Psychology A Self-Teaching Guide
Psychology
A Self-Teaching Guide
Frank J. Bruno, Ph.D.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To those who seek a greater
understanding of human behavior
Contents
vii
Preface ix
1 Introduction: The Foundations of Psychology 1
2 Research Methods in Psychology: Gathering Data 17
3 The Biology of Behavior: Is the Brain the Organ
of Mental Life? 30
4 Sensation: Studying the Gateways of Experience 45
5 Perception:Why Do Things Look the Way
They Do? 57
6 Learning: Understanding Acquired Behavior 72
7 Motivation:Why Do We Do What We Do? 90
8 Emotions: Riding Life's Roller Coaster 107
9 Thinking: Exploring Mental Life 120
10 Intelligence: In Pursuit of Rational Thought and
Effective Action 136
11 Developmental Psychology: How Children
Become Adults 153
12 Sex and Love: Are You in the Mood? 174
13 Personality: Psychological Factors That Make
You an Individual 191
14 Abnormal Psychology: Exploring Mental Disorders 212
15 Therapy: Helping Troubled People 231
16 Social Psychology: Interacting with Other People 247
Index 263
Preface
ix
To help you learn psychology on your own, Psychology: A Self-Teaching Guide
employs the following distinctive features:
• Each chapter begins with a five-question true-or-false preview quiz; answers can
be found near the end of a given chapter.
• Immediately following the quiz there is a short list of chapter objectives.
• Following each section there are one or several questions pertaining to the
material in the section. The questions are of the fill-in-the-blank variety.
Answers are provided immediately following the questions.
• A ten-question multiple-choice self-test appears toward the end of each chapter.
Answers to the self-test immediately follow.
• A list of key terms appears at the end of each chapter.
How Do You Use the Book?
I hope that you will use the book by being an active, not a passive, learner. You
can accomplish this by following a step-by-step process for each chapter:
1. Take the five-question true-or-false quiz. Even if you don't know an answer,
make a guess. This will get you involved in the material. Turn to the answer
key at the end of the chapter. Score the test. You should, of course, be pleased
if you get four or five questions correct. On the other hand, don't be concerned
if you only get two or three correct. Obviously, you haven't studied
the material yet. The purpose of the quiz is to break the ice, verify what you
already know, and give you a preview of what is to come in the chapter.
2. Review the chapter objectives. Their aim is to give you some idea of what
you need to pay attention to in the chapter. The objectives help to give your
study focus and direct you to what is of particular importance in the chapter.
3. Read each section and pay particular attention to the emphasized terms and
their meanings.
4. Respond to the fill-in-the-blank sentences at the end of each section before
moving on to the next one. Attempt the answers through the use of mental
recall. It is a good idea to actually write down, not just think about, your
answers. If necessary, cover the answers at the bottom of the questions. Then
check your responses against the answers provided. Look back at the relevant
section if there is anything you don't understand.
5. Take the ten-question multiple-choice test at the end of the chapter. If you're
not sure of an answer, take a guess. Your guess is likely to be an educated, not
a random, guess. After all, you have been studying the material. On most college
multiple-choice tests there is no penalty for guessing. Only correct
answers are scored, and nothing is taken away for missing a question.
6. Score the test using the answers that immediately follow it. On an absolute
scale, a score of 10 or 9 correct equals an A. A score of 8 correct equals a B.
A score of 7 correct equals a C. A score of 6 correct equals a D. A score of 5
correct equals an F. Refer back to the material associated with questions you
missed, and evaluate why you made an error.
7. Review the key terms at the end of the chapter. The terms are listed in alphabetical
order. Look up any terms you don't recognize or that have little meaning
for you.
I believe that you will find psychology to be an interesting subject. Also, you
will discover that it has relevance in terms of everyday life. I have made every
effort to write a book that will make it possible for you to readily grasp psychology's
key concepts. I hope you find the process of learning more about behavior
a meaningful and valuable experience.
