MODULE 1: INTRO TO PSYCHOLOGY What are the goals of Psychology?

Autism (Autism Spectrum Disorder) 1. Describe Behavior – the different ways

in which organisms behave.
> Individuals with autism are characterized
by having very few activities and interests, > Psychologists describe that autism is
spending long periods repeating the same marked by impairments in communication
behaviors (hand flapping), or following the and social interaction and restricted,
same rituals. Signs of autism usually appear repetitive patterns of behaviors and interests
when a child is 2 or 3 years old
2. Explain the cause of behavior – the
> especially abnormal or impaired causes of behavior.
development in social interactions, such as
> Psychologists explain that autism is a
hiding to avoid people, not making eye
genetic disorder (e.g. gene involved in the
contact, and not wanting to be touched.
release of oxytocin or the bond hormone);
> marked by difficulties in communicating, maybe associated with neurons’ inability to
such as grave problems in developing connect properly or an enlarged amygdala
spoken language or in initiating
3. Predict – how organisms will react in
conversations
certain situations
> Children with autism are characterized by
> Psychologists predict that children with
having very few interests, spending long
autism may have difficulty learning in a
periods repeating the same behaviors, or
regular classroom because of overwhelming
following the same rituals
sensory input; difficulty adapting to change
> Signs of autism appear when a child is two and communicating
or three years old. Example: Donna
4. Control modify or improve behavior.
Williams
(+) help patients/clients better
Savant Syndrome – is a rare, but
regulate/manage or effectively deal with
extraordinary, condition in which persons
their behavior
with serious mental disabilities, including
ASD, have some ‘island of genius’ which (-) possibility of unconscious or undue
stands in marked, incongruous contrast to influence
overall handicap
> Psychologists control or modify the
Test Anxiety – refers to a combination of behaviors of children with autism using a
physiological, emotional, and cognitive variety of techniques (such as rewarding
components good behaviors to increase their likelihood
to occur again)
> Stress of taking exams interferes with
one’s concentration, planning, and academic Identify and discuss the different
performance historical approaches in understanding
the mind.
What is Psychology?
> Structuralism by Wilhelm Wundt
PSYCHOLOGY is the systematic,
scientific study of behaviors and mental > Functionalism by William James
processes.
> Gestalt Max Wertheimer
DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN
BEHAVIOR AND MENTAL > Behaviorism by John B. Watson
PROCESSES
Behaviors – observable actions or responses
Mental Processes – not directly observable;
refer to a wide range of complex mental
processes, such as thinking, imagining,
studying, and dreaming
PSYCHOLOGY IS NO COMMON How did Psychology Begin?
SENSE.
Structuralism: Elements of the Mind
Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920) – founded the
first psychology laboratory in 1879 – located
in Leipzig, Germany
> Father of psychology
> Studied the most basic elements, primarily
sensations and perceptions that make up our
conscious mental experiences
Edward B. Titchener (1832-1920) –
student of Wundt who brought the
structuralist movement to America
Introspection – is a method of exploring
conscious mental processes by asking
subjects to look inward and report their
sensations
Functionalism: Function of the Mind
Functionalism – Studies the function rather
than the structure of consciousness, and is
interested in how our minds adapt to our
changing environment
> James-Lange Theory of Emotion
William James (1842 – 1910) – authored
The Principles of Psychology which was
published in 1890
>Father of American psychology
>Studied the function rather than the
structure of consciousness; was interested in
how our minds adapt to our changing
environment
Gestalt: Sensations vs Perceptions
Max Wertheimer, Wolfgang Kohler, and
Kurt Koffka – In 1912, Wertheimer,
Kohler, and Koffka reported that they had
created the perception of movement by
briefly flashing one light and then, a short
time late, a second light
> Phi Phenomenon/apparent motion
> Emphasized that perception is more than
the sum of its parts and studied how
sensations are assembled into meaningful
perceptual experiences
Gestalt: The whole is greater or different
than the sum of its parts.
Behaviorism: Observable Behaviors
John B. Watson (1878 – 1958) – rejected
structuralism and introspection
> Argued for a psychology that is focused
on what is observable
>Emphasized the objective, scientific
analysis of observable behaviors
> “Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-
formed, and my own specified world to
bring them up in and I’ll guarantee to take
any one at random and train him to become
any type of specialist I might select—doctor,
lawyer, artist, merchant-chief and, yes, even
beggar-man and thief, regardless of his
talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities,
vocations, and race of his ancestors.”
