Psycho

CHAPTER I: NATURE OF PSYCHOLOGYPsychology – Taken from two Greek words “psyche” & “logos” meaning “soul” & “study”.– Is the scientific study of human behavior & mental processes.– Three key terms in the definition: science, behavior & mental processes.As a Science:• Science – an organized & systematic body of knowledge.• Psychology uses systematic methods to observe, describe, predict & explain behavior.As a study of Behavior:• Behavior – refers to actions or activities of the individual as matters of psychological study.• Behavior can be overt/covert, conscious/unconscious, simple/complex, rational/irrational, voluntary/involuntary.As a study of Mental Processes:• Mental Processes – the thoughts, feelings, & motives that each of us experiences privately but that cannot be observed directly.Psychology Studies 2 Critical Relationships1. Brain Function & Behavior2. Environment & behavior4 Goals of Psychology1. Describe – Observe, note, name2. Explain – why is it happening3. Predict – when will it happen again4. Control – how can it be changedPsychology & Other Sciences1. Behavioral sciences such as sociology, anthropology, economics, history & political science2. Physiology 3. Psychiatry – branch of medicine dealing with mental illness & mental disordersHistorical Background of PsychologyA. Traditional• Explaining behaviors were essentially animistic – wherein the gods or the spirits were attributed the power to direct or cause such events and activities of men.B. Greek Influence• Democritus – believed that human mind is composed of atoms.• Plato - the soul is composed of three parts – that which exerts reason (in the head); that which is responsible for our noble impulses (in the heart); and the basest part, the seat of our own passions (in the diaphragm).• Aristotle – distinguished three functions of the soul (1) the vegetative, concerned with basic maintenance of life; the appetitive, concerned with motives &...