Understanding Psychology Viny

interactive student edition

Author

Richard A. Kasschau, Ph.D., is Professor of Psychology at the Universityof Houston. Dr. Kasschau is a member of the American Educational Re-search Association, the American Psychological Association, and theAmerican Psychological Society. He has written extensively for maga-zines, newspapers, and professional journals, and has a dozen books tohis credit. An award-winning and distinguished teacher who has taughtpsychology for 35 years, Dr. Kasschau has won the University of Hous-tons Teaching Excellence Award twice in the last 15 years.

Copyright 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights re-served. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed inany form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system,without the written permission of the publisher.

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Send all inquiries toGlencoe/McGraw-Hill, 8787 Orion Place, Columbus, Ohio 43240-4027

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Printed in the United States of America

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Table of ContentsTable of Contents

iii

Senior Consultant-Writers

Ronald Foore, Ed.D.Booker T. Washington Magnet High SchoolTulsa, Oklahoma

Jim Matiya Carl Sandburg High SchoolOrland Park, Illinois

Academic Consultants

Martha Alcock, Ph.D.Capital UniversityColumbus, Ohio

Shirley DeLucia, Ed.D.Capital UniversityColumbus, Ohio

Maureen Hester, Ph.D.Holy Names CollegeOakland, California

Judith R. Levine, Ph.D.State University of New York at FarmingdaleFarmingdale, New York

Joel Stellwagen, Ph.D.Hinsdale South High School Darien, Illinois

Educational Reviewers

Jerry Agner Marion Harding High SchoolMarion, Ohio

Lynn Erven Lake Forest High SchoolLake Forest, Illinois

Dale KinneyRalston High SchoolOmaha, Nebraska

Patrick Mattimore South San Francisco High SchoolSan Francisco, California

Nathan McAlisterHighland Park High SchoolTopeka, Kansas

Gale OwLowell High SchoolSan Francisco, California


iv

Reading for Information xii

How to Think Like a Psychologist xiv

Approaches toPsychology . . . . . . . . 2

Chapter 1 Introducing Psychology . . . . . . . 61 Why Study Psychology? 72 A Brief History of Psychology 143 Psychology as a Profession 24

Chapter 2 Psychological ResearchMethods and Statistics. . . . . . . . . . . . 341 What Is Research? 352 Problems and Solutions in Research 423 Statistical Evaluation 47

The Life Span . . . . . 58

Chapter 3 Infancy and Childhood. . . . . . . 601 Physical, Perceptual, and

Language Development 61 2 Cognitive and Emotional

Development 703 Parenting Styles and Social

Development 78

Chapter 4 Adolescence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 1 Physical and Sexual Development 932 Personal Development 1013 Social Development 1094 Gender Roles and Differences 116

Chapter 5 Adulthood and Old Age . . . . . 128 1 Adulthood 1292 Old Age 1373 Dying and Death 144

The Workings of Mindand Body . . . . . . . 152

Chapter 6 Body and Behavior . . . . . . . . 154 1 The Nervous System: The Basic

Structure 155 2 Studying the Brain 1603 The Endocrine System 1704 Heredity and Environment 174

Chapter 7 Altered States of Consciousness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182 1 Sleep and Dreams 1832 Hypnosis, Biofeedback, and

Meditation 191 3 Drugs and Consciousness 197

Chapter 8 Sensation and Perception . . . 206 1 Sensation 2072 The Senses 2143 Perception 223

Learning and CognitiveProcesses . . . . . . . 238

Chapter 9 Learning: Principles andApplications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2401 Classical Conditioning 2412 Operant Conditioning 2503 Social Learning 259

Chapter 10 Memory and Thought. . . . . . 272 1 Taking in and Storing Information 273 2 Retrieving Information 282

Chapter 11 Thinking and Language . . . . 2941 Thinking and Problem Solving 295 2 Language 304


Chapter 12 Motivation and Emotion. . . . 312 1 Theories of Motivation 3132 Biological and Social Motives 319 3 Emotions 328

Personality andIndividuality . . . . . 340

Chapter 13 Psychological Testing . . . . . 342 1 Characteristics of Psychological

Tests 343 2 Intelligence Testing 348 3 Measuring Achievement, Abilities,

and Interests 359 4 Personality Testing 363

Chapter 14 Theories of Personality . . . . 374 1 Purposes of Personality Theories 3752 Psychoanalytic Theories 3783 Learning Theories 3874 Humanistic and Cognitive Theories 3915 Trait Theories 398

Adjustment and Breakdown . . . . . . 410

Chapter 15 Stress and Health . . . . . . . . 4121 Sources of Stress 413 2 Reactions to Stress 420 3 Coping With Stress 430 4 Stress in Your Life 437

Chapter 16 Psychological Disorders . . . 446 1 What Are Psychological Disorders? 447 2 Anxiety Disorders 455 3 Somatoform and Dissociative

Disorders 460 4 Schizophrenia and Mood Disorders 465

5 Personality Disorders and DrugAddiction 474

Chapter 17 Therapy and Change . . . . . . 484 1 What Is Psychotherapy? 485 2 Psychoanalysis and Humanistic

Therapy 493 3 Cognitive and Behavior Therapies 499 4 Biological Approaches to Treatment 506

SocialPsychology . . . . . . 516

Chapter 18 Individual Interaction. . . . . . 518 1 Interpersonal Attraction 5192 Social Perception 5273 Personal Relationships 533

Chapter 19 Group Interaction . . . . . . . . 544 1 Group Behavior 545 2 Conformity and Obedience 5553 Conflict and Cooperation 564

Chapter 20 Attitudes and Social Influence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5761 Attitude Formation 577 2 Attitude Change and Prejudice 582 3 Persuasion 590

Chapter 21 Psychology: Present and Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 602 1 Careers in Psychology 6032 Psychologys Contributions 610

Skills Handbook 620Glossary 630Index 644References 659Acknowledgments and Credits 673Honoring America 674

v


vi

Child Psychologist: Jean Piaget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32Psychoanalyst: Sigmund Freud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Is It More Than Boys Being Boys? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90Surviving Your Teens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Lots of Action in the Memory Game . . . . . . . . . . 180 Fertile Minds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270 The EQ Factor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372 Attack on the Spirit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 482 Coloring the Campus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 600

Mary Whiton Calkins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Jane Goodall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36Jean Piaget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73Erik Erikson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Elisabeth Kbler-Ross . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145Roger Wolcott Sperry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164Franz Anton Mesmer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192Gustav Theodor Fechner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209Ivan Petrovich Pavlov . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245Elizabeth Loftus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285Noam Chomsky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306Paul Ekman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331Howard Gardner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350Carl Rogers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395Deepak Chopra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423Abraham Maslow. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 451Dorothea Dix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 487Sigmund Freud. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 535Linda L. McCarley. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 606

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vii


The Four Humors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

The Case of Clever Hans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Too Late for Words: The Case of Genie. . . . . . 69

Early Maturation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Psychologically Able to Decide? . . . . . . . . . . . 148

One PersonTwo Brains? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

A Breath of Fresh Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196

Seeing Is Believing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

The Case of Little Albert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249

The Case of H.M. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281

Checkmate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

A Balance for Living. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318

WAIS-R: Is It Reliable?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358

Personality Disorder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404

The Illusion of Stress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436

Munchausens Syndrome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464

The Case of Rat Man . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 498

What You See Is What You Get? . . . . . . . . . . 526

Your Stripes or Your Morality . . . . . . . . . . . . . 563

Feelings vs. Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 589

Parapsychology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 609

Why do you do what you do? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Do some people really have psychic powers?. . 54

How do children exhibit attachment? . . . . . . . 77

How does the media portray adolescents? . . 104

Do men and women go through the same stages of development? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

Can you determine whether the left or righthemisphere of the brain is dominant? . . . . . . 165

Can you hypnotize yourself? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

Can you detect changes in stimuli? . . . . . . . . 211

What reinforcement schedules operate in your classroom? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

Can you improve your memory? . . . . . . . . . . 287

How do advertisements motivate people to buy products? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316

Do interest inventories help determine a career? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361

Do we see ourselves as others see us? . . . . . . 402

What stresses teenagers?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 418