A number of people have helped me make Psychology: A Self-Teaching Guide a
reality. My thanks are expressed to:
Jeff Golick, editor at John Wiley & Sons, for recognizing the merits of the
book.
Mark Steven Long for carefully supervising production.
Karen Fraley for excellent copy editing.
Bert Holtje, agent with James Peter Associates, for his confidence in my ability.
Gene Brissie, agent with James Peter Associates, for his support and assistance.
Jeanne, my wife, for our many meaningful discussions about human behavior.
Franklin, my son, for our frequent conversations about words, language, and
meaning.
Josephine Bruno, my mother, for listening to my ideas.
George K. Zaharopoulos, a true teaching colleague, for his steadfast encouragement
of my writing projects.
David W. Yang for his help in preparing the manuscript.
x PSYCHOLOGY
1Introduction:
The Foundations
of Psychology
1
PREVIEW QUIZ
True or False
1. T F Modern psychology is defined as the science of the mind.
2. T F The goals of scientific psychology are to (1) describe, (2) explain, (3) predict,
and (4) control behavior.
3. T F Sigmund Freudwas the principal founding personality of psychoanalysis.
4. T F The biological viewpoint assumes that most behavior is learned.
5. T F Clinical psychology, a field that stresses psychotherapy and psychological
testing, is the single largest field of psychology.
(Answers can be found on page 15.)
Objectives
After completing this chapter, you will be able to
• define psychology;
• state the goals of scientific psychology;
• identify the five classical schools of psychology and their founding personalities;
• name and describe the six principal viewpoints used to explain behavior;
• name and describe seven important fields of psychology.
Looking at the Word Psychology: From Ancient
to Modern Meanings
The word psychology has had several different meanings from ancient to modern
times. Here is its present definition: Psychology is the science that studies the behavior
of organisms. This definition should guide you throughout your study of this
book.
Three words in the definition merit special attention: (1) science, (2) behavior,
and (3) organisms. Modern psychology is considered a science because it bases its
conclusions on data, information obtained by systematic observations. The
research methods used by psychology are covered in chapter 2.
Behavior has three aspects: (1) cognitive processes, (2) emotional states, and
(3) actions. Cognitive processes refer to what an individual thinks. Emotional
states refer to what an individual feels. Actions refer to what an individual
does.
An organism is any living creature. Consequently, the behavior of dogs, rats,
pigeons, and monkeys can be legitimately included in the study of psychology.
Such organisms have indeed been subjects in psychology experiments. However,
traditionally the principal focus of psychology has been humans. When animals
are used in experiments, the implicit goal is often to explore how such basic
processes as learning and motivation, as studied in animals, can cast a light on our
understanding of human behavior.
(a) What does psychology study?
(b) What are the three aspects of behavior?
Answers: (a) The behavior of organisms; (b) Cognitive processes, emotional states, and
actions.
Although you now know the modern definition of psychology, it is important
to realize that the word psychology has its roots in ancient meanings associated with
philosophy. The Greek word psyche means soul. Consequently, to philosophers
living 400 to 300 B.C., psychology was the "study of the soul." This was the
meaning given by Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. In view of the fact that these
thinkers, particularly Socrates and Plato, did not believe that animals have souls, it
becomes evident why for many centuries psychology's main attention has been
2 PSYCHOLOGY
given to human beings. The ancient philosophers asserted that the soul is the seat
of consciousness. It is consciousness that makes mental life possible. This is why
psychology is often thought of as the science of the mind.
Indeed, this meaning is the one given to it by William James, the dean of
American psychologists. Working at Harvard a little more than one hundred years
ago, James defined psychology as "the science of mental life." He believed that the
purpose of psychology should be to investigate such mental processes as thinking,
memory, and perception. (There is more about James later in this chapter.)
This is where we stand now. Although psychology no longer is thought of as
the study of the soul, this original meaning colors our present-day approach, with
its emphasis on human behavior and the importance of cognition.
