Class 11 Psychology CH-1

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What is Psychology?

- Chunnu Goli

· Psychology is the study of mind and soul.

· Psychology is a scientific discipline which deals with mental processes ,


human behaviour and human experience.

· Psychology uses the methods of biological and social sciences as a means to


obtain data systematically.

· Unlike the mind the brain does not have a physical structure or location.

*Difference between Mind and Brain -

1. MIND :

· Mind is something which does not have a physical structure or location.

· Mind emerges and evolves as as interactions and experiences in the world

B. BRAIN :

· Brain is a biological organ in the body of human beings.

· Brain activities provide important clues as how are mind functions.

Psychology as a study of experiences of people :-

· Experiences are subjective in nature.

· Experiences are attatched with are awareness and consciousness.

· The nature of experiences is influenced by the internal and external


conditions of the experiencer. Thus, the nature or experiences can only be
understood by analysing a complex set of internal and external
conditions.

Psychology as a study of behaviours of people :-


· Behaviours are simple or complex, short or long lasting.

· Some behaviours are overt .i.e, they can be outwardly seen or sensed by an
observer. While some behaviours are covert , which means these are
hidden behaviours.

· All behaviours, covert or overt are associated with some sort of stimulus
in the environment or changes that happen internally or externally.

Psychology as a disipline :

· Psychology as a discipline , studies how does the mind work .

· Studies the mental processes such as human behaviour and human


experience .

· Gives an unbiased explanation whether Scientific , objective or related to


subjectivity

*The first laboratory of psychology was set up in 1879 in Leipzig by Wilhem


Wundt.

->Psychology as a discipline today has two parallel streams which are :

1. It makes use of the method in physical and biological sciences -

· It assumes that all behavioural problems have causes which can be


discovered if we collect data systematically under controlled conditions.

· Here, the aim of the researcher is to know the cause and effect relationship
to make a prediction of the behavioural phenomenon and the behaviour
can be controlled if needed.

2. It makes the use of method in social and cultural sciences in studying


various psychological disorders -

· Psychology as a social science focuses on how behavioural phenomenon


can be explained in terms of interaction between a person and the socio-
cultural phenomenon he/she is a part of.

*HYPOTHESIS:

Based on a theory , scientist propose or deduce a hypothesis , that offers a


tentative explanation of how a certain phenomenon takes place. Then , the
hypothesis is tested and proved whether true or false on the basis of emperical
data.

· Mind cannot exist without brain but still it is a seperate entity.

· Psychoneuroimmunology, a new discipline , has emerged which


emphasises the role played by the mind strenthening the immune system.

<-EVOLUTION OF PSYCHOLOGY->

1. Structuralist approach and introspection :

· This approach was proposed by William Wundt.

· Psychologist analysed the mind through introspection and therefore were


called structuralist.

· Introspection was a procedure in which individuals or subjects in


psychological experiments were asked to describe in detail, their own
mental processes and experiences

· This method was considered less scientific because the introspective


reports could not be verified by outside observers.

2. Functionalist approach :

· An American psychologist , William James , came up with the functionalist


approach to study mind.

· He believed, that instead of focussing on the structure of human mind ,


psychology ,what the mind does and how behaviour functions in making
people deal with their environment
· A very famous eductional thinker of that time, John Dewey , used
functionalism to argue that human beings seek to function effectively by
adapting to their environment.

3. Gestalt Psychology :

· In the early 20th century, a new perspective called the Gestalt psychology
emerged in Germany as a reaction to Wundt's 'structuralism' .

· Instead of looking at the components of the mind , Gestalt psychologist


argued that our perceptual experience is more than the inputs we recive
from the environment.

4. Behaviourism :

· Another reaction to 'structuralism' came in the form of behaviorism.

· Around 1910, John Watson rejected the ideas of mind and consciousness as
subject matters of psychology.

· For Watson , mind is not observable and introspection is subjective as it


cannot be verified by another observer.

· According to him, scientific psychology should focus on what is verifiable


and observable.

· Watson defined psychology as a study of behaviour or responses(to stimuli)


which can be measured and studied objectively.

*Sigmund Frued viewed human behaviour as a dynamic manifestation of


unconscious desires and conflicts.

· Freudian Psychoanalysis viewed human beings as motivated by unconscious


desire for gratification of pleasure seeking(and often , sexual) desires.

· He founded psychoanalysis as a system to understand and cure


psychological disorders.

*The humanistic perspective was proposed by Karl Rogers and Abraham Maslow.
· It took a more positive view of human nature.

· Humanist, emphasised the free will of human beings as their natural striving
to grow and unfold their inner potential.

*Aspects of Gestalt approach and structuralism combined and led to the


development of Cognitive perspective , which focueses on how we know about
the world.

· Cognition is the process of knowing.

· It involves thinking , understanding , percieving , memorising and problem


solving .

· It acts as a host of other mental processes by which our knowledge of the


world develops, making us able to deal with the environment in specific
ways.

-> Modern cognitive psychology views human beings as actively constructing their
minds through their exploration in the physical and social world. This view is
sometimes called constructivism.

->Russian Psychologist ,Vygotsky , suggested that the human mind develops


through social and cultural processes.

->Vygotsky took a view that mind is a joint cultural construction that emerges
as a result of interaction between children and adults.

Development of Psychology in India :-

· The modern era of Indian psychology began in the 'Department of


Philosophy at Calcutta University' where the first sllyabus of experimental
psychology was introduced and the first psychology laboratory was
estabilished in 1915 .
· Calcutta university started the first Department of experimental psychology
in 1916 and another Department of applied psychology in 1938.

· Indian psychologist Dr. N.N. Sengupta was trained in USA in the


experimental tradition of Wundt

· Professor G.Bose was trained in 'Freudian psychoanalysis'.

· Professor Bose estabilished 'Indian Psychoanalytical Association' in 1922.

Branches of Psychology :

1.Cognitive Psychology -

· Cognitive Psychology investigates mental proceses involved in aquisition ,


storage , manipulation , and transformation of information recieved from
the environment along with its use and communication.

· The major cognitive processed are thinking , percieving , memorising ,


problem solving , desicion-making and language.

· Cognitive psychologist often collaborate with neuroscientists and computer


scientists .

2.Biological Psychology-

· Biological psychology focuses on the relationship between behaviour and


the physical system, including brain and the rest of nervous system.

· Biological psychologists often collaborate with neuroscientists, zoologists,


and anthropologists.

· Neuropsychology has emerged as a field of research where psychologists


and neuroscientists are working together.

3.Developmental Psychology-

· Developmental psychology studies the physical , social and psychological


changes that occur at different ages and stages over a life-span, from
conception to old age.

· For many years the major emphasis was on child and adolescent
development,

· However today an increasing number of psychologist show strong interest


in adult development and ageing.

· Developmental psychologist collaborate with anthropologists,


educationalists , neurologists, social workers and counsellors.

4.Social Psychology-

· Social psychologist explore how people are affected by their social


environments, how people think about and influence others

5.Cross-cultural and Cultural psychology -

· Cross-cultural and cultural psychology examines the role of culture in


understanding behaviour, thought and emotion.

· It assumes that human behaviour is not only a reflection of human-


biological potenial but also a product of culture.

6.Environmental Psychology-

· Environmental Psychology studies the interaction of physical factors such as


temperature, humidity, pollution, and natural disasters on human
behaviour.

7. Health Psychology-

· Health psychology focuses on the role of psychological factors(for eg.


stress, anxiety etc) in the development , prevention and treatment of
illness

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