Class notes Psy1011 LooseLeaf for Essentials of Understanding Psychology

Vanessa Smith

Introduction to Psychology: Chapter 1

Wednesday January 29,2025

Psychologists at Work:

 What do psychologists study?
 Behavior
 Mental Processes

Why?

 The major subfields of psychology.
 PsyD, PhD, Psychiatrist, Therapists
 Where can psychology majors work?
A Science Evolves:

 Ancient Greeks
 British philosopher John Locke
 Tabula rasa (blank slate)

Laboratories developed to study psychology of the mind and influencing factors.
Five Major Perspectives:

 Neuroscience Perspective
o Views behavior from the perspective of biological functioning
 Cognitive
o Examines how people understand and think about the world.
 Behavioral
o Focuses on observable behavior.
 Humanistic
o Contends that people can control their behavior and that they naturally try to reach their
full potential.
 Psychodynamic
o Believes behavior is motivated by inner unconscious forces over which a person has little
control.
Research in Psychology:
The Scientific Method: the approach through which psychologists systematically acquire
knowledge and understanding about behavior and other phenomena of interest.

Identify questions of interest: