Source: "Research Methods, Statistics, and Applications" textbook, Ch. 1
Tags: psychology definition, behaviour, mental processes, critical thinking, empirical method, structuralism, functionalism, biological approach, behavioural approach, Wundt, James, Freud, Darwin, positive psychology, neuroscience, introspection
Difficulty: Introductory | Prerequisites: None
Psychology is the scientific study of behaviour and mental processes, and this chapter lays the groundwork for everything else in the course. Before you can evaluate research methods (Chapter 2) or understand specific topics like memory, perception, or abnormal behaviour, you need to know what psychology actually is, how it became a formal discipline, and which broad approaches (biological, behavioural, and so on) shape the questions researchers ask. If you are joining the course late or starting revision from scratch, this is the right place to begin.
Psychology studies everything humans do and think, using systematic, scientific methods. It grew out of philosophy and biology in the late 1800s, with Wilhelm Wundt founding the first psychology laboratory. Several major approaches (biological, behavioural, and others) now offer different lenses for understanding behaviour and mental life.
Psychology
The scientific study of behaviour, mental processes, and emotion. It relies on the empirical method, meaning conclusions are drawn from systematic observation and data rather than opinion or intuition.
In simple terms, psychology is the discipline that tries to explain why people (and sometimes animals) do what they do, using evidence-based tools.
Empirical method
A systematic approach to gaining knowledge through observation, measurement, and experiment.
Think of it as the opposite of guesswork: you collect data, then draw conclusions.
Behaviour
Everything a person does that can be directly observed by others.
A crying baby, a raised hand in class, or someone running a race are all examples of behaviour. If you can see it or measure it, it counts.
Mental processes
Thoughts, feelings, and motives that cannot be observed directly.
These are the internal, invisible side of human experience: daydreaming, feeling anxious before an exam, or deciding what to eat for lunch.
Critical thinking
Active reflection that involves evaluating evidence and asking questions such as "How do we know this?" and "What is the evidence?"
In simple terms, it means not accepting claims at face value, even when they come from authority figures.
Skepticism
The habit of questioning whether a supposed fact is really true, including things "everybody knows."
Think of it as the refusal to take conventional wisdom for granted without checking the evidence first.
Structuralism
An early school of psychology focused on identifying the basic structures of the human mind through introspection ("looking inside" one's own conscious experience).
In simple terms, structuralists tried to break the mind down into its smallest parts, the way a chemist breaks down a compound into elements.
Functionalism
A school of psychology concerned with what the mind is for, focusing on the functions and purposes of mental processes in helping individuals adapt to their environment.
Think of it as asking "Why does the mind work this way?" rather than "What are the mind's building blocks?" William James coined the phrase "stream of consciousness" within this framework.
Introspection
The process of examining one's own thoughts and feelings. This was the primary method used by structuralists.
In simple terms, it means paying close attention to your own inner experience and reporting what you notice.
Positive psychology
A branch of psychology that emphasises human strengths such as hope, happiness, and gratitude, rather than focusing solely on disorders and dysfunction.
Evolutionary theory
The principle that species change over time through random genetic mutation and natural selection, with better-adapted individuals having higher survival rates.
In simple terms, traits that help an organism survive and reproduce become more common in a population across generations.
Neuroscience
The study of the biochemistry and structure of the nervous system, and how these relate to behaviour and mental processes.
Think of it as the branch of science that investigates the physical machinery (brain, neurons, neurotransmitters) behind what we think and feel.
Psychology is the study of behaviour, mental processes, and emotion.
It is classified as a science because it uses systematic, empirical methods to observe and draw conclusions.
Two core components:
Behaviour (observable actions)
Mental processes (internal, unobservable thoughts, feelings, and motives)
Critical thinking and skepticism are essential habits in psychology. Researchers question assumptions, evaluate evidence, and avoid taking claims on trust.
René Descartes argued that the mind and body are separate entities. This mind-body dualism was a foundational idea that later psychologists would challenge or build upon.
Wilhelm Wundt (1832–1920) is credited with founding the academic discipline of psychology. He established the first psychology laboratory and demonstrated that mental processes could be measured, for example by timing how long it took the brain to translate sensory information into action.
William James (1842–1910) shifted the focus from what the mind is to what the mind does. His approach, functionalism, examined how mental processes help individuals adapt to their environment. He introduced the concept of the "stream of consciousness," describing thought as a continuous, flowing process rather than a collection of discrete pieces.
Sigmund Freud (1856–1939) proposed that human behaviour is largely driven by dark, unconscious impulses that seek expression. His psychoanalytic framework dominated much of early 20th-century psychology, though many of his specific claims have since been questioned.
Charles Darwin (1809–1882) developed the theory of natural selection: organisms better adapted to their environment survive at higher rates and pass their traits on. His evolutionary theory, in which species change through random genetic mutation, provided a biological foundation for understanding why certain behaviours exist.
Mary Whiton Calkins became the first female president of the American Psychological Association (APA) in 1905, though her contributions were not fully recognised at the time due to her gender.
Charles Henry Turner was an African American researcher with a particular interest in insects, especially honey bees. His work contributed to the study of animal behaviour.