(a) The Greek word psyche means .
(b) William James defined psychology as .
Answers: (a) soul; (b) the science of mental life.
Contemporary, scientific psychology has four explicit goals: (1) describe,
(2) explain, (3) predict, and (4) control behavior. These goals are the same commonsense
goals that we all use in everyday life. Let's say that Jane tells her husband,
Harry, that their son, seven-year-old Billy, was a brat today. Is this a good description
of Billy's behavior? No, it's not. It's too general, too abstract. On the other
hand, let's assume that Jane says that Billy refused to do his homework and told her,
"Homework is stupid. I'm not going to do it anymore." This constitutes a much
better description of behavior because is it is specific and concrete.
Similar specific descriptions may suggest to both parents that Billy misbehaves
more than most children. Jane and Harry now wonder why Billy is beginning to
misbehave more and more. Is he frustrated? Does he have an inferiority complex?
Does he have low self-esteem? Does he have Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)?
Does he have an imbalance of certain key neurotransmitters in his brain? Does he
have a childhood neurosis? As you can see, potential explanations are plentiful.
They have to be evaluated.
This is where prediction and control come in. Let's say that Dr. Helen G., the
family pediatrician, suggests that Billy is indeed suffering from Attention Deficit
Disorder. Let's also assume that Dr. G. is convinced that Billy eats too many foods
with refined sugar and that this causes, through a complex biochemical reaction,
a depletion of certain neurotransmitters. She recommends a diet of natural foods
with little refined sugar. The physician is predicting that the change in diet will take
away the undesirable symptoms.
Let's say that the diet is tried. Billy sticks to it. If there is no change in Billy's
misbehavior after several weeks, both Dr. G. and the parents will conclude that the
explanation was incorrect. On the other hand, if the diet is therapeutic, and Billy's
Introduction: The Foundations of Psychology 3
behavior becomes more manageable, then control has taken place. The explanation
will appear to be adequate.
The four goals of scientific psychology are .
Answer: to describe, explain, predict, and control behavior.
The Classical Schools of Psychology: Five Great Thinkers
and Their Ideas
It has been said that psychology has a long past and a short history. This statement
should be taken to mean that although psychology has its roots in philosophy, as a
scientific discipline psychology is only a little over 120 years old. As noted earlier,
the roots of psychology can be easily traced back about 2,400 years to ancient Greek
philosophers. However, the beginning of scientific psychology is usually associated
with the date 1879, the year that a German scientist named Wilhelm Wundt
founded the first psychological laboratory at the University of Leipzig in Germany.
Modern psychology arose in the context of what are known as schools of
psychology. The concept of a school of psychology can be easily understood by
thinking of a school of fish. In this case the word school is used similarly to the
word group. A school, or group, of fish follows a leader fish. So it is with a school
of psychology. There is a leader and a group of followers. The school has a viewpoint
and a set of important assumptions.
(a) As a scientific discipline, psychology is only a little over how many years old?
(b) The first psychological laboratory was founded in 1879 by .
Answers: (a) 120; (b) Wilhelm Wundt.
From a historical perspective, the first school of psychology to be established
was structuralism. Its founding personality was Wilhelm Wundt (1832–1920).
As already noted, he founded the world's first psychological laboratory. Wundt
was trained in physiology, the study of the functions of the body. He became interested
in studying not so much the physiology of the sense organs such as the eyes
and ears, but in how simple sensations associated with the sense organs combined
to form what we call human consciousness.
Imagine that you are looking at an oil painting of a landscape. You perceive
trees, a river, a valley, and a sky. But what are the elemental sensations, the basic
building blocks, that make the visual grasp of the picture possible? What, in a word,
is the "structure" of your consciousness? Wundt trained assistants in the art of
introspection, a skill characterized by paying attention not to the whole pattern
4 PSYCHOLOGY
of a stimulus, but to an elemental part of a stimulus. Consequently, a trained introspectionist
was not supposed to say, "I see a tree." Instead, he or she was supposed
to say, "I see here a patch of green," and "I see there a bit of brown," and so forth.
