History and Systems of Psychology



History and Systems of Psychology

Introduction

Psychology is the discipline that studies mental processes, including internal cognitive processes of individuals and social-cognitive processes. The discipline embraces all the complex aspects of human psychic functioning. Different schools, theories and psychological systems have focused their efforts in various areas, existing from approaches that focus exclusively on observable behavior. The scope of the theories covered areas or fields from the study of child development psychology to how humans feel, perceive or think, how they learn to adapt to their environment and resolve conflicts (Danziger, 1985).

This assignment aims to discuss the historical, philosophical and empirical foundations of psychology, with the discussion on its major tenets. We aim to shed light on the contributions of these theories to the contemporary issues in psychology, realizing its assumptions and principles. There will be four theories discussed in a holistic manner including Theory of Gestalt psychology, Theory of Behaviorism, Theory of Psychoanalysis, and the Humanistic Theory. The paper also looks into the issues of relevance relating diversity to the history of psychology. In the end, we will discuss the effect of humanistic theories to our chosen academic, career paths and goals.

Historical, Philosophical, and Empirical Foundations of the Field Of Psychology

In the 19th Century, the prevailing empiricism in epistemology began to replace psychology as a separate science from philosophy. Empiricism under observation is the only source of scientific knowledge was regarded; the experimental science (natural science) became the ideal of knowledge- absolute properties. The term “empirical psychology” was coined by the German philosopher of the 18th century X. Wolff, who designated specific disciplines, in contrast to the rational psychology, which was engaged in an eternal, immortal soul. The empirical psychology of consciousness has been developed in the writings of the French materialists of the Enlightenment and Zh. Lametri, K. Gelvetsiya, E. Kondilyaka. Representatives of the French empirical psychology more attention than English assotsianisty, turned on the activity of the subject in the perception of the world, considering the mentality of a natural position (Wheeler, 2000).

In the 19th century, strong influence on the subsequent development of psychological studies has ideas and discoveries in anatomy and physiology of brain activity, and above all - the study of reflexes. This paved the way for the separation of psychology from physiology and philosophy of it as an independent scientific discipline.

Theory of Gestalt Psychology

Good evidence of this theory is the experiments with monkeys by the Wolfgang Kohler that was published in 1917. The monkeys were in a cage that was attached to the ceiling of a banana. This could be achieved only if it is a box which was similarly in the cage, inserted under the hanging banana and a "ladder" used, must be made of the relationship between the crate and the attainment of the fruit. As the founder of Gestalt psychology, in addition to Kohler and Koffka, Wertheimer came to the conclusion that the human problem solving is determined by inspection. That is, a man who solves ...