Structuralism aimed to identify the structures of the human mind by using introspection. Subjects would report their conscious experiences in controlled settings, and researchers would analyse these reports for common elements.
Functionalism asked a different question: not "what are the parts of the mind?" but "why does the mind work this way?" It examined the functions and purposes of thought in helping people adapt to their surroundings. This school drew on Darwin's ideas about adaptation and survival.
Wundt's lab work fed into structuralism. James's "stream of consciousness" idea and focus on adaptation fed into functionalism. The two schools represent an early and important split in how psychologists approached the same subject.
Biological approach: examines behaviour and mental processes through the brain and nervous system. For instance, your heart racing when you are scared is a biological response. Neuroscience, the biochemistry of the nervous system, sits within this approach.
Behavioural approach: focuses on visible interactions with the environment, studying only what can be directly observed. Key figures include John B. Watson (1878–1958) and B.F. Skinner (1904–1990). This approach deliberately set aside internal mental states and concentrated on measurable stimulus-response relationships.
The distinction between behaviour and mental processes matters well beyond the classroom. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), one of the most widely used treatments for anxiety and depression, works precisely at the intersection of observable behaviour and internal thought patterns. Understanding which approach a therapist is drawing on (biological, behavioural, cognitive) helps you make sense of why different treatments look so different from each other.
Evolutionary psychology informs fields such as marketing, organisational behaviour, and public health, because it offers explanations for why certain human preferences and biases are so persistent.
Students often assume psychology is just "common sense." It is not. Many findings in psychology are counterintuitive, which is exactly why the empirical method and skepticism are core to the discipline.
Structuralism and functionalism are sometimes confused. Structuralism asks "what is the mind made of?" while functionalism asks "what is the mind for?" One is about parts, the other is about purpose.
Freud is sometimes treated as representative of all psychology. His psychoanalytic approach is only one of many, and much of modern psychology does not rely on Freudian concepts at all.
The behavioural approach is sometimes mistaken for studying all behaviour. It specifically studies observable behaviour and its relationship to environmental stimuli, deliberately leaving out internal mental processes.
⚠️ Be prepared to define psychology, behaviour, and mental processes precisely. Exam questions often test whether you can distinguish observable behaviour from internal mental processes.
⚠️ Know the key figures and what each contributed. Wundt (founded academic psychology), James (functionalism, stream of consciousness), Freud (unconscious impulses), Darwin (natural selection, evolutionary theory).
⚠️ Be able to compare structuralism and functionalism. This is a classic exam comparison question.
⚠️ Understand the difference between the biological approach (brain and nervous system) and the behavioural approach (observable interactions with environment).
True or false: Psychology is defined as the study of behaviour only.
Fill in the blank: The school of thought that used introspection to identify the mind's basic structures is called __________.
True or false: William James is associated with structuralism.
Fill in the blank: The behavioural approach focuses on __________ interactions with the environment.
True or false: Mary Whiton Calkins was the first female president of the APA.
Answers: 1. False (behaviour and mental processes). 2. Structuralism. 3. False (functionalism). 4. Visible/observable. 5. True (1905).
Q: What is psychology, and why is it considered a science?
A: Psychology is the scientific study of behaviour, mental processes, and emotion. It is considered a science because it uses systematic, empirical methods to observe phenomena and draw conclusions, rather than relying on intuition or anecdote.
Q: Distinguish between behaviour and mental processes, and give one example of each.
A: Behaviour is anything a person does that can be directly observed (e.g. a baby crying). Mental processes are internal experiences, including thoughts, feelings, and motives, that cannot be directly observed (e.g. feeling anxious before a test).
Q: Compare structuralism and functionalism. Who is associated with each?
A: Structuralism, linked to Wilhelm Wundt's laboratory work, sought to identify the basic structures of the mind using introspection. Functionalism, championed by William James, asked what the mind is for and how mental processes help individuals adapt to their environment. Structuralism focused on the "what," functionalism on the "why."
Q: What did Sigmund Freud argue about the causes of human behaviour?
A: Freud proposed that human behaviour is caused by dark, unconscious impulses that seek expression. His psychoanalytic approach emphasised internal drives and conflicts operating beneath conscious awareness.
Q: How does the biological approach differ from the behavioural approach?
A: The biological approach examines behaviour and mental processes through the brain and nervous system (e.g. your heart racing when scared). The behavioural approach, associated with Watson and Skinner, focuses exclusively on observable interactions with the environment, setting aside internal mental states.
Q: What is the significance of Charles Darwin's work for psychology?
A: Darwin's theory of natural selection and evolutionary theory provided a biological framework for understanding behaviour. The idea that traits (including behavioural and mental traits) that aid survival become more common in a population influenced functionalism and later evolutionary psychology.
This chapter connects directly to Chapter 2 (research methods), since the emphasis on empirical evidence and skepticism sets up why psychologists need rigorous methods to test claims. The approaches introduced here (biological, behavioural) reappear throughout the course, each applied to specific topics such as learning, memory, development, and psychopathology. Evolutionary theory surfaces again in discussions of motivation, emotion, and social behaviour.
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