INTRODUCTION TO
PSYCHOLOGY.
BY EDDAH JEPKORIR
INTRODUCTION
Objectives
Define Psychology
Explain early schools of psychology
Explain historical evolution of psychology to present day status
Explain the basic and applied(Professional) aspects of
psychology
State scientific nature of psychology
Describe the methods of research applied in psychology
Identify modern perspectives of psychology.
Relevance of psychology in Health.
Definition and evolution of Psychology
Psychology today is defined as the scientific study of human
mind and its functions, especially those affecting behavior
in a given context.
Initially psychology was a branch of philosophy that
explained human nature from
metaphysical(unscientific)perspective.
For example a poor student in class would be out of curse
which is metaphysical unlike more realistic explanation
which could be from sources such as social problems.
CONT.
Scientific-psychologists attempt to understand
people and animals by learning about them
through carefully controlled observation.
Behavior- consider it as directly observable and
measurable actions, for example you smile when u
meet a friend.
Mental/cognitive processes- Are the internal
or private psychological activities such as
thinking,feeling,perceiving and memory.
EARLY SCHOOLS OF PSYCHOLOGY
The development of modern scientific psychology
was pioneered by studies that resulted in many
schools of thought namely:
Structuralism
Functionalism
Behaviorism
Gestalt psychology
Structuralism
First school of thought in [Link]
introduced by Wilhelm Wundt a German
physiologist in [Link] considered psychology as
the study of conscious experience and therefore
focused on the components or structure of the mind.
Attempts to examine human mind in terms of
analyzing basic components of thoughts and
sensations
Data was collected through a method called
introspection which involved observing and
analyzing one's own conscious mental process.
Introspection was later criticised as not being
scientific enough.
Functionalism
A model that largely replaced structuralism in
the evolution of psychology.
Proposed by William James an American
psychologist in early 1900’s.
Rather than focusing on the components of the
mind, it concentrated on what the mind does.
It asked what roles behavior played in allowing
people to better adapt to their environment.
To functionalists,behavior is influenced by key
concepts such as thinking,perception,learning
and bilological state of the organism.
Behaviorism
John Watson introduced it after criticizing introspection
which was generally subjective in nature-only the
individual can observe and understand their mental
processes.
Behaviorism emphasized the role of learning in acquiring
behavior so it proposes that almost all our behaviors are
learned.
Gestalt Psychology
It focused on the study of how perception is organized
therefore criticized both functionalism and behaviorism.
They argued that the “whole is different from the sum of its
parts” therefore study of consciousness and private mental
processes is essential to Gestalt psychologists.
Modern perspectives of Psychology
Biological Perspective
Assume that behavior is determined by our biological
make up that is; the genes, nervous and endocrine
systems eg in cure of dxs ie antipsychotic drugs.
Cognitive Perspective
Our actions are profoundly influenced by the way we
interpret our experiences. So mental
processes(cognitions) such as
thoughts,expectations,perceptions and memories are
used to help us processes information and this in turn
influences our perception of the world and hence our
[Link] eg we tend to like good people and unlike
bad people.
Cont.
Psychodynamic Perspective
The mind is the source of behavioral energy hence
this perspective places heavy emphasis on motives
and mental conflicts especially the unconscious
motives and conflicts of which the individual has
little awareness and control.
In connection to this therefore, dreams and slips of
the tongue are viewed as indications of what a
person is truly feeling but represented in the
unconscious part of the mind.
Cont….
Sociocultural Perspective
Based on the assumption that one’s
personalities,beliefs,attitudes and skills are learned from
others.
Further states that it is necessary to understand one’s
culture, ethnic identity and other sociocultural factors such
as gender and socioeconomic status to fully understand a
person better.
Humanistic Perspective
It emphasizes human ability, growth and potential.
Associated with Abraham Maslow's and Carl Rogers and to
them, people have a free will to make choices that affect
their lives ie the actualizing tendencies toward wealth,
education and leadership.
Behavioral Perspective
It suggest that observable behavior should be the
focus of psychology therefore one could gain
complete understanding of behavior by studying
and modifying the environment in which people
operates.
Branches of Psychology
Developmental Psychology
We learn about the development of psychomotor
mental(cognitive),social, emotional and personality
characteristics during ones life span.
Abnormal Psychology
Studies behavior and mental disorders, emotional
disturbances and deviant [Link] includes topics such as
sexual abnormalities, drug abuse and criminal activities.
Social Psychology
Looks at how individuals operates with the influence of
others. Topics such as group processes,attitude,conformity
and interpersonal attraction are studied under this branch.
Cont.
Comparative Psychology
Also known as animal psychology and it studies human and
animal behavior from a comparative perspective.
Physiological Psychology
Involves studies of the ways in which the nervous system, the
endocrine system and genetic factors provide a basis for
behavior.
Cognitive Psychology
concerned with understanding cognitive processes such as
intelligence,thinking,perception,memory,attention,problemso
lving and how these processes influence behavior.
