An Introduction to the History and

Systems in Psychology

Athena Jan I. Derayunan, Ph.D.

Department of Behavioral Sciences

College of Arts and Sciences
Central Mindanao University
Introduction

u The definition of psychology has changed as the

focus of psychology has changed.

u At various times in history, psychology has been

defined as the study of the psyche or the mind,
of the spirit, of consciousness, and more
recently as the study of, or the science of,
behavior and mental processes.
The activities of contemporary
psychologists:
useek the biological useek to improve
correlates of mental industrial-organizational
events such as sensation, productivity, educational
perception, or ideation. practices, or child-
rearing practices by
uconcentrate on utilizing psychological
understanding the principles.
principles that govern
learning and memory. uattempt to explain
human behavior in terms
useek to understand of evolutionary theory.
humans by studying
nonhuman animals. uattempt to account for
individual differences
ustudy unconscious among people in such
motivation. areas as personality,
intelligence, and
creativity.
The activities of contemporary psychologists,
Cont’d…
uinterested in perfecting uexplore computer
therapeutic tools that programs as models for
can be used to help understanding human
individuals with mental thought processes.
disturbances.
ustudy how humans
ufocus on the strategies change over the course
that people use in of their lives as a
adjusting to the function of maturation
environment or in and experience.
problem solving.

ustudy how language

develops and how it
relates to a variety of
cultural activities.
q Clearly, no single definition of psychology can
take into consideration the wide variety of activities
engaged in by psychologists.

It seems best to say simply that psychology is defined

by the professional activities of psychologists. These
activities are characterized by a rich diversity of
methods, topics of interest, and assumptions about
human nature.

This course begins with an examination of the origins of

modern psychology to show that most of the
concerns of today’s psychologists are manifestations
of themes that have been part of psychology for
hundreds or, in some cases, thousands of years.
The history behind the definition:
u Literally, psychology means the study of the psyche or
mind, and this study is as old as the human species.

u The ancients attempted to account for dreams, mental

illness, emotions, and fantasies.

u Was this psychology?

u Or did psychology commence when explanations of

human cognitive experience, such as those proposed by
the early Greeks, became more systematic?
The history behind the
definition cont’d.
• Plato and Aristotle, for example, created
elaborate theories that attempted to account
for such processes as memory, perception, and
learning.

• Is this the point at which psychology started?

Or did psychology come into existence when it
became a separate science in the 19th
century?
The history behind the definition:
u It is common these days to begin a history of
psychology at the point where psychology
became a separate science.

u This latter approach is unsatisfactory for two

reasons:
(1) It ignores the vast philosophical heritage that
molded psychology into the type of science that it
eventually became.
(2) it omits important aspects of psychology that are
outside the realm of science.
Choice of Approach

u spirit of the times (zeitgeist) approach

the influence of such non-psychological factors as
developments in other sciences, political climate,
technological advancement, and economic conditions.
u great-person approach
emphasizing the works of individuals such as Plato,
Aristotle, Descartes, Darwin, or Freud.
u historical development approach
how various individuals or events contributed to
changes in an idea or concept through the years
Ø The approach taken in this
course is to combine the
Zeitgeist, the great-person, and
the historical development
approaches to our understanding
of psychology’s .

Sometimes the spirit of the times

seems to produce great
individuals and sometimes great
individuals influence the spirit of
the times.
Ø Also, both great individuals and
the general climate of the times
can change the meaning of an
idea or a concept.
Why Study the History of Psychology?
u Perspective
• ideas are seldom born full-blown
-typically develop over a long period of time
• Seeing ideas in their historical perspective allow
us to more fully appreciate the subject matter of
modern psychology
u Greater Understanding
• with greater perspective comes deeper
understanding
• historical awareness enables us to know where
psychology’s subject matter came from and why
it is considered important
• we gain a greater understanding of current
psychology by studying its historical origins
Why Study the History of Psychology? Cont’d…

u Recognition of Fads and Fashions

• While studying the history of psychology, we
are often struck by the realization that a
viewpoint does not always fade away
because it is incorrect.
u Rather, some viewpoints disappear simply
because they become unpopular.
• “factuality” is not the only variable
determining whether an idea is accepted.
Why Study the History of Psychology? Cont’d…

u Avoiding Repetition of Mistakes

• “Those who do not know history are doomed
to repeat it”
u psychology had its share of mistakes and
dead ends
• embracing phrenology
• structuralism attempted to study the
elements of thought by using the
introspective method
Why Study the History of Psychology? Cont’d…
u A Source of Valuable Ideas

