Psych 120 Lecture Notes for entire term PDF

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Lecture 1/2 Sept 13 What is psychology? Psychology permeates our everyday life. Why do people help? Why do people commit aggressive acts? What are the psychological and social impacts? Why do we need psychology as a scientific discipline? Psychological research findings can often go against common s...

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Lecture 1/2 Sept 13 What is psychology? Psychology permeates our everyday life. Why do people help? Why do people commit aggressive acts? What are the psychological and social impacts? Why do we need psychology as a scientific discipline? Psychological research findings can often go against common sense (public held opinion). Psychology: The discipline concerned with human behaviour and mental processes and how they are affected by an organism's physical state, mental state, and external environment. Text: The scientific study of mind and behaviour. Psychology vs. pseudoscience, popular opinion - known for offering quick fixes for life problems - plays on people's desire for more success. - what sets it apart from bonafide psychology is that it's not based on evidence or clinical research - often produced by non experts. Popular opinion, intuition, common sense and conventional wisdom: commonly held ideas about human thought, behaviour and emotions that are not supported by scientific evidence. Psychology concepts and issues play a huge role in the media. Common misconceptions: people's thoughts on psychology will develop based on things they have seen in the media. These representations are often inaccurate. ex) Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality Disorder) In reality, this disorder is extremely rare and is not often related to repression or being restricted from cultural norms. Generally tied to early and extreme trauma, often sexual abuse. Overwhelmingly female, and is not schizophrenia (which is a completely different disorder). Many people go years without a diagnosis, and treatment is often effective. A culture bound disorder: tends to appear within certain social groups around the world and not others. Rare outside North America. Idiom of distress: One way of expressing your distress that is shaped by cultural media and social forces. Approach the media in a way that is critical. Psychological Knowledge: Based on research and empirical evidence. Evidence gathered through systematic observation, experimentation or measurement. Constructed by trained experts using empirical methods (proven processes of collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data) Reviewed by peers Psychological knowledge assumes that our processes and life problems are incredibly complex

Thinking Critically and Creatively about Psychology How do we sort fact from fiction? Facts: Objective statements determined to be accurate through empirical study. Values and beliefs: Personal statements that have not been or cannot be evaluated using the scientific method Critical thinking: The ability and willingness to assess claims and make objective judgements on the basis of well supported reasons and evidence, rather than anecdote or emotion. A skill and an orientation towards knowledge. Being willing to ask questions about what we're told, resisting flawed claims, a tendency towards evidence, thinking critically of what we've been told. Not making decisions or judgements based on emotion. Involves thinking creatively. Extreme open mindedness is simply being naive. ex) the house hippo videos. A fact needs to be verifiable. Where there's an answer that can be determined through reviewing the evidence, then we are talking about verifiable statements and facts.

How to critically and creatively evaluate information: eight guidelines 1. Ask questions and be willing to wonder:

Exercise your curiosity Do not uncritically accept received wisdom 2. Clarify and define terms: Seek specificity Vague terms lead to ambiguous or misleading answers - Alcoholism: indicated by three or more of the following at any time during one 12 month period: - Tolerance - Withdrawal symptoms - Drinking more alcohol than you intended - Having an ongoing desire - Spending a good deal of time drinking / recovering - Giving up important activities - Continuing to use alcohol despite problems arising 3. Examine the evidence Gather empirical evidence yourself Investigate the evidence presented by reliable authorities 4. Analyze assumptions and biases Assumptions: beliefs that are taken for granted/not subjected to critical thinking Biases: an inclination or tendency to present or hold a partial perspective at the expense of (possibly equally valid) alternatives. An outcome of assumptions and biases that we haven't explored: can lead us to come to conclusions that are inaccurate, oversimplified or harmful. 5. Avoid emotional reasoning Avoid letting how you feel about an issue blind you to strong evidence to the contrary 6. Don't oversimplify the issue: Remember, human life is complex! Resist arguing by anecdote: generalizing to everyone from a personal experience or a few examples. Identify appropriate generalizations: Applying facts from one situation to another that differs in important ways. Avoid either/or thinking: reducing a problem to a decision between two extremes and overlooking the alternatives which exist between the extremes of two poles 7. Consider other interpretations/explanations Consider a variety of reasonable explanations How to choose the BEST explanation among alternatives? Occam's razor: the solution that accounts for the most evidence while making the fewest unverified assumptions is best 8. Tolerate uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity

Critical thinking sometimes involves maintaining multiple perspective and recognizing complexity Often, a simple, singular answer will not be found Especially when it comes to an individual level or analysis, there are many factors that come into play as to why someone did something or holds certain beliefs/values. ex) resilience following child sexual abuse resilience: the capacity to withstand stress and successfully adapt to painful life events, or disaster roughly 20-40% of adult survivors evidence no negative impacts - well adjusted Wanting something to be true can be a big problem in thinking logically and critically evaluating something. This is true for the contrary. A Harvard Psychologist's take on alien abduction: ambiguous experience + cultural priming sleep paralysis: a transition state between wakefulness and rest characterized by complete muscle atonia (muscle weakness) and an inability to move, often accompanied by hallucinations Types of practicing psychologists (broadly speaking): 1. Research psychologists (researchers) use scientific methods to create new knowledge about the causes of behavior. 2. Psychologist-practitioners (clinicians) use existing research to enhance the everyday lives of others. Despite the differences in their interests, areas of study, and approaches, all psychologists have one thing in common: they rely on scientific methods. Psychologists on Screen: Often, media depictions of psychology onscreen contribute to these misunderstandings and untruths regarding psychological processes, theories and topics but also psychologists and the work they do themselves. Dr Dippy - crazier/zanier than patients Dr Evil - corrupt mind controller or homicidal maniac Dr Wonderful - has endless time to devote to patients (lack of boundaries) and often cures them instantaneously. Dr. Rigid - stifles joy, fun and creativity Dr Line Crosser - becomes inappropriately involved with patients / violates ethical boundaries Dr Slacker - does not attend to client; lacks competence Evidence that unflattering portrayals of psychologists and patients may prevent

people from seeking treatment (Nauert, 2008) 1. Psychological Practice (Therapeutic Psychology) - Attempts to understand and improve people's physical and mental health - Types: - Counselling psychologists - School psychologists - Clinical psychologists: most have a phD. Usually has a graduate degree in psychology. - Psychiatrists - Psychoanalysts - Clinical social workers - Warning: unregulated and ambiguous terms: 'therapist', 'psychotherapist', 'counsellor' Day to day, everyday living, equipping people and improving their general quality of life. Doesn't imply any diagnosis. Clinical psychologists are different from counselling psychologists because they diagnose, treat and study mental/emotional problems. They handle more complex diagnostic activities; things outside the range of everyday life. Psychiatrists are medical doctors with additional training in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. 2. Psychological Research Basic psychological research: knowledge for its own sake - 'pure' research. Applied psychological research: research that has direct practical significance for human problems. Often, these two things overlap. They can explore various things from different perspectives (ie biological/evolutionary). Cultural psychology, social psychology, learning psychology, etc; there are many different types of psychological research. 3. Psychology in the community Use their knowledge of human thought, emotion and behaviour to contribute to society. Examples: Industrial-organizational psychologists Government advisors Police consultants Program development / evaluation experts Sports psychologists Forensic psychologists Health psychologists

School psychologists Advertising Affective conditioning: The transfer of our feelings from one set of items to another. Advertisements that use pleasing imagery to evoke positive emotions can influence brand evaluation. Based on classical conditioning principles. Psychologists seek to predict behaviour by understanding its causes. Several things make such predictions difficult: 1. People vary and respond differently in different situations due to individual differences (variations among people on physical or psychological dimensions). 2. Almost all behaviour is multiply determined (produced by many factors). 3. Human behaviour is often caused by factors outside our conscious awareness.

