GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY of learning is a course involving behavior

general psychology of learning is a course to be taken in general. this course is intentionally create in order for the young once, young generation to have background knowledge to different psychological aspects involving society, people around us education them about their distinct characteristics and behaviors in life.

1. GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY Prepared by: Junaid R. Disomangcop, LPT

2. The Origin of Psychology

3. History of Psychology David B. Baker & Heather Sperry

4. Objectives: Describe the precursors to the establishment of the science of psychology Identify key individuals and events in the history of American Psychology. Describe the rise of professional psychology in America. Develop a basic understanding of the processes of scientific development and change. Recognize the role of women and people of color in the history of American psychology.

5. Introduction The word “psychology” comes from two words: “logos ” which means a science or study and “ psyche” which means mind or soul. Etymology speaking therefore, psychology is the study of the mind and soul. However, this definition of psychology poses some problems to the students of psychology.

6. One problem is the difficulty of studying the mind. It is something that we do not see, something that is immaterial. It is difficult to say what is going on in the minds f other people.

7. Introduction Psychology is an exciting field and the history of psychology offers opportunity to make sense of how it grown and developed. The history of psychology also provides perspectives. Rather than a dry collection of names and dates, the history of psychology tells us about the important intersections of time and place that define who we are.

8. Considered what happens when you meet someone for the first time. The conversation usually begins with a series of questions such as, “where did you grow up?” “how long have you lived here?” “where did you go to school?”. The importance of history in defining who we are cannot be understated. Whether you are seeing a physician, talking with a counselor, or applying for a job. Everything begins with history. The same is true for studying the history of psychology; getting of the field helps to make sense of where are and how we got here.

9. Prehistory of psychology Precursors to American psychology can be found in philosophy and physiology. Philosophers such as John Locke (1632-1704) and Thomas Reid (1710-1796) promoted empiricism, the idea that all knowledge comes from an experience. The work of Locke, Reid, and others emphasized the role of the human observer and the primacy of the senses in defining how mind comes to acquire knowledge. In American colleges and universities in the early 1800’s, these principles were taught as courses on mental and moral philosophy. Most often these courses taught about the mind based on the faculties of intellect, will, and the senses (Fuchs, 2000).

10. Physiology and psychophysics Philosophical questions about the nature of mind and knowledge were matched in the 19 th century by physiological investigation of the sensory system of the human observer. German Physiologist Hermann Von Helmholtz (1821-1894) measured the speed of the neural impulse and explored the physiology of hearing and vision. His work indicates that our senses can deceives us and are not a mirror of the external world.

11. Such work showed that even though the human senses were fallible, the mind could be measured using the methods of science. In all, it suggested that a science of psychology was feasible. An important implication of Helmholtz work was that there is a psychological reality and a physical reality and that the two are not identical. This was not anew ideas; philosophers like John Locke had written extensively on the topic, and the 10 th century, philosophical speculation about the nature of mind became subject to the rigors of science.

12. The questions of the relationship between the mental (experience of the senses) and the material (external reality) was investigated by a number of German researchers including Ernst Weber and Gustav Fechner. Their work was called psychophysics, and it introduced methods for measuring the relationship between physical stimuli and human perceptions that would serve as the basis for the new science of psychology ( Francher & Rutherford, 2011). The formal development of modern psychology is usually credited to the work of German physician, physiologist, and philosopher Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920).

13. Wundt help to establish the field of experimental psychology by serving as a strong promoter of the idea that psychology could be an experimental field. Wundt’s version of psychology arrived in America most visible through the work of Edward Bradford Titchener (1867-1927). A student of Wundt’s, Titchener brought to America a brand of experimental psychology referred to as “ structuralism.” Structuralism were interested in the contents of the mind, and what the mind is.

14. WHAT IS BEHAVIOR? Behavior is defined as any response or reaction to a stimuli (anything that can elicit a response). Behavior can be normal or abnormal. The behavior is considered normal is it is something that is acceptable to society, according to a set of standard. Moreover, behavior can also be learned or unlearned. Behavior is considered learned when you acquire it while undergoing developmental process.

15. Behavior is unlearned when it is something innate, inherent, or inborn. Types of behavior: 1. Reflexive behaviors, such as withdrawing your hand from a hot kettle or blinking your eyes upon seeing an approaching object that may hit your eyes, are example of unlearned behavior. 2. instinctive behavior like maternal instinct is also indicative of unlearned behavior. Most of man’s behavior is learned. Behavior also reveals that, as a response to a stimuli, it can be voluntary or unvoluntary. And also can be conscious or unconscious.

16. On the contrary, there are people who walk while they are sleeping. This condition is called “ somnambulism” Somnambulist is not aware of what he/she is doing. Some people talk while they are asleep, a condition called “somniloquy ”. Sleep talking is done by the individual without him being aware of what he is saying.

17. PSYCHOLOGY AS SCIENCE In the Philippines, psychology is considered a social science. This fact tells us that before becoming a psychological and social being, man is first a biological being. Having been formed by the union of the ovum and the sperm during the period of fertilization when life begins.

18. Ancient Greek philosophers merely gave the assumptions about the nature of man, his personality, and behavior. These famous philosophers never did scientific investigations in their study of man. Santrock (2005) states that in the western tradition, philosophy came of age in ancient Greece in the 4 th and 5 th centuries. B.C. with Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle debating about the nature of thought and behavior. Later philosopher, especially Rene Descartes, argued that the mind and body were completely separate and focused their attention on the mind.

19. Psychology grew out of this tradition of thinking about the mind and body. Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920- a German philosopher, physician, who put the pieces of the philosophy-natural science puzzle together to created the academic discipline of psychology (king, 2008). In fact, Wundt is regarded as the father of the first psychology laboratory, established in 1879, at the University of Leipzig in Germany. This event is considered as the birth of psychology as a science.

20. GOALS OF PSYCHOLOGY AS A SCIENCE As a science concerned with the scientific study of behavior, the following are its goals: 1. Description – psychologists always asked to say something about an individual. What traits he possess, the type of characteristics he has, and what his capabilities are, can be said of a person even by someone who is not a psychologist. However, a psychologist is trained to describe behavior using scientific processes. Through the administration of valid and reliable psychological tests, a psychologist can arrive at a description of one’s behavior.

21. GOALS OF PSYCHOLOGY AS A SCIENCE 2. Understanding – It cant be denied that different people exhibit different behaviors and personalities. This is explained by the fact that one principle of development is the principle of individual difference. This means that no two persons are exactly alike. Even monozygotic twins or identical twins are not without differences.

22. GOALS OF PSYCHOLOGY AS A SCIENCE 3. Prediction – before, many years back, high school graduates going to college were given the NCEE (National College Entrance Examination). This test was given to sort out students who were capable of finishing a four-year college diploma. Those who did not pass the examination were asked to enroll in vocational course since they did not have the potential for college degree. In this situation, prediction was done through the entrance examination.

23. Hence, psychology as a science has the goal of predicting behavior to attain order and avoid negative and undesirable consequence. However, this prediction is not within the sphere of paranormal phenomena.

24. GOALS OF PSYCHOLOGY AS A SCIENCE 4. Control – to control behavior is another goal of psychology as a science. Many people complain about chain smoking and feeling strong urges to eat or to drink coffee or alcohol. Others complain of some obsessions (uncontrollable thoughts) or compulsions (uncontrolled acts) that distract them from their daily routines affecting their occupation and social interactions.

25. It is now become clear that behavior is the subject matter of psychology. As a science, psychology describes, understand, predicts, and control behavior. Moreover, behavior is viewed from different perspectives.

26. PSYCHOLOGY IN DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

27. 1. The Biological perspective In principle, all psychological events can be related to the activity of the brain and the nervous system (Smith et al, 2003). Without nervous system, we would have no sensory experience. Everything we sense or do is accomplished by means of nerve cells (Feist & Rosenberg, 2010). Since man is a biopsychosocial being, man’s behavior has a biological basis. In fact, one of the areas of psychology, bio-psychology, is concerned with the scientific study of the biology of behavior.

28. a synapse is the junction between neurons. Dopamine is a chemical substance which plays a major role in the transmission of neural signals or message to and from the brain. an excess of dopamine activity has been hypothesized to cause symptoms of schizophrenia ( Halgin & Whitbourne, 2007). Schizophrenia is one whom we call baliw or loka-loka or nasiraan ng bait. Norepinephrine is generally considered an excitatory neurotransmitter, and a deficit in this substance is thought to be a causal factor in depression ( Halgin & Whitbourne, 2007).

29. Serotonin imbalance is implicated in the causation of obsessive-compulsive behavior. one consequence of this imbalance is the inability or difficulty of controlling impulses. Furthermore, to expand on this biological perspective, have you heard some people say in moments of anger-provoking situation “ kasi, nagdilim ang aking paningin . Nakalimot ako sa sarili .? If so, this behavior can be explained in terms of some deviations from the normal neural pathways in the brain.

30. 2. the psychodynamic perspective it is a school of thought united by a common concern with the dynamics, or interaction, of forces lying deep within the mind (Alloy, et al, 1990). Psychodynamic theorists believe that behavior is determined by intrapsychic forces that are unconscious in nature. this means that the individual has no full awareness of these mental forces that are affecting his conscious behavior.