> John Watson; 1913, “Psychology as a
Behaviorist Views It”
> Psychology should be considered an
objective, experimental science
> Goal: the analysis of observable behaviors
and the prediction and control of those
behaviors
Cultural Diversity: Early Discrimination
WOMEN IN PSYCHOLOGY
Karen Horney – Psychoanalytic social
theory
> Society and culture (not biology) are
responsible for the differences between men
and women
Mary Whiton Calkins (1863 – 1930) – was
barred from entering graduate school simply
because she was a woman
> 14th APA President (1905)
> Established a laboratory in psychology at
Wellesley College in 1891 where she was a
faculty member
> Completed all requirements for a PhD at
Harvard but wasn’t granted the degree
because of her sex
Margaret Floy Washburn – first woman to
earn a doctorate degree in American
Psychology (1894)
> 1921 APA President
In 1970, 20% of PhD graduates were
women, and by 2005, that number had
increased to 70%
Still, women earn less than male
psychologists, and fewer women are
editors of psychology journals
MINORITIES IN PSYCHOLOGY
Francis Cecil Sumner – First African
American to receive a PhD in psychology at
Clark University
> Father of Black Psychology
Inez Prosser – was the first African
American woman to receive a PhD in
psychology (from the University of
Cincinnati in 1933). She taught in black
colleges and helped minority students obtain
financial aid to attend college
> 8:3,767 Black to White doctorate degree
ratio (between 1920 and 1966)
> By 1996, 168 PhDs were awarded to
African Americans, 183 to Hispanics, 23
to Native Americans, 131 to Asians, and
2,939 to Whites
Kenneth and Mamie Clark – Appeared as
expert witnesses in Briggs vs Elliot (1952)
> Studied children and their attitudes
towards race (black and white doll)
George Sanchez (a Latino) – Pioneered
research on the cultural bias of intelligence
tests given to minority students
> Sanchez showed that intelligence tests
contained many questions that were biased
against minorities, resulting in lower scores
Virgilio Enriquez – “Doc E”; “Ver”
> Father of Filipino Psychology
Ulric Neisser – Father of Cognitive
Psychology
Sigmund Freud – Father of Pyschoanalysis
Petrarch – Father of Humanism
MODERN APPROACHES
1. BIOLOGICAL APPROACH
> Focuses on how our genes, hormones, and
nervous system interact with our
environments to influence learning,
personality, memory, motivation, emotions,
and coping techniques.
> Examples: ASD in the Brain. Twin
Studies, Biology of Test Anxiety
2. COGNITIVE APPROACH
> Examines how we process, store, and use
information and how this information
influences what we attend to, perceive,
learn, remember, believe, and feel
> Cognitive Neuroscience – Involves
taking pictures and identifying structures
and functions of the living brain during
performance of a variety of mental or
cognitive processes, such as thinking,
planning, naming, and recognizing objects
> Study of the physical workings of the
brain and nervous system when engaged in
memory, thinking, and other cognitive
processes
> Example: Cognitive Component of Test
Anxiety
3. BEHAVIORAL APPROACH
> Studies how organisms learn behaviors or
modify existing ones, depending on whether
events in their environments reward or
punish these behaviors
> Social Cognitive Approach
1. SELF-MANAGEMENT AND TEST
ANXIETY Select a place that you
use exclusively for study
2. Reward yourself for studying
3. Keep a record of your study time
4. Establish priorities among projects
5. Specify a time for each task
6. Complete one task before going on
to another
> Self-Efficacy – Believing in the power
that you can (Managing Test Anxiety)
4. PSYCHONALYTIC APPROACH
> Influence of childhood experiences,
unconscious fears, desires, and motivation
on thoughts, behaviors, and the development
of personality traits and psychological
problems later in life
> Example: Sigmund Freud
5. HUMANISTIC APPROACH
> Emphasizes that each individual has great
freedom in directing his or her future, a
larger capacity for personal growth, a
considerable amount of intrinsic worth, and
enormous potential for self-fulfillment
> Believes that though we may struggle to
reach our potential, we are in control of our
fate and destiny and are free to become
whatever we are capable of being
6. CROSS-CULTURAL APPROACH
> Examines the influence of cultural and
ethnic similarities and differences on the
psychological and social functioning of a
culture’s members
Test Anxiety Across Cultures:
> INDIA - Heightened test anxiety due to
cultural emphasis on academic achievement,
parental and social pressures to excel, and
the stressful, competitive nature of exams
> US - Lower test anxiety, in part because
parents are less involved with their
children’s school-work and they promote
independence and personal responsibility
7. EVOLUTIONARY APPROACH
> Studies how evolutionary ideas, such as
adaptation and natural selection, explain
human behaviors and mental processes
> Studies how evolutionary ideas, such as
adaptation and natural selection, explain
human behaviors and mental processes
8. ECLECTIC APPROACH
> Using a combination/integration of
different approaches to study the same
behavior
SURVIVAL OF APPROACHES
> Structuralism – died because of
subjectivism
> Functionalism – is still being used by now
HOW TO BECOME A
PSYCHOLOGIST IN THE
PHILIPPINES
> 4 years undergraduate – BA or BS
> RPm (optional) – Apply and review for,
then take and pass the Psychometrician
Licensure Examination
> 3 to 5 yrs graduate school – MA or MS
> RPsy – Apply and review for, then take
and pass the Psychologist Licensure
Examination
> Apply for Specialty Certification
through PAP – e.g. clinical psychology,
counseling psychology, industrial
psychology, etc.