What fears are most common among teenagers?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458

How can someone overcome an irrational fear?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 502

What traits are important in a potential marriage partner? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538

How do we conform to group norms? . . . . . 558

How similar are your views to your parents views? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 580


viii

The Hawthorne Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Transforming Scores. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Reflexes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Imaginary Playmates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Teenagers and Work. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Are Boys in Trouble? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

The Cohort Effect. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Growing Old. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Freud on Dreams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

TV and Violence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

Eyewitness Testimony . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284

Facial Feedback Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333

Lie Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334

Family Size and IQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356

Birth Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383

Culture and Personality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396

Gender Differences and Stress . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429

The Insanity Defense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450

Autism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 466

Depression and Gender . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472

Therapy and HMOs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 492

Shyness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 530

Collectivism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 561

Gangs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 567

The Just-World Bias . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 586

Human Factors Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 607

Why You Overreact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Baseball Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48Nature vs. Nurture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 Good Looks Are Overrated. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105Culture and Body Image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115Retirement and You . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141Do You Do This?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 Hypnosis and Athletics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193 Your Blind Spot. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216Orange Juice and Toothpaste. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222How You Form Bad Habits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264Remembering Classmates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283On the Tip of Your Tongue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288

Solve This Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301Bilingualism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307Genetics and Weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323Your IQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355What Is Your Locus of Control? . . . . . . . . . . . 389Road Rage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 427What Should You Do? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 473Homelessness: A Legacy ofDeinstitutionalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 508Social Norms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 549Illusory Correlation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 587Try Out a Career in Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . 605

ix


Test Your Intuitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10The Scientific Method. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Contemporary Approaches to Psychology . . . . . . . . 21A Personality Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Where Psychologists Work. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Divisions of the APA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27A Correlational Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39Experimental Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40Single-Blind and Double-Blind Experiments. . . . . . . 44Kates Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48A Frequency Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49A Frequency Polygon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49A Normal Curve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50Measures of Central Tendency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50Standard Deviation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51A Scatterplot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53Cell-Phone Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57Physical and Motor Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64The Visual Preferences of Infants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65The Flowering of Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68Tasks to Measure Conservation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74Piagets Stages of Cognitive Development. . . . . . . . . 75Freuds Stages of Psychosexual Development . . . . . 82Eriksons Stages of Psychosocial

Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84Kohlbergs Stages of Moral Development . . . . . . . . . 86Average Annual Gains in Height . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96Glands That Release Hormones Into the

Bloodstream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Adolescent Identity Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107Arrests Per 100,000 Juveniles Ages 10-17 . . . . . . . . . 113Test Yourself. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121Leading Causes of Death in the USA . . . . . . . . . . . 125How Our Bodies Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131Levinsons Theory of Male Development . . . . . . . . 134Percentage of Older Population . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142Living Arrangements of Americans

65 and Older, 1997. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151The Nervous System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156Anatomy of Two Neurons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

An Experiment in the Seventh Century B.C.by Morton Hunt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

The Wild Boy of Aveyron by David Hothersall. . 5 Wasted by Marya Hornbacher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 To See and Not See by Oliver Sacks . . . . . . . . . 236

Memorys Ghost by Philip F. Hilts . . . . . . . . . . . . 292 letters from Jenny by Gordon W. Allport . . . . . . 408 The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 514 The Wave by Todd Strasser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 574

READ I NG S I N P S YCHOLOG YRE AD I NG S I N P S YCHOLOG Y

Charts, Tables, and Graphs

xTable of ContentsTable of Contents

The Synapse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158The Parts of the Brain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161The Cerebral Cortex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162Functions of the Brains Hemispheres . . . . . . . . . . . 163The Endocrine System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172DNA and Genes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175Alzheimers Patients in the U.S. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179Freuds Levels of Consciousness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184Patterns of Sleep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185Some Psychoactive Drugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198Percentage of 12th Graders Who Reported

Using Alcohol in the Past 12 Months,19761996. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Frasers Spiral. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208The Human Senses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210The Human Eye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215The Electromagnetic Spectrum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217Decibel Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219The Human Ear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220The Human Tongue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221Gestalt Principles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224Skin Sensitivity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235Classical Conditioning Experiment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243Examples of Common Conditioned Responses . . . 247Classical Conditioning vs. Operant

Conditioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248Operant Conditioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

Partial Schedules of Reinforcement . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254Learned Helplessness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261How Social Learning Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264Improving Study Habits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265Mowrers Experiment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269The Processes of Memory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274Stages of Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275Three Systems of Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278Memory Centers in the Brain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280Recognition and Recall Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291Using Imagery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297Directed vs. Nondirected Thinking . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298Types of Heuristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299Connecting the Dots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300Overcoming Functional Fixedness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300Overcoming Wrong Assumptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301Answers to Pages 298, 300, and 301 . . . . . . . . . . . . 302Phonemes and Morphemes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305Parent Involvement in Language

Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311Some Biological and Social Needs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320Percentage of Overweight Americans . . . . . . . . . . . 322Your Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327The Range of Emotions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329Threatening Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332Theories of Emotion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335Fear and Relief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336Changes in Heart Rate and Skin

Temperature for Six Emotions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339Judging Reliability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345Judging Validity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346Establishing Percentiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347Thurstones Seven Primary Mental Abilities . . . . . . 349Gardners Multiple Intelligences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351Typical Items on the Stanford-Binet Test . . . . . . . . 353Sample Items on the Wechsler Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . 354Distribution of IQ Scores . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355The Dove Counterbalance Intelligence Test . . . . . . 357The GATB. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360

55 70 80 90 100

50%

95%

110 120 130 145

99%

Mentally handicappedBorderlineSlow learnerLow averageHigh averageAbove averageSuperiorGifted


This normal curve displays intelligence as measuredby IQ tests. The average IQ score is 100. What per-centage of people score at least 145 on IQ tests?

Figure 13.9 Distribution of IQ Scores

xi


The KPR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362MMPI Scales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365Approaches to Reducing Test Anxiety . . . . . . . . . . 368Freuds Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379Defense Mechanisms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382Banduras Social Cognitive Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390Characteristics of Self-Actualized People. . . . . . . . . 393Cattells Sixteen Source Traits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400Eysencks Personality Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401Theories of Personality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403Types of Conflict Situations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415The Social Readjustment Rating Scale . . . . . . . . . . . 417Some Daily Hassles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 419The Flight-or-Fight Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425Types of Coping Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431Irrational Assumptions That Can Cause Stress . . . . 433Stress: A Summary Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434Distribution of Male and Female

Jobs by Occupation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442Phases of Selyes General Adaptation

Syndrome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 445DSM-IVMajor Psychological Disorders

of Axis I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 452Phobias . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457Suicides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472Types of Personality Disorders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475Effects of Alcohol Use. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478Reported Anxiety Disorders

in the United States, 1999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481Types of Psychotherapies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488Kinds of Therapists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489Examples of Irrational Thinking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500Elliss ABCs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 501Becks Maladaptive Thought Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . 501Losing Fears . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 503Deinstitutionalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 509Psychologists Approaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 513Schachters Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521Triangular Theory of Love . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 539Rank Ordering of Desired Characteristics

in a Mate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 543

Why Do We Join Groups? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 547Group Polarization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 551Sociograms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 553Leavitts Communication Network System . . . . . . . 554Aschs Experiment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 556A Model of Aggression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 565Physical Distance From Learner and

Compliance to Orders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 573Attitude Formation Through Classical

Conditioning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 578A Theory of Planned Behavior. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 581Balance Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 585Using Heuristics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 595Areas of Expertise of Ph.D. Psychologists . . . . . . . . 604Some Significant Dates in the History

of Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 613Employment of Ph.D. Psychologists . . . . . . . . . . . . 614Job Satisfaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 619Average Breakfast Calories and Average

Grades of 100 Sampled Students . . . . . . . . . . . . 621Marital Status of the Population. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 628Internet Access and Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 628Divisions of the Nervous System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 629


Eye muscle

Neuron

Cones

Rods

LIGHT

Optic Nerve

Lens

Iris

Pupil

Cornea

Muscles

Blind spot

Opticnerve

Retina

This cross section of the human eye shows the passageof light. Note that the retina receives an inverted image.What is the main function of the rods and cones?

