History of Psychology

The History of Psychology

This is a brief history of the subject of psychology. In another series of articles/lessons will be offered with more detail in the history of this subject. There was a man by the name of Ebbinghaus, who had a long past and short history. From the years 1750-1850 Ebbinghaus and others had begun to ask psychological questions. This started in Britain with the 'The Associationists' with the idea of the mind and knowledge are acquired and how they fit together. By 1850 there was a change to a more professional and academic format.

Like Charles Darwin and his Darwinism that started about this time there were German philosophers along with the 'Associationists'. With the idea of mind thoroughness along with effective scientists, and one very famous one by the name of Wilhelm Wundt the founder of psychology and his views and theories.

In 1900 there were various rebellions starting at this time. Starting with the German to American functionalism for there seemed to be some disinterest in the mind, but how can we help to be better. This started the idea of 'Behaviorism' and what works and define various situations in terms of behavior. Along with the study of biology started and technology the study of the brain and the areas of endocrinology and metabolism will so us how the ability to do various functions with the mind and biology.

During the Medieval to the Renaissance to the Enlightenment eras assumes that human behaviors are a matter of choice and results of individual is responsible and was possible that spiritual life was the cause. In the 1830's doctors could do a pre-frontal lobotomy and with this operation new assumptions were made. The idea of determinism and some behaviors that are not by choice and by culture can control and determine behavior. Sociologists see cultural determinism at this time as Karl Marx and communism saw this idea, and that the mind could make a change with the unconscious mind. Along came Freud and some aspects of biology and the brain and still some ideas of Charles Darwin are still shared.

Biological determinism with the underlying issues dealing with the idea of 'adaptation' that is how things change to conditions in response to something and individual differences that can be shown in a frequency distribution that is relative. Determinism that is direct, simple and complex shows behavior is multiplied and determined the reason why people do things that are not always in one single way, but always complex. Current behavior can follow constraints of the rules of society and accepting the consequences of behaviors.

This brings us to the concept of the brain and the idea of nature/nurture styles of learning. This shows a split way of approaching problems. Nature is genetics and biology is nature and the cultural determinants that will interact complexly. There is also the mind and body problem, as stated by the man Descartes who says the mind and body is dual. The brain organs that are involved in this are the pineal gland along with others that try to relate the structure of the mind to the patterns of behavior to a structure of the brain. The brain is not a simple thing. The brain is made up of modules that have one or more functions and these modules are connected in systems so that anxiety is the result so that the systems are studied. Problems do overlap for systems are common across and against species and are susceptible to biological pressures as for example 'breeding'.

To be continued-

Lesson 3- Implications of Evolution