INTRODUCTION TO

PSYCHOLOGY
Falak Zehra
Dept. of Business Psychology
What is Psychology?

 Greek word mean

 Psycho = mind or soul
 Logo = study of
What is Psychology?
 Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and
mental processes.
(Hilgard)
 Psychology is a science of bio-social behavior.
(Muhammad Faiq)
 Psychology is the systematic study of thoughts,
feelings and behavior.
(Linda Carter)
The scientific study of behavior and mental processes
and how they are affected by an organism’s
physical, state, mental state, and external
environment.
Scientific study requires several things:
1. Theoretical framework

2. Testable Hypotheses

3. Empirical evidence
The scientific study of behavior and mental processes
and how they are affected by an organism’s
physical, state, mental state, and external
environment.
 Behavior and mental processes include overt,

observable instances but also include subtle kinds

of instances, like brain activity
 What are the Goals of Psychology?
To describe, explain, predict, and control behavior and
mental processes
 Describe: tell what occurred

 Explain: tells the why

 Predict: under what conditions is the behavior/event

likely to occur
 Control: how is the principle applied or what change

in condition is necessary to prevent unwanted

occurrence or to bring about a desired outcome
 Description: science provides objective descriptions of
facts.
 Prediction: descriptions allow the identification of
regular patterns, which allows the development of
predictions
 Understanding: testing predictions allows us to
understand the relationship between causes and effects
 Control: if our understanding of the cause of a
phenomenon is accurate, we can control that
phenomenon
What do we hope to gain
from studying psychology?

 Gain insight into the mind

 Understanding of people
 Understanding yourself
BASIC and APPLIED RESEARCH

 Basic Research: research conducted for the

purpose of advancing knowledge rather than for
practical application (typically three goals:
description, explanation, prediction)
 Applied Research: research for the purpose of
solving practical problems (typically the fourth
goal: to control behavior)
 Difference between Psychologists & Psychiatrists

 Psychiatrists: They are physicians who specialize in

the treatment of psychological disorders. Not all
psychiatrists have extensive training in
psychotherapy, but as MDs they can prescribe
medications
 Clinical psychologists: They have PhDs mostly.

They are experts in research, assessment, and

therapy, all of which is verified through a
supervised internship.
Trends of Psychology
Emerging Trends in Psychology
 Kinds of Treatments – Cognitive Therapy
 Computerized Cognitive Treatment
 Licensed Counselors
 Moving away from Psychiatrist
 New fields:
 Sports Psychology
 Organizational Psychology
Applied Areas of Modern Psychology
Clinical Psychology
Counseling Psychology
Industrial & Organizational Psychology
Educational and School Psychology
Health Psychology
Sport Psychology
Clinical Psychologists
 Help people with psychological disorders adjust to the
demands of life.
 Clinical psychology promotes adaption, adjustment and
personal development.
 In other words, clinical psychology is the scientific study and
application of psychology in order to understand, prevent, and
alleviate psychologically-caused distress or dysfunction
(disability) and promote the patient's well-being and personal
development.
Counseling Psychologists
 Help people effectively deal with all kinds of personal

& relationship problems and issues of concern.

 They help clarify clients’ goals and overcome

obstacles.
 Counseling psychologist handles patient with acute or

less severe problems such as daily stresses with

education, career, family or marriage issues.
 The psychologists may also choose schools,

institutions, universities or old age homes to help

people with their varying treatment plans.
Industrial & Organizational Psychology
 The occupational psychologist aims to increase

effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction at work.

 Advises & trains staff in workplaces about work

practices & issues of concern that affect work

performance, such as communication, teamwork &
stress management.
 May work with individuals, groups or the

organizational as a whole.
Educational Psychology
 Concerned with the psychological aspects of education,

particularly learning processes.

 It deals with learning disorders, "gifted" students, peer

pressure, adolescence, sex education in children, etc.

 Work may include advising parents & teachers on specific

teaching programs, classroom settings & behavior

management; assessing students with learning disabilities
& recommending special support, & conducting
workshops for students on stress management & study
skills.
Health Psychology
 This branch observes how behavior, biology and social context
influence illness and health.
 Focuses on the person who has the illness, finding out their
socioeconomic status and background, behaviors that may have an
impact on the disease (such as medication compliance), plus the
biological reasons for the illness.
 Work on the promotion & maintenance of health-related behavior.
 Health psychologists generally work alongside other medical
professionals in clinical settings.
Sport psychologist
 Helps elite-level, professional, recreational & other

athletes achieve peak performance.

Involves preparing the mind just as thoroughly as
preparing the body.
Major Trends in the Development of
Psychology as a Science
Structuralism
Functionalism
Psychoanalysis
Behaviorism
Gestalt
Humanism
Conititvist
 Philosophers first questioned the functioning of the
mind & the body.
 Scientific psychology began:
 Wundt found psychology’s first laboratory at Leipzig in
1879.
 1881 first journal devoted to research in psychology was
launched.
 1883 Stanley Hall establish lab in psychology in America.
 1890 Williams James published his work “The principles
of psychology”
 1892 Hall founded American Psychological Association.
Structuralism
 1879, Leipzig, Germany
 Notable names:
 William Wundt (founder)
 Edward Titchner
 Attempted to understand what the mind was doing
 Argued that psychology should use introspection
(examining people's thoughts) to understand the inner
workings of the mind.
 Focused on sensations and perceptual experiences.
Functionalism
 William James
 Focused on consciousness and behavior
 Believed that certain mental characteristics are

developed to enable individuals to survive in

their environment (influenced by Darwin)
 Investigated functions of mental processes in

adapting to the environment.