> 3-5 yrs Post-Graduate School (optional)
– PhD/PsyD.
CAREERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
1. Clinical psychologists – have a PhD,
PsyD, or EdD, they are trained diagnosing
and treating a wide range of abnormal
behaviors.
> Help people with psychological disorders
adjust to the demands of life. People’s
problems may range from anxiety and
depression to sexual dysfunction to loss of
goals
> Evaluate problems through interviews and
psychological tests – these are subsumed
under the process of psychological
assessment
> Comprise the largest subgroup of
psychologists
2. Psychiatrists – are medical doctors
(MDs) who have spent several years in
clinical training, which includes diagnosing
possible physical and neurological causes of
abnormal behaviors and treating these
behaviors, often with prescription drugs.
> Are medical doctors who specialize in the
study and treatment of psychological
disorders. They can prescribe medication
and other biological treatment for people
with psychological disorders
HOW TO BECOME A PSYCHIATRIST
IN THE PHILIPPINES
> 4 years Pre-Med studies – BA or BS
> 4 years Medical School – 3 years
classroom setting, 1 year in hospital setting
> 1 year Post Grad Internship – This is
required for you to be able to take the board
exam for Medicine
> Average of 4 months review and board
exam – Apply and review for, then take and
pass the Physician Licensure examination
> 3-5 years Residency – With psychiatry as
your area of specialization
> 3-5 years Fellowship or Sub
specialization – e.g. community psychiatry,
child psychiatry, addiction psychiatry, etc.
3. Counseling psychologists – provide
many of the same services as clinical
psychologists, but usually work with
different problems, such as those involving
marriage, family, or career counseling.
> Also use interviews and psychological
tests to assess their clients’ problems
> Commonly deal with patients struggling > Also guide clients toward healthier
with academic or vocational decisions behavior patterns
4. School psychologists – Employed by 11. Forensic psychologists – Works with
school systems to identify and assist the criminal justice agencies to apply
students who have problems that interfere psychological expertise to activities related
with learning to crime
> They help schools make decisions about 12. Sports psychologists – Use
the placement of students in special classes psychological knowledge and skills to
address optimal performance and well-being
> Educational psychologists – Also attempt
of athletes, developmental and social aspects
to facilitate learning. But they usually focus
of sports participation, and systemic issues
on course planning and instructional
associated with sports settings and
methods for a school system rather than on
organizations (APA, 2008)
individual children
12. Psychiatrists – are medical doctors
> They research on issues related to
(MDs) who have spent several years in
learning, measurement, and child
clinical training, which includes diagnosing
development
possible physical and neurological causes of
> E.g. how learning is affected by abnormal behaviors and treating these
psychological factors such as motivation, behaviors, often with prescription drugs.
intelligence, and sociocultural factors
> Are medical doctors who specialize in the
5. Personality psychologist – Focus on study and treatment of psychological
goals such as identifying and measuring disorders. They can prescribe medication
human traits; determining influences on and other biological treatment for people
human thought, processes, feelings, and with psychological disorders
behavior
> Looks inside the person for an explanation
of behavior
6. Environmental psychologists – Study
the way that people and the
environment/surroundings (both natural and
human-made) influence one another.
> E.g. how temperature and loud noises may
interfere with learning
7. Experimental psychologists – Specialize
in experimentation
8. Industrial/Organizational psychologists
– Use psychology’s concepts and methods in
the workplace to help organizations and
companies select and train employees, boost
morale and productivity, design products,
and implement systems
9. Consumer psychologists – Study the
behavior of shoppers in an effort to predict
and influence their behavior
10. Health psychologists – Examine the
ways in which behavior and mental
processes such as attitudes are related to
physical health
> E.g. studies on stress and how it is related
to headaches, cardiovascular disease, and
cancer
(ito yung isang slide)
AREAS OF SPECIALIZATION
Clinical and Counseling psychology –
includes the assessment and treatment of
people with psychological problems, such as
grief, anxiety, or stress
Social psychology – involves the study of
social interactions, stereotypes, prejudices,
attitudes, conformity, group behaviors, and
aggression
Developmental psychology – examines
moral, social, emotional, and cognitive
development throughout a person’s entire
life.
