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PSY Web Home • Syllabus • PSY110 • PSY111 • PSY230 • PSY250 • Test Results • My Schedule • Glossary1 • Glossary2 • Using WebSite |
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Audio Introduction to Chapter 1
Chapter 1 Short Video #1 |
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[ Chapter 1 Supplement ] [ Chapter Slides ] [ Review
Test ] [
Interactive Review Test ] [ Chapter Notes ] [Chapter Summary] [Chapter
Outcomes] |
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Sub-Fields of Psychology and the Role of Psychologists
Research
Methods in Psychology
LIST OF
THINGS TO KNOW |
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Chapter
videos narrated by author of the textbook Dr Zimbardo
Past, Present and Promise
Understanding Research Chapter Video #2
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Additional Slides |
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A personality interpretation based on a computer analysis of a true/false test, a lecture in a history class describing the atrocities of Nazi concentration camps, and the feats of an individual identified as a mentalist: These three events are all of particular interest to psychologists. As the science of behavior and mental processes, psychology seeks to understand events such as these and many others. The work of a psychologist is like a detective seeking to solve a crime. Psychological detectives seek to explain a wide range of events, some common, some not so common, but all interesting. You can use the tools of the psychological detective to analyze the three events described here as well as events you read and hear about in the media.
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Psychology is a relatively new science; the first psychological laboratory was founded in 1879 by Wilhelm Wundt who hoped to analyze the contents of conscious experience. Since that time, a number of approaches or perspectives in psychology have developed. Even individuals with no training in psychology are familiar with Sigmund Freud's psychodynamic perspective and the behavioral perspective represented by Ivan Pavlov and B. F. Skinner. Today, the cognitive perspective focuses on how we organize and store information and how we solve problems and make decisions. Because our behavior is often related to our physiology, psychologists have used sophisticated equipment to measure these physiological changes.
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If the field of psychology were to be described in just a few words, those words would be "diverse field." However, diversity did not characterize the field until recently; women and members of minority groups faced barriers to the field. Times have changed and now women are receiving more PhD degrees in psychology than men, and more members of minority groups are entering the field. Psychologists pursue their interests in a number of subfields; the most popular subfields (clinical and counseling psychology) provide services to individuals with behavioral and emotional problems. The wide range of applications of psychology is evident in the work of psychologists in the legal system (forensic psychology) and in sport psychology. Psychologists seek to describe events, make predictions about the conditions that gave rise to them, and use that knowledge to control future events. They use a number of methods including the case study, which provides in-depth information about a person or a small number of individuals. Naturalistic observations provide descriptions of events without interfering with the events in any way. Correlational research allows psychologists to determine whether two variables such as study time and grades are related. Surveys yield information from a sample that represents a population as seen in the survey of crime victims conducted by the United States Department of Justice.
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However, only the experimental method yields results that lead to cause and effect statements. The rationale of the method is simple: manipulate or change an independent variable to determine if the change affects the dependent variable or outcome of the experiment. For example, when young children are exposed to models of aggressive behavior (independent variable), their subsequent aggression (dependent variable) increases. Regardless of which research method psychologists use, they follow a code of ethics designed to protect research participants, both animal and human. For example, before participating in research you would be given a form describing the research so you could make an informed decision before agreeing to participate.
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Chapter Outcomes • Chapter Slides • PSY110 Videos • Chapter1 • Chapter 8 • Chapter 3 • Chapter 9 • Chapter 4 • Chapter 10 • Chapter12 |
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