These bits and pieces were the psychological "atoms" that made up the complex
"molecule" of the tree or other visual object.
Wundt's studies of vision suggested that there are only three basic kinds of visual
sensations. First, there is hue, or color. Second, there is brightness. For example, a light
gray card is brighter than a dark gray card. Also, a page of print illuminated with an
intense light is brighter than a page illuminated with a light of lower intensity. Third,
there is saturation. This refers to the "richness" or "fullness" of a color.
No matter what visual stimulus Wundt's subjects looked at, there were no
other kinds of sensations experienced than the three identified above. Consequently,
Wundt concluded that all visual experiences are structured out of these
same three types of elemental experiences. Similar statements can be made about
the other senses such as hearing, taste, and touch. (See chapter 4.)
According to Wundt, the primary purpose of psychology is to study the
structure of consciousness. By the structure of consciousness, Wundt meant
the relationship of a group of sensations, a relationship that produces the complex
experiences we think of as our conscious mental life. This approach to
psychology has been called mental chemistry. As earlier indicated, the "atoms" of
experience are the sensations. The "molecules" of experience are our complex
perceptions.
Wundt is considered to be not only the first scientific psychologist, but also
the founder of psychology as an academic discipline. (Many beginning psychology
students think this honor belongs to Sigmund Freud. Although Freud is the
most famous psychologist who ever lived, he occupies a different place in psychology's
history than does Wundt.)
(a) Reporting a sensation alone without being confused by other sensations describes what
process?
(b) According to Wundt, the primary purpose of psychology is to study .
Answers: (a) Introspection; (b) the structure of consciousness.
William James (1842–1910), teaching at Harvard in the 1870s, was following
Wundt's research with interest. James had an interest not only in psychology, but
also in physiology and eventually in philosophy. James founded a psychological
laboratory at Harvard; he also authored The Principles of Psychology, the first psychology
textbook published in the United States. The book was published in
1890, and this can also be taken as the date when the school of psychology known
as functionalism was born. The principal personality associated with it is James,
and he is said to be the dean of American psychologists.
According to James, psychology should be more interested in how the mind
Introduction: The Foundations of Psychology 5
functions, or works, than how it is structured. Consequently, James stressed the
importance of studying such processes as thinking, memory, and attention. You
will recall that James defined psychology as "the science of mental life." This definition
is certainly reflected in the processes just identified.
In brief, functionalism as a school of psychology asserts that that the primary
purpose of psychology should be to study the functions of human consciousness,
not its structures.
According to James, psychology should be interested primarily in how the mind
.
Answer: functions.
The German psychologist Max Wertheimer (1880–1943), like James, was also
dissatisfied with Wundt's structuralism. Wertheimer believed that Wundt's emphasis
on the importance of simple sensations as the building blocks of perceptions
was misguided. According to Wertheimer, a melody, for example, is more than an
aggregate of sensations. It is a pattern. And the perception of the melody depends
much more on the pattern itself than on the individual notes. A melody played in
the key of F can be transposed to the key of C, and it is still the same melody. However,
all of the notes, the sensations, are different.
The general pattern that induces a complex perception is described with the
German word Gestalt. Gestalt is usually translated as a "pattern," a "configuration,"
or an "organized whole."
In 1910 Wertheimer published an article setting forth the basic assumptions of
Gestalt psychology, and this is usually taken to be the starting date of the school.
The article reported a series of experiments using two of his friends, Kurt Koffka
and Wolfgang Kohler, as subjects. These two men went on to also become wellknown
Gestalt psychologists. In the experiments, Wertheimer demonstrated that
the perception of motion can take place if stationary stimuli are presented as a
series of events separated by an optimal interval of time. This sounds complicated.