Experimental psychology – includes areas
of sensation, perception, learning, human
performance, motivation, and emotion
Biological psychology – also called
psychobiology, involves research on the
physical and chemical changes that occur
during stress, learning, and emotions, as well
as how our genetic makeup, brain, and
nervous system interact with our
environment and influence our behavior.
Cognitive psychology – involves how we
process, store, and retrieve information and
how cognitive processes influence our
behaviors.
Psychometrics – focuses on the
measurement of people’s abilities, skills,
intelligence, personality, and abnormal
behaviors
Industrial/organizational psychology –
examines the relationship of people and their
work environments
What are the modern approaches in
studying human behavior?
1. BIOLOGICAL – Focuses on how our
genes, hormones, and nervous system
interact with our environments to
influence behavior
2. COGNITIVE – Examines how we
process, store, and use information and
how this information influences what we
attend to, perceive, learn, remember,
believe, and feel (how we think affect the
way we behave)
3. BEHAVIORAL – Explains that
behavior as an outcome of reward and
punishment; behaviors that are rewarded
are more likely to recur and behaviors
that are punished are more likely to be
discontinued.
> Key Person: B.F. Skinner
> Some behaviorists, such as Albert
Bandura, disagree with strict
behaviorism. He formulated a theory
called Social Cognitive Approach which
explains that behaviors are influenced not
only by environmental events and
reinforcers but also by observation,
imitation, and thought processes.
> SOCIAL COGNITIVE APPROACH
THEORY – Reinforcement and
punishment are powerful, but people
sometimes learn by simply watching those
around them, which is known as imitation
or observational learning.
> Observational learning is regarded as a
more cognitive form of learning than
conditioning because learners must pay
attention, construct and remember
mental representations retrieve these
representations from memory later, and
use them to guide behavior.
> SELF-EFFICACY is whether an
individual imitates others depends on who
the other person is, on whether that
person’s behavior is rewarded, and on the
individual’s beliefs about his or her own
abilities.
4. PSYCHOANALYTIC – Believes that
behavior and personality is an outcome of
unconscious forces (desires, fears) and
childhood experiences.
Childhood experiences can lead to
development of psychological problems in
adulthood.
> Key Person: Sigmund Freud
5. HUMANISTIC – Emphasizes that
individual can choose their behaviors,
direct their future and achieve personal
growth and fulfillment.
We can choose who we become
> Key Person: Abraham Maslow
6. SOCIO-CULTURAL – Studies how
social and cultural factors affect our
behaviors
> USA – Autism was thought to be caused
by environmental factors, such as having
“cold” parents.
> Korea – Autism is a disorder with a
terrible stigma and children with autism
are kept at home and hidden from public,
as such, they don’t get the treatment they
need.
7. EVOLUTIONARY – Studies how
evolutionary ideas, such as adaptation
and natural selection, explain human
behaviors and mental processes
8. BIOPHYSICAL – Studies how
biological, psychological, and social
factors influence behavior.
> BIOLOGICAL – Depressed individuals
are often significantly disturbed with
regard to endocrine (hormone), immune,
and neurotransmitter system functioning.
Genes also influence the development of
depression.
> PSYCHOLOGICAL – Psychological
factors influencing depression include
characteristic negative patterns of
thinking, deficits in coping skills,
judgment problems, and impaired
emotional intelligence (the ability to
perceive, understand, and express
emotions that depressed people tend to
exhibit.)
comprehending when others don't know
something.
>BEHAVIORAL<
Many children with autism think in
pictures, so to encourage them to do
something, you can show a picture of the
reward that awaits them if they do your
desired behavior
>PSYCHOANALYTIC<
Autism was before seen as an outcome of
failed parenting. Mothers and fathers of
children with severe autism were seen as
perfectionists, cold and aloof (Barlow
&Durand, 2015)
>SOCIOCULTURAL<
In South Korea, autism is a disorder with
a terrible stigma and children with autism
are kept at home and hidden from public,
as such, they don’t get the treatment they
need
>BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL<
Autism is an outcome of the interactions
of biological, cognitive and social factors.
>HUMANISTIC<

> SOCIAL – Social factors such as: People with autism can rise above their
experiencing traumatic situations, early disorder and struggles and still leave a
separation, lack of social support, or productive, meaningful life.
harassment (bullying). Research has
shown that stressful social events are
capable of serving as triggers for turning
genes on and off, causing changes in brain
functioning. Via this path, a social
stressor can trigger a physical cause of
depression
Discuss autism as seen by the different
psychological approaches
>BIOLOGICAL<
Autism runs in families; supported by the
findings in identical twins
If one twin has autism, there is a high
(90%) chance the other twin will exhibit
signs of autistic behavior.
>COGNITIVE<
Theory of the Mind
Many autistic individuals do not
understand that other people have their
thoughts and points of view. Interestingly,
people with autism have difficulty