Psychology is a science because it employs systematic methods of observation, experimentation, and data analysis to understand and predict behavior and mental processes, grounded in empirical evidence and subjected to peer review.| Simply Psychology
The scientific method is a process that includes several steps: First, an observation or question arises about a phenomenon. Then a hypothesis is formulated to explain the phenomenon, which is used to make predictions about other related occurrences or to predict the results of new observations quantitatively. Finally, these predictions are put to the test through experiments or further observations to either support or refute the hypothesis.| Simply Psychology
Ethics refers to the correct rules of conduct necessary when carrying out research. We have a moral responsibility to protect research participants from harm.| Simply Psychology
Systematic desensitization is a type of exposure therapy based on the principle of classical conditioning. Wolpe developed it during the 1950s to treat phobias and anxiety disorders. It involves gradually exposing the individual to the feared object or situation in a controlled and relaxed environment. The process combines relaxation techniques with a hierarchical exposure to the anxiety-causing stimulus, allowing the individual to confront and reduce their fear without an anxiety response ...| Simply Psychology
Pavlov predicted the dogs would salivate in response to the food in front of them, but he noticed that his dogs would begin to salivate whenever they heard the footsteps of his assistant, who was bringing them the food.| Simply Psychology
Watson and Rayner (1920) conducted the Little Albert Experiment to answer 3 questions:| Simply Psychology
Wilhelm Wundt opened the Institute for Experimental Psychology at the University of Leipzig in Germany in 1879. This was the first laboratory dedicated to| Simply Psychology
Structuralism proposes that the structure of conscious experience could be understood by analyzing the basic elements of thoughts and sensations.| Simply Psychology
The nature vs. nurture debate in psychology concerns the relative importance of an individual's innate qualities (nature) versus personal experiences (nurture) in determining or causing individual differences in physical and behavioral traits. While early theories favored one factor over the other, contemporary views recognize a complex interplay between genes and environment in shaping behavior and development.| Simply Psychology
Classical conditioning is a learning process in which a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a reflex-eliciting unconditioned stimulus, such that the neutral stimulus eventually elicits the same innate reflex response that the unconditioned stimulus does. For example, pairing a bell sound (neutral stimulus) with the presentation of food (unconditioned stimulus) can cause an organism to salivate (unconditioned response) when the bell rings, even without the food.| Simply Psychology
Behaviorism, also known as behavioral learning theory, is a theoretical perspective in psychology that emphasizes the role of learning and observable behaviors in understanding human and animal actions.| Simply Psychology
Freud (1900) considered dreams to be the royal road to the unconscious as it is in dreams that the ego's defenses are lowered so that some of the repressed material comes through to awareness, albeit in distorted form.| Simply Psychology
Sigmund Freud (1856 to 1939) was the founding father of psychoanalysis, a method for treating mental illness and a theory explaining human behavior.| Simply Psychology
The Id is one of the three components of Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic theory of personality, also known as the structural model of the psyche. and is responsible for our most basic drives and desires, such as hunger, thirst, and sexual urges. The Id operates on the "pleasure principle," which means it seeks immediate gratification of these needs and desires without considering the consequences or the reality of the situation. The Id is entirely unconscious, and its impulses can be irrationa...| Simply Psychology
Freud's iceberg theory metaphorically represents the mind's three levels: the conscious (visible tip of the iceberg), the preconscious (just below the surface), and the unconscious (vast submerged portion). While we're aware of the conscious, the preconscious contains easily accessible memories, and the unconscious houses deep-seated desires and memories, influencing behavior despite being largely inaccessible.| Simply Psychology
Psychoanalysis is a therapeutic approach and theory, founded by Sigmund Freud, that seeks to explore the unconscious mind to uncover repressed feelings and interpret deep-rooted emotional patterns, often using techniques like dream analysis and free association.| Simply Psychology
Operant conditioning is a method of learning that occurs through rewards and punishments for behavior. Through operant conditioning, an individual makes an association between a particular behavior and a consequence. B.F Skinner is regarded as the father of operant conditioning and introduced a new term to behavioral psychology, reinforcement.| Simply Psychology