This is the modern version of the structuralism discussed
earlier.
Cont..
Psychometrics
This is the science that focuses on the principles
involved in measuring human attributes such as
personality,learning,cognitive processes such as
memory, perception and intelligence.
APPLIED BRANCHES OF PSYCHOLOGY
Health Psychology
It explores the relationship between psychological factors
and physical ailments or [Link] how long-term
stress can affect physical stress.
Clinical Psychology
A branch that deals with the study, diagnosis and
treatment of mental disorders or abnormal behavior.
Counseling Psychology
Like clinical psychology,counselling psychology deals
with people’s psychological problems but they are
problems of a lesser degree. It focuses primarily on
education career and social adjustment problems.
Cont..
Educational Psychology
This specialization considers how the education process
affects students. For example its concerned with ways of
understanding intelligence, developing better teaching
techniques and understanding teacher-student
interaction.
Industrial-Organizational Psychology
Concerned with psychology of the work place.
Specifically it consider issues such as productivity, job
satisfaction and decision making. A related branch is
consumer psychology which analyzes people’s buying
habits and effects of advertisement on buyer behavior.
TYPES OF RESEARCH METHODOLOGY IN
PSYCHOLOGY
Archival Research
Involve examination of existing records for the purpose of
confirming a hypothesis. Such records may include newspaper
[Link] use of hospital records to find the relationship
between gender, socioeconomic status and religion and
certain types of illnesses.
Naturalistic Observation
Here the researcher simply observes some naturally occurring
behavior and does not intervene in the situation
Survey Research
Involves sampling a group of people by assessing their
behavior, thoughts or attitudes through interviews and
questionnaires and then generalizing the findings.
Cont..
Case study
This is an in depth investigation of an individual or small
group of people. for example a child psychologist may
use this method to study child’s language development.
Co relational Research
Applied to determine the relationship between two
behaviors or between responses to two questions on a
questionnaire.
Experimental Research
Carried out through experiments to establish a cause-
effect [Link] between two or more variables
which for example can be behaviors and events using
experimental group and control group.
Goals of Psychology
Describe
Psychologist analyzes the thoughts, feelings, actions and goals of
people through the help of various case studies, observations and
survey.
Once a psychologist can describe a behavior or phenomenon,
they can use that as a basis for learning more about the behavior.
Many psychologists have studied animals in order to learn more
about human behavior.
Explain
Why does the behavior occur? Under what
circumstances will it occur again?
In order to explain a behavior; Psychologist must
conduct experiments to ensure that the behavior is not
an anomaly.
If there’s only one person exhibiting this behavior, it
certainly isn’t a cultural norm.
Predict
• Based on past observed behavior, a psychologist aims to
predict how that behavior will appear again in the
future and if other people will exhibit the same
behavior.
• Pavlov in his experiment predicted that the new neutral
stimulus-the bell-would become a conditioned stimulus
if presented with food enough times.
Control
• It meant that teachers could take control of their
classroom easier, parents could teach their children to
exhibit good behavior and manipulative older siblings
could control the behaviors of their younger siblings.
Relevance of psychology in Health.
1. Understanding Health Behaviors
Psychology helps explain why people engage in
certain health-related behaviors such as:
Smoking, drinking, and substance use
Poor dietary habits
Lack of exercise or sleep
Psychological theories (e.g., Health Belief Model,
Theory of Planned Behavior) are used to develop
interventions that encourage healthier choices.
2. Behavior Change and Health Promotion
Psychologists design and implement programs to
promote:
Physical activity
Balanced diet
Adherence to medical treatments
Stress reduction
These programs are essential for managing chronic
diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and
cardiovascular conditions.
3. Coping with Illness
Psychology helps individuals manage the emotional
and mental challenges associated with illnesses, such
as:
Anxiety and depression in cancer or HIV patients
Adjustment to chronic conditions like arthritis or
multiple sclerosis
Coping strategies for pain, disability, or terminal
illness
4. Psychosomatic Disorders
Some physical symptoms are directly influenced by
psychological factors.
Conditions such as:
Ulcers
Irritable bowel syndrome
Tension headaches
can be worsened or even caused by stress and
anxiety, showing the mind-body connection.
5. Improving Doctor-Patient Relationships
Psychology improves communication skills,
empathy, and cultural competence among healthcare
providers, which:
Enhances patient satisfaction
Increases adherence to treatment
Reduces medical errors
6. Mental Health Services
Psychologists diagnose and treat mental health
disorders such as:
Depression
Anxiety
PTSD
Schizophrenia
Substance use disorders
These services are crucial for overall well-being and
complement physical health care.
7. Health Psychology and Research
Health psychologists conduct research to:
Understand how psychological, biological, and social
factors influence health
Develop and evaluate health interventions
Inform health policies
8. Support in Public Health
Psychologists contribute to:
Designing behavior change campaigns (e.g., HIV
prevention, vaccination uptake)
Managing public health crises (e.g., pandemics)
Promoting mental health awareness
Any Questions?
THANK YOU
