Essence of

Psychology
Chapter One
2 The meaning and definition of psychology
• Meaning; "psychology"() is derived from two Greek words
'psyche' and ‘logos’.

• Psyche; mind, soul or sprit, while Logos means study, knowledge

or discourse.

• "psychology" simply refers to the study of the mind, soul, or sprit.

• Definition; scientific study of behavior and mental processes.

3 Goals of Psychology

A. Description: What is happening?‘ Where does it happen?‘ To whom does

it happen?‘ And under what circumstances does it seem to happen?.

B. Explanation: Why is it happening? Explanation is about trying to find

reasons for the observed behavior.

C. Prediction: is about determining what will happen in the future.

D. Control: How can it be changed? Control or modify or change the

behavior from undesirable to a desirable one.
4 Historical Roots of Psychology

A. Early Schools of Psychology

 In their object of study, (Conscious mind, unconscious mind
and overt behavior).

 In their goal (analyze the components of the mind or the

function, and observing the effect of the environment on
behavior).

 In their method (Introspection, observation, clinical case studies

etc...).
5 1. Structuralism
 Edward Titchener is the founder of school.

 The goal was to find out the units or elements, which make up the
mind (sensations, images and feelings).

 The best-known method used was Introspection.

 Introspection- subjects were trained to report their own sensations,

mental images and emotional reactions.
6 2. Functionalism
• The founder is William James; he was the first to publish psychology
textbook.

• Emphasized the function or purpose of behavior or how mind

affects what people do.

• Mental processes allow humans to survive and to adapt

successfully to their surroundings.

• Used more objective research methods other than introspection,

including questionnaires, mental tests and objective descriptions of
behavior.
7 3. Gestalt Psychology

 Max Wertheimer is the founder of the school.

 The German ward "gestalt" refers to form, whole, configuration or

pattern.

 They held that "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.“

 Mind should be thought of as a result from the whole pattern of

sensory activity and the relation ships and organizations with in
their pattern.
8 4. Behaviorism
John B. Watson is the founder of behaviorism.

For him, psychology was the study of observable and measurable

behavior and nothing more about hidden mental processes.

We cannot define consciousness any more than we can define soul.

He believed that all behaviors are learned but not inherited and
learners are passive and reactive.
9 5. Psychoanalysis
Sigmund Freud is the founder of this school of thought

The unconscious part of the mind, containing hidden wishes,

passions, guilty secrets, unspeakable yearnings, and conflict
between desire and duty.

Unconscious urges and thoughts known in dreams, slip of

the tongue, apparent accidents and even jokes.
10 B. Modern Perspective
The theories intended to explain human behavior and mental
process

Nature; biological make up, instinct ( biological programing)

Nurture; environmental influence ( learning, socialization and culture)

11 1. Biological Perspective

Emphasize the influence of nature.

Focuses on how bodily events or functioning of the body affect

behaviors, feelings and thoughts.

Genetic heritage can predispose us to behave in a certain ways.

Physical appearance

Chemical imbalance ( Hormone and neurotransmitter)

12 2. Learning (Behaviorist) Perspective
Focus on environmental influences

Every behavior is learned

Peoples are reactor to environmental stimulus

Will learn behavior through

Classical conditioning
Operant conditioning
13 3. Cognitive Perspective

Emphasizes what goes on in people's heads; how people

reason, remember, understand language, solve problems,
explain experiences and form beliefs.

Show how people's thoughts and explanations affect their

actions, feelings and choices.

Peoples are creator and actor of their own environment

14 4. Socio-Cultural Perspective

Focuses on the social and cultural forces or factors out side the
individual affects human behavior.

Humans are both the producers and the products of culture.

As a fish cannot leave without water, human behavior cannot be

understood without sociocultural context

Do we look like our society and culture?

15 5. Psychodynamic Perspective

Emphasizes unconscious dynamics with in the individual such as inner

forces, conflicts or instinctual energy.

Child personality determines adult personality.

Conflict underlines most human behavior.

Try to dig blow the surface of unconscious motives; they think of

themselves as archaeologists of the mind.
16
6. Humanistic Perspective

Emphasizes the uniqueness of human being and focuses on human

values and subjective experience.

Place greater importance on the individual’s free will.

Goal; help people to express them selves creatively and achieve their
full potential or self-actualization.
17 Research method in Psychology
Descriptive research

Correlational research

Experimental research
18 Descriptive study
This type of research, the researcher simply records what
systematically observed.

Descriptive research methods include;

Naturalistic observation
Case studies
Surveys
19 Correlational study
Involves determining two or more variables are related in systematic
way.

The interpretation correlational findings basis on the sigh (+ or -) and

the number show the strength of relationship.

