© Kip Smith, 2003

Psych 110B

General Psychology Section B

Professor Kip SmithTeaching Assistant Rebecca Sitzes

© Kip Smith, 2003

Psychology is the science of human behavior and the mind

© Kip Smith, 2003

http://courses.ksu.edu/spring2003/PSYCH/PSYCH110B

When you are in class, I want you to listen, to ask questions, to think and to contribute

I do NOT want you scribbling everything you see on the screen

To encourage this behavior, all lecture materials (like this) will be available on the class web site prior to class time

The Class Web Site

lowercase UPPERCASE

© Kip Smith, 2003

Organization of the Semester

Part 1Foundations Part 2Nature

Test 1 Friday 7 February Test 2 Friday 28 February

Part 3Nurture Test 3 Friday 28 March

Part 4Addled minds Test 4 Wednesday 16 April

Part 5Normal minds Test 5 Monday 5 May Final Thursday 15 May

© Kip Smith, 2003

Part 1 - Foundations

Introduction to Psychology

Reading of the Syllabus

On the Scientific Method

QuALMRI

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Psychology

Mind, soul

Word, study

Psychology is the science of human behavior and the mind

© Kip Smith, 2003

Behavior: anything that an organism does that can be observed

Examples: eating, hearing, selecting a mate, choosing what to wear, …

The science of human behavior

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Mind: an organism’s subjective experiences= mental behavior

Examples: dreaming, making a decision, attributing beliefs to others …

The science of mind

Thinking

Feeling

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Psychology asks questions like:

What drives behavior?

What makes us do what we do?

Why do we think the things we think?

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What drives behavior?

Behavior, B= f{Goals, Knowledge, Information}

Behavior is a function of The organism’s goals What it knows What it picks up about the world around it

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Goals

Examples To be happy To be healthy To have a trusting and trustworthy mate

Where do goals come from?

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Sources of goals

Nature Nurture

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Nature = our evolutionary inheritance

We are animals Our most fundamental goals are an

animal’s goals To eat To sleep To find shelter To keep warm To be safe

These goals are the products of millions of years of evolution

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Aside

This is a science class

The theory of evolution, like the theory of gravity, is one of the foundations of modern science

If you are uncomfortable with the theory of evolution, you will be uncomfortable in this class

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Science Religion

Relies on observation

Asks questions about observations to make sense of them

Makes hypotheses

Conducts experiments

Relies on sacred texts

Provides answers that make sense of observations

Does not make hypotheses

No experiments

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Science Religion

Makes new observations

Continually tries to refine its hypotheses

There is no heresy in science

A process of incremental learning and enlightenment

Does not make new observations

Does not challenge accepted answers

Heresy

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Science & Religion

Example What is wrong with

Janet’s brain that makes her depressed all the time?

What happens after death?

Ask different types of questions

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Science & Religion

What is wrong with Janet’s brain that makes her depressed all the time?

Questions that can be addressed via the scientific method

What happens after death?

Questions that defy observation and experimentation

Ask different types of questions

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Science & Religion

Can both be part of your life

They serve different purposes

The whole person is open to both

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A note to literal readers of the Bible

There is nothing in the Bible that is incompatible with evolution

You are free to interpret everything you learn in this class as the handiwork of a creator

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Sources of goals

Nature, our evolutionary inheritance

Nurture

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Nurture = adaptation to the environment

Some goals are taught by parents by cultural norms …

Some goals are acquired by experience Avoiding sources of pain Seeking sources of pleasure …

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What drives behavior?

Behavior, B= f{Goals, Knowledge, Information}

Behavior is a function of The organism’s goals What it knows What it picks up about the world around it

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Knowledge

The mental stuff you bring with you to achieve a goal

2 + 2 = 4 If it is red, ripe, and round, it is tempting When he starts telling bad jokes, it is time to

leave When I laugh at his bad jokes, it is really time

to leave

Where does knowledge come from?

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Sources of knowledge

Nature Our evolutionary

inheritance

If it is red, ripe, and round, it is tempting

Nurture Adaptation to the

environment

2 + 2 = 4 Cues for splitting the

scene

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What drives behavior?

Behavior, B= f{Goals, Knowledge, Information}

Behavior is a function of The organism’s goals What it knows What it picks up about the world around

it

© Kip Smith, 2003

Information

The stuff we pick up with our senses Sensation and perception

Some information becomes knowledge What has to happen for this to occur? Memory

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What drives abnormal behavior?

Behavior, B= f{Goals, Knowledge, Information}

Irrational goals

Incorrect knowledge

Picking up information that is not in the world

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Behavior is a function of{Goals, Knowledge, and Information}

Psychology is the science of behavior and mind

Therefore, psychologists study

The formation and pursuit of Goals

The acquisition and uses of Knowledge

The picking up of Information from the environment

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Psychologists also study

The workings of the brain-mind

How learning happens

How the mind goes wrong

And lots of other stuff

HOW?

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By conducting experiments

As scientists, psychologists rely on observation, hypothesis formation, and experimentation = the scientific method

You will be participating in experiments as part of this class

Here is an example …

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Example of the scientific method

Step 1 - Ask a Question How long did it take you to decide which shoes

to wear today?

Step 2 - Make some observations

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Sex and shoes

Step 3 - Formulate hypotheses Hypothesis 1 A consistent sex difference, F > M

Hypothesis 2 No difference between the sexes, F = M

Step 4 - Test the hypotheses How would you test these hypotheses?

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Aside - Sex & Gender

Sex refers to the biological endowment that is the basis for categorizing people as female or male

You are born with a sex

Gender refers to the culturally-defined set of characteristics and expectations attributed to females and males

You and your society define your gender

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The Reading of the Syllabus

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The Class Web Site

http://courses.ksu.edu/spring2003/PSYCH/PSYCH110B

Download the PowerPoint lecture materials

Print them as HANDOUTS (3 or 6 / page) Bring them to class. Take notes on them.

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3 point quizzes

Bring 3 x 5 (inch) cards to class NOT 5 by 7!

Use them to write your answers to the quizzes

The quizzes will be given at random times during the semester

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Grading the quizzes

0 if absent 1 if guessing 2 if close 3 if correct

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Research Requirements

You gotta participate in 3 different experiments

You will get only one hour of credit for “2 hour” experiments

If you are under 18, there is an alternative: writing reviews of articles

If you are over 18, you do NOT have the option of writing reviews

© Kip Smith, 2003

For next time:

Buy the textbook packet Buy 3x5 cards Download this and next week’s lecture

notes from the website

Read chapters 1 and 2 Be ready to answer a question about

something in the chapters and something from class