However, in practice it's simple enough. If you flip at just the right speed through
a special kind of cartoon book, you can perceive motion as the series of still pictures
flicker by. Perceiving motion in a motion picture is the same thing. At the
level of sensation, you are being presented with a series of still slides. At the level
of perception, you are experiencing motion. The presence of motion can't be
explained by the nature of the sensations. Consequently, it must be the pattern of
presentation, or the Gestalt, that is inducing the perceived motion.
It became the goal of Gestalt psychology to study the effects that various
Gestalten (the plural of Gestalt) have on thinking and perception. As you will discover
in chapter 6, Kohler's research related Gestalt principles to insight learning.
In brief, Gestalt psychology asserts that patterns, or configurations, of stimuli
have a powerful effect on how we think and perceive the world around us.
6 PSYCHOLOGY
(a) Three of the meanings of the German word Gestalt are .
(b) The goal of Gestalt psychology was the study the effects that various Gestalten have
on .
Answers: (a) pattern, configuration, and organized whole; (b) thinking and perception.
Returning to the United States, behaviorism is a fourth classical school of
psychology. Its founding personality is John B. Watson (1878–1958). A wave of
enthusiasm for Watson's ideas swept him to the presidency of the American Psychological
Association (APA) in 1915, and this can be taken as the starting date for
behaviorism. Doing research first at the University of Chicago and then at Johns
Hopkins University, Watson came to the conclusion that psychology was placing
too much emphasis on consciousness. In fact, he asserted that psychology is not a
mental science at all. The "mind" is a mushy, difficult-to-define concept. It can't
be studied by science because it can't be observed. Only you can know what's
going on in your mind. If I say I'm studying your mind, according to Watson, it's
only guesswork.
Consequently, Watson asserted that the purpose of psychology should be to
study behavior itself, not the mind or consciousness. Some critics of Watson say that
he denied the very existence of consciousness. Others assert Watson was primarily
saying that references to the consciousness, or mental life, of a subject don't provide
solid explanations of behavior. In either event, Watson's view is today
thought to be somewhat extreme and is referred to as radical behaviorism, a psychology
that doesn't employ consciousness as an important concept.
Behaviorism has been very influential in American psychology. As you will
find in chapter 6, it inspired a psychologist named B. F. Skinner to study the
process of learning. Skinner in time became the most famous behaviorist of the
twentieth century.
(a) Watson said that the mind can't be studied by science because it can't be .
(b) Behaviorism asserts that the purpose of psychology should be to .
Answers: (a) observed; (b) study behavior itself, not the mind or consciousness.
In order to identify a fifth classical school of psychology, it is necessary to
return to the European continent, specifically to Austria; the school is psychoanalysis.
The father of psychoanalysis is Sigmund Freud (1856–1939). Freud was
a medical doctor with a specialty in neurology. His findings and conclusions are
based primarily on his work with patients. Early in his career he concluded that a
large number of people with neurological symptoms such as paralysis, a numb
feeling in a hand or foot, complete or partial blindness, chronic headaches, and
similar complaints had no organic pathology. They were not biologically sick.
Instead their symptoms were produced by intense emotional conflicts.
Introduction: The Foundations of Psychology 7
Freud's original work was done with a colleague named Josef Breuer
(1842–1925). Breuer and Freud collaborated on the book Studies on Hysteria.
Published in 1895, it is the first book written on psychoanalysis. This can also be
taken to be the starting date for the school. After the publication of this first book,
Freud went on alone without Breuer; it was a number of years before he worked
again with colleagues.
The word hysteria is a diagnostic label. It used to be assigned to a patient if he
or she was experiencing neurological symptoms that were thought to be imaginary
in nature. The patient is not malingering. He or she believes that the symptoms are
real. Today this is a well-recognized disorder, and is called a somatoform disorder,
conversion type. This simply means that an emotional problem such as
chronic anxiety has converted itself to a bodily expression. (The Greek word soma
means "body.")