Figure 8.5 The Human Eye

How Do Psychologists Think?In your study of psychology, you will learn to

think like a scientist. Scientists constantly ques-tion their own assumptions and look for alterna-tive evidence and conclusions.

Scientists, including psychologists, use the scientific method as a problem-solving tool. Itteaches them to think critically by encouragingopen-mindedness, intellectual curiosity, and eval-uation of reasons. Using the scientific methodwill help you think critically and be objectivewhen applying principles to everyday issues, peo-ple, and problems.

Why Study Psychology?Many people begin their study of psychology

without a clear definition or understanding of thesubject. They may have images of a laboratorywhere scientists run rats through mazes, or theymay assume that it deals only with abnormalemotional disturbances. These, however, are onlysmall parts of the study of psychology.Psychology provides tools to help us gain insightinto our own behavior, as well as our relation-ships with others.

What to ExpectAs you begin your study of psychology, you

will find that it is different from any of your otherclasses. This is because psychology is connectedto both the social sciences, such as history oreconomics, and the natural sciences, such as biology and chemistry. As a social science, psy-chology explores the influences of society onindividual behavior and group relationships. As anatural science, psychology looks for biologicalexplanations for human behavior. You will learnmore about the social and biological aspects ofhuman behavior as you draw from the coursematerial to gain insight into your life and the livesof those around you.

How to Think Like a PsychologistHow to Think Like a Psychologist

PET scan of a human brain

Your study of psychology can help you gain insightsinto explaining peoples behavior.

xiv

1Table of ContentsTable of Contents

11

How to Think Like a PsychologistHow to Think Like a Psychologist

The Scientific M

ethod

1. Ask a questio

n or identify a p

roblem.

Develop the habi

t of questioning

assertions and a

sking

for evidence.

Consider and que

stion informatio

n; do not autom

atically

accept or reject

it.

2. Form a hypot

hesis.

Remember that t

he goal is not to

prove or dispro

ve the

hypothesis but r

ather to confirm

or fail to confir

m it.

3. Test the hypo

thesis and colle

ct data.

Use the hypothes

is to make predi

ctions.

Test the predictio

ns by experimen

ts or observatio

ns.

4. Analyze the r

esults of your t

est.

Ask questions ab

out how the fac

ts were obtaine

d

was the informa

tion collection a

nd research proc

ess

adequate?

It does not matte

r who says some

thing is true or f

alse;

what matters is

the evidencet

he facts and rea

soning

on which the id

ea is based.

5. Draw conclus

ions.

Modify your hyp

othesis according

to the results ga

ined

from the testing

of your hypothe

sis.

The Scientific MethodThe scientific method consists of five steps that help the scientist integrate theory and research, as well as compare empiricalor factualdata with common sense ideas. Using the scientific method will help you think like a psychologist.

Research, Projects, and Problem Solving

In your psychology course,you will also need to solve prob-lems through individual researchor group projectswhether theyare the Psychology Projects inthis textbook or other activitiesyour teacher may assign. Solvingproblems involves a series ofprocesses including analyzingthe problem, breaking it intocomponent parts, and establish-ing goals. Here are the stepsinvolved in problem solving:

Identify the problem. Brainstorm possible

solutions. Evaluate the proposed

solutions. Choose and implement

the best solution. At a later time, review the

success of the solution.

To begin any project, you need to establish your goalswhat you want to accom-plish, how you will accomplish it, and by when. Intermediate goals address parts ofthe problem that must be solved in order to arrive at the terminal goalthe final solu-tion to the problem. Use intermediate goals to establish a time line for completing theassignment, which will help you keep track of your progress. As you work, monitorand evaluate your work for schedule, accuracy, and whether it is focused on the finalgoal. Ask yourself: Are things working as expected? Do you need to adjust anything?

Psychology is the studyof the human mind and

human behavior.

Chapter 1 Introducing Psychology

Chapter 2 Psychological ResearchMethods and Statistics

Contents

W hat do you expect to learn in this introductorypsychology course? You may learn more aboutyourself and more about others. This unit will explain why psychologists study human and animal behavior.Psychologists attempt to explain and predict why peoplebehave, feel, and think as they do. They attempt to learnways in which people can improve the quality of life.

These excerpts describe two experiments. The first experiment, related in TheStory of Psychology, took place in an ancient time, when humans were justbeginning to question the origin of their own thoughts. The second excerptappeared in History of Psychology and details the attempts of one scientist tochange the behavior of a wild boy.

B Y M O R T O N H U N T

A most unusual man, Psamtik I, King of Egypt.During his long reign, in the latter half of the seventh century B.C., he not only drove out theAssyrians, revived Egyptian art and architecture,and brought about general prosperity, but foundtime to conceive of and conduct historys firstrecorded experiment in psychology.

The Egyptians had long believed that they werethe most ancient race on earth, and Psamtik, drivenby intellectual curiosity, wanted to prove that flat-tering belief. Like a good psychologist, he beganwith a hypothesis: If children had no opportunity tolearn a language from older people around them,they would spontaneously speak the primal, inborn

language of humankindthe natural language of itsmost ancient peoplewhich, he expected to show,was Egyptian.

To test his hypothesis, Psamtik commandeeredtwo infants of a lower-class mother and turnedthem over to a herdsman to bring up in a remotearea. They were to be kept in a sequestered cottage,properly fed and cared for, but were never to hearanyone speak so much as a word. The Greek histo-rian Herodotus, who tracked the story down andlearned what he calls the real facts from priests ofHephaestus in Memphis, says that Psamtiks goalwas to know, after the indistinct babblings of infancywere over, what word they would first articulate.

The experiment, he tells us, worked. One day,when the children were two years old, they ran upto the herdsman as he opened the door of their cot-tage and cried out Becos! Since this meant nothingto him, he paid no attention, but when it happenedrepeatedly, he sent word to Psamtik, who at onceordered the children brought to him. When he tooheard them say it, Psamtik made inquiries andlearned that becos was thePhrygian word for bread.He concluded that,disappointingly, thePhrygians were anolder race than theEgyptians.

We today maysmile condescend-ingly; we know frommodern studies ofchildren brought upunder conditions ofisolation that there isno innate language

4 Unit 1 / Approaches to Psychology

R E A D I N G S I N P S Y C H O L O G YR E A D I N G S I N P S Y C H O L O G Y

An

EXPERIMENTin the

SEVENTH CENTURY B.C.

Readers DictionaryAssyrians: people of an empire in the Middle East,

c. 650 B.C.

spontaneously: arising naturally, without externalinfluence

Phrygians: people of an ancient country located inAnatolia, or present-day Turkey

innate: existing in an individual from birth

inarticulate: incapable of understandable speech

erratic: strange; not normal

and that children who hear no speech never speak.Psamtiks hypothesis rested on an invalid assump-tion, and he apparently mistook a babbled sound foran actual word. Yet we must admire him for trying toprove his hypothesis and for having the highly origi-nal notion that thoughts arise in the mind throughinternal processes that can be investigated.

B Y D A V I D H O T H E R S A L L

In 1799 [Phillipe] Pinel was asked to examine awild boy, believed to be about twelve years old, whohad been found by three hunters in the woods ofSaint-Serin near Aveyron in southern France. Fromreports of hunters who had caught glimpses of him,it was believed that he had lived in the woods forsome years. He was virtually naked, covered withscars, dirty, and inarticulate. Apparently he had sur-vived on a diet of acorns and roots. He walked on all-fours much of the time and grunted like an animal.News of the capture of this wild boy caused a sensa-tion in Paris. The newly formed Society of Observersof Man arranged for him to be brought to the capitalfor study. . . . Taken to Paris in 1800 and exhibited ina cage, the wild boy sat rocking back and forth andwas completely apathetic. He was a great disap-pointment to the hordes of curious spectators. . . .

After examining the boy, Pinel concluded that farfrom being a noble savage, the boy was an incurableidiot. Despite this conclusion, one of Pinels assistants,Jean-Marc-Gaspard Itard (17441835), undertook tocare for the wild boy and to try to edu-cate him. First he gave him a name,Victor, and then made a workingassumption that Victors behaviorwas due to his social isolationrather than the result of brain dam-age or some other organic condi-tion. Itard had five aims:

1st AimTo interest him in social life by ren-dering it more pleasant to him than the one he wasthen leading, and above all more like the life whichhe had just left.