31. For instance, kleptomania or compulsive stealing is a disorder of impulse control. This means that the kleptomaniac steals because cant control her urge to steal. Kleptomaniac is unintentional while stealing/theft or robbery is intentional with motives. The origin of the psychodynamic perspective is Sigmund Freud, who is regarded as the father of psychoanalysis.

32. 3. Behavioral perspective For every stimulus, there is a response. That response you learned earlier in this chapter is the behavior exhibited by the individual in reaction to the stimulus. Most of our is learned and why we tend to repeat the behavior is because of the reinforcement applied to it. this is especially true if the reinforcement is positive. Moreover, when behavior is learned, the acquisition of the behavior follows the principle of learning.t To illustrate clearly, let us consider one principle of learning which says that learning varies with the strength of motivation.

33. Actually, psychological theorists, including psychodynamic thinkers, had long recognizes the influence of learning on human character. But it was not until the early 20 th century that scientist began to uncover the actual mechanics of learning, thereby laying the theoretical foundations to behaviorism (Alloy, et al, 1990). Associated with the behavioral perspective were Ivan Pavlov and his classical condition theory, B.F. Skinner and his operant conditioning theory, Edward Thorndike and his law of effect, law of readiness and law of exercise. It is John B. Watson (1878-1958), an American psychologists who is credited with founding the behavioral movement (Alloy et al, 1999).

34. 4. Cognitive perspective Explaining behavior based on the cognitive perspective utilize the individual’s mental processes, his thoughts, beliefs, and ideas. What is going on his mind will affect what he will do. Albert Ellis and Aaron Beck are associated with Cognitive psychology. Beck’s concept of cognitive distortion, such as magnifying a small and minor event may cause a person to be depressed.

35. 5. Phenomenological perspective Man is rational being endowed with intellect and will. Man ahs the capacity to decide what he will do and what will make him realize his capabilities and potential as he lives in the world. When we study man’s behavior within the phenomenological perspective, we look at man as an individual with different needs and motives. His past experiences play a significant role in how he perceives himself and how he behaves.

36. This perspective is subjective. This is because different individuals view the world differently. Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers and other humanistic psychologists are associated with the phenomenological perspective.

37. METHODS & TECHNIQUES IN PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCHES. Psychology, being a science, requires that a psychologist ventures into scientific investigations. As a scientist, the psychologist employs the following research designs in undertaking a scientific study.

38. 1. EXPERIMENTAL METHOD This research design is very appropriate for the establishment of causal relationship or the cause and effect relationships. The true experimental design requires the utilization of the experimental and control groups with the participants randomly selected. In this research design, there are two (2) variables, namely the independent variable and dependent variables.

39. The independent variable is the one manipulated by the experiment (CAUSE) and the dependent variable is the effect of the independent variable (EFFECT). In this design, the effect of extraneous variables are controlled to ensure that the dependent is really the effect of the independent variables.

40. 2. QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN this research method has a resemblance of a true experiment design. However, it is not. In this design, randomization is not used in the selection of participants. It can be used to explore the effects of different treatments on preexisting groups of subjects or to investigate the same kind of naturally occurring events, characteristics and behaviors that we measure in correlation studies (Myers & Hansen, 2006).

41. 3. CORRELATION DESIGN Some psychologists may not be interested in conducting studies involving causal relationship. They may be interested in knowing the degree of association or relationship between two variables such as the relationship between motivation and academic performance, job justification, and job performance or personality traits and organizational commitment.

42. Correlation study is one that is designed to determined the correlation, or degree of relationship, between two traits, behaviors, or events (Myers Hansen, 2006). Correlation may be positive or negative. Correlation is positive if an increase in A leads to an increase in B. Correlation does not involve in cause and effect.

43. 4. THE NATURALISTIC OBSERVATION METHOD This research strategy involves observing the participants as they behave spontaneously and naturally. In this research method, the participant are not aware that their behavior is being observed. This is important in order to get behavioral data that is genuine and truly reflective of the nature of the object of interest. one advantage of this method is getting information or data about the observed behavior as it occurs naturally.

44. 5. THE CASE STUDY METHOD This method is usually employed in psychopathological case. Case study provide a rich source of information about individuals and insights into possible causes of people’s behavior (Shaughnessy et al, 2012). However, observer bias and biases in data collection can lead to incorrect interpretation of case study outcomes (Shaughnessy et al, 2012). This means that the clinician’s perceptions of the patient might be influenced by the clinician’s emotional and motivational states as well as his own mental dynamisms.

