Psychology is the science where
mental process and behavior, which
are measurable actions, are studied. Psychology is a social science. However it
also includes natural sciences. The goal of this unpredictable science is to
have a better understanding of the mind processes and behavior. Psychology has become a very common career. However,
there are many branches in the psychological career. These include clinical,
counseling, school, educational, developmental, social, and experimental
psychologists. However it has been a
long road of theories and thinking to get so advanced in this field while getting
a better understanding of the mind.
Psychology first began in
Ancient Greece with a philosopher called Socrates by advising his students to,
” Know thyself”. Socrates said much could be learned of individual humans by
observing thoughts and feelings. This is known as introspection. Later Aristotle paid attention to associationism which is a method where
mental process works through associating. Also Hippocrates suggested that
disorders were problems in the brain, and not punishments from the gods.
There was a tip in scientific
advancements. It was the time where modern psychology was officially born.
Laboratories were established to support ideas about behavior with evidence. Structuralism is a field of
experimental psychology. It is interested in finding the fundamental elements
of consciousness that is broken down into two parts including objective
sensation which are sensory reflections from the world and subjective feelings
which are the emotional responses of these reflections. Structuralism is a way of introspection.
On the other hand, functionalism also
used introspection but also used
behavioral observations. Structurialists focused on the relationship between
the continuous experience and behavior. These functionalists expressed how
adaptive behavior are not only learned but as also kept, becoming habits due to
their success. Behaviorism agrees to
functionalism. Behaviorism states
that human consciousness is only known to the individual itself because it is a
private event. Reinforcement is the
idea that when one is rewarded for an action, the action will be repeated. This
is done with circus animals and works also with humans. The Gestalt School shows
that we think differently depending on the context, influencing in our
interpretation. This school states that
learning is done active/purposeful or through insight and not mechanical as structuralists believed. Psychoanalysis focuses on unconscious
reasons as well as inner conflicts. It has the idea that unconscious is more
important than conscious. Examples of these are slip of the tongue or the
meaning of the dream. They are hidden impulses hiding from society.
Biological perspective is interested in processes in our biological
system affecting behavior. These are seen through tests (CAT,PET)showing which
parts of brain are involved in mental processes. Evolutionary perspective focuses on how behavior has evolved and
how they can be transmitted through evolution or heredity. Due to these
tendencies, people act in a specific way. Cognitive
perspective focuses on how we use mental process to understand human
nature. It also shows how people’s behavior is influenced by values,
perceptions and choices. Humanistic
perspective emphasizes on how we are self-aware of our consciousness while
taking choices and inventing ourselves. It demonstrates how experience is
fundamental to comprehend human nature. Psychoanalytical
perspective is more focused on unconsciousness and how it influences our
behavior. These can be seen in certain impulses. Learning perspective shows us how humans learn through experience
or by seeing others. It also shows that due to experience, individuals act a
certain way in different environments. Sociocultural
perspective studies ethnicity or ethnic
groups, culture, and economic status showing how these affect mental
process and create differences. For example, gender affects self-concepts.
The
most important is cognitive perspective.
It is the most important because in this contemporary perspective, values are
the ones that control perception, behavior, thoughts, and choices. If there
were no values, there would be a society in chaos. People wouldn´t have the
inner voice telling them what is right or wrong, so humans would simply do
anything that pleases people. This is why society implements rules or values
and so does religion. People follow values so that they can take good choices
that will please God because they fear hell. However all contemporary
perspectives explained were of importance. Thanks to all the steps and how
thoughts have evolved general psychological thinking, including the schools
through evolution, the understanding of psychology is how it is defined today. 
Animals taught
through reinforcement