2nd AimTo awaken his nervous sensibility bythe most energetic stimulation, and occasionally byintense emotion.

3rd AimTo extend the range of his ideas bygiving him new needs and by increasing his socialcontacts.

4th AimTo lead him to the use of speech byinducing the exercise of imitation through theimperious law of necessity.

5th AimTo make him exercise the simplestmental operations upon the objects of his physicalneeds over a period of time, afterwards inducing theapplication of these mental processes to the objectsof instruction. (Itard, 1894)

So Itard undertook Victors rehabilitation. Withthe assistance of a Madame Guerin, Itard succeeded,after truly heroic efforts, in teaching Victor to payattention, to keep clean and to dress himself, to eatwith his hands, to play simple games, to obey somecommands, and even to read and understand simplewords. However, despite all their efforts, Victornever learned to talk. At times he showed signs ofaffection, but often, and especially under stress, hisbehavior was erratic, unpredictable, and violent.Victor learned simple discriminations, but when theywere made more difficult, he became destructive,biting and chewing his clothes, sheets, and even thechair mantlepiece. After working with Victor for fiveyears, Itard gave up hope of ever attaining his goals.Victors background and the passions of his adoles-cence could not be overcome. Victor lived withMadame Guerin until 1828, when he died at the ageof forty.

Unit 1 / Approaches to Psychology 5

Analyzing the Reading

1. What was Psamtiks hypothesis? Why was it invalid?2. Why was Psamtiks experiment important even though his

hypothesis was flawed?3. Critical Thinking Do you think Itards experiment was worth-

while? Why or why not?

Chapter OverviewVisit the Understanding PsychologyWeb site at psychology.glencoe.comand click on Chapter 1ChapterOverviews to preview the chapter.

PSYCHOLOGY

6

Psychology JournalThink about your personal

reasons for studying psychol-ogy. Write an entry in your journal of at least 100 words describing what you hope to gain from this experience.

From a psychologists point of view, Steve is demonstrating complexbehavior. Steve stays on his computer from midnight until morn-ing, often ignoring physiological, or physical, needs such as sleepand hunger. He engages in this behavior because of cognitive, or private,unobservable mental, reasons. For example, Steve may go online becausehe likes the intellectual challenge of outwitting the other players. OrSteves behavior may be motivated by emotionshe goes online to avoidthe pressures of college life. There may also be subconscious, emotional,and behavioral reasons. For instance, does the Internet reinforce hisbehavior? Does this Internet use reflect a weak self-concept? Learningabout psychology can help you gain a better understanding of your ownbehavior, knowledge about how psychologists study human and animalbehavior, and practical applications for enriching your life.

Why Study Psychology?

Main IdeaThrough the study of psychology, peo-ple can discover psychological principlesthat have the potential to enrich thelives of humans.

Vocabulary physiological cognitive psychology hypothesis theory basic science applied science scientific method

Objectives Describe the range of topics that are

covered in an introductory psychologycourse.

Cite the goals and scientific basis ofpsychology.

Readers GuideExploring Psychology

Addicted to the InternetIts 4 A.M. and Steve is engulfed in

the green glare of his computer screen,one minute pretending hes a ruthlessmafia lord masterminding a gamblingempire, the next minute imagining hes an evil sorcerer or an alien life form.

Steve, a college student, is playing aMultiple User Dungeon (MUD) gameafictional game modeled after Dungeonsand Dragons that is played by sendingonline messages to other players. But ashe continually logs on for hours, Stevefinds himself sleeping through classes, forgetting his homework, and slipping into Internet addiction . . .

from the APA Monitor, June 1996

Chapter 1 / Introducing Psychology 7

physiological: having to dowith an organisms physicalprocesses

cognitive: having to do withan organisms thinking andunderstanding

GAINING INSIGHT INTO BEHAVIORPsychology can provide useful insight into behavior. For example,

suppose a student is convinced that he is hopelessly shy and doomed for-ever to feel uncomfortable in groups. Then he learns through social psychology that different kinds of groups tend to have different effects ontheir members. He thinks about this. He notes that although he is mis-erable at parties, he feels fine at meetings of the school newspaper staffand in the group he works with in the biology laboratory. In technicalterms, he is much more uncomfortable in unstructured social groups thanin structured, task-oriented groups. Realizing that he is uncomfortableonly in some groups brings him relief. He is not paralyzingly shy; he justdoes not like unstructured groups. He is not alone in his feelingsandthinking about his feelings helps him gain confidence in himself.

ACQUIRING PRACTICAL INFORMATIONMost of the chapters in this book include material that has a practi-

cal application in everyday life. You will learn concrete and detailed waysto carry out a number of useful procedures psychologists have developed.

For example, Chapter 9 describes a systematic way of dispensingrewards and punishments that psychologists call shaping. You will defi-nitely find this useful if you ever have to train a puppy. (You give thepuppy a treat after it obeys a command.) You may find yourself wonder-ing how you are shaping the behavior of people around you. Perhaps youhave two friends who are always happy to join you for a soda or a moviebut who never bring any money along. You have loaned them moneymany times, and just as many times, they have failed to pay you back. You

know they can afford topay their share, and youhave repeatedly told themso. They are good friends,however, so you end uppaying their way again andagain. In doing so, you arerewarding or reinforcing anundesirable behavior pat-tern. Is that what you reallywant to do?

Chapter 10 includes adescription of severalmnemonic devices, ormemory aids, that help youretain information. Thepoem beginning Thirtydays has September, whichhelps many people remem-ber the number of days in

8 Chapter 1 / Introducing Psychology

Reading CheckWhat insights might you

gain from studying psychology?

Psychology and YouFigure 1.1

Studying psychology may help you gain a better understanding ofhuman behavior. What is psychology?

each month, is an example. Withmnemonic devices, you usually associ-ate each item on a list with somethingeasier to remember, such as a picture,rhyme, or phrase. Although this mayrequire time and effort, memory expertshave shown that it is worth the trouble.

In reading about child developmentin Chapter 3, you may recall similarexperiences you had in your own child-hood. Chapter 16, on disturbance andbreakdown, may help you understanddifficult periods in your own life and inthe lives of those around you.

OVERVIEW OFPSYCHOLOGY

Psychology is the scientific studyof behavior and mental processes. Suchstudy can involve both animal and human behaviors. When applied tohumans, psychology covers everything that people think, feel, and do.Psychologists differ in how much importance they place on specific typesof behavior. For example, some psychologists believe that you shouldstudy only behavior that you can see, observe, or measure directly. Stevesbehavior of logging on and remaining on the Internet for hours at a timeis an observable behavior. Some psychologists believe that our thoughts,feelings, and fantasies are also important, even though these processes arenot directly observable. Steve may log on because he feels intimidated byothers or by schoolwork, but psychologists cannot directly observe thatthese are the reasons that Steve is engaging in this behavior.

While psychologists may differ on which types of behavior areimportant, they do agree that the study of behavior must be systematic.The use of a systematic method of asking and answering questions aboutwhy people think, act, and feel as they do reduces the chances of comingto false conclusions. Consider the story of the blind men and the ele-phant. A long time ago, three very wise, but blind, men were out on ajourney when they came across a sleeping elephant. Because they couldnot see the elephant, they did not know what was blocking their way, sothey set about to discover what they could about the obstacle.

As it happened, each man put his hands on a different section of theelephant, examining it in great detail and with much thought. The firstman, having felt the elephants trunk, described a creature that was long,wormlike, and quite flexible. No, no! You must be mistaken, said thesecond man, who was seated astride the elephant. This creature is wide,very round, and does not move very much. The man who was hold-ing one of the elephants tusks added his description of a small, hard,pointed creature.


