Foundations of Psychology

Connie Hess

PSY/300

01/14/2013
Donielle Turner

Foundations of Psychology

Over the years different theories have been established to help understand peoples actions throughout their lives. Psychology is the scientific investigation of mental processes and behavior. Two of the main schools of thought in psychology are structuralism and functionalism. Structuralism was developed by Edward Titchener, he attempted to to use introspection to uncover the basic elements of consciousness and the way they combine with one another into ideas.” Ticehener thought that the only way to fully understand science psychology was through expermination. He implied that people possessed too much free will to be scientifically useful. The other school of thought was Functionalism it emphasizes the role or function that helps people adapt to their environment. Fucntionalist would rather focus on the elements of consciousness and empasizd individual differences, which had an impact on education. The different schools of psychology represent the major theories within psychology.
Behaviorism became a dominant school of thought during the 1950s. Behaviorism suggests that all behavior can be explained by environmental causes rather than by internal forces. Behaviorism is focused on observable behavior. Theories of learning including classical conditioning and operant conditioning were the focus of a great deal of research.
Psychoanalysis is a school of psychology founded by Sigmund Freud. This school of thought emphasizes the influence of the unconscious mind on behavior. Freud believed that the human mind was composed of three elements:the id , the ego and the superego.
Humanistic psychology developed as a response to psychoanalysis and behaviorism. Humanistic psychology instead focused on individual free will, personal growth and self-actualization.
Gestalt psychology is a school of psychology based