But, does not show cause and effect relationship

E.g. The relationship of watching violence TV programs and Aggressive
behavior.
20 Experimental study
Use to examine the cause and effect relationship among variables
Two variables;
Independent variable; is the manipulated, influential, experimental
factor.
Dependent variable; factor (behavior) that is measured in an
experiment. It can change as the independent variable is
manipulated.
Two groups
Control groups
Experimental groups
21 Sub-fields in Psychology
1. Developmental psychology; studies about human development started
from conception to death.

2. Educational psychology; studies about curriculum, teaching and

educational administration.

3. Social psychology; study how people affect and are affected by others
in the social situation.

4. School psychology; studies about the improvement of the academic

performance of students.
22 Cont.…
5. Counseling psychology; help people with moderate /normal/ problems.

6. Clinical psychology; diagnoses and treats emotional and behavioral

disorders that range from mild to very sever.

7. Industrial psychology; applies psychological principles in industries

and organizations in order to increase productivity of that
organizations.

8. Health psychology; applies psychology to the prevention medical

condition, specially non-communicable diseases
Sensation and perception

Chapter Two
24 What is Sensation?
Process of dealing with the external world through your sensory
receptors or sense organs.

Process of receiving physical or stimuli energies; light ,heat, sound,

smell and test via, receptors like eyes, skin, ears, nose and tongue.

Sensation can also define as the raw sensory data or material, that
the brain receives from the different sense organs.
25 Cont.…

Transduction: The sensory process that converts energy, such as light

or sound waves, into the form of neural messages (such as light and
dark).
26 Characteristics of Sensation
A. Quality

B. Intensity

C. Duration

D. Extensity
27 Measuring Senses
Thresholds: Level at which one can detect a stimulus or change of
stimulus.

Absolute Threshold: the smallest quantity of physical energy that can be

reliably detected by an observer.

Minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the

time. example; What is the softest sound you can hear? What is the
dimmest light you can see?
28 Cont.…
29 Difference Threshold
The smallest difference in stimulation that can be reliably detected
by an observer when two stimuli are compared.

Also called Just Noticeable Difference (JND).

N.B. Both vary across persons and situations.

30 Sensory Adaptation and Deprivation
Sensory adaptation: The reduction or disappearance of sensory
responsiveness when stimulation is unchanging or repetitious.

Prevents us from having to continuously respond to unimportant

information.

Deprivation/ subliminal: The absence of normal levels of sensory

stimulation.

A level at which the person have less than 50% chance of detecting
stimulus
31 Sensory Overload
Overstimulation of the senses.

Can use selective attention to reduce sensory overload.

Selective attention: The focusing of attention on selected aspects

of the environment and the blocking out of others.
32 Perception
Process of selecting , organizing and give meaning (Interpreting) to the
information we receive from the senses.

Is our conscious experience of what our senses are telling us.

Therefore, sensation refers to the initial steps in the processing of a

perception.

Characteristics of Perception
Selectivity
Organization
Interpretation
33 Selectivity of Perception
At any given moment our sense organs are bombarded by a multitude
stimuli. Only few of them will be perceived.

Attention is a basic factor in perception, it refers to the process of

focusing awareness and thought.

Attention constantly shifts from one stimulus to another.

The direction of our attention shifting is determined by two general

classes of factors.
External factors/Objective determinants/
Internal factors/Subjective determinants/
34 External factors/Objective determinants
Intensity and size

Contrast

Repetition

Movement

Novelty
35 Internal factors/Subjective determinants
Motives: Our needs and interest govern our attention.

Set or expectancy: We perceive what we expect to perceive.

- Proof readers often fail to detect miss spelt words.
36 Organizational principles
There are different organizational through which sensory
information is grouped.
Figure-ground
Grouping
Figure is the aspect of the sensory experience that stands out and is
the center of attention.

Ground is the field against which the figure stands out.

Objects are perceived against their background.

37
38 Grouping
 Proximity
Seeing 3 pair of lines in A.
 Similarity
Seeing columns of orange and
red dots in B.
 Continuity
Seeing lines that connect 1 to 2
and 3 to 4 in C.
 Closure
Seeing a horse in D.
39 Depth and Distance Perception
Perceptual processes function in the three‐dimensional organization
of stimuli as well as in distance judgments.

The processes include use of both monocular and binocular cues.

Involves judging the distance of objects from us.

40 Visual Illusions
Illusions are valuable in understanding perception because they
are systematic errors.

In the Muller-Lyer illusion we tend to perceive the line on the

right as slightly longer than the one on the left.
41 The Ponzo Illusion
 Linear perspective provides
context

 Side lines seem to converge

 Top line seems farther away

 But the retinal images of the

red lines are equal!
42 Context Effects
 The same physical stimulus can
be interpreted differently

 We use other cues in the

situation to resolve ambiguities
43 Interpretation
This final stage of perception is called interpretation.

After selectively sorting through incoming sensory information and

organizing it into patterns, the brain uses this information to explain
and make judgments about the external world.

