior
• John Landon Down’s explanation
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Darwin as a foundation for
functionalism
• Importance of the study of animals –
comparative psychology
• Stressed functions of the mind; not the
structure
• Expanded the methodologies available to
study psychological processes
• Focused on individual differences and the
importance of variation
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Francis Galton
• Independently wealthy, intelligent, and curious
• Greatest contributions involved the social and psychological
implications of evolution
– Hereditary Genius (1869)
– Eugenics – eminent people should be encouraged to reproduce and
discourage the unfit from reproducing
• Also important development and use of statistical methods
– Use of the mean, normal distribution, standard deviation, and
correlation
– Regression to the mean
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1st psychometric laboratory
• Galton created 1st clinic designed to measure
•
•
human abilities
For 3 pennies, you could have your mental and
physical abilities tested
Most measured human attribute was sensory
acuity
– Men have better discriminatory ability than women
– Women better at visual imagery, but . . .
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Important contributions to
psychology
• Applied statistical probability to human attributes
• Use of the survey or questionnaires to gather data
– Study of English and Scottish schools
• Development of 2 association tests that are still used
today
– Word association
– Free association
• Identical twin studies of nature-nurture
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Influence of the Zeitgeist
• Inquiries into human faculty and its
development (1884)
– Included 2 chapters on the faculty of prayer
• 2nd edition 1904
– Omitted the 2 chapters on prayer
• 1909 – he was knighted for his
“contributions to science”
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Social Darwinism of Herbert
Spenser
• Application of evolutionary theory to social and
economic systems
• Spenser coined the expression “survival of the
fittest
• Fit the American personality of the times:
– Development of the biggest most powerful companies
because they are “most fit”
– Genocide of native populations as unfit
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Application of evolutionary theory
• Europe – widely accepted as it applied to biology and
development of species
• United States – less accepted as it applied to biology, but
widely accepted as it was applied to social and economic
policy
• Problem: data supported the evolution of species, but
no evidence of data to suggest social evolution functions
the same as physical evolution
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William James
• Considered to be the most important
psychologist at the beginning of the 20th century
• More of a philosopher – he rejected strict
experimental laboratories
• Major contributions to psychology presented in
his book, Principles of Psychology
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Principles of Psychology
• What was important to know about
consciousness was how it worked and its
adaptability
• 4 basic characteristics of consciousness:
–
–
–
–
It
It
It
It
is
is
is
is
personal
ever-changing
continuous
selective
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Principles of Psychology (cont.)
• Habit formation – nervous system is plastic; it
can be changed by experience until age 30.
Habits are reflexes; established pathways
between brain areas
• Temperament – individuals differ in
temperament
• Motivation – derived from competing instincts
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Legacy of William James
• His importance and his acceptance of
functionalism gave it validity
• But, his hatred of the lab and teaching of
psychology may have prevented
functionalism from being accepted if not
for a student who had a more
experimental perspective
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G. Stanley Hall
• 1st PhD awarded from Harvard department of
philosophy and 1st American PhD on a
psychological topic – 1878
• 1884 – professorship and the 1st psychological
research laboratory at Johns Hopkins
• 1888 - 1st president of Clark University
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General Contributions
• Founded the American Journal of Psychology
• Founded the Journal of Genetic Psychology
• One of the founders of the American Psychological Association in
1892
• Brought Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung to the U.S. to speak in 1909
• Unique contribution was in developmental psychology
– 1st psychologist to describe adolescence as a distinctive period of
development
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Influence of evolution
• Child development was a recapitulation of
evolution
• All forms of development (behavioral, social,
etc.) recapitulate human evolution
• Unable to abandon recapitulation theory of
development even when shown to be wrong
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Interest in sex differences and sex
education
• Instrumental in the beginning of studying
sex differences and education
• Led to his opposition to co-education and
the education of women between 13-25
years of age (the adolescent period)
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Arguments against co-education
• Women were not inferior; they were different
• 3 arguments against co-education:
• 1. Adolescence was a critical period for the
development of female reproductive organs
– All female powers were needed during adolescence for proper
development of these organs
– Education would damage reproductive organs by diverting
energy to mental activity
– This would result in decreased fertility and sickly children
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Arguments against co-education
• 2. Adolescent males needed freedom to engage
in cathartic expressions of his savage impulses
– Making them be gentlemen resulted in them
becoming a feminine or a wild male
• 3. Natural sex differences during adolescence
was the basis for future attraction between
sexes
– Overexposure leads to disillusionment in both sexes
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President of Clarke University
• From 1896 – 1920 approx. 150 women earned
graduate degrees at Clarke
• All graduate students admitted by the President
• Why the paradox? Education bad for women.
We will educate them.
• Money
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Hall and Eugenics
• Attempting to improve the human “stock” through
selective breeding thereby improving the genetic make
up of society
• Hall supported government control of reproduction and
held a belief in higher and lower classes
• Very influential in Europe and North America
• Educational discrimination – educational resources
should only be spent on the best children (from the best
families, of course)
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