PSYCHOLOGI

CAL BASIS
Frances Gomez and Glenna Cruz

The
Systems/Schools
of Psychology

Structuralism

By Wundt and Titchener

They contented that experience or
mental states are made of sensations,
images or ideas, and feelings, as well as
analysis of these elements, their
attributes, and their combinations.
In other words, all consciousness of facts
and phenomena of experiences are
based upon the operation of the nervous
system, particularly the brain.

Functionalism

Functionalism asserts that the mental

processes should be regarded as functions or
operations of the organism in its adaptation
to and modification of the environment.
Its approach is distinctly biological, thereby
forming the psychological basis of
pragmatism and instrumentalism.
Led by Dewey and Carr, functionalists are
interested in how an organism makes its
adjustment to its environment, that is either
it changes or makes adaptation to it.

Behaviorism

By Bernardino and Fresnoza

Behaviorism maintains that psychology can be

specific only if it deals with activities that can
be measured objectively.

Founded by Watson

Behaviorism considers the Stimulus Response

hypothesis and its basic theory. The theory
believes that a stimulus, physical or otherwise,
creates a response.
Behavior is considered the result of various
responses to stimulus or the response without
regard to consciousness or the nervous system.

A particular stimulus calls for a particular

response and so education or training is
merely a matter of building up
innumerable bonds or connections
between stimuli and responses.

Gestalt psychology

By Bernardino and Fresnoza

The central thesis of this system or school of
psychology is that the conception of experience
at any given moment is determined by the
totality of its related phases which constitute
an integrated pattern or configuration.
According to this theory, the whole is more than
the sum of all its parts, meaning that the whole
possess qualities, attributes or functions which
the individual component elements do not
possess.

Other Psychological Schools

Among the minor systems or schools of
psychology are:
The Hormic or purposive psychology of
MacDougall which emphasizes the
function of urges and purposes in
behavior.
Woodworths dynamic psychology which
regards the human individual as a
dynamic striving organism instead of
passive one.

The school of psychoanalysis founded by

Freud and developed by Adler and Jung
which furnished explanations for mental
and emotional maladjustments in terms
of the inability of the individual to satisfy
his own desired and popularized the
value of mental and emotional therapy
as a cure of emotional cases.

The Eclectic
Approach

The Eclectic Approach

In applying the principles of the different

schools of psychology to education, the
eclectic approach should be adopted.
The desirable contribution of each school
or system to the field of education
should be utilized more. The points of
common agreement of the different
schools or systems should be used to
determined the validity or usefulness of
an education practice suited to the

The Psychological
Factors that Condition
the Intellectual and
Behavioral
Development of an
Individual

Reflexes

These are inborn automatic responses to

simple localized stimulation involving
particular muscles and parts of the body.

Drives, needs, wants, urges

These are inborn urges and tendencies

and wants. Some refer to these instincts
as drives.
Drives include hunger, thirst, lust or sex,
rest etc. which create tensions in the
individual.
These tendencies develop motives which
determine the actions and reactions of
an individuals to exert efforts to attain
goals.

Capacities and special aptitudes

These include all those latent potentialities

that an individual possesses which are
developed through the process of
education.
Besides the general capacity and
intelligence, an individual possesses certain
special talents or aptitudes, such as those
for mathematics, arts, music and the like.
In addition, effort-making capacity is also
an important trait of an individual.

Temperament or Emotion

This refers to certain emotional predispositions of

an individual. Some emotional patters such as
rage, some forms of fear, and lust (sex) are
inborn.
One with a poor temperament, one who is easily
irritated and emotionalized even with trivial
matters, will have many social as well as learning
problems that may retard his learning progress.
Emotional stability and emotional maturity are
important assets in the development of ones
capabilities