45. Activity: Directions: describe the following method of research. Used at least 30 words to described them. 1. Experimental Method 2. Quasi-Experimental Method 3. Correlation Method 4. Naturalistic Method 5. Case Study

46. SPECIALIZED AREAS IN PSYCHOLOGY A student of psychology may deepen his knowledge of psychological principles and theories in different fields of psychology. The expertise that a psychologist may acquire through postgraduates studies and intensive training encroaches the normal and psychopathological realms of human behavior. The following are the different areas of specialization in psychology

47. 1. Clinical psychology It deals with the clinical assessment, diagnosis, and the treatment of mental disorder with the use of psychological methods. 2. Counseling Psychology Traditionally ,a counselling psychology works with normal or moderately malad – justed individuals(Trull,2005)

48. 3. School Psychology School psychology work with educators and others to promote the intellectual, social, and emotional growth of school-aged children (Trull,2005). 4. Education Psychology This area is concerned with the teaching- learning situation and conducting studies for the improvement of measurement and evaluation as well as educational programs.

49. 5. Industrial-organizational Psychology This area is involved in the screening of job performance. It is also concerned with improving human relationship in the corporate world. 6. Health Psychology This area is concerned with the interrelationship of the mind, body behavior, and health, as well as the promotion of health and prevention of illness.

50. 7. Biopsychology This area is concerned with the scientific study of the biological basis of behavior. 8. Cognitive Psychology This area is interested in exploring man’s mental processes, his learning and memory , his thoughts , ideas, and beliefs.

51. 9. Forensic Psychology This is a specialty area of clinical psychology. It deals with the relationship of psychology and the law. 10. Neuropsychology This area is also a specialty area of clinical psychology. It deals with the relationship of brain functioning and behavior, the psychological effect of brain damage, and its psychological intervention.

52. 11. Social Psychology This area deals with how man behaves in his interactions with others taking into consideration his perceptions, attitudes, values, and traits. 12. Developmental Psychology This area is concerned with the study of the principles of development as applied to the individual’s physical, social, cognitive, and emotional development from birth to old age.

53. 13. Peace Psychology This is the study of the psychology aspect of violence, social inequalities, peacemaking, and the pursuit of social justice (The & Macapagal, 2007). 14. Sports Psychology This area involves the application of psychological theories and principles for the enhancement of an athlete’s performance.

54. 15. Experimental Psychology This area involves the use of experimental methods and designs in establishing a causal relationship between the independent and the dependent variables. It includes scientific studies on sensation, perception, psychological intervention, learning, and memory.

55. 16. Cross-Cultural Psychology This area deals with how different cultures affect behavior. 17. Ecological Psychology/ Environment Psychology This area is concerned with the influence of the environment on behavior.

56. 18. Consumer Psychology This area involves activities and techniques that influence the choice of products and services that will redound to the need satisfaction of the consuming public. 19. Engineering Psychology This area is concerned with how to make the relationship of man with machines, devices, and apparatuses, harmonious for the attainment of a better work performance.

57. CRITERIA Audience Impact 5 % Uniqueness 10 % Presentation 15% Creativity 10% Collaboration 10% Total 50%

58. THE EARLIEST THEORY OF LEARNING Plato and Aristotle were called rationalist because they emphasized the role of the mind in acquiring knowledge. Plato (417-327 BC) believed in NATIVISM, which says that knowledge is inherited and is therefore a natural or innate component of the human mind.

59. Aristotle (384-322 BC) was called an EMPIRICIT, because he focused on sensory information as the basis of knowledge. He formulated the following laws of association: 1. Law of Similarity- recall of the similar object. 2. Law of Contrast- recall of things that are opposite. 3. Law of Contiguity- recall of an activity related to a previous one.

60. later notion on learning: 1. Rene Descartes (1596-1650) studied the relationship between mind and body. He believed the mind could initiate behavior. 2. John Locke (1632-1704) believed the infant’s mind at birth is a tabula rasa. “there is nothing in the mind that is not first in the senses, except the mind itself”.

61. 3. Franz Joseph Gall (1758-1828) examined the shape of the skull and concluded that its faculties are located in specific parts of the brain. His study is called the mind itself. 4. Charles Darwin (1908-1882) introduced the theory of evolution. He perceived human being as a combination of biological heritage and human experience.

62. 5. Herman Ebbinghaus (1850-1909) stated that learning and memory can be studied experimentally. He introduced the nonsense material.

63. What is learning Learning means gaining knowledge or skill. It is the process by which experience or practice in a relatively permanent change of behavior, which to attain goals and needs.

