CHAPTER
1
P r o l o g u e :
Looking Ahead
Introduction to
Psychology
Countdown to Violence
Psychologists at Work
The Branches of Psychology: Psychology’s Family Tree
The Demographics of the Discipline
Psychology in Canada and the United States
Recap, Review, and Rethink
A Science Evolves: The Past, the Present, and the Future
The Roots of Psychology
Women in Psychology: Founding Mothers
Today’s Perspectives
Applying Psychology in the 21st Century:
Psychology and the Reduction of Violence
Connections: Psychology’s Unifying Themes
The Links Between Psychology’s Branches and Perspectives
Psychology’s Future
Recap, Review, and Rethink
Research in Psychology
Posing Questions: The Scientific Method
Finding Answers: Psychological Research
Pathways Through Psychology: Wendy Josephson,
Social Psychologist
Recap, Review, and Rethink
Research Challenges: Exploring the Process
The Ethics of Research
Exploring Diversity: Choosing Participants Who
Represent the Scope of Human Behaviour
Should Animals Be Used in Research?
Threats to Experiments: Experimenter and Participant Expectations
The Informed Consumer of Psychology: Thinking
Critically about Research
Recap, Review, and Rethink
Looking Back
Key Terms and Concepts
E p i l o g u e
3
4
Chapter 1
Pr o l o g u e
Countdown to Violence
Mourners comfort each other at a
memorial service for students
gunned down at Columbine High
School in Colorado. The shootings
raise numerous psychological issues.
loo k i n g
AHEAD
On an April day in 1999, the world watched as a terrible tragedy unfolded at
Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. When it was over, 15 people were
dead including the two student gunmen who had gone on a killing rampage. They
had targeted for death, athletes and minorities, among others. Amid the tragedy,
acts of great courage were evident as students, teachers, police, and rescue workers
risked death to help others.
A year later, in memory of the victims, citizens of Colorado observed a
minute of silence. In Littleton, a bell tolled 13 times.
As the remembrance was being observed, a 15-year-old student at a high
school in Orleans, Ontario, stabbed four fellow students and a faculty member, injuring himself as well. No lives were lost and the principal, who is lauded as a hero,
talked the student into surrendering his knife. Unlike Columbine, the attacks appeared to be random in nature. However, like the assailants at Columbine who were
said to be loners, this boy was reported to have been isolated from the other students and made fun of, by them, because of his looks and behaviour. In the aftermath, a crisis team supported traumatized students.
Was this a “copycat” act of violence by the Ontario student? Authorities are
not sure; however he is reported to have been overheard counting down the days to
the anniversary of Columbine.
Tragic and traumatic events, like those described above, highlight a range of human
behaviours from aggression and violence to acts of courage and heroism. These behaviours raise many issues of a psychological nature. Consider, for example, the ways in
which different kinds of psychologists would look at these incidents:
• Psychologists studying biological factors might examine heredity or hormonal
factors underlying such behaviours.
• Those psychologists who study learning and memory might examine what
people remember of the incident afterward.
• Psychologists who study thinking processes might consider how people
calculated what action to take during the crisis.
• Psychologists who focus on motivation would seek to explain the reasons
behind the assailants’ actions.
• Developmental psychologists, who study growth and change throughout the life
span, might look at peer relationships and adolescent social development and the
effect on students’ lives in the future.
• Health psychologists would examine present stress reactions and future illness
that might result from the experience.
• Clinical and counselling psychologists would try and identify the most effective
ways of helping the people involved cope.
• Social psychologists would attempt to explain the causes of aggressive and
helping behaviours.
psychology: The scientific study of
behaviour and mental processes
Although the approaches that different types of psychologists would take in the
Columbine and Orleans cases are diverse, there is a common link: Each represents a
specialty area within the general field of study called psychology. Psychology is the
scientific study of behaviour and mental processes.
Introduction to Psychology
This definition seems straightforward, but its simplicity is deceptive. In fact,
since the first stirrings of the discipline, psychologists have debated just what should
constitute the appropriate scope of the field. Should psychologists limit themselves to
the study of outward, observable behaviour? Is it possible to study internal thinking
scientifically? Should the field encompass the study of such diverse topics as physical
and mental health, perception, dreaming, and motivation? Is it appropriate to focus
solely on human behaviour, or should the behaviour of nonhumans be included?
