PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES

Course code: HSMC (HPY-301)

why should you study psychology?
• your physical and mental health,
• your ability to form and sustain close relationships,
• and your capacity for learning and personal growth.
The term psychology derives from the Greek roots psyche,
meaning “soul”or “mind,” and logos, meaning “word.”
Psychology is literally the study of the mind or soul, and
people defined it that way until the early 1900s.
Around 1920, research deals with what we observe, and the mind
is unobservable. Second, talking about “the mind” implies it is
a thing or object. Mental activity is a process. It is not like the
river but like the flow of the river; not like the automobile but
like the movement of the automobile.
 What is psychology?

• Psychology - The scientific study of behavior /Nuture/Mind

and the mental process that is tested through scientific
research (should be systematic in approach).
 
 Scientific study of human nature/mind/behavior

• brain
• perception
• cognition
• emotion
• personality
• development
• social interaction
• psychopathology
• How our minds make our worlds

• What we see
 The critical parts of this definition: scientific, behavior,
individual, and mental.

• The scientific method consists of a set of orderly steps used to analyze and solve
problems .

• Behavior is the means by which organisms adjust to their environment. Behavior is

action

• Individual—a newborn infant, a college student adjusting to life in a dormitory, or a

woman coping with the stress of her husband’s deterioration from Alzheimer’s disease.

• Mental processes, the workings of the human mind. Much human activity takes place as
private, internal events—thinking, planning, reasoning, creating, and dreaming.
 The Goals of Psychology

• To describe, explain, predict, and control behavior.

 The Goals of Psychology

• Describing: gather information on studied behavior and present

what is known.
• Explaining: creating a hypothesis (educated guess) to understand
why a behavior is practiced.
• Predicting: By studying past behaviors, future behaviors can be
predicted based upon theory
• Controlling :using what is known to influence future behavior.
(happen—starting it, maintaining it, stopping it, and influencing its
form, strength, or rate of occurrence. )
 Describe

• The first goal of psychology is to describe the different

ways that organisms behave.
• Sita says that when she was a child, she wondered what people
were saying to her because words were just lists of
meaningless sounds.
second goal of psychology is to explain the
causes of behavior.

• mother believed that illness was caused by evil spirits. Donna

thinks her illness may result from metabolic imbalance.
 Predict

• third goal of psychology is to predict how organisms will

behave in certain situations.
 control

• the fourth goal of psychology is to control an organism’s

behavior.
• Description, or naming and classifying, is typically based on
making a detailed record of scientific observations
 What Makes Psychology Unique?

• Psychology is the scientific study of the behavior and the

mental processes of individuals.
• The goals of psychology are to describe, explain, predict, and
help control behavior.
Wilhelm Wundt (/vʊnt/ (/vʊnt/; German:
[vʊnt] (/vʊnt/; German: [vʊnt]; 16 August
1832 – 31 August 1920) was a German
physician, physiologist, philosopher, and
professor, known today as one of the
founding figures of modern psychology.

who noted psychology as a sciencewho noted

psychology as a science apart from
philosophywho noted psychology as a
science apart from philosophy and biology
who noted psychology as a science apart
from philosophy and biology, was the first
person ever to call himself a psychologist

Wilhelm Wundt opened the Institute for

Alfred Binet (French: [binɛ]
(French: [binɛ]; July 8, 1857 –
October 18, 1911) was a French
psychologist (French: [binɛ]; July 8,
1857 – October 18, 1911) was a
French psychologist who invented the
first practical IQ test, the Binet–
Simon test. In 1904, the French
Ministry of Education asked
psychologist Alfred Binet to devise a
method that would determine which
students did not learn effectively from
regular classroom instruction so they
could be given remedial work.
Who wrote the first
textbook?

William James (January 11, 1842 –

August 26, 1910) was an American
philosopher and psychologist, and the
first educator to offer a psychology
course in the United States Father of
American psychology
• Today’s research encompasses both basic and applied science.
Basic research seeks theoretical knowledge for its own
sake, such as understanding the processes of learning and
memory.
• Applied research deals with practical problems, such as
how to help children with learning disabilities.
 Psychology Professions

Clinical Psychologist- diagnoses and treats people with emotional disturbances

(about ½ of all psychologists are clinical).

Counseling Psychologist- help people deal with problems / challenges of life.

Psychiatry- branch of medicine that deals with emotional and behavioral disorders.
Can prescribe medicine and is considered a medical doctor (M.D.) NOT a
psychologist.

Developmental Psychology- study of physical, emotional, cognitive, and social

changes that occur as individuals mature.

Educational Psychologist – study topics related to educating children such as

intelligence, memory, and problem solving.
 Psychology Professions
Community Psychologist – studies behavior in mental health or social welfare institution
in order to design run or evaluate programs for patients.

Industrial/Organizational Psychologist – studies concepts to make the workplace more

satisfying for employees and managers.

Experimental Psychologist – studies sensation, behavior, perception, learning,

motivation, and emotion in controlled laboratory conditions.
 
Forensic Psychologist – studies, diagnoses, and evaluates testimony regarding the law
and criminal behavior ( also includes effects of court on children, jury selection,
counseling victims)

Sports Psychology- studies athletics and athletic performance. Often use visualization to
help athletes mentally rehearse successful steps in completing tasks while
reducing negative thoughts of failure.
 
 PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES Unit 1 Part 2

Ravi Bhargava
THE BASES OF HUMAN
BEHAVIOUR
Biological Basis of Behaviour
Socio-Cultural Shaping of Behaviour
 After this chapter, you would be able to

• relate the functions of nervous system and endocrine

system to behaviour,
• explain the role of genetic factors in determining
behaviour,
• understand the role of culture in shaping human
behaviour,
 Contents

Biological Basis of Behaviour

• Neurons
Structure and Functions of Nervous System and
Endocrine System and their Relationship with
Behaviour and Experience
• The Nervous System
• The Endocrine System
Heredity: Genes and Behaviour
Cultural Basis : Socio-Cultural Shaping of Behaviour
 Introduction

Brain and body and systems of body

 BIOLOGICAL BASIS OF BEHAVIOUR

Neurons

Neuron is the basic unit of our nervous system.

• sensory nerve
Afferent
• Motor nerve
efferent
a nerve carrying impulses
from the brain or spinal
cord to a muscle or
gland
• Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)
• (Internal System means life support
heartbeat, breathing and blood circulation)
• Involuntary)
• Brain Structure And Function
Hind Brain

Medulla oblongata
• Life supporting, controls
autonomic functions such as
breathing, digestion, heart and
blood vessel function, swallowing .
Self controled
Pons
Dreams sleeping , and also control of
breathing
Cerebellum :motor
 MID

• Reticular Activating System

regulating wakefulness and sleep-wake transitions
transfer motor signals from the brain down to the brainstem
 Forebrain

considered to be the most

important part of the brain
because it performs all
cognitive,emotional, and
motor activities

• hypothalamus,
• thalamus,
• limbic system, and
• cerebrum.
 Hypothalamus

• Small but vital role in our behaviour

• Motivation level
• It regulates physiological processes involved in emotional and
motivational behaviour, such as eating, drinking, sleeping,
temperature regulation, and sexual arousal. It also regulates and
controls the internal environment of the body (e.g., heart rate, blood
pressure, temperature) and regulates the secretion of hormones from
various endocrine glands.
 Thalamus

receives all incoming sensory signals from sense organs and

sends them to appropriate parts of the cortex for
processing.

receives all outgoing motor signals coming from the cortex

and sends them to appropriate parts of the body.

relay station and autonomic system

the thalamus receives sensory information that it then sends

to the cerebral cortex. Think of it as a relay station
 The Limbic System

• Works along Hypothalamus

• emotional behaviour and long-term memory
The Cerebrum
endocrine system
• Pituitary Gland -growth
hormone-master gland

• Pancreas

Thyroid Gland underproduction

of thyroxin leads to physical
and psychological lethargy.
If thyroid gland is removed
in young animals, their
growth is stunted and they
fail to develop sexually.

• Adrenal Gland
• regulation of minerals in the
body, particularly sodium,
potassium,

• Estrogens and progesterone

• Testosterone in male
 HEREDITY : GENES AND BEHAVIOUR

• Genes
• Every chromosome stores thousands of genetic commands in
the form of genes.
• Genotype :passed on to the offspring through genetic material
• Phenotype: (e.g.,body built, physical strength, intelligence,
and other behavioural traits
 CULTURAL BASIS : SOCIO-CULTURAL
SHAPING OF BEHAVIOUR

Human behaviour is fundamentally social. It

involves relationships with other people,
reactions to their behaviour,
 ENCULTURATION

• the gradual acquisition of the characteristics and norms of a

culture or group by a person, another culture, etc..

EX:Cooking and visiting temple

 SOCIALISATION

• the process of learning to behave in a way that is acceptable to

society.

Socialisation Agents
• Parents and family members
• School
• Peer Groups
• Media Influences
 Acculturation

• cultural and psychological changes resulting from contact

with other cultures.
The endocrine system consists of the glands; pituitary gland, thyroid gland, adrenal
gland, pancreas and gonads. The hormones secreted by them play a crucial role in
behaviour and development.
• In addition to biological factors, culture is considered an important determinant of
human behaviour. If refers to the man-made part of the environment
• The brain is comprised of 3 major sections; the forebrain, the midbrain, and the hindbrain. The
forebrain is comprised of: the thalamus, the cerebrum, and hypothalamus. The midbrain houses
the tegmentum and the tectum. Finally, the hindbrain consists of the cerebellum, medulla, and the
pons (these are also referred to as the brainstem). There are also 4 lobes: the occipital lobe,
temporal lobe, frontal lobe, and finally the parietal lobe. Let’s cover what each portion of the brain
does:
• Temporal lobe: this lobe is associated with hearing, speech, memory, and it also has a part of
emotions
• Occipital lobe: this lobe is responsible for vision
• Frontal lobe: involved with emotion, reasoning, movement, judgment, and planning
• Parietal lobe: involved with movement, recognition, sense of touch, language, and even
temperature
• Thalamus: the thalamus receives sensory information that it then sends to the cerebral cortex.
Think of it as a relay station
• Cerebrum: comprised of different parts, is responsible for learning, memory, language, sensory
processing, smell, and movement
• Hypothalamus: this controls body temperature, hunger, thirst, emotion, and sleep
• Cerebellum: is responsible for movement and coordination
• Medulla oblongata: besides being responsible for why alligators are so cranky, the medulla
oblongata controls breathing, digestion, sneezing, swallowing, and heart function