64. this definition covers the following essential aspects: The term learning does not apply to temporary changes in behavior, such as those resulting from drugs, illness, or fatigue. It does not refer to changes resulting from maturation or biological influences.

65. Learning can result from vicarious as well as direct experiences. One can be affected by observing events and behavior in the environment, as well as by participating in them (Bandura 1986). Changes produced by learning are not always positive in nature.

66. Educ 1

67. Types of learning One source of information about learning is theory. A theory is a set of interrelated constructs, concepts, principles, and hypotheses which attempt to explain, predict, or control a set of phenomenon. A theory of learning describes, explains, or predicts conditions under which learning does or does not occur, and they nature of the learning process.

68. Essential aspects of the learning process ( Mowley ) 1. Motivation an organism is constantly bombarded with stimuli from the environment. One’s response to any stimulus is directly proportional to the strength of one’s motive.

69. 2. Goal behavior, being purposive, is oriented towards a goal. The perceived probability of success determines whether or not a person will strive towards a goal. Goal achievement does not always result from a reduction of tension but from the strengthening of expectancy.

70. 3. Readiness depends on training, experience, and heredity. It is related according to: 1. Physiological factors- maturation of sense organs. 2. Psychological factors- motives, emotional factors, and self-concept. 3. experimental factors- previously learned skills and concpets .

71. 4. obstacle the presence of obstacle is an occasions to learn new modes of adjustment; a hindrance or deterrence challenges the learner. 5. Response are actions or behavioral tendencies according to one’s interpretation of a situation. It may be in the form of a direct attack or a circumventing manner.

72. LEARNING CURVE – a learning curve is a graphic devices showing the quality of a subject’s performance after successive units of practice. In plotting a learning curve, the units of practice are presented as distance along the baseline of the graph, while the amount of performance is plotted along the vertical axis. Both errors and correct responses are plotted. When errors are plotted, the curve falls; when correct responses are plotted the curved rises.

73. the shapes of learning curves depends on the skills being learned and the type of performance measure being employed. In interpreting the curve, it is important to note what aspects of performance is being record. A person who is successfully acquiring a new habit is likely to have a curved of decreasing errors and a curve of increasing correct response. If he/she is performing more and more poorly, the graph will show a curve of increasing energy cost and decreasing speed of response.

74. any curved depicting learning will show chance fluctuations, moving upward and downward at different parts of its course. To prevent these from confusing the final result, it is common practice to combine the results of a large number of subjects into one curve, on the assumption that the subject will not be distracted at all the same moment or will have the same difficulty with a particular item.

75. while studying and mastering the telegraph code, W.L. Bryan (1899) discovered the learning curve and listed its typical characteristics: Learning has ups and downs; it is not always manifested by good performance. Learning is faster during the first trials and slow down the final trial is reached. When plateau is reached, learning slows down. At this point, rest is vital to overcome fatigue or boredom.

76. there are tow (2) type of learning curve: 1. positively accelerated, where performance increases with every trial; and 2. negatively accelerated, where performance slows down or decrease for every trial,

77. What do we learn? 1. simple response – this is when behavior is established in the presence of a new stimulus. E.g., an infant who is frightened by a loud noise responds to furry animals in the same way even if the loud noise and furry animals are not associated with the child’s experience.

78. 2. muscular habits – over the years, we develop high coordinated skills and sequences of behavior. When such learning involves mainly the use of muscles, it is called motor learning . It is possible to learn more complex motor habits through simple forms of conditioning. 3. perpetual response – symbolic interpretation involves past experiences. Interpretation is a product of what is already stored in the brain.

79. 4. motives – although some motives are inherent at birth, others are learned in the process of contending with the world in which we were born. Even the basic psychological drives (Such as hunger and thirst) are learned through experience- the time, place, and number in which such motives are appropriately and successfully expressed.

80. 5. attitudes – as we ho through life, we learn respond readily to selected aspects of the environment. These learned responses are called attitudes. 6. emotional response- we learn what to fear and what to love. E.g., fear of high places or enclosed places, blushing on certain situations, and smiling to friend are all learned.

81. 7. problem-solving – thinking is perhaps the most impressive kind of learning human beings are capable of. It involves the complex application of old experience to new and different situations. 8. language- we learn words and word combination. We learn mathematics symbols and learn to represent the world in terms of words and symbols and to describe this world to others.

82. 9. personality – if we view personality as the pattern characteristics of the whole organism, then it follows that much of personality is learned. Although some characteristics the human system are based directly on heredity and reach their matures state through the biological processes, most behavioral traits, such as extroversion or sociability, are largely a result of learning

83. THANK YOU