 Attempted to understand why certain behaviors occur.
Psychoanalysis
 Sigmund Freud (1865-1939)
 Believed that behavior problems

arise from unconscious thoughts

and conflicts.
 Believed that early childhood

experiences shape personality &

behavior.
Behaviorism
 Focuses on objective and
measurable behaviors.
 Notable names:
 Watson
 Pavlov
 Skinner
Gestalt
 An attempt to focus attention back onto
conscious experience (i.e., the mind).
 Concerned with perception.

 “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts”

 Notable names:
 Kohler
 Kurt Lewin.
Humanism
 Emphasizes the inner-self and the importance
of subjective feelings
 Humans are free rational beings with potential

for personal growth.

 Notable names:
 Rogers
 Maslow
Cognitivist
 Focuses on thought processes/mental processes
such as
 Perception
 Memory
 Reasoning
 Problem solving
Research Methods in
Psychology
Naturalistic observation
Experimental method
Survey and interview
Case study
Correlational Studies
Meta analysis
Ethical of Research
 Scientific Method

Test Draw Report

Hypothesi
Question Hypothesi Conclusio Result
s
s ns s
Basic Concepts of Research
 Empirical Evidence and Operational Definitions
 Evidence based on observation of public phenomena
 Operational definition: a definition based on the procedures use
to measure scientific phenomenon
 Theories and Hypotheses
 Tentative explanations of facts and relationships
 A prediction based on a theory to be tested
 Representativeness of Samples
 A group of people that are studied to learn about the entire
population
 Importance of Replication in Research
 Studies must be repeated to prove their worth
Variables
 Independent Variable (IV)
 Factor(s) that change the outcome variable
 Dependent Variable (DV)
 Dependent on the influence of other factor(s)
Naturalistic Observation
 Systematic observation in a natural setting.
 Advantages:
 Directly observe the subject in a natural setting
 Can study things that cannot be manipulated in a lab
due to ethical concerns. 
 External validity of research
 Disadvantages:
 Social desirability bias
 Observer bias
 Behavior may not occur during observation period
Experimental Method

 Involves manipulating one variable to

determine if changes in one variable cause
changes in another variable. 
 The only research method that can be used

to determine cause and effect

 Components of Experimental Research
 Participants or Subjects
 Independent Variable
 Cause (what you are studying)
 This is the variable that is manipulated by the
experimenter
 Dependent Variable
 Effect (result of experiment)
 This is the variable that is measured by the
experimenter
 Components of an Experiment
 Experimental group
 Receives treatment
 Control group
 Doesnot receive treatment, but is the same in
every other way
 Advantages
 Can determine cause & effect
 Control variables
 Can be replicated
 Disadvantages/Limitations
 Artificiality
 Experimenter bias
 Sampling
 Ethical issues
Surveys
 Questionnaires or interviews, such as polls
prior to an election
 Can generate a lot of information for a fairly

low cost
 Questions must be constructed carefully so as

to not elicit socially appropriate answers

Interviews
 Typically involves a face-to-face meeting in which a
researcher (interviewer) asks an individual a series of
questions.
 Allows the interviewer to observe verbal & non-
verbal behavior
 Allows follow-up questions and clarifications
 Advantage: Allows for a wider range of responses
 Disadvantage:
 Time consuming
 No cause-and-effect relationships can be inferred
 Focus Group Interviews
 A group of people who discuss a subject under
direction of a moderator.
Case Study
 Detailed description and analysis of one or a few
people
 Prominent in psychology
 Observer bias is a disadvantage
 Unable to make generalizations past person being
studied
Correlational Studies
 Study relationships between 2 (or more) variables
 The correlational method is basically a statistical
procedure that allows the researcher to describe how
strongly two or more events or characteristics are
related.
 It is important to note that correlation does not equal
causation but can allow us to make predictions.
 Example: Rise of violence in society along with the
rise of violent entertainment
 Correlations vary in direction:
 Positive association: increases
in the value of variable 1 are
associated with increases in the
value of variable 2
 Negative association: increases
in the value of variable 1 are
associated with decreases in the
value of variable 2
 No relation: values of variable 1
are not related to variable 2
values
Meta-Analysis
 Refers to a research strategy where instead of
conducting new research with participants, the
researchers examine the results of several previous
studies.
 Ethics in Research on Humans
 Participants must be informed of nature
of research
 Informed consent should be
documented
 Risks and limits on confidentiality must
be explained
 Deception involving participants must
be justified
 Debriefing refers to explaining the
research process to the participants at
the end of the study.
 Ethics in Research on Animals
 Psychologists using animals
must ensure “appropriate
consideration of the animal’s
comfort, health, and human
treatment”
 Animals must not be exposed
to pain, stress, or privation
when alternative procedures
are available