Like selection, the process of interpretation is also influenced by

several factors. The following can be examples.
Beliefs
Emotion
Learning and experience
44 Extrasensory Perception
Extrasensory Perception (ESP): The ability to perceive something
without ordinary sensory information

This has not been scientifically demonstrated

Four types of ESP:

Telepathy: Mind-to-mind communication
Clairvoyance: Perception of remote events
Precognition: Ability to see future events
Psychokinetic (Mind Over Matter): Purported ability to influence
inanimate objects by willpower
45
Learning
Chapter Three
47 What is Learning?
• The most commonly used definition of learning; “A relatively permanent
change in knowledge or behavior as a result of experience and training.”

Change in behavior: this is the standard against which we judge whether

learning has occurred or not.

Relatively permanent

The change does not include changes due to illness/injuries, fatigue, or

intoxication.
48 Characteristics of learning
1. Learning is continuous modification of behavior throughout life.

2. Learning is pervasive, it reaches into all aspects of human life.

3. Learning involves the whole person, socially, emotionally &

intellectually.

4. Learning is often a change in the organization of experiences.

5. Learning is an active process, which require incentives response.

6. Learning is purposeful.

7. Learning depends on maturation, motivation and practice.

49 Reading Assignment

Principles of learning
50 Factor that influence learning

Motivation Good working conditions

Maturation Background experiences

Health condition Length of the working period

Psychological wellbeing Massed and distributed

learning
51 Theories of Learning
 Behavioral views of learning

 Classical conditioning ( Ivan Pavlov)

 Operant conditioning ( B.F. skinner, E. Thorndike)

 Cognitive views of learning

 Latent ( hidden) learning (Tolman and C.H. Honzik)

 Insight learning (Wolfgang Kohler)

 Social learning theory

 Observational learning ( Albert Bandura)

52 Behavioral theories
1. Classical condition:
E. Pavlov

Learning by association

Helps to explain involuntary behavior

Stimulus and responses

Unconditioned stimulus (UCS)
Unconditioned response (UCR)
Neutral stimulus (NS)
Conditioned stimulus (CS)
Conditioned response (CR)
53
54 Principle of Classical Conditioning

Acquisition
The initial stage of learning, during which a response is established
and gradually strengthened

CR to CS

Extinction

Diminishing of a CR

When a UCS does not follow a CS

55 Cont…
Spontaneous recovery

Reappearance, after a rest period, of an extinguished CR

Generalization

Tendency for a stimuli similar to CS to evoke similar responses

Discrimination

The ability to distinguish between a CS and other stimuli that do

not signal and UCS
56 Cont…
Higher order conditioning:
Second order condition

CS paired with new NS

To make conditioning effective;

 The time laps between the presentations of the two stimuli (CS&UCS) should

be small ranging from half to a few seconds.

 The CS should present before the presentation of the UCS (sometimes

simultaneously).
57 Operant Condition

E. Thorndike’s and B.F. Skinner

 Consequence strengthens or weakens a S–R connection

 Better at explaining voluntary behaviors

The consequence is;

Reinforcement; to increase the occurrence of the behavior

Punishment; to decrease the occurrence of the behavior

58
59 Types of Reinforcement
 Primary Reinforces: Innately satisfying

 Secondary Reinforces: Repeated association with a pre-existing

reinforce, become satisfying through experience

 Continuous Reinforcement

 Partial Reinforcement

Ratio: Reinforcement depends on amount of responses

Interval: Reinforcement depends on time interval

60
61 Effective Punishment

 Ways to make punishment effective

1. Immediacy

2. Intensity

3. Consistency

4. Explanations/ justifications
62
63 Cognitive theories of learning

This approach defines learning as a relatively permanent change in

mental associations due to experience.

The learner as an active participant in the process of knowledge

acquisition and integration.

The approach includes;

Latent learning

Insight learning /’Ahha’/

Observational Learning
64 Cont.…
Tolman and C.H. Honzik (1930)

Latent learning is a form of learning that is not immediately expressed

in an overt response.
65 Cont…

The assumption is an organism learns a new concept in its life;

however, the knowledge is not immediately expressed.

Instead, it remains dormant, and may not be available to

consciousness, until specific events/experiences might need this

knowledge to be demonstrated.
66 Insight learning

 Wolfgang Kohler

 Insight learning is a type of learning or problem solving that happens

all-of-a-sudden through understanding the relationship of various

parts of a problem rather than through trial and error.

 What has been learnt can also be applied early to other similar

situations.
67 Cont…

In insight learning, the following events occur:

The solution comes suddenly after a period during which various

response strategies are tried.

There is perceptual rearrangement.

The solution, once got, can be generalized rather to other similar

problems.
68 Observational Learning
Albert Bandura: Social Cognitive Theory

Learning that occurs when a person observes and imitates behavior

(modeling).

Four processes

- Attention, Retention, Motor reproduction and Reinforcement

69 Cont.…
Vicarious Learning; learning that occur by observing the consequence
of the behavior in other peoples, not the behavior but the consequence.
70