Chapter 7:
Functionalism
William James (1842-1910): anticipator of functional psychology
General paradox Major figure in American psychology, yet viewed
by some colleagues as a negative force Considered by many scholars to be greatest
American psychologist Espoused mentalistic and psychical
phenomena (telepathy, séances, etc.) Not an experimentalist in attitude or deed
Did not found functional psychology, but did influence the movement
James’s life
Wealthy family
Career: art, chemistry, medicine, zoology
Lifelong problems with self-esteem, neurotic “neurasthenia” or “Americanitis”
Most interested in consciousness
Disliked lab work/ doing experiments
Taught psychology for a time, then moved exclusively into philosophy
Espoused new goal of psychology: Study of people as they adapt to their environment
Function of consciousness: To enable survival
Interested in how brain (physical structures) affect consciousness
Stream of consciousness Is a continuous flow, always changing Cannot be “reduced” to elements Is selective about what it attends to
Humans are sometimes nonrational
The principles of psychology - 1890
The then-current theory: Emotion precedes physical arousal/response We see a lion,
we feel fear (emotion) we run (response)
James: Physical arousal/response precedes emotion We see a lion,
we have a bodily response we run (response) we fear (emotion – an interpretation of bodily changes)
Bodily change is the emotion (increased heart rate, increased breathing, sweaty palms)
If no bodily change, then no emotion
The theory of emotions
Methods of Psychology
Introspection
Experimentation
Comparative method
Pragmatism The validity of an idea must be tested by looking at
its practical consequences “anything is true if it works”
Why was James so important?
Very clear, interesting writing style
Opposed Wundt
Offered an alternative to Wundt
The Functionalist Protest
Functionalists’ central interest: how the organism uses the mind to adapt to
the environment
First uniquely American system of psychology Deliberate protest against Wundt's and
Titchener's systems Interest in applying psychology to real world
Consciousness cannot be meaningfully analyzed into elements, it removes all meaning
Argued structure and function cannot be meaningfully separated
Behavior should be treated in terms of its significance to the organism as it functions in its environment
Proper subject for psychology: study of the total organism as it functions in its
environment
Some Central Tenets
The founding of functionalism
Functionalists did not mean to start a new school of though
Formalized indirectly when Titchener named it
Therefore, there was no single functional psychology, no leaders
Reasons functional psychology flourished in U.S., Not England
American temperament Individualistic, independent, hard-working,
adaptable, practical Distinctive social, economic, and political
character Pioneering society US population census (1890)
Criticisms of Functionalism
Functionalism not clearly defined
Did not follow Titchener’s subject matter or methods
Applied to real-life situations
Contributions of functionalism
Opposition to structuralism Bridged move from study of subjective mind
to study of objective behavior Legitimacy of research on animal behavior Inclusion of humans other than “normal
adults” as subjects Allowed applied aspects of research Development and inclusion of research
methods beyond introspection
Chapter 8:
Applied Psychology
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Toward a practical psychology
By the end of the 19th century, evolutionary theory and functional psychology had a strong footing in United States
American psychology guided more by ideas of Darwin and Galton than by Wundt
Although Wundt trained 1st generation of American psychologists, few of his ideas accompanied them home
Strong interest in a useful, applied psychology
Psychology in the US
Applied psychology took hold in the discipline 1900: 25% of articles in American psychology journals
had applied focus Only 3% used introspection Even Titchener acknowledged the strong trend toward
application
Dominance in numbers 1903: more PhD's in psychology than in any science
other than chemistry, zoology, and physics 1913: United States had more of world’s leading
psychologists than any other country
Popularity Within 20 years of the founding of psychology,
America became undisputed leader of the field Required psychology courses included in the
undergraduate curriculum Burgeoning enrollment in psychology courses Increasing number of students engaged in
original research
Psychology in the US
Economic influences on applied psychology 1900: three times as many PhDs as
laboratories
Pressure to prove psychology’s value
Opportunity
James McKeen Cattell (1860-1944)
Graduate work: Gottingen, then Leipzig with Wundt
Work: Major interest: philosophy Interest in psychology due to experiments with
drugs Began reaction-time research
One of first in United States to stress quantification, ranking, ratings
Developed ranking method First psychologist to teach statistical analysis of
experimental results Encouraged the use of large groups of subjects
Interested in Galton’s eugenics
His organization and editing of numerous publications took time away from research
At Columbia More PhDs in psychology than anywhere else in
the united states Emphasized independent research by graduate
students Urged increased faculty governance: one of
founders of American association of university professors (AAUP)
1917: fired by Columbia university on grounds of disloyalty to united states
1921: organized psychological corporation
Mental testing 1890: coined term mental tests To be a science, psychology requires a
foundation of experimentation and measurement
His intelligence tests: elementary sensorimotor (not cognitive) measurements
1901: concluded such tests not valid predictors of intelligence
Comment Strongest impact: as organizer, executive,
administrator, and link to scientific community Contributed through his students Reinforced functionalism
The psychological testing movement
Binet, Terman, and the IQ test “Mental tests”: “tests of motor skills and
sensory capacities; Intelligence tests use more complex measures of mental abilities.”