Levels of Explanation in Psychology

Psychology's Past Greek Philosophers: Textbook Like modern psychologists, sought to describe, predict, understand, and modify human thought, behaviour and emotion. Relied on anecdotes and self reflection to construct knowledge. Didn't rely on empirical evidence. Hippocrates (460-377 BCE): Observed head injury survivors and correctly concluded that the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body and vice versa, Phrenology Franz Joseph Gall (1758-1828): Argued that particular brain areas correspond to particular personality traits, psychological tendencies, or abilities that could be 'read' from the shape of the skull Classic pseudoscience - lacking in empirical support

The Birth of Modern Psychology Modern psychology: study of psychological issues using scientific methods that allow researchers to evaluate claims based on empirical evidence. Wilhem Wundt's Laboratory: First psychology laboratory in the world. - Leipzig, Germany - 1879 - Research on perception, sensation, imagery, attention. - Development of structuralism: a school of psychology whose goal was to identify the basic elements or structures of psychological experience; understand the nature of consciousness. - Wilhem was one of the founders of the research arm of psychology. - Wundt's Methodology: Introspection: The systematic self examination of one's conscious thoughts, feelings and sensations. - Volunteers trained to observe, analyze and describe their own sensations, mental images, emotional reactions, and mental tasks. - Demonstration: How do you experience 'inspiration'? Describe exactly what you experience as you complete the following math equation 16/4? Other early psychologies: Psychoanalysis: Sigmund Freud (1856-1939): - Role of unconscious thoughts, feelings and memories - The mind as an iceberg: - Conscious awareness - what we know and can express about ourselves, our past experiences,

our desires, etc - Unconscious - unrevealed passions, wishes, guilty secrets, unspeakable yearnings, traumatic memories - Functionalism: William James (1890): - Aimed to understand why animals and humans have developed the particular psychological aspects that they currently possess - Influenced by Charles Darwin - Precursor to evolutionary psychology. Introspection was a form of structuralism, just as functionalism is a precursor to evolutionary psychology. emphasized the purpose of behaviour as opposed to its analysis and description. - Structuralism (Willhelm Wundt): involved the analysis of the basic elements or building blocks of the mind. - The feminist movement: An important movement in psychology that emerged in the early 1970s

Major paradigms of psychology: 1. Biological 2. Psycho-dynamic 3. Learning 4. Humanistic 5. Cognitive 6. Socio-cultural 7. Evolutionary

Topic 2: Major Perspectives in Psychology Science in Psychology - Sciences are often guided by a paradigm: - A prevailing model; set of assumptions about what to study + a set of research methods for examining phenomena. - Several perspectives exist in psychology: Examine human existence by asking why, how and what. - Falling in love - What: what happens when you're in love? Looking at a few pieces of data: The in love

brain looks different than mere sexual attraction. The early in love brain looks different than the long term relationship. ie an inability to see romantic passion for anyone else other than your partner. Produces physiological/emotional instability. - How: The phenomenon of thinking one person is special and focusing on the positives. This is thought to result in the release of dopamine in your nervous system. Emotional instability can also be compared to the behaviours of a drug addict (regions of the brain being fired off when shown a picture of the partner vs. a picture of the drug of choice.) Can result from decreased levels of serotonin in the brain. Associated with forms of obsessive behaviour. A lot of this happens beyond conscious awareness i.e. the sharing of interests. - Why: Overall, a lot of the brain systems that drive planning a future or wanting to pair with someone long term are set up in the same way in our brain as the drive towards food and water for survival. - Some human psychologists believe that romantic love is part of the human reproductive strategy. - We know that culturally, weddings, etc, the institution of marriage is a social phenomenon. A cultural fact that has nothing to do with nature, but a social/cultural piece of the pie. Young people are taught that this is something to aspire to. Jealousy, possessiveness are also evolutionary traits. -

Contemporary perspectives are like lenses: seeing human psychology and the world differently. Some are what, how, why.

1.