Most psychologists have answered these questions by taking a broad view, arguing that the field should be receptive to a variety of viewpoints and approaches. Consequently, the phrase “behaviour and mental processes” in the definition must be
understood to mean many things: It encompasses not just what people do but also their
thoughts, feelings, perceptions, reasoning processes, memories, and even the biological activities that maintain bodily functioning.
When psychologists speak of “studying” behaviour and mental processes, their
perspective is equally broad. To psychologists, it is not enough simply to describe behaviour. As with any science, psychology attempts to explain, predict, modify, and ultimately improve the lives of people and the world in which they live.
By using scientific methods, psychologists are able to find answers to questions
about the nature of human behaviour and thought processes that are far more valid and
legitimate than those resulting from mere intuition and speculation. And what a variety
and range of questions psychologists pose. Consider these examples: How do we distinguish between colours? What is intelligence? Can abnormal behaviour be altered? How
long can we go without sleep? Can aging be delayed? How does stress affect us? What
is the best way to study? What is normal sexual behaviour? How do we reduce violence?
These questions—which will be addressed in this book—provide just a hint of
the various topics that we will encounter as we explore the field of psychology. Our
discussions will take us across the spectrum of what is known about behaviour and
mental processes. At times, we will leave the realm of human beings to explore animal
behaviour, because many psychologists study nonhuman animals in order to determine
general laws of behaviour that pertain to all organisms. Behaviour of other animals
thus provides important clues to answering questions about human behaviour. But we
will always return to a consideration of the usefulness of psychology in helping to
solve the everyday problems that confront all human beings.
In sum, this book will not only cover the breadth of the field of psychology, it
will also try to convey its content in a way that arouses your interest and continuing
curiosity about psychology. To that end, this text is intended to provide as close a facsimile to two people sitting down and discussing psychology as we can convey with
the written word.
The book also incorporates several features meant to illustrate how psychology
can have an impact on each of our lives. You will find how psychologists are applying
what they have learned to resolve practical problems that people encounter (Applying
Psychology in the 21st Century boxes). You will meet people who use psychology in
their professional lives (Pathways Through Psychology boxes). You will learn about
the contributions that psychology can make to enhancing our understanding of our differences (Exploring Diversity sections). You will also find material in each chapter
that is intended to make you a more knowledgeable consumer of psychological information. These Informed Consumer of Psychology sections discuss concrete recommendations for incorporating psychology into your life. They are meant to enhance
your ability to evaluate critically the contributions that psychologists can offer society.
Finally, links to World Wide Web pages are indicated by the “PsychLinks” symbol in
the margins. When a PsychLinks symbol appears, it alerts you to related material on
Web sites that can be reached through the Essentials of Understanding Psychology Web
site at www.mcgrawhill.ca/feldmanPsych.
The book itself has been designed to make it easier for you to learn the material
we discuss. Based on principles developed by psychologists who specialize in learning
and memory, information is presented in relatively small chunks, with each chapter
containing three or four major segments. Each segment starts with a few broad ques-
5
Psychological
Associations
6
Chapter 1
tions and concludes with a Recap, Review, and Rethink section that lists the key
points and poses questions for you to consider. Some questions (“Review”) provide a
quick test of recall, with answers provided immediately following the review. Others,
designated “Rethink,” are broader in scope and are designed to elicit critical analysis
of the information you have read. These self tests will help you in learning, and later
recalling, the material in each segment. To further reinforce your understanding of important terms and concepts, each chapter ends with a comprehensive summary, a list
of key terms, and a brief epilogue, which asks you to return to the opening prologue
and consider a few additional questions about it.
The framework of the book (explained in detail on pages xv to xxvi of the Preface) is embodied in this introductory chapter, which presents several topics that are
central to an understanding of psychology. We begin by describing the different types
of psychologists and the various roles they play. Next, we examine the major perspectives used to guide the work psychologists do. Finally, we identify the major issues
that underlie psychologists’ views of the world and human behavior.
PSYCHOLOGISTS AT WORK
䉴 What is psychology, and why is
it a science?
䉴 What are the different branches
of the field of psychology?
䉴 Where do psychologists work?
One month after losing his left arm in a car accident, Victor Quintero sat with
his eyes closed in a brain-research laboratory as a scientist poked his cheek
with a cotton swab.
“Where do you feel that?” asked Dr. Vilayanur S. Ramachandran, a
psychologist at the University of California in San Diego.
“On my left cheek and on the back of my missing hand,” said the
17-year-old high school student.
Dr. Ramachandran touched a spot under Mr. Quintero’s left nostril.
“And where do you feel that?”