Why YouOverreact

Your friend makes a simple comment about your hairor clothes, and you blow up, getting violently angry andfeeling deeply hurt. Why? Emotions occur as the result of aphysical stimulation paired with some social or personalevent. If an emotional event occurs, but you do not have aphysical reactionsuch as a pounding heart or a tensestomachyou will not feel that emotion in the usual sense.Yet consider the following situation: You just drank twocans of caffeinated soda. Your heart is beating hard, andyour stomach is tense. Then your friend makes a criticalcomment. When you hear the comment, you get angrybut you get angrier than usual because your body is alreadystimulated. If you are very tired, you may react mildly ornot at all to an emotional event.

psychology: the scientificstudy of behavior that is testedthrough scientific research

Each of these men was correct in his description of what he felt, butin order to understand the elephant fully, they needed to combine theiraccumulated knowledge. The study of human behavior is similar. Wecannot rely on simplistic explanations. In order to understand our observa-tions, we usually have to combine all of our thoughts.

We each like to think we understand people. We spend time observ-ing others (and ourselves) and form conclusions about people from ourdaily interactions. Sometimes the conclusions we draw, however, are notaccurate because we are not systematic in our efforts.

The Goals of PsychologyAs psychologists go about their systematic and scientific study of

humans and animals, they have several goals. Overall, psychologists seekto do four thingsdescribe, explain, predict, and influence behavior.

Description The first goal for any scientist or psychologist is to describeor gather information about the behavior being studied and to presentwhat is known. For example, we described Steves behavior at college.

Explanation Psychologists are not content simply to state the facts.Rather, they also seek to explain why people (or animals) behave as they


Test Your IntuitionsFigure 1.2

Test your intuitions about behavior by answering true or false to the statements below.Turn to page 12 to check your answers.

1. The behavior of most lower animalsinsects,reptiles and amphibians, most rodents, andbirdsis instinctive and unaffected by learning.

2. For the first week of life, a baby sees nothing but shades of gray-blue regardless of where heor she looks.

3. A child learns to talk more quickly if the adultsaround the child habitually repeat the word he orshe is trying to say, using proper pronunciation.

4. The best way to get a chronically noisy child tosettle down and pay attention is to punish him or her.

5. Slow learners remember more of what they learnthan fast learners.

6. Highly intelligent people, geniuses, tend to bephysically frail and socially isolated.

7. On the average, you cannot predict from a per-sons grades at school and college whether he orshe will do well in a career.

8. Most stereotypes are completely true.

9. In small amounts, alcohol is a stimulant.

10. The largest drug problem in the United States, in terms of the number of people affected, ismarijuana.

11. Psychiatry is a subdivision of psychology.

12. Most developmentally handicapped people alsohave psychological disorders.

13. A third or more of the people suffering fromsevere psychological disorders are potentiallydangerous.

14. Electroshock therapy is an outmoded techniquerarely used in todays mental hospitals.

15. The more severe the disorder, the more intensivethe therapy required to cure it; for example,schizophrenics usually respond best to psychoanalysis.

16. Nearly all the psychological characteristics ofmen and women appear to be inborn; in all cul-tures, for example, women are more emotionaland sexually less aggressive than men.

17. No reputable psychologist takes seriously suchirrational phenomena as ESP, hypnosis, or thebizarre mental and physical achievements ofEastern yogis.

PSYCHOLOGY

Student Web ActivityVisit the UnderstandingPsychology Web site at psychology.glencoe.comand click on Chapter 1Student Web Activities foran activity about the studyof psychology.

do. Such explanations can be called psychological principlesgenerally validideas about behavior. Psychologists propose these explanations as hypothe-ses. A hypothesis is an educated guess about some phenomenon. It is aresearchers prediction about what the results of a study are expected to be.As research studies designed to test each hypothesis are completed, morecomplex explanations called theories are constructed. A theory is usuallya complex explanation based on findings from a large number of experi-mental studies. Theories change as new data improves our understanding,and a good theory becomes the source of additional ideas for experiments.A number of theories taken together may validate or cause us to alter theprinciples that help explain and predict observed behavior.

Prediction The third goal of psychologists is to predict, as a result ofaccumulated knowledge, what organisms will do and, in the case ofhumans, what they will think or feel in var-ious situations. By studying descriptive andtheoretical accounts of past behaviors, psy-chologists can predict future behaviors.

Influence Finally, some psychologistsseek to influence behavior in helpful ways.These psychologists are conducting studieswith a long-term goal of finding out moreabout human or animal behavior. They aredoing basic science, or research. Otherpsychologists are more interested in discov-ering ways to use what we already knowabout people to benefit others. They viewpsychology as an applied science and areusing psychological principles to solvemore immediate problems.

Psychologists who study the ability ofinfants to perceive visual patterns are doingbasic research. They may not be concernedwith the implication their findings mighthave on the design of a crib. Psychologistsstudying rapid eye movement in sleepresearch are also involved in basic science.If they discover that one individual has asleep disturbance, they will try to under-stand and explain the situation, but they may not try to correct it. That is a job for applied scientists, such as clinicalpsychologists, industrial/organizationalpsychologists, counseling psychologists, orengineering psychologists.

An example of a psychologist involvedin applying psychological principles ratherthan discovering them is a consultant to a


Gaining Perspective

Psychology involves gaining new perspectives onyour own and others behavior. Upon examination,Ren Magrittes painting The Human Conditionbecomes more and more complex. How does yourperspective of this painting change upon closerexamination of it?

Figure 1.3

hypothesis: an assumptionor prediction about behaviorthat is tested through scientificresearch

theory: a set of assumptionsused to explain phenomenaand offered for scientific study

basic science: the pursuit of knowledge about naturalphenomena for its own sake

applied science: discover-ing ways to use scientific find-ings to accomplish practicalgoals

scientific method: a general approach to gatheringinformation and answeringquestions so that errors andbiases are minimized

toy manufacturer. A toy manufacturer tries to develop toys that appeal tochildren. The manufacturer may apply, or use, psychological principleswhen designing those toys. Since the transfer of findings from basic toapplied science can be tricky, the distinction between basic and appliedscience is important. The following example illustrates this.

Psychologists doing basic research have found that babies raised ininstitutions such as orphanages become seriously delayed in their physi-cal, intellectual, and emotional development. Wayne Dennis (1960),among others, traces this to the fact that these babies have nothing tolook at but a blank, white ceiling and white crib cushions, and are han-dled only when they need to be fed or changed. However, we have to bevery careful not to apply this finding too broadly. Even though childrenwho lack stimulation tend to develop poorly, it does not follow thatproviding infants with maximum stimulation will cause them to grow upemotionally sound and intellectually superior. Quite the contrary, mostbabies do best with a medium level of stimulation (White, 1969). Evenmore significantly, social interaction seems much more important thanvisual stimulation. Normal development is more likely to result fromlong-term interactions with a responsive caregiver (Rice, Cunningham, &Young, 1997). Basic science provides specific findingswhat happens inone study conducted at one time and in one place.

THE SCIENTIFIC BASIS OF PSYCHOLOGYTo ensure that data are collected accurately, psychologists rely on the

scientific method (see Figure 1.4). In psychology, facts are based on data.The data are obtained from methods such as experiments, surveys, and


Answers to Figure 1.2All of the statements inFigure 1.2 are false. As youread the different chapters inUnderstanding Psychology,you will learn more about thecorrect answers to thesestatements and the researchthat psychologists have con-ducted to demonstrate whythese statements are false.

The Scientific MethodFigure 1.4

Scientists investigate a question they have by using the scientificmethod. What may occur after a psychologist reaches a conclusion?

Question

Hypothesis

Experiment

Results

Conclusions

TheoryOther

psychologists replicateand test their theories

Reject andrevise hypothesis

Additionalhypotheses

Reading CheckDefine the concepts

of principle and theory, and differentiate between the two.

case studies. This means that psychologists reach their conclusions byidentifying a specific problem or question, formulating a hypothesis, col-lecting data through observation and experimentation, and analyzing thedata.

The scientific basis of psychology goes backmany years. Today people are very sophisticat-ed about scientific procedures, but that has notalways been true. Wilhelm Wundt is creditedwith setting up the first psychology laboratoryin Leipzig, Germany, in 1879. He proposed that psychological experience is composed ofcompounds, much like the compounds foundin chemistry. Psychology, he claimed, hastwo kinds of elementssensations and feel-ings. Wundt tried to test his statements bycollecting scientific data. Although Wundtsmethods proved cumbersome and unreliable,the importance of Wundts work is the procedurehe followed, not the results he obtained. He called the pro-cedure introspection, and in psychology it led to what we now call thescientific method. Whereas in Wundts introspection an individualobserves, analyzes, and reports his or her own mental experiences, thescientific method developed as an objective method of observation andanalysis.