Biological Perspective: - Focuses on how bodily events and changes are associated with behaviour, feelings and thoughts - Role of nervous system/brain activity/hormones/genetics in human thought, behaviour and emotion - Closely tied to evolutionary psychology - Emerges out of structuralism and functionalism - A biological psychologist would measure biological, physiological, or genetic variables in an attempt to relate them to psychological or behavioural variables. 2. Psychodynamic Perspective: - Focuses on the role of unconscious thoughts, feelings and memories in our daily lives. - Sigmund Freud (1856-2939) - Believed psychological processes are flows of psychological energy (libido) in the brain. - Argued childhood experiences shape how a person feels and behaves throughout life. - Proposed multiple levels of consciousness (one's awareness of self in space and time) - The Iceberg: - Conscious: all those things we are aware of, including things we know about ourselves and our surroundings - Preconscious: thoughts that are unconscious at the particular moment in questions, but that are not repressed and are therefore available for recall. - Unconscious: those things that are outside of conscious awareness, including many memories, thoughts, and urges of which we are not aware. - The unconscious (the concealed) usually comprises uncomfortable things. Sexual and aggressive urges/energy. Clinical applications: - A process of talk therapy and dream analysis used to help patients explore unconscious drives. - Assumes it is possible to help the patient if negative effects of unconscious material are alleviated by bringing this repressed material into the conscious mind. - Empirical support? - A lot of his ideas were fantastical and not substantiated, not empirically sound, also hyper sexualized but: - Key insights: 1. The importance of the unconscious in human behaviour 2. Importance of early childhood experiences in human development 3. The value of talk therapy as a way of improving human lives Relevance today? - No longer influential in research practice - Continues to influence clinical practice

3. Learning Perspective: - Emphasizes the role of the environment and experience in shaping human behaviour, feelings, and thoughts through patterns of reward and punishment. Does not tend to the mind or mental state. - Behaviourists: role of environment in shaping behaviour through rewards and punishments; focus on observable behaviour as a means to studying the human psyche. Emerged in contrast to psychodynamic psychology. - Social cognitive theorists: explore how rewards interact with thoughts, values, expectations, and intentions to produce observable behaviours. Other roles in human behaviour, less about mechanistic things such as rewards and punishments. - Three major types of behavioural learning: 1. Classical conditioning: A neutral stimulus is associated with a natural response. 2. Operant conditioning: A response is increased or decreased due to reinforcement or punishment. 3. Observational learning: Learning occurs through observation and imitation of others. What to know about social learning theory: 1. People can learn through observation 2. Mental states are important to learning 3. Learning does not necessarily lead to behavioural change 4. Humanistic Perspectives - Humanistic psychology: holds a hopeful, constructive view of human beings and their substantial capacity to be self determining. - Sought to restore the importance of consciousness and offer a more holistic view of human life. - Strive to enhance the human qualities of choice, creativity, the interaction of the body, mind and spirit, and the capacity to become more aware, free, responsible, life affirming, and trustworthy. - Clinical applications: - Client centered therapy: helps clients re-establish their true identity. - Existential therapy: explores personal difficulties from a philosophical perspective; highlights our capacities and encourages us to take responsibility for our successes - Gestalt therapy: focuses on enhancing awareness of feelings Positive psychology: the scientific study of the "good life" or the positive aspects of the human experience that make life worth living. "Psychology should turn toward understanding and building the human strengths to compliment our emphasis on healing damage" - Martin Seligman (1998) Intrinsic Motivation: the act of doing something without any obvious external rewards.

5. Cognitive Perspective: - Emphasizes the role of internal mental processes in human thought, behaviour and emotion. - How people perceive, remember, think, speak and solve problems - Role of interpretation in lived experiences - "All processes by which the sensory input is transformed, reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered, and used" - Ulric Neisser (1967) - ex) study the brain in terms of specialized parts, or systems, and their exquisitely complex relationships. - Clinical applications: - Cognitive Behavioural Therapy: - Inspired by behaviourist and cognitive schools - a short term, goal oriented psychotherapy treatment - The goal is to change patterns of thinking + behaviour that are behind people's difficulties to improve the way they feel. 6. Sociocultural Perspective - Focuses on how social and cultural forces outside of the individual impact thought, behaviour, emotion - Social psychologists - Cultural psychologists - Sociocultural Theory of Development: A person's cognitive development is largely influenced by their surrounding culture.

- Social norms: the ways of thinking, feeling, or behaving that are shared by group members and perceived by them as appropriate. ...