Psych sample notes

Why Psych 105? Misconceptions of Psychology Concern since 1st meeting of the APA Only 50% believe scientific approach benefits understanding human behavior Good News Increased recognition of psychology as a science ?but don?t ride off into the sunset yet? Bad News People don?t know what that means Public Paradox People want Psychology to answer big questions What is the mind/consciousness? Am I normal? How do I make life decisions? How do I get revenge on my X? How do I find happiness? How do I find true love? ?but fear what Psychology might reveal Uncover things we don?t want to know Promote unwanted changes (bad tasting medicine) Demystify mysteries (Love, ESP, etc.) Conflict with other beliefs Spiritual/religious, abortion, capital punishment, terrorism (mirror-images), etc? ?but don?t understand that science doesn?t answer big questions Neither do others? Biologists/doctors and life? Lawyers and ethics? Artists and beauty? Serious Media Doesn?t Help 4 national UK channels Showed 560 hours of programming Devoted 3½ hours to science ? mostly natural history The Times (UK) Average of .5% of text is science coverage Scientific sources Named much less frequently when source was social rather than natural scientist When named Natural scientists more likely o be called scientists Social scientists more likely to be called authors or writers Popular Media Doesn?t Help How are psychologists portrayed on screen? Dr. Dippy ? crazier than his patients Dr. Evil ? corrupt mind-controller/homicidal maniac Dr. Wonderful ? caring and competent, endless time for patients, cures by uncovering single traumatic event Dr. Rigid ? strict killjoy Dr. Line-Crosser ? inappropriate relationships with patients Misconceptions about: Disorders Procedures Careers ?Psychologists are obsessed with rats and dreams? If you like rats or dreams, and above all, if you dream about rats, you should major in psychology? ? Dave Barry Suggests Psychology is self-help ?recipe knowledge? 1st ? do this 2nd ? do this 3rd ? do this Suggests Psychologists and Psychiatrists are for the weak minded Suggests evangelist psychologists are experts Dr. Phil, Dr. Laura Pop books/articles typically not written by scientific psychologists They publish in journals No law against publishing wrong information in a book and claiming it is true Pseudoscience and Parapsychology don?t help Suggests pseudo-science and parapsychology are part of psychology! Creates confusion about Psychology?s goals, methods, careers? credibility! Psychologists Don?t Help!! Don?t take role as public commentator seriously Only a few put legitimate psychological research in a form accessible to the common person Few rewards Are we really surprised that? People don?t understand educational requirements 83% believed that daily life experiences provided adequate training in psychology Vocational descriptions of psychologists correlated weakly with those of scientists Central characterization of psychology involved work with abnormal phenomena Misconceptions are Pervasive Children have similar perceptions of psychology (The Santa Clause) Full-time faculty at Old Dominion!!! Believed psychology required less expertise than the hard sciences (required less expertise) Associated psychology with mental illness and treatment Introductory psychology students Asked to evaluate information like psychologists Acted more like intuitive judges than scientists (go with gut feeling) Most interested/expect to learn about social interactions Least interested in ?scientific? aspects Anatomy, physiology and biopsychology, statistics, measurement, and research methods Example comments at END of Intro Psychology Psychology experiments are not real life; what can they tell us? Psychology just can?t be a real science like chemistry, can it? But I heard a therapist on TV day the opposite of what our textbook says. Confusion for GRADUATING PSY majors What can I do with my degree? How can I get the job I want? Do I HAVE to go to grad school? Most PSYCH courses? Focus on CONTENT Little about how to think about the content As a skeptic, consumer, user, etc. Lessons on evaluating evidence implicit Fail to correct misconceptions about PSY as a? Science Process Career Do You Mind? Mind-Body Debate Drove development of Psychology Still does Important questions What is the mind? How does it interact with the brain? Implications of answers What is the mind made of? Physical matter vs. Spiritual matter Who would give advice about the mind? Religious leaders Philosophers (early academicians) Early doctors (scientists) Mind vs. Body Biology Mind vs. Soul Religion Mind as a reflection of truth? a tool for determining truth? Philosophy The Religious Mind The mind is the soul Your identity Eternal The body Vessel for