Although psychologists use the scientific method to demonstrate andsupport many theories, many questions about behavior remain unan-swered. Psychological theories are continually reviewed and revised. Newtheories and technological developments are constantly generating newquestions and new psychological studies.


Reading CheckWhat is the scientific

method?

1. Review the Vocabulary What is thedifference between a hypothesis and atheory?

2. Visualize the Main Idea In a graphicorganizer similar to the one below, listand describe the goals of psychology.

3. Recall Information Why do psycholo-gists use the scientific method?

4. Think Critically How might a psychologist doing basic science and apsychologist practicing applied sciencediffer in their approach to the issue ofInternet addiction?

Assessment

Goals of Psychology

5. Application Activity Use the four goals ofpsychology to outline how a psychologist mightapproach the following question: Why are yousitting here in psychology class when there areother things you could be doing?

Preserved brain

In the 1800s Marmaduke B. Sampson wrote the account above toexplain why crime occurs. According to Sampson, the behavior of S.S.was the direct result of the shape of his head. Phrenologythe prac-tice of examining bumps on a persons skull to determine that persons intellect and character traitsbecame an important practice in theUnited States in the mid-1800s. Although this pseudoscience may appearridiculous to us, modern scientists credit phrenology for encouragingstudy into the role of the brain in human behavior. Phrenology may haveinspired scientists to consider the brain, instead of the heart, as respon-sible for human behavior.

A Brief History of Psychology

Main IdeaPsychology involves sets of questions,theories, methods, and possible answersthat have been passed on and changedfrom generation to generation.

Vocabulary structuralist introspection functionalist psychoanalyst behaviorist humanist cognitivist psychobiologist

Objectives Explain important trends in the his-

tory of psychology. Identify various approaches to the

study of psychology.

Readers GuideExploring Psychology

The Science of Skull BumpsS.S. . . . was sent to the State Prison for

five years for assault and battery, withintent to kill, . . . Before his mind becamederanged, he exhibited great energy ofpassion and purpose, but they were all ofa low character, their sole bearing beingto prove his own superiority as an animal.. . . The drawing shows a broad, low head,corresponding with such a character. Themoral organs are exceedingly deficient, . . .If the higher capacities and endowmentsof humanity were ever found coupledwith such a head as this, it would be aphenomenon as inexplicable as that ofseeing without the eye, or hearing withoutthe ear.

from Mathew B. Brady and the Rationaleof Crime: A Study in Daguerreotypes,Library of Congress Quarterly Journal,Madeleine B. Stern


THE ORIGINS OF PSYCHOLOGY Psychology has come a long way since the days of studying bumps

on skulls. In the fifth and sixth centuries B.C., the Greeks began to studyhuman behavior and decided that peoples lives were dominated not somuch by the gods as by their own minds: people were rational.

These early philosophers attempted to interpret the world theyobserved around them in terms of human perceptionsobjects were hotor cold, wet or dry, hard or softand these qualities influenced peoplesexperience of them. Although the Greek philosophers did not rely on sys-tematic study, they did set the stage for the development of the sciences,including psychology, through their reliance on observation as a meansof knowing their world.

In the mid-1500s, Nicolaus Copernicus (14731543) published the ideathat Earth was not the center of the universe, as was previously thought, butrevolved around the sun. Later, Galileo Galilei (15641642) used a telescopeto confirm predictions about star position and movement based onCopernicuss work. The individuals of the Renaissance were beginning torefine the modern concept of experimentation through observation.

Seventeenth-century philosophers popularized the idea of dualism, theconcept that the mind and body are separate and distinct. The Frenchphilosopher Ren Descartes (15961650) disagreed, however, proposingthat a link existed between mind and body. He reasoned that the mindcontrolled the bodys movements, sensations, and perceptions. Hisapproach to understanding human behavior was based on the assumptionthat the mind and body influence each other to create a persons experi-ences. Exactly how this interaction takes place is still being studied today.

As one psychologist has expressed it, Modern science began toemerge by combining philosophers reflections, logic, and mathematicswith the observations and inventiveness of practical people (Hilgard,1987). By the nineteenth century, biologists had announced the discoveryof cells as the building blocks of life. Later, chemists developed the periodic table of elements, and physicists made great progress in further-ing our understanding of atomic forces. Many natural scientists werestudying complex phenomena by reducing them to simpler parts. It wasin this environment that the science of psychology was formed.

HISTORICAL APPROACHES The history of psychology is a history of alternative perspectives. As

the field of psychology evolved, various schools of thought arose to com-pete and offer new approaches to the science of behavior.

StructuralismIn 1879 in Leipzig, Germany, Wilhelm Wundt (18321920) started

his Laboratory of Psychology. Because of his efforts to pursue the studyof human behavior in a systematic and scientific manner, Wundt is gen-erally acknowledged as establishing modern psychology as a separate,


This 1893 advertisementendorsed the science of phrenology. How didphrenology contribute to psychology?

PhrenologyFigure1.5

structuralist: a psychologistwho studied the basic elementsthat make up conscious mentalexperiences

introspection: a method ofself-observation in which partic-ipants report their thoughts andfeelings

functionalist: a psychol-ogist who studied the function(rather than the structure) ofconsciousness

formal field of study. Although he was trained in physiologythe study of how the body worksWundts real interest was in the study of thehuman mind. Wundt was a structuralist, which means that he was inter-ested in the basic elements of human experience. In his laboratory,Wundt modeled his research on the mind after research in other naturalsciences he had studied. He developed a method of self-observationcalled introspection to collect information about the mind. In carefullycontrolled situations, trained participants reported their thoughts, andWundt tried to map out the basic structure of thought processes. Wundtsexperiments were very important historically because he used a system-atic procedure to study human behavior. This approach attracted manystudents who carried on the tradition of systematic research.

FunctionalismWilliam James (18421910) taught the first class in psychology

at Harvard University in 1875. James is often called the father of psychol-ogy in the United States. It took him 12 years to write the first

textbook of psychology, The Principles of Psychology(1890). James speculated that thinking, feeling, learn-ing, and rememberingall activities of the mindserve one major function: to help us survive as aspecies. Rather than focusing on the structure of themind as Wundt did, James focused on the functions oractions of the conscious mind and the goals or pur-poses of behaviors. Functionalists study how animalsand people adapt to their environments. AlthoughJames was not particularly interested in experimenta-tion, his writings and theories are still influential. InChapter 12 you will learn more about Jamess ideas onmotivation and emotion.

Inheritable TraitsSir Francis Galton (18221911), a nineteenth-

century English mathematician and scientist, wanted tounderstand how heredity influences a persons abilities,character, and behavior. (Heredity includes all the traits

and properties that are passed along biologically from parent to child.) Galtontraced the ancestry of various eminent people and found that greatness runsin families. He therefore concluded that genius or eminence is a hereditarytrait. This conclusion was like the blind mens ideas about the elephant.Galton did not consider the possibility that the tendency of genius to run indistinguished families might be a result of the exceptional environments andsocioeconomic advantages that also tend to surround such families. He alsoraised the question: Wouldnt the world be a better place if we could getrid of the less desirable people? Galton encouraged good marriages tosupply the world with talented offspring. Later, scientists all over theworld recognized the flaws in Galtons theory. A persons heredity andenvironment interact to influence intelligence.


?Did You Know?Did You Know?

Studying Scientists Some researchersstudy how scientists do science. Their find-ings point out misconceptions: Scientists are not always objective. They

sometimes ignore data that does notsupport their theories rather than impar-tially examining all available evidence.

Some scientists are not all that open-minded. Critics accused Isaac Newton,Charles Darwin, and Albert Einstein ofintolerance.

The best scientists are not always thebrightest. Studies demonstrate that nostrong relationship exists between scien-tists IQs and their contributions.

