Psy250

“Psychology is a science of behavior and mental functioning that uses both quantitative and qualitative research studies to develop and test hypotheses and put forward theories and models that explain human behavior.” (Kowalski & Westen, 2005) According to Foundations of Psychology (1948), “psychology is the study of human nature. It is the study of man, man as a living being, acting in an ever-changing world, responding to things and events and other people. If you know what man is, if you know the full answer to the question about the nature of man, then you know what human nature is and what psychology comprises” (Chapter 1, Para. 1). Throughout history there have been various schools of thought with respect to the discipline of psychology that included functionalism, behaviorism, structuralism, psychoanalysis, and humanistic.

Functionalism is the school of thought that applies a solid emphasis on the part of mental methods by which a given individual can adjust to the environment, rather than focusing on the substance of the brain. One of the originators of functionalism was William James a clinician from Harvard University. He accepted that the learning and understanding of human brain research might be determined from numerous sources. His fundamental philosophy was that qualitative and quantitative information could be procured from experimentation, as well as from the investigation of the rationally sick, kids, and different creatures, a conviction which in advanced years was stretched out to the investigation of the criminal personality. Functionalism was a school of thought that was overwhelming in the early years alternate was Structuralism. Structuralism was produced by Edward Titchener due to his significant mindfulness to the investigation of structure in cognizance. He accepted that through the procedure of experimentation Psychology had the best risk at being caught on.

Behaviorism was an extensive observation that was created in the...