Early Philosophical Roots
~400 BCE – 1800s
Key idea: Psychology starts as philosophy
Focus: Mind vs body, nature of knowledge
Key figures
Plato (427–347 BCE) = nativism, knowledge is innate
Aristotle (384–322 BCE) = empiricism, knowledge comes from experience
René Descartes (1596–1650) = mind–body dualism
John Locke (1632–1704) = tabula rasa (we are born as a blank slate upon which knowledge is written)
Structuralism
1879–early 1900s
Key date:
1879 = first psychology lab (birth of modern psychology)
Core idea: Break consciousness into basic elements
Key figures
Wilhelm Wundt = first psych lab in Leipzig
Edward Titchener = structuralism founder
Method: introspection
Functionalism
1890s–1920s
Core idea: What is the purpose of the mind?
Key figures
William James = functionalism founder
Influenced by Darwin’s evolution
- Focus shifts from structure → function
- Mind as an adaptive tool
Psychoanalysis
1900s–1930s
Key date:
1900- Freud publishes The Interpretation of Dreams
Core idea: Unconscious drives shape behaviour
Key figures
Sigmund Freud = unconscious, id/ego/superego
Later psychodynamic thinkers: Jung, Adler
Behaviourism
1913–1950s
Key date:
1913- Watson declares psychology should study behaviour
Core idea: Psychology = observable behaviour only
Key figures
John B. Watson = behaviourism manifesto
Ivan Pavlov = classical conditioning
B.F. Skinner = operant conditioning
- Rejection of introspection
- Focus on learning and environment
Humanistic Psychology
1950s–1970s
Core idea: Humans are inherently good and strive for growth
Key figures
Abraham Maslow — hierarchy of needs
Carl Rogers — client-centred therapy
- Reaction against behaviourism + psychoanalysis
- Emphasis on free will & self-actualisation
Cognitive Revolution
1950s–1970s
Core idea: Mind as an information processor
Key figures
Ulric Neisser = cognitive psychology founder
Jean Piaget = cognitive development
Noam Chomsky = language + mind
- Psychology returns to studying mental processes
- Memory, perception, problem solving
Biological / Neuroscience Movement
1970s–present
Core idea: Behaviour = brain + biology
Focus:
- Brain imaging
- Neurotransmitters
- Genetics
Modern Psychology
1990s–present
Core idea: No single explanation is enough
Approaches:
- Biopsychosocial model
- Cognitive neuroscience
- Positive psychology
- Cultural psychology
Now, test yourself!
History of Psychology Flashcards
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