the soul/spirits ?Ghost in the Machine? Behavior Good behavior = follows religious codes of conduct Bad behavior = demonic possession Stone Age Evil spirits can reside in the head Early exorcism Drill holes in head to release spirits (most likely had mental illnesses) 1400 BC Vedic priests purge ?angry demons? to cure patients 1000 BC The Etruscans, Greeks, Egyptians believe deities responsible for health and illness Saint Augustine (354-430) God endows free will For humans to be good, they must be able to choose to do good Makes connection between human thinking (choice) and human nature (behavior) Identifies different kinds of though in the mind Devine thinking (faith) Thoughts are given to you by God Derived (reason) thinking Tension between (soul) faith and (body) appetites (lust, greed) Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Age 20 ? joins Dominican habit, kidnapped by family Interested in reconciliation between faith and reason Most known for: Doctrine of double truths Faith and reason are legitimate separate ways of knowing Something can be true in rational philosophy, but false in religious belief We can argue and debate the mind without jeopardizing our faith) CAN argue and debate about natural phenomena and religion without losing faith Body and soul are united Emotion must be understood holistically ? in terms of its physiological and psychological qualities But, believed in a separable immortal soul with cognitive abilities?!?! Middle Ages Clergy treat the abnormal Mental illness might not be caused by demonic possession Could be biologically or environmentally driven Early milieu therapy Calm places ? monasteries and abbeys ? people tend to get better when put here YES IT IS!!! Malleus Maleficarum (Hammer of Witches) published by Dominican Monks Fuels witch hunt craze Pope, King of Rome, University of Cologne approve the book Thousands of mentally ill burned and executed throughout Europe Accused of being under the influence of the devil Joan of Arc Monty Python clip Renaissance Changes in attitudes about religion Rise in value of logic and science Galileo Newton Views about mental illness begin to shift to physical causes Contributions to modern Psychology Mind = identity/personality Mind is distinctly different from the body (biology) Mentally ill need help/care (Milieu therapy) Thought can come from the body and affect behavior There are different kinds of thought Contributions to misunderstandings Psychology = paranormal Ghosts and out of body experience Identity = free floating eternal spirit ?Therapist? = spiritual leader? Seek spiritual counselors True helpers Psychic healers 54% believe in psychic healers Faith healers Mentally ill Evil, dangerous Should be feared and tortured so that evil spirits leave them alone Brutal ?therapies? Holes in head Exorcism The Philosophical Mind The body Filters input into mind (sensation and perception) When someone is backing up and you think you are moving Sometimes does not provide accurate information Contents of the mind Where does knowledge come from? Origin of thought and Psamtik I, King of Egypt Natural language = Phrygian, not Egyptian Functions of the mind Logical, critical thinking = truest knowledge Olympian Religion Greek gods with strong personalities Soul survived death, but memories and personalities do not Dionysiac-Orphic Religion Dionsyus ? God of wine and grapes Transmigration of the soul (reincarnation) Soul imprisoned in physical body as punishment Plato Brain is seat of soul Transmigration of souls Some knowledge is innate (Nativist) 3 part dualistic soul (Mind and Body) Immortal/rational part MIND Courageous (emotional) part BODY Appetitive part (body desires/drives) BODY Conflict and Personality If rational part dominates, suppress other 2 ( true knowledge, best personality If appetitive part dominates ( least desirable personality Madness = conflict between body drives and soul Aristotle Brain mainly for cooling blood, heart most important Soul and body are not independent Empiricist Senses can be trusted Rational thought important, but so is observation of the world Madness = conflict between drives and moral codes Aristotle ? Father of Modern Science!!! Organized nature in reasoned ways Step 1: Ask ?what is the question?? Step 2: Define terms Step 3: Review what other (experts) think Step 4: Explain what you think Set stage for first steps of scientific method Descartes What is real? What is imagined? Am I imagined? Is my body? Is my reality constructed? Brain in a jar The Matrix Consciousness = function of the mind ?Cogito ergo sum? ? ?I think, therefore I am.? Animals have no soul (mind) Much behavior does not require soul (mind) Unconscious processes The body must control unconscious behavior (reflexes) Placed mind in the