In order to explain chronic emotional suffering, Freud asserted that human
beings have an unconscious mental life. This is the principal assumption of psychoanalysis.
No other assumption or assertion that it makes is nearly as important.
The unconscious mental level is created by a defense mechanism called repression.
Its aim is to protect the ego against psychological threats, information that
will disturb its integrity. (The ego is the "I" of the personality, the center of the
self.) The kind of mental information repressed tends to fall into three primary
categories: (1) painful childhood memories, (2) forbidden sexual wishes, and (3)
forbidden aggressive wishes.
Psychoanalysis is not only a school of psychology, but also a method of therapy.
You will find more about this in chapter 15. Freud believed that by helping a
patient explore the contents of the unconscious mental level, he or she could
obtain a measure of freedom from emotional suffering. It is important to note that
of the five classical schools of psychology, psychoanalysis is the only one that made
it an aim to improve the individual's mental health.
(a) Freud was a medical doctor with a specialty in .
(b) The principal assumption of psychoanalysis is that .
Answers: (a) neurology; (b) human beings have an unconscious mental life.
Ways of Approaching the Study of Behavior:
Searching for Explanations
As noted earlier, one of the goals of scientific psychology is to explain behavior.
When someone does something, particularly something unexpected, often the
first question that pops into our minds is why. If the answer can be resolved to our
satisfaction, we have an explanation. There is often more than one way to explain
the same behavior. Sometimes rational thinkers disagree. This has resulted in a set
8 PSYCHOLOGY
of viewpoints, major ways in which behavior can be explained. These viewpoints
greatly influence how research is done, how psychologists approach the study of
behavior.
Viewpoints in psychology are major ways .
Answer: in which behavior can be explained.
The first viewpoint to be identified is the biological viewpoint. The biological
viewpoint asserts that behavior can be explained in terms of such factors as
genes, the endocrine system, or the brain and nervous system. The biological
viewpoint assumes that we are all organisms, made out of protoplasm, and the
most solid explanations are those that recognize this.
Let us say that a child is suffering from mental retardation. Assume that the
child receives a diagnosis of Down's syndrome, a set of signs and symptoms suggesting
that the child has three chromosomes on what is normally the twenty-first
pair of chromosomes. Mental retardation is very frequently associated with this
condition. Consequently, the genetic condition provides an explanation of the
mental retardation.
Assume that thirty-four-year-old Jane C. says, "I feel lazy." This may seem to
be a psychological condition. If it is later discovered that she has a sluggish thyroid
gland and a low basal metabolism, her laziness may be explained in terms of her
low thyroid production.
Bill, a forty-five-year-old engineer, suffers from chronic depression. If it is discovered
that he has low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin, a chemical messenger
in the brain, he may be prescribed a psychiatric drug that brings the
serotonin to an optimal level. His depression has been explained in terms of the
brain's neurotransmitters.
As you can see, the biological viewpoint is a powerful and useful one. It is the
viewpoint that tends to be favored by psychiatry, a medical specialty, and physiological
psychology (see "Fields of Psychology" on page 12).
The biological viewpoint asserts that behavior can be explained in terms of such factors as
.
Answer: genes, the endocrine system, or the brain and nervous system.
The second viewpoint to be identified is the learning viewpoint. The learning
viewpoint assumes that much, perhaps most, behavior is learned. Behaviors
are acquired by experience. The learning viewpoint owes much to the influence
of the philosopher John Locke (1632–1704), who said that the mind at birth is a
tabula rasa (i.e., a "blank slate"), meaning that there are no inborn ideas.
Let's say that Opal smokes two packages of cigarettes a day. She thinks of it as
a "bad" habit, and the learning viewpoint agrees with this commonsense way of
Introduction: The Foundations of Psychology 9
looking at Opal's smoking behavior. The behavior was acquired by processes such
as observation and reinforcement. (There will be more about these processes in
chapter 6.)