• By studying history we may discover ideas that were

developed at an earlier time but, for whatever
reason, remained dormant.
• The notions of evolution, unconscious motivation,
and conditioned responses had been proposed and
re-proposed several times before they were offered
in an atmosphere that allowed their critical
evaluation.
• Many believe that the idea that the two cerebral
hemispheres function in radically different ways is a
new one. However, over 100 years ago Brown-
Sequard’s article “Have We Two Brains or One?”
(1890) was one of many written on the topic.
Why Study the History of Psychology? Cont’d…

u Curiosity
• Instead of asking the question, Why study the
history of psychology? It might make more
sense to ask, Why not?

• Wanting to know as much as possible about a

topic or person of interest, including a
topic’s or a person’s history, is natural.
Psychology is not an exception.
Definition of Science
How a history of psychology is written will be influenced by
whether psychology can be considered a science.

u What is Science?
• two major components:
(1) empirical observation (direct observation
of nature)
(2) theory (systematic attempt to explain a
fact)

“Science seeks to generate confirmable

propositions by fitting a formal system of
symbols to empirical observation”
(Stevens,1951)
A Combination
of Rationalism and Empiricism
uWhatmakes science such a powerful tool is that it
combines two ancient methods of attaining
knowledge: rationalism and empiricism.

uThe rationalist believes that mental operations or

principles must be employed before knowledge can
be attained.

uTheempiricist maintains that the source of all

knowledge is sensory observation.
u True knowledge therefore can be derived from
or validated only by sensory experience.
u After centuries of inquiry, it was discovered
that by themselves rationalism and empiricism
had limited usefulness.
u The rational aspect of science keeps it from
being a way of collecting an endless array of
disconnected empirical facts.
u Because the scientist must somehow make
sense out of what he or she observes, theories
are formulated.
Functions of a scientific theory:
u suggests propositions that
are tested experimentally
u if propositions are confirmed
(1) It organizes through experimentation,
empirical observations the theory gains strength
u if the propositions are not
confirmed by
(2) it acts as a guide experimentation, the theory
for future observations loses strength

u if the theory generates too

many erroneous
propositions, it must be
either revised or abandoned

• scientific theories must be testable.

• they must generate hypotheses that can be validated
or invalidated empirically
The Search for Laws
u Another feature of science is that it seeks to
discover lawful relationships.

u A scientific law
• a consistently observed relationship between
two or more classes of empirical events

• it is amenable to public observation

• must be verifiable by any interested person

2 General Classes of Scientific Laws

1. Correlational Laws
• describe how classes of events vary
together in some systematic way
e.g. positive correlation between scores
on intelligence tests and scores on
creativity tests.

2. Causal Laws
• specify how events are causally related
e.g. if we knew the causes of a disease,
we could predict and control that disease
uCorrelational Laws allow prediction.

uCausal Laws allow prediction and control.

uCausal laws are more powerful than correlational laws and

thus are generally considered more desirable.

uA major goal of science is to discover the causes of natural

phenomena.
• Specifying the causes of natural events, however, is highly
complex and usually requires substantial experimental
research.

uAlso complicating matters is the fact that events seldom, if

ever, have a single cause; rather, they have multiple causes

uInthe history of philosophy and science, the concept of

causation has been one of the most perplexing
The Assumption of Determinism
u Science assumes that what is being investigated
is lawful.

u The assumption that what is being studied can

be understood in terms of causal laws is called
determinism.

