• Psychology as a Science

Psychology:
The scientific study of behavior and mental processes.Theory: Statements based upon assumptions, about events.Pure Research: Conducted without concern for immediate applications.Applied Research: conducted to find solutions to specific problems.

• What Psychologists Do

Psychologist:
A person trained as a professional in the science of Psychology
               1. Clinical and Counseling Psychologists
               2. School and Educational Psychologists
               3. Developmental Psychologists
               4. Social Psychologists
               5. Experimental Psychologists
               6. Industrial/Organizational Psychologists
 Psychiatrists:
Medical Doctors (M.D.) who specialize in the study and treatment of psychological disorders

• Where Psychology Comes From

Structuralism:
Focused on the structure of the mind—seeking to break it down into its simplest elements.
Pure Research (content rather than application)
Functionalism:
Focused on the adaptive function (uses) of the mind rather than the components.
Applied Research (application rather than content)
Behaviorism:
The study of observable, measurable, behavior.
Speculation about the mind is not scientific.
Cognitive:
return of the "mind"—focus on thought processes, DID NOT replace behaviorism as a paradigm in Psychology--but rather, became disciplines of their own e.g.Artificial Intelligence, Cognitive Neuroscience.

• Behavioral Science

Behavior:
Any activity that can be observed
Science:
A discipline that uses systematic observation and experimentation to describe, explain, and predict. Scientific Method:
Obtaining scientific evidence in which research hypotheses are formulated and tested.
Hypothesis:
An explanation, based upon theory, of how something will behave under specific circumstances.
Must be an educated (based on outcomes of prior tests) guess and a testable (falsifiable through modus tollens logic) guess.
Operational Definition:
A description of particular procedures and elements used in an experiment, which allows other researchers to replicate the study—the way a cook book allows others to replicate recipes.
Population:
Collection of all individuals of interest in a particular study.

• Methods of Observation

Case Study:
Intensive focus on a single individual—may not generalize well.
Correlation/Descriptive:
Quantifies the strength of a relationship between two or more variables; correlation coefficient ranges from (-1) to (+1); CANNOT infer causation!! As one variable increases, the other variable increases. As one variable increases, the other decreases.
True Experiment:
Involves researcher manipulating the independent variable(s) to determine the effect on a dependent variable(s).. CAN INFER CAUSATION !! Treatment—controlled by researcher Outcome—measured by researcher to assess the effect of the treatment. exposed to the manipulation of the independent variable. not exposed to the independent variable—used for comparison. subjects are not aware of whether they received treatment or control. neither subjects nor researchers are aware of who received treatment or control.

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