brain (pineal gland) Interactive Dualism/Cartesian Dualism Mind and brain are separate, but influence each other Allowed scientists and the church to coexist Scientists study the body (brain, reflexes) Church works on influencing the mind Are we natural dualists? Bering and Bjorklund (2004) Younger children and the Mr. Alligator and brown mouse story Mouse?s biological processes ceased Mouse?s psychological processes continue Thinking, wanting, knowing Cultural Beliefs (from Bloom, 2004) Double funerals ? one for mind, one for body Exorcism Reincarnation 90% Americans believe in heaven 72% Americans believe in angels Uploading yourself into a computer Contributions to modern Psychology Began to ask questions about the contents of the mind Conscious vs. unconscious processes Began to ask questions about the functions of the mind Mind is product of the brain How well do mental representations correspond to reality? Emphasized the need for critical thinking and empiricism to determine truth Noted role of body (biology) in madness Planted seeds of scientific method (Aristotle) Cartesian Dualism allowed scientists and the church to coexist Raises questions about the non-human mind/body Contributions to modern misunderstandings Mind = eternal soul Psychology = paranormal Plato?s madness = body (desires) vs. soul Mentally ill Give into drives, spiritually weak, not strong critical thinkers Weak minded The Biological Mind The brain Origin of thought, emotion, perception, behavior The mind Biological causes of? Identity (personality) Mental illness 1400 BC Hindu physicians treating certain forms of madness with kindness and consideration 500 BC Alcmaeon of Croton Promoted naturalistc medicine Helped rid medicine of superstition and magical thinking Dissected humans Sensations, perception, memory, thinking happen in brain Health = balance of warm/cold, moist/dry, bitter/sweet Hippocrates (460-377 BC) Father of Modern Medicine Hippocrates Oath ?I will do no harm? Physical causes (not spiritual) Inherited susceptibilities Organic injury Imbalance of humors Physical remedies (not magical cures) Rest Diet Exercise Baths Massage Theory of Humors If any humor was out of balance = mental illness Don?t need to memorize for exam Middle Ages Bethlehem Hospital in England begins accepting mental patients Becomes known as ?Bedlam? ? total chaos Like a jail 1700 and 1800s Treatments based on physiology Ice water Purgatives Bloodletting and leeches Tumbling Starvation Erasmus Darwin believes that all disease was a result of ?disordered motion? Hydrotherapy ? put someone in tub of ice water/hot water to slow down/speed someone up Restraints ? sensory deprivation/restrain device Tumbling ? spin around to speed up Joseph Gall (1758-1828) Bumps on head specific for character and personality Localization of function Phrenology When the person with the ?stealing? bump did not steal, other bumps for positive characteristics were over-riding Used in the U.S? By parents raising children School teachers For hiring decisions To choose partners 1800s Investigations into sensory and motor systems and mental states Brain damage cases Surgery cases Holistic brain with functional regions Neuron theory ? suggests we have nerves working through the brain to tell it what to do PBS Animations 1793-1822 Dr. Philippe Pinel runs hospitals for the insane Clean, more and better food, cuts arbitrary doses of drugs Provides work therapy and reading Death rate drops dramatically Uses autopsies to refutes opinions that brain lesions are cause of insanity Develops early system of classifying and diagnosing mental illness according to physical symptoms DSM IV Charles Darwin (1809-1882) ?Somewhere, something went terribly wrong? Theory of natural selection (1859) Environment plays a passive role 1898 OOPS ? Bayer pharmaceuticals create heroin which is widely promoted as a cough remedy 1940 Hydrotherapy still in use Canvas covered bathtub for 1 to 12 hours with continuously flowing water Submerging the chair-bound person under water repeatedly Alternating jets of hot and cold water Enemas Refrigeration therapy (U.S.) WWII Nazi experiments NEED FOR ETHICS IN TREATMENT Contributions to modern psychology Connected mental health to early ?scientists? and their methods Studied brain-thought-behavior connections Also included unconscious thought (reflexes) Divorced mental illness and identity from religion and superstition Away with exorcism Shifted focus to more humane treatments than drilling holes in your head Connected mental illness and identity to more observable biological factors Rise of biological causes and treatments Early classification of mental disorders based on observable symptoms Focus on studying personality of ?normal? people Trait-based theories of personality