• assumes that everything that occurs is a

function of a finite number of causes and
that, if these causes were known, an event
could be predicted with complete accuracy.
Is Psychology a Science?

u Certainly the scientific method has been used

with great success in psychology.

u Experimental psychologists have demonstrated

lawful relationships between classes of
environmental events (stimuli) and classes of
behavior, and they have devised rigorous,
refutable theories to account for those
relationships.
Scientifically oriented
psychologists
are willing to assume
determinism when studying
humans. Although all
determinists believe that all
behavior is caused, there are
different types of determinism.
Determinism, Indeterminism,
and Nondeterminism
Different types of determinism

u Biological determinism
• emphasizes the importance of physiological conditions or
genetic predispositions in the explanation of behavior

u Environmental determinism
• stresses the importance of environmental stimuli as
determinants of behavior

u Sociocultural determinism
• Emphasizes the cultural or societal rules, regulations, customs,
and beliefs that govern human behavior
u Scientists agree that behavior is caused by the
interaction of biological, environmental, and
sociocultural influences.

u They believe that behavior is caused by

antecedent events.
• For as more causes are discovered, human behavior
will become more predictable and controllable.

u Although they assume that behavior is caused,

they generally agree that it is virtually
impossible to know all causes of behavior.
 There are at least two reasons for this limitation

1. Behavior typically has many causes.

• behavior is seldom, if ever, caused by a
single event or even a few events. Rather,
a multitude of interacting events typically
causes behavior.

2. Second, some causes of behavior may be

fortuitous.
• “Chance encounters play a prominent role
in shaping the course of human lives”
(Bandura, 1982).
Indeterminism
u believe that human behavior is determined but
that the causes of behavior cannot be
accurately measured or accurately known.
• Uncertainty principle
-nothing can ever be known with certainty in science
(Heisenberg, 1901–1976)
-although human behavior is indeed determined, we can
never learn at least some causes of behavior because in
attempting to observe them we change them
e.g. the experimental setting itself may act as a
confounding variable in the search for the causes of
human behavior
u The science of psychology is impossible because
the mind could not be objectively employed to
study itself (Kant, 1724–1804)
Nondeterminism
u completely reject science as a way of studying
humans

u believe that the most important causes of

behavior are self-generated
• behavior is freely chosen and thus
independent of physical or psychical causes
(free will)

For the nondeterminists, because the individual freely

chooses courses of action he or she alone is
responsible for them
Persistent Questions in Psychology
u What Is Human Nature?
• attempts to specify what all humans are
equipped with at birth
• are we inherently aggressive? (yes – Freud)
• is human nature basically good and
nonviolent? (yes-Rogers and Maslow)
• is our nature neither good nor bad but
neutral? (yes-behaviorists)
• Do humans possess a free will? (yes-
Existential Psychology)
Persistent Questions in Psychology, cont’d…
u How Are the Mind and the Body Related?
• Materialists
-Believe that matter is the only reality, and therefore
everything in the universe, including behavior, must be
explained in terms of matter
• Monists
-attempt to explain everything in terms of one type of
reality—matter
• Idealists
-The physical world consists of ideas
-Attempt to explain everything in terms of consciousness.
• Dualists
-accept the existence of both physical and mental events and
assume that the two are governed by different principles
Types of dualisms
u Interactionism
• claims that the mind and body interact
• the mind influences the body and the body
influences the mind
-Many bodily ailments are psychogenic, caused by mental
events such as conflict, anxiety, or frustration
(psychoanalytic)

u Emergentism
• mental states emerge from brain states
• once mental events emerge from brain activity, they
can influence subsequent brain activity and thus
behavior
Types of dualisms, Cont’d…
u Psychophysical Parallelism
• an environmental experience causes both mental
events and bodily responses simultaneously and that
the two are totally independent of each other.
u Double Aspectism
• a person cannot be divided into a mind and a body
but is a unity that simultaneously experiences events
physiologically and mentally.
• Mind and body do not interact, nor can they ever be
separated. They are simply two aspects of each
experience we have as humans.
u Preestablished Harmony
• the two types of events are different and separate
but are coordinated by some external agent—for
example, God.
Persistent Questions in Psychology
Nativism Versus Empiricism

u To what extent are human attributes such as

intelligence inherited and to what extent are
they determined by experience?
• The nativist emphasizes the role of inheritance in
the explanation of the origins of various human
attributes
-consider some aspect of human behavior instinctive or who
take a stand on human nature as being good, bad, gregarious,
and so on.