Cattell originated the term but Binet developed the 1st genuinely psychological test of mental ability
Independently wealthy Self-taught psychologist Published 200+ books and articles
Mental testing His two young daughters did as well as adults on
sensorimotor tasks but did not do as well as adults on tests of cognitive ability
Binet’s conclusion: cognitive functions reflect intelligence, sensorimotor responses do not
Binet (1857-1911)
1904: opportunity through French public schools bureau to test his hypothesis
Binet appointed to find out why some students with were having difficulty learning
Examined intellectual tasks that children of different ages could accomplish and built an intelligence test
Concept of mental: “the age at which children of average ability can
perform certain tasks.”
Modern IQ Testing
Lewis Terman (1877-1956)
Developed the now standard version of Binet’s test: the Stanford-Binet
Used Stern’s intelligence quotient IQ concept: “A number denoting a person’s intelligence, determined by multiplying mental age by 100 and dividing by chronological age.”
Stanford-Binet still in widespread use after a number of revisions
World War I and group testing
1917: on day U.S. entered WWI Robert Yerkes, APA president: urged Titchener’s
society of experimental psychologists to aid war effort
Titchener declined to participate British citizen Disliked idea of applying psychology
World War I and group testing
Military leaders: need to assess intelligence of troops for
Stanford-Binet: individual test requiring trained administrator
Needed: group test that was simple to give
Army alpha and army beta Group tests: easy to administer and efficient
Work on the tests very time-consuming
Significant impact on psychology as a discipline
World War I and group testing
The industrial-organizational psychology movement The impact of the world wars
During the wars: testing, screening, classifying recruits
After the wars: need for industrial psychologists
Subspecialty: human engineering Work on a myriad of consumer products, not just
military hardware
Industrial Testing 1920’s: selection and placement of job
applicants 1927: focus expanded to social/psychological
conditions of the workplace
Hawthorne plant of western electric company Pioneering research program First studied influences of the physical
environment on employee efficiency Found social and psychological factors in the
workplace more important than physical ones
Led to studies of work climate, leadership, communication patterns and other factors affecting worker motivation, productivity, and satisfaction
APA's division of industrial psychology changed to society for industrial and organizational psychology
Applied psychology in the United States: A national mania
Cattell: WWI put psychology “on the map and on the front page”
Between world wars Applied psychology respected Sufficient jobs and funding in academia New departments, buildings, and labs Tripling of APA membership Still a contempt for applied psychology 1919: APA required published experimental research for
membership 1920’s: enormous public enthusiasm for psychology The depression years: attacked for failure to cure
Applied Psychology
Cattell Mental testing
Measure of range and variability of behaviors among a large group (ex. Intelligence)
Binet Expanded mental testing to include cognitive abilities
WWI Army needed simple group test to sort soldiers
Alpha and Beta tests
Tests likened to a thermometer
Applied Psychology
Industrial-organizational psychology People saw practical applications of psychology During war, ergonomics
Testing human limitations when using weapons After WWI, employers wanted to use tests also
Hawthorne studies: best working environment social psychology
Eyewitness memories
“People came to believe that psychologists could fix everything…”
Movement from focus on mental elements to focus on mental activity Shift in academic research from content to
function Broadening of psychology from academic
settings to applied settings and concerns Contextual factors
Shift was reinforced by behaviorism