HISTORICAL PSYCHOLOGY

Historical Psychology Linda Iacoboni PSY/310 March 9, 2011 Fernando Villegas

HISTORICAL PSYCHOLOGY Historical Psychology

The birth of psychology did not spontaneously occur. The evolution evolved over several centuries, stemming from the ideas of exceptional philosophers and becoming a science of its own. Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavioral process. People always have been interested in trying to interpret human behavior, but there was no acknowledgement or recorded documents until scientific experiments took place. Several significant people were responsible for the history and study of psychology. These people influenced the development of todays modern psychology. Plato was one of the original founders of philosophy. He had a serious impact on the history of western thinking. During the fourth and fifth centuries B.C., Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle were three Greek Philosophers, who were among the first to question the nature of mental processes and the mind. Great people such as Thales, Anaximander, Anaximentes, and Pythagoras created some of the first concepts. Their philosophies helped shape the leaders of philosophy. During the middle Ages a prominent Roman physician and Greek philosopher was Claudius Galen. He was a famous doctor during the Roman Empire and shared the beliefs of Hipocrates about physiological basis regarding mental disorders. During the Renaissance 14th to 17th Century Rene Descartes, was a French philosopher, scientist, and writer. He highly influenced various bodies of knowledge, including psychology. He was a rational thinker and believed that if a person were careful using his or her own ability to reason the truth would emerge (Goodwin, 2008). The 17th Century is the time when philosophy slowly makes the transition into psychology.

HISTORICAL PSYCHOLOGY Robert Watson was a severe advocate for psychology history. One of Watsons last creations was the Cheiron Society. The society became international and was responsible for psychologys history specializing in research (Goodwin, 2008). 18th Century American Edwin Boring was one of Americas experimental psychologists.

Edwin was extremely influential in the discipline of psychology during the 1920s through 1960s. He eventually became one of the first psychology historians that became highly respected. His contributions opened doors for others to advance in sensory and perceptual systems. His approach separated philosophy from psychology. He was the first to attempt unification of a diversifying field that interested all people (Brennan, 1982). For centuries concerns about the relationship between the mind and body exists. Psychologist and philosophers continue to try to understand the connection between the two. They continue to wonder if it is possible for each to function independently of each other. Mid-19th century, Wilhelm Wundt, a German physiologist used scientific methods of research to into a persons reaction times. His work was important because it showed the connection between physiology and psychology. Wundt looked upon physiology as the human consciousness. He used experimental methods to measure and study the internal mind processes. Considered unreliable today these methods are not used; however, back then Wundt set the stage for the methods that would become future experiments (Bantwal, 2011). John Mill was a philosopher in Britain and a great historian. He was the father of John Stuart Mill, who was a rationalist and credited it to his experiences rather than his born ability (Goodwin, 2008). This was in contrast from those systems founded by Descartes where the claim was there is no direct effect on how a persons knowledge grows (Goodwin, 2008). During this time in England, another mindset arose. The practice was based on the idea that

HISTORICAL PSYCHOLOGY ones knowledge in the world stems from ones experiences we encounter (Goodwin, 2008). Mills was also a publisher. In 1843, Mills had published works about A System of Logic, Ratiocinative, and Inductive, Being a Connected View of the Principles of Evidence and the Methods of Scientific Investigations. The Logic also outlined a series of methods for applying inductive logic while trying to determine causality in science (Goodwin, 2008, p. 54). These methods continue to be popular in todays research methods. It has taken many centuries for the science of psychology to become a recognized discipline worthy its separate thought. Following its original roots will be important moving forward. Every day psychology progresses and continues to change. Moving forward the ideas of today will be tomorrows history.

HISTORICAL PSYCHOLOGY References Brennan, J. F. 1982. History and systems of psychology. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Bantwal, N. (2011). Brief History of Psychology. Retrieved from http://www.buzzle.com/articles / ofPsychology.Retrieved from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/brief-history-ofpsychology.html Goodwin, C. J. (2008). A History of Modern Psychology (3rd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.