u The empiricist emphasizes the role of experience

• claim that humans are the way they are largely because of
their experiences
Persistent Questions in Psychology
cont’d.
Mechanism Versus Vitalism
u Mechanism
• the behavior of all organisms, including
humans, can be explained in the same way
that the behavior of any machine can be
explained—in terms of its parts and the
laws governing those parts
u Vitalism
• Living things contain a vital force that
does not exist in inanimate objects
• this force was referred to as soul, spirit, or
breath of life and it was its departure from
the body that caused death.
Persistent Questions in Psychology

Rationalism Versus Irrationalism

u Rationalism
• emphasize the importance of logical,
systematic, and intelligent thought processes
• when one knows the truth, one acts in
accordance with it (Socrates)
u Irrationalism
• stress human feeling over human rationality
• stress unconscious determinants (Freud, Jung)
• true causes of behavior are unconscious and
as such cannot be pondered rationally
Persistent Questions in Psychology, Cont’d…
u How Are Humans Related to Nonhuman Animals?
u The major question here is whether humans are
qualitatively or quantitatively different from other
animals.
u reliedheavily on animal research and maintained
that the same principles governed the behavior of
both nonhumans and humans (Behaviorism)
u believethat humans are qualitatively different
from other animals, and therefore nothing
important about humans can be learned by
studying nonhuman animals (Existentialists)
u Humans, they say, are the only animals that
freely choose their courses of action and are
therefore morally responsible for that action.
Persistent Questions in Psychology, Cont’d…

u What Is the Origin of Human Knowledge?

u Epistemology (from the Greek episteme) - the
study of knowledge
uepistemologistsask such questions as what
can we know? what are the limits of
knowledge? and how is knowledge attained?
u Psychology has always been involved in epistemology
because one of its major concerns has been
determining how humans gain information about
themselves and their world.
u empiricists insist that all knowledge is derived
from sensory experience, which is somehow
registered and stored in the brain.
u rationalists agree that sensory information is
often, if not always, an important first step in
attaining knowledge but argues that the mind
must then actively transform this information in
some way before knowledge is attained.
u nativists would say that some knowledge is
innate.
u In answering epistemological questions, the empiricists
postulate a passive mind that represents physical
experiences as mental images, recollections, and
associations.

u the
passive mind is seen as reflecting cognitively
what is occurring, or what has occurred, in the
physical world.

u Physicalexperiences that occur consistently in

some particular pattern will be represented
cognitively in that pattern and will tend to be
recalled in that pattern.
u The rationalists, postulate an active mind that
transforms the data from experience in some
important way.
uthe active mind is seen as a mechanism
by which physical reality is organized,
pondered, understood, or valued

u The nativist claimed that some knowledge is

inherited as a natural component of the mind.
Persistent Questions in Psychology, Cont’d…

u Objective Versus Subjective Reality

u The difference between what is “really” present physically
(physical or objective reality) and what we actually
experience mentally (subjective or phenomenal reality).

u Given the fact that there is a physical world and a

psychological world, how are the two related?
u Given the fact that all we can ever experience directly
is our own subjective reality, how can we come to know
anything about the physical world?
u Throughout human history, entities such as souls, minds, gods,
demons, spirits, and selves have been imagined and then
assumed to exist.
Persistent Questions in Psychology, Cont’d…

u The Problem of the Self

u We grow older, gain and lose weight, change
locations, exist in different times; yet with all of
this and more, our life’s experiences have
continuity.
uWe perceive ourselves as the same person
from moment to moment, from day to day,
and from year to year even though little
about us remains the same.
§ More recently, the self has been the
most popular proposed organizer of
experience.

§ Besides organizing one’s experiences

and providing a sense of continuity
over time, the self has often been
endowed with other attributes, such as
being the instigator and evaluator of
action.