The data Galton used were based on hisstudy of biographies. Not content to limit his

inquiry to indirect accounts, however, he went onto invent procedures for directly testing the abilities

and characteristics of a wide range of people. Thesetests were the primitive ancestors of the modern personality tests and intel-ligence tests.

Although Galton began his work shortly before psychology emerged asan independent discipline, his theories and techniques quickly became cen-tral aspects of the new science. In 1883 he published a book, Inquiries intoHuman Faculty, that is regarded as the first study of individual differences.Galtons writings raised the issue of whether behavior is determined byheredity or environmenta subject that remains a focus of controversytoday.

Gestalt PsychologyA group of German psychologists, including Max

Wertheimer (18801943), Wolfgang Khler (18871967),and Kurt Koffka (18861941), disagreed with the princi-ples of structuralism and behaviorism. They argued thatperception is more than the sum of its partsit involvesa whole pattern or, in German, a Gestalt. For example,when people look at a chair, they recognize the chair asa whole rather than noticing its legs, its seat, and itsother components. Another example includes the per-ception of apparent motion. When you see fixed lightsflashing in sequence as on traffic lights and neon signs,you perceive motion rather than individual lights flashingon and off (see Figure 1.8). Gestalt psychologists studiedhow sensations are assembled into perceptual experiences.This approach became the forerunner for cog-nitive approaches to the study of psychology.

CONTEMPORARY APPROACHESMany ideas taken from the historical

approaches to psychology are reflected in contemporary approaches to the study


Sir Francis GaltonFigure 1.6

Galton declared that the most fithumans were those with high intelligence.He assumed that the wealthiest peoplewere also the most intelligent. What fac-tors did Galton fail to take into accountin his studies?

Freud believed that dreams can represent past, pres-ent, or future concerns or fears. Most contemporarypsychologists, though, disagree with the symbolsFreud found in dreams. How do you think the psy-chologist in the cartoon plans to help his patient?

Dream AnalysisFigure 1.7

of psychology. The most important approaches to the study of psychol-ogy today are the psychoanalytic, behavioral, humanistic, cognitive, bio-logical, and sociocultural approaches.

Psychoanalytic PsychologyWhile the first psychologists were interested in understanding the

conscious mind, Sigmund Freud (18561939), a physician who practicedin Vienna until 1938, was more interested in the unconscious mind. Hebelieved that our conscious experiences are only the tip of the iceberg,that beneath the surface are primitive biological urges that are in conflictwith the requirements of society and morality. According to Freud, theseunconscious motivations and conflicts are responsible for most humanbehavior. He thought that they were responsible for many medicallyunexplainable physical symptoms that troubled his patients.

Freud used a new method for indirectly studying unconsciousprocesses. In this technique, known as free association, a patient saideverything that came to mindno matter how absurd or irrelevant itseemedwithout attempting to produce logical or meaningful state-ments. The person was instructed not to edit or censor the thoughts.


Gestalt PsychologyFigure 1.8

Artist Giuseppe Arcimboldo (c.15301593)played with perceptual images in his paint-ing Autumn.

An electric sign in which the bulbs go on and off inturn, with the appropriate timing, gives the impressionof motion. How do these two images represent theideas of Gestalt psychology?

Freuds role, that of psychoanalyst, was to be objective; he merely satand listened and then interpreted the associations. Free association,Freud believed, revealed the operation of unconscious processes. Freudalso believed that dreams are expressions of the most primitive uncon-scious urges. To learn more about these urges, he used dream analysisbasically an extension of free associationin which he applied the sametechnique to a patients dreams (Freud, 1940) (see Figure 1.7).

While working out his ideas, Freud took careful, extensive notes on allhis patients and treatment sessions. He used these records, or case studies,to develop and illustrate a comprehensive theory of personality (Ewen,1993). Freuds theory of personality will be discussed in Chapter 14.

In many areas of psychology today, Freuds view of unconsciousmotivation remains a powerful and controversial influence. Modern psy-chologists may support, alter, or attempt to disprove it, but mosthave a strong opinion about it.The technique of free associa-tion is still used by psychoan-alysts, and the method ofintensive case study is still amajor tool for investigatingbehavior. (A case study is ananalysis of the thoughts, feel-ings, beliefs, experiences,behaviors, or problems of anindividual.)

Behavioral PsychologyThe pioneering work

of Russian physiologistIvan Pavlov (18491936)charted another newcourse for psychologicalinvestigation. In a now-famous experiment, Pav-lov rang a tuning forkeach time he gave a dogsome meat powder. Thedog would normally sali-vate when the powderreached its mouth. AfterPavlov repeated the pro-cedure several times, thedog would salivate when itheard the ring of the tun-ing fork, even if no foodappeared. It had been con-ditioned to associate thesound with the food.


psychoanalyst: a psycholo-gist who studies how uncon-scious motives and conflictsdetermine human behavior

Mary Whiton Calkins18631930

What we most need toknow about any man issurely this: whether he

is good or bad.

Mary Whiton Calkins, a female pioneer in psychology, con-tributed greatly to the field of psychology despite numerousobstacles. In the 1800s, North American universities barred womenfrom Ph.D. programs. Despite this, Harvards William James admit-ted Calkins into his graduate seminar. When Calkins joined theseminar, all the other students dropped it in protest, so Jamestutored her alone.

Calkins taught and studied, petitioning Harvard to admit heras a Ph.D. candidate. Harvard refused and, instead, held an infor-mal examination for Calkins. Calkins completed the requirementsfor the doctoral degree and outperformed all her male counterpartson the examination. When Radcliffe University offered her thedoctoral degree, she refused to accept the compromise.

Calkins served as a full professor of psychology at WellesleyCollege and became the first female president of both the AmericanPsychological Association (APA) and the American PhilosophicalAssociation.

Profiles In Psychology

The conditioned reflex was a response (sali-vation) provoked by a stimulus (the tuningfork) other than the one that first produced it(food) (see Chapter 9 for a complete explana-tion). The concept was used by psychologistsas a new tool, as a means of exploring thedevelopment of behavior. Using this tool,they could begin to account for behavior asthe product of prior experience. Thisenabled them to explain how certain actsand certain differences among individualswere the result of learning.

Psychologists who stressed investigatingobservable behavior became known as behav-iorists. Their position, as formulated by psy-

chologist John B. Watson (18781958), was thatpsychology should concern itself only with the

observable facts of behavior. Watson further main-tained that all behavior, even apparently instinctive

behavior, is the result of conditioning and occursbecause the appropriate stimulus is present in the

environment.Although it was Watson who defined and solidified

the behaviorist position, it was B.F. Skinner (19041990)who introduced the concept of reinforcement. (Reinforcement

is a response to a behavior that increases the likelihood thebehavior will be repeated.) Skinner attempted to show how his labo-

ratory techniques might be applied to society as a whole. In his classicnovel Walden Two (1948), he portrayed his idea of Utopiaa small townin which conditioning, through rewarding those who display behaviorthat is considered desirable, rules every conceivable facet of life.

Humanistic PsychologyHumanistic psychology developed as a reaction to behavioral psy-

chology. In the 1960s, humanists such as Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers,and Rollo May described human nature as evolving and self-directed. Itdiffers from behaviorism and psychoanalysis in that it does not viewhumans as being controlled by events in the environment or by uncon-scious forces. Instead, the environment and other outside forces simplyserve as a background to our own internal growth. The humanisticapproach emphasizes how each person is unique and has a self-conceptand potential to develop fully. This potential for personal growth anddevelopment can lead to a more satisfying life.

Cognitive PsychologySince 1950, cognitive psychology has benefited from the contributions

of people such as Jean Piaget, Noam Chomsky, and Leon Festinger.Cognitivists focus on how we process, store, and use information and how


Why do you do what you do?Throughout the course of a day, you perform manyactivities. Why?

Procedure1. Observe and keep careful notes of your be-

havior on a particular day.

2. You may want to make a chart listing each action,such as woke to the alarm clocks ring, atebreakfast, and yelled at little brother.

Analysis1. Beside each behavior you have noted, list

what caused your behavior. For example, Iwoke up at 7:00 A.M. because school starts at8:00 A.M., and I hate being late. I ate breakfastbecause I was hungry.

