Chicago, where Wundt’s and James’s studies of consciousness were still the
“real” psychology; especially dominant was functionalism which Watson
strongly disagreed with. He was especially critical of the use of introspection
as a research basis and seen it as unreliable and difficult to verify. He
believed that psychology should not be the study conscious experience but
the study of observable behaviour thus the founding of a new approach:
Behaviourism.
In 1913 Watson wrote the “behaviorist manifesto” outlining the main
principles of behaviourism. It would be the study of observable behaviour
aiming to predict, understand and control behaviour. He acknowledged the
existence of the mind but, as introspection was hugely unreliable, it was seen
as being impossible to scientifically investigate. Behaviourism proposed
that behaviour is moulded by experience (environmental influences).
Watsons view on behaviourism influenced the Russian psychologist Ian
Pavlov (1849-1936) on his studies. Pavlov proposed a theory on a learning
known as “classical conditioning” based on the digestive system of dogs and
noticed by chance that dogs salivated to things other than food. He
discovered that reflexes can be conditioned using stimulus-response
techniques, for example the dog salivated when hungry, but more
importantly when it heard the approaching foot steps of the attendant coming
to feed it, or the bell that is rung usually before it gets fed. Classical
conditioning involves an unconditioned stimulus which produces an
unconditioned response however conditioning occurs when the
unconditioned stimulus becomes associated with a conditioned stimulus.
This was a break through for behaviourism as it emphasized learning
through association.
The next major event for the behaviourism movement was the studies of
another leading advocate of modern psychology; B F Skinner (1904-1990)
who maintained that all behaviour is conditioned but distinguished between
two forms of behaviour: Respondant and Operant. He saw learning as a
more active process that say classical conditioning although not rejecting its
discovery. Operant behaviour was behaviour not triggered by automatic
responses. Skinner believed that not all learning stems from psychological
reflexes, rather that we associate certain behaviour with certain
consequences. Skinner also believed in reinforcement; either positive or
negative, it could effectively control a specific behavior.
After forty years of behaviourist dominance a new approach was developed
in response to its simplistic (stimulus-response) nature. In 1956 the cognitive
approach was born. It was the study of internal mental processes (memory-
thinking). The brain was seen as a high level information processor
following the computer analogy: input processes—storage processes—
output processes. Cognitive psychology believed information is gained from
one of the five senses and is about how we process this information to gain
knowledge of the world. It sees that it is the concepts built up by the five
senses that determines how we behave thus if people gain more
information, their concepts change and therefore so does their behavior.
Jean Piaget (1932) was the main pioneer for this approach; he used the idea
of “cognition” to explain children’s mental development. He believed their
concepts change as they grow older and that’s why they act differently and
are capable of more. Piagets work has been immensely influential of the way
we view children today, through, for example toys and education. Cognitive
psychology termed the internal mental processes of its focus as “mediators”.
These were memory, thinking, perception, attention and language and they
are the processes of which come between stimulus and response. These
processes were seen to work in the same way as a modern computer, where
information is acquired, stored, retrieved and then used. Cognitive
psychology believed that events within are as important as environmental
influence and it was now acceptable to study the mind again.
The final school this paper will consider agreed that it was the events within
that influenced behaviour. Psychoanalysis was conceived in the late 1890s
by the Austrian physician Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) who is still the main
figure associated with this subject. Freud immigrated to London in 1938 due
to the Germans annexation of Austria. In was in December of that year that
Freud first broadcasted a statement for the BBC, in which he summarized his
life’s work and the history of psychoanalysis.
Freud’s theory was to be the study of the unconscious part of the human
mind. He believed that behaviour is a result of personality which is made up
of unconscious hidden parts. Freud believed that every person has
unconscious conflicts, originating from childhood. His theory was developed
from studies of a psychogenic disorder then known as hysteria. He proposed
that hysterical symptoms were a means of keeping forbidden thoughts or
wishes in repression and he believed that these symptoms could be
eliminated once the repressed materials were recovered, thus he devised a
procedure known as psychoanalysis. Freud believed that there were two
main motivating factors to life: Sex and Aggression. He distinguished
three sub-systems to human personality. The first part is the ID, which is
present from birth, and is a blind striving for biological satisfaction that
demands immediate gratification. The id follows the pleasure principle. The
second part is the EGO which is a system of reactions that tries to reconcile
id-derived needs within the actualization of the world. Basically it tries to
find a realistic way to satisfy the id, in accordance with the reality principle.
The ego meditates between the id and the SUPEREGO, which is the next
part of the personality. The superego represents the internalized rules of the
parents and punished deviations by feelings of guilt and it is governed by the
morality principle. According to Freud internal conflict is initially prompted
by anxiety, which is associated with forbidden thoughts or wishes (usually in
childhood). To ward off anxiety the child resorts to repression and pushes
the thoughts out of consciousness. Repression is the primary defense
mechanism against anxiety however repressed materials generally re-surface
again, together with associated anxiety.
With adults, Freud believed that most unconscious conflicts are ultimately
sexual in nature and refer to events during psychosexual development.
During psychosexual development the child passes through three main
stages: Oral, the nature of which goes back to a powerful oral fixation: Anal,
which attributes include compulsive neatness and obstinacy and then there is
the: Phallic stage in which the male child develops the Oedipus complex
(and Electra complex for females). Freud directed his studies and tried to
apply his theory to many areas of everyday life including slips of the tongue
(Freudian slips), memory lapses and dreams.
Having considered all of three schools within psychology it is evident that
each has its own distinguishing features and own unique ways of
investigating the reasons behind why we do what we do and act how we act.
Having evaluated the history of these schools is seems apparent that
psychologists are increasingly aware that to understand the true nature of
human behaviour, consideration must be given to different factors. With the
behaviourists studying observable behaviour, cognitive psychology
investigating internal mental processes and the psychoanalysist analysing the
unconscious, it seems possible that a psychology which is more integrated
and gives more consideration to all the schools would assist in furthering our
knowledge and understanding of the human being.
Lisa Flavell Psychology
Outline the academic, educational, industrial and clinical branches of psychology.
Within the field of psychology there are different branches in which
psychologists can study specific interests. Firstly there are academic
psychologists, these psychologists can generally be found working in
educational institutes such as colleges, universities and sometimes within
government agencies. They are responsible for pure research which aims to
further the understanding of human behaviour. They research a variety of
fields that contribute to human behaviour such as learning: cognitive
psychology, comparative psychology, developmental psychology, social
psychology, biological bases of behaviour and individual differences, etc.
You must be a qualified psychology graduate to become an academic
psychologist.
There is also the educational branch within psychology. This kind of
psychologist would be found in schools, colleges, nurseries, hospitals,
special units, etc. they would be found working with children or young
adults that may have learning difficulties, social problems or emotional
problems. An educational psychologist is responsible for administrating tests
to assess the subjects progress. They also plan and supervise remedial
teaching, curriculum and interviewing methods. They also write reports
concerning the best allocation for special educational institutes based upon
psychological theories and research. Educational psychologists work for
local authorities and work either individually with clients or in a group
situation. They would sometimes be found working in a team of other health
professionals , such as social workers, medical practitioners, etc, mainly
working within the NHS. You must have an accredited first degree and an
additional three years as a postgraduate to become an educational
psychologist.
You may also find industrial or occupational psychologists. These would be
found mainly working for large companies, the government or public
services. They may also be found within management training centers. There
aim is to improve the working environment and efficiency within that
company. They have many responsibilities consisting of: the selection and
training of staff, psychometric tests, studying communication and the
working environment, advising effective management, job analysis and job
requirements, and they keep measurement of attitudes and morale of
employees. They would also provide advice on motivation, job satisfaction,
interview and personnel methods and also performance appraisals. These
psychologists would be found working along-side the managers, trade union
representatives and training officers, etc. To become an educational
psychologist you would have to be a postgraduate with specialist experience.
The final branch within psychology is that of the clinical psychologists.
These psychologists work with people that, for example, have health
problems, severe learning difficulties, eating disorders, sexual problems,
phobias, head injuries, strokes, etc. The client could be any age but are
generally of an adult age. Clinical psychologists usually work in hospitals
and community settings. Their responsibilities include the assessment of
their client, the administration of tests, the formatting of rehabilitation
programs and they must implement programs of therapy. The qualifications
of a clinical psychologist is also an accredited first degree and an additional
postgraduate three years.
These four branches within psychology allow us to intensely study in depth
the different aspects of human life. They allow us to integrate specialised
studies and obtain an overall better view and understanding of human
behaviour.
Lisa Flavell Psychology
Reference Page
- Gross, R., McIlveen, R., Coolican, H., Clamp, A., & Russel, J. (2000). Psychology a New Introduction. London: Hodder and Stroughton
- Butler, G., & McManus, F. (1998). Psychology a Very Short Introduction. New York: Oxford University Press
- Ward, I., & Zarate, O. (2000). Introducing Psychoanalysis. Cambridge: Icon Books.