Hippocrates Gall Theory of natural selection Contributions to modern misunderstandings Un-validate treatments for mental illness Scary and unpleasant View: mentally ill beyond help (spinning someone around won?t make them not schizophrenic) Creates confusion between science and pseudoscience remedies Reduced credibility of ?experts? and ?scientists? to? Understand brain-mind connections (Gall) Offer helpful ?therapy? Equated early psychological research with Nazi?s and ?brain dissection? Unethical mad scientist stereotype Short Essay Questions WHY PSYCH 105? The Public Paradox is that people want Psychology to answer big questions in life, like, ?Am I normal??, ?How do I make life decisions??, or ?How do I find happiness?? However, people fear what Psychology might reveal. They worry that it will uncover things they don?t want to know, promote unwanted changes, demystify mysteries, or conflict with other beliefs. They don?t understand that science, in general, doesn?t answer big questions. Four ways that the media promotes misconceptions of Psychology are: They refer to natural scientists as scientists, but social scientists as authors or writers. Psychologists in movies are sometimes portrayed very unrealistically. For example, they can be viewed as crazier than their patients or extremely caring with endless time for patients. Personalities of psychologists vary of course, but these misconceptions change the viewer?s ideas of psychologists in general. Suggests Psychologists and Psychiatrists are only for the weak minded. Suggests evangelist psychologists, like Dr. Laura and Dr. Phil, are experts. Yes, misconceptions of Psychology are pervasive. People believe that psychology requires less expertise than hard scientists, but it just requires a different expertise. People associate psychology with mental illness and treatment. Students expect to learn about social interactions rather than scientific aspects of psychology. They go with their gut feelings and act as intuitive judges, not scientists. Five ways people misconceive Psychology are: People believe that psychology requires less expertise than the hard sciences, but it only requires a different expertise. People associate Psychology with only mental illness and treatment. People believe that daily life experiences provide adequate training in psychology. People believe pseudoscience and parapsychology are part of psychology. People believe it is a stupid idea to get a degree in Psychology because there are few careers and little money in the field. DO YOU MIND? ? KNOW 3 OF EACH Religious contributions to modern Psychology: Mind = identity/personality Mind is distinctly different from the body Mentally ill need help/care (Milieu therapy) Thought can come from the body and affect behavior There are different kids of thought Religious contributions to misunderstandings of modern Psychology: Psychology is paranormal. It has to do with ghosts and out of body experiences as well as one?s identity being a free floating and eternal spirit. ?Therapists? are spiritual leaders or counselors (true helpers, psychic healers, faith healers). They are evil, dangerous, and should be feared and tortured so that evil spirits leave them alone. Brutal ?therapies? consisted of holes in head to release spirits and exorcisms Philosophical contributions to modern Psychology: Began to ask questions about the contents of the mind (conscious vs. unconscious processes) Began to ask questions about the functions of the mind (mind is product of the brain) Emphasized the need for critical thinking and empiricism to determine truth Planted seeds of scientific method Noted role of body (biology) in madness Cartesian Dualism allowed scientists and the church to coexist Raised questions about the non-human mind/body Philosophical contributions to misunderstandings of modern Psychology: Mind = eternal soul. Psychology = paranormal Plato?s madness = body (desires) vs. soul Give into drives, spiritually weak, not strong critical thinkers Weak minded Biological contributions to modern Psychology: Connected mental health to early ?scientists? and their methods Studied brain-though-behavior connections Divorced mental illness and identity from religion and superstition (away with exorcism, focused on more humane treatments) Connected mental illness and identity to more observable biological factors Focus on studying personality of ?normal? people Biological contributions to misunderstandings of modern Psychology: Un-validated treatments for mental illness (scary and unpleasant) Reduced credibility of ?experts? and ?scientists? to understand brain- mind connections and offer helpful ?therapy? Equated early psychological research with Nazi?s and ?brain dissection? (unethical mad scientist stereotype)