According to the learning viewpoint, both "good" and "bad" habits are
acquired by experience. We acquire more than habits by learning. We learn to talk
a specific language, we learn attitudes, we learn to like some people and dislike
others, and so forth. Learning is a vast ongoing enterprise in every human life.
(a) Locke said that the mind at birth is a tabula rasa or .
(b) According to the learning viewpoint, both "good" and "bad" habits are .
Answers: (a) blank slate; (b) acquired by experience.
The third viewpoint to be identified is the psychodynamic viewpoint. This
viewpoint owes much to the influence of Freud and psychoanalysis. It asserts that
a human personality contains a field of forces. Primitive sexual and aggressive
impulses are often in conflict with one's moral and ethical values. An individual's
emotional conflicts can induce or aggravate chronic anxiety, anger, or depression.
The psychodynamic viewpoint is of particular value when one seeks to understand
the behavior of a troubled person. (There is more about psychoanalysis and
the psychodynamic viewpoint in chapter 13.)
The psychodynamic viewpoint asserts that a human personality contains .
Answer: a field of forces.
The fourth viewpoint to be identified is the cognitive viewpoint. This
viewpoint asserts that an immediate cause of a given action or an emotional state
is what a person thinks. For example, before you actually go to the supermarket
you usually think something such as, "I'll stop at the store to get some milk and
cereal on the way home from work." For a second example, when a person experiences
depression, he or she may first think something such as, "My life is pointless.
Nobody loves me."
Interest in the thinking process can be easily traced back to the writings of
William James. He is often said to be not only the dean of American psychologists
but the first cognitive psychologist in the United States. The cognitive viewpoint
has lead to a great interest in concept formation, rational thinking, and creative
thinking. (There is more about thinking in chapter 9.)
The cognitive viewpoint asserts that an immediate cause of a given action or an emotional
state is .
Answer: what a person thinks.
10 PSYCHOLOGY
The fifth viewpoint to be identified is the humanistic viewpoint. This
viewpoint asserts that some of our behavior can only be understood in terms of
psychological processes that are uniquely human. This viewpoint owes much to
existentialism, a philosophical position originating in Europe that places an emphasis
on the importance of free will and responsibility.
Two processes that tend to receive emphasis are the need for self-actualization
and the will to meaning. Self-actualization, as defined by the psychologist
Abraham Maslow, is the need to fulfill your talents and potentialities. The will to
meaning, as defined by the psychiatrist Viktor Frankl, is a deep desire to make
sense out of life and discover values to live by.
(a) Existentialism places on emphasis on the importance of .
(b) Two processes that tend to receive emphasis in the humanistic viewpoint are
.
Answers: (a) free will and responsibility; (b) self-actualization and the will to meaning.
The sixth viewpoint to be identified is the sociocultural viewpoint. This
viewpoint assumes that much of our behavior is determined by factors associated
with society and culture. For example, when a country has a great long-lasting
depression, there is often a rise in personal problems such as depression and alcohol
abuse. Society and culture find their expression in the family and its values, in
religious traditions, and in general codes of conduct. (The importance of the
sociocultural viewpoint is reflected in chapter 16.)
The sociocultural viewpoint assumes that much of our behavior is determined by factors
associated with .
Answer: society and culture.
Very few contemporary psychologists identify with a single school of psychology
or subscribe to a single explanatory viewpoint. Eclecticism is the point of view
that there is something of merit in most of the schools of psychology and in the various
viewpoints described. The majority of today's psychologists describe themselves
as eclectic. Eclecticism is by and large desirable. It is integrative and reflects an
open-minded attitude. On the other hand, critics of eclecticism say that it is vapid
and stands for nothing. Consequently, a competent psychologist must make an effort
to steer a clear course between either a dogmatic adherence to a single viewpoint or
an opposite extreme characterized by a lack of conviction and confidence.
Eclecticism is the point of view that there is in most of the schools of psychology
and the various viewpoints described.