2. Using the behaviorist approach, describe howrewards and punishments affected each of the behaviors on your list.

See the SkillsHandbook, page 622,

for an explanation of designingan experiment.

cognitivist: a psychologistwho studies how we process,store, retrieve, and use informa-tion and how cognitive process-es influence our behavior

behaviorist: a psychologistwho analyzes how organismslearn or modify their behaviorbased on their response toevents in the environment

humanist: a psychologistwho believes that each personhas freedom in directing his orher future and achieving per-sonal growth


Contemporary Approaches to Psychology

Modern psychologists use many different approaches to study the samebehavior. Each viewpoint offers additional information to understandingbehavior and reflects a different view of human nature. What other ques-tions might a cognitivist study?

Figure 1.9

Approach What influences our behavior? Sample research question

Psychoanalytic Unconscious motivations influence How have negative childhood Psychology our behavior. experiences affected the way I

handle stressful situations?

Behavioral Psychology Events in the environment (rewards Can good study habits be and punishments) influence our learned?behavior.

Humanistic Psychology Individual or self-directed choices Do I believe I can prepare for influence our behavior. and pass the test?

Cognitive Psychology How we process, store, and retrieve How does caffeine affect information influences our behavior. memory?

Biological Psychology Biological factors influence our Do genes affect your behavior. intelligence and personality?

Sociocultural Psychology Ethnicity, gender, culture, and How do people of differentsocioeconomic status influence genders and ethnicitiesour behavior. interact with one another?

this information influences our thinking, language, problem solving, andcreativity. They believe that behavior is more than a simple response to astimulus. Behavior is influenced by a variety of mental processes, includingperceptions, memories, and expectations.

Biological PsychologyThis viewpoint emphasizes the impact of biology on our behavior.

Psychobiologists study how the brain, the nervous system, hormones, andgenetics influence our behavior. PET scans and CAT scans (explained inChapter 6) are the newest tools used by psychobiologists. Psychobiologistshave found that genetic factors influence a wide range of human behaviors.Psychobiologists have discovered that 98 percent of the twins of an identicaltwin who develops childhood autism will also develop it. Yet fraternal twinsshare autism no more frequently than any siblings, suggesting that autism isheritable and is likely caused by several genes (Folstein & Piven, 1991; Baileyet al, 1995). In many ways, our behavior is the result of our physiologicalmakeup.

Sociocultural PsychologyThe newest approach to psychology involves studying the influence

of cultural and ethnic similarities and differences on behavior and socialfunctioning.

Reading CheckHow do cognitive

psychologists differ frombehaviorists?

psychobiologist:a psychologist who studies howphysical and chemical changesin our bodies influence ourbehavior

For example, a sociocultural psychologist considers how our knowl-edge and ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving are dependent on theculture to which we belong. Think about all the perspectives and be-haviors you share with other people of your culture. PsychologistLeonard Doob (1990) illustrated the cultural implications of a simple,reflexive behaviora sneeze. Doob asks, Will [the person who sensesthe urge to sneeze] try to inhibit this reflex action? What will he say, whatwill bystanders say, when he does sneeze? What will they think of him if he fails to turn away and sneezes in their faces? Do they and he con-sider sneezing an omen and, if so, is it a good or bad omen? To answersuch questions, we would have to understand the cultural context inwhich the sneeze occurred, as well as the cultural beliefs associated withthe sneeze.

Sociocultural psychologists also study the impact and integration ofthe millions of immigrants who come to the United States each year. Thecharacter of the U.S. population is rapidly changing. By the year 2010,Americans of Hispanic origin will make up almost 15 percent of the pop-ulation, while those of African American and Asian or Pacific Islanderdescent will make up over 18 percent (U.S. Census Bureau, 1998).Psychologists study the attitudes, values, beliefs, and social norms androles of these different ethnic groups. They also study methods to reduceintolerance and discrimination.

The sociocultural approach is also concerned with issues such as gen-der and socioeconomic status and is based on the idea that these factorsimpact human behavior and mental processes. For instance, how mightyou be different if you had been born female instead of male, or maleinstead of female? Would you be different if you had been born in poverty,or into an extremely wealthy family?


1. Review the Vocabulary Using yourown words, describe the structuralist,functionalist, behaviorist, and humanistapproaches to the study of psychology.

2. Visualize the Main Idea Use a graphicorganizer similar to the one below tolist the different historical approachesto the study of psychology.

3. Recall Information Identify someissues that sociocultural psychologistsmight research.

4. Think Critically With which approachto psychology do you most agree? Why?

Assessment

5. Application Activity Consider the followingquestion: Why do you sometimes daydream inyour classes? Compare how the variousapproaches to the study of psychology wouldaddress this question differently. Describe the differences and similarities.

Historical Approaches


did not prove reliable. The relationship betweenyour physical makeup and your personality isnot yet firmly established. Your mental state canmake the symptoms of some diseases moredistressing, or factors such as stress can makeyou more liable to getting sick. However, thedominance of, say, black bile in your systemdoes not lead to depression. Galens notion,though, that a healthy personality is a balancedone may indeed be sound.

The Four HumorsPeriod of Study: Around A.D. 150

Introduction: Hippocrates (460375 B.C.),often referred to as the father of medicine,became one of the first people to claim that ill-ness had natural, not supernatural, causes.Hippocrates associated the four elementsearth, air, fire, and waterwith four humors inthe body. He associated earth with phlegm(mucus), air with blood, fire with yellow bile, andwater with black bile. Humans with balancedhumors were healthy; an imbalance among thehumors resulted in sickness. Galen (A.D.130200) extended Hippocrates theory toinclude characteristics of human personalities.

Hypothesis: Galen identified four personalitycharacteristics called melancholic, sanguine,choleric, and phlegmatic. Galen associatedthese four characteristics with the four humorsof the body. Each humor was thought to give offvapors that rose to the brain. An individuals per-sonality could be explained by the state of thatpersons humors.

Method: If a person had excess phlegm, thatperson was probably dull, pale, and cowardly.Cheerful and generous personalities resultedfrom the dominance of blood. Laziness andgloominess were associated with cold and dry-ness (black bile). If a person had too muchcholer (yellow bile) in his system, he was proba-bly a violent or vengeful person. The perfect per-sonality resulted when none of the four humorsdominated.

At that time, treatment of a psychologicaldisorder involved restoring a balanceamong the humors. Doctors often gave patients poisonous herbs to eat. Thiscaused vomiting, a sign that the imbal-anced humor was leaving the patientsbody. Balancing the diet could also bal-ance the humors.

Results: The theories of Hippocratesand Galen proved unfounded, and theirprescribed treatments for various disorders

Analyzing the Case Study1. According to Galens hypothesis, how are a persons

physical and mental states related?

2. How did Galen treat psychological disorders?3. Critical Thinking How can Galens original theory be

used today as a prescription for a healthy personality?

UNSTABLE

Touchy

Restless

Aggressive

Excitable

Changeable

Impulsive

Optimistic

Active

Sociable

Outgoing

Talkative

Responsive

Easygoing

Lively

Carefree

Leadership

Passive

Careful

Thoughtful

Peaceful

Controlled

Reliable

Even-tempered

Calm

Moody

Anxious

Rigid

Sober

Pessimistic

Reserved

Unsociable

Quiet

STABLE

MELANCHOLIC(Sad)

Black Bile

CHOLERIC(Irritable)

Yellow Bile

PHLEGMATIC(Unexcitable)

Phlegm

SANGUINE(Confident)

Blood

EXTROVERTED

A Personality Wheel

HumorPhlegmBloodYellow bileBlack bile

Principal SourceBrainHeartLiverSpleen

TemperamentPhlegmaticSanguineCholericMelancholic

CharacteristicSluggish, unemotionalCheerfulQuick-tempered, fierySad

INTROVERTED

A Personality Wheel

The thoughts above are the reflections of a patient. The patient issuffering from depressionan emotional state of dejection andsadness, ranging from mild discouragement to feelings of utterhopelessness and despair. Some psychologists conduct research to collectinformation and form theories about disorders such as depression. Otherpsychologists apply that infor

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