Answer: something of merit.
Introduction: The Foundations of Psychology 11
Fields of Psychology: Of Laboratories and Clinics
Psychology as a profession expresses itself in different fields, or domains of interest.
There are a number of fields of psychology, such as clinical, experimental, counseling,
developmental, physiological, human factors, and industrial.
Clinical psychology is the field associated with psychotherapy and psychological
testing. A clinic is a place where sick people go for help; consequently,
clinical psychologists try to help persons with both well-defined mental disorders
and serious personal problems. The word psychotherapy, in terms of its roots,
means a "healing of the self." In practice, a clinical psychologist who employs
psychotherapy attempts to work with a troubled person by using various methods
and techniques that are designed to help the individual improve his or her mental
health. This is done without drugs. An informal description of psychotherapy
refers to it as "the talking cure." (There is more about methods of psychotherapy
in chapter 15.)
Psychological testing is a process involving, in most cases, the administration
of paper-and-pencil intelligence and personality tests. Test results can be
helpful in both making an evaluation of the state of a person's mental health and
suggesting a course of treatment. (There is more about psychological testing in
chapter 13.)
A clinical psychologist should not be confused with a psychiatrist. A fully
qualified clinical psychologist has earned a Ph.D. degree (doctor of philosophy with
a specialization in psychology). Psychiatry is a medical specialty that gives its
attention to mental disorders. A fully qualified psychiatrist has earned an M.D.
degree (doctor of medicine). Although psychiatrists can and do practice psychotherapy,
they can also prescribe drugs. Clinical psychologists, not being medical
doctors, do not prescribe drugs.
Clinical psychology is the largest single field of psychology. About 40 percent
of psychologists are clinical psychologists.
(a) Clinical psychology is the field associated with what two work activities?
(b) What kind of a specialty is psychiatry?
Answers: (a) Psychotherapy and psychological testing; (b) It is a medical specialty.
Experimental psychology is the field associated with research. Experimental
psychologists investigate basic behavioral processes such as learning, motivation,
perception, memory, and thinking. Subjects may be either animals or human
beings. Ivan Pavlov's experiments on conditioned reflexes, associated with the
learning process, used dogs as subjects. (See chapter 6.)
The great majority of experimental psychologists are found at the nation's
universities. Their duties combine research and teaching. In order to obtain a per-
12 PSYCHOLOGY
manent position and achieve academic promotion, it is necessary for the psychologist
to publish the results of experiments in recognized scientific journals.
Experimental psychology is not a large field of psychology in terms of numbers
of psychologists. Only about 6 percent of psychologists are experimental psychologists.
On the other hand, experimental psychology represents a cutting edge
of psychology; it is where much progress is made. The overall concepts and findings
in a book such as this one have been made possible primarily by experimental
work.
Experimental psychology is the field associated with .
Answer: research.
The remaining fields of psychology will be briefly described in terms of what
psychologists associated with them do.
A counseling psychologist provides advice and guidance, often in a school
setting. Sometimes he or she will, like a clinical psychologist, attempt to help individuals
with personal problems. However, if the problems involve a mental disorder,
the individual will be referred to a clinical psychologist or a psychiatrist.
A developmental psychologist is concerned with maturational and learning
processes in both children and adults. Although a developmental psychologist
is usually thought of as a "child psychologist," it is important to realize that a
given developmental psychologist might have a particular interest in changes associated
with middle-aged or elderly people.
A physiological psychologist, like an experimental psychologist, does
research. Subject areas include the structures and functions of the brain, the activity
of neurotransmitters (i.e., chemical messengers), and the effect that hormones
produced by the endocrine glands have on moods and behavior.
A human factors psychologist combines a knowledge of engineering with
a knowledge of psychology. For example, he or she may be part of a team that is
attempting to redesign an aircraft control panel in an attempt to make it more "user
friendly" in order to reduce pilot error associated with misperceptions.