“On my left pinky. It tingles.”
Eventually Dr. Ramachandran found points all over the young man’s left
face and jaw that evoked sensations in his amputated hand and arm. . . .
Finally, Dr. Ramachandran dribbled warm water down Mr. Quintero’s
left cheek. Both were amazed. “I feel it running down my arm,” said
Mr. Quintero, blinking his eyes to check that the limb was still gone
(Blakeslee, 1992b, p. C1).
***
The middle-aged woman welcomes the participants in the study, who,
more often than not, enter the room in pairs. This is hardly surprising since the
point of the study is to examine twins. They have come to a testing site to meet
with researchers studying similarities in the behavioural and personality traits of
twins. By comparing twins who have lived together virtually all their lives with
those who have been separated from birth, researchers are seeking to determine
the relative influence of heredity and experience on human behaviour.
***
A graduate-school student in China shows a group of university students a
list of short proverbs, some of which contain two contradictory ideas (“too
humble is half proud”), while others are more “linear” (“as the twig is bent, so
grows the tree”). After learning which proverbs the Chinese students prefer,
she then repeats the same study at a university in the United States. She finds
that Chinese students prefer proverbs that contain two contradictory ideas,
while U.S. students have the opposite preference (Peng & Nisbett, 1997).
***
Four King pigeons are provided with a choice of four pecking keys. All
of these keys can potentially trigger the release of food. On any given trial,
only one of these keys will actually trigger the release of food. Over a
number of trials, the pigeons demonstrate that they know which key produces
Introduction to Psychology
7
the food and concentrate their attention on that key. They also demonstrate
memory that lasts up to 96 hours for which key had last produced food and
would return to that key first, on the next trial (Willson & Wilkie, 1993).
***
Methodically—and painfully—retracing events of years before, the
college student discloses a childhood secret that he has revealed previously to
no one. The listener responds with support, suggesting to him that his
concern is in fact shared by many people.
Although the last scene may be the only one that fits your image of what a psychologist does, each of these episodes describes work carried out by contemporary
psychologists. The range and scope of psychology is remarkably broad.
The Branches of Psychology: Psychology’s Family Tree
Psychology can be likened to a large extended family, with assorted nieces and
nephews, aunts and uncles, and cousins who may not interact on a day-to-day basis,
but who are related to one another in fundamental ways.
We will examine psychology’s family tree by considering each of the major specialty areas of the field, describing them in the general order in which they are discussed in subsequent chapters of this book.
The Biological Foundations of Behaviour
In the most fundamental sense, people are biological organisms. Some psychologists
investigate the ways in which the physiological functions and structures of our body
work together to influence our behaviour. Biopsychology is the branch of psychology
that specializes in the biological bases of behaviour. Studying a broad range of topics,
biopsychologists focus on the operation of the brain and nervous system. For example,
they may examine the ways in which specific sites in the brain are related to the muscular tremors found in Parkinson’s disease (discussed in Chapter 2), or they may attempt to determine how our body’s sensations are related to our emotions (Chapter 9).
Sensing, Perceiving, Learning, and Thinking
If you have ever wondered how acute your vision is, how you sense pain, or how you can
most effectively study, you have raised a question that is most appropriately answered by
an experimental psychologist. Experimental psychology is the branch of psychology that
studies the processes of sensing, perceiving, learning, and thinking about the world.
The work of experimental psychologists overlaps that of biopsychologists, as well
as other types of psychologists. For this reason, the term “experimental psychologist” is
somewhat misleading; psychologists in every specialty area use experimental techniques,
and experimental psychologists do not limit themselves solely to experimental methods.
Several subspecialties have grown out of experimental psychology to become
central branches of the field in their own right. One example is cognitive psychology,
which focuses on the study of higher mental processes, including thinking, language,
memory, problem solving, knowing, reasoning, judging, and decision making. Covering a wide range of human behaviour, cognitive psychologists have, for instance, identified more efficient ways of remembering and better strategies for solving problems
involving logic (as we will discuss in Chapters 6 and 7).
Understanding Change and Individual Differences
A baby producing her first smile . . . taking her first step . . . saying her first word.
These events, which can be characterized as universal milestones in development, are
also singularly special and unique for each person. Developmental psychologists,
whose work we will discuss in Chapter 10, trace the physical, cognitive, social, and
emotional changes that occur throughout life.
Biological Bases
of Behaviour
8
Chapter 1
Developmental psychology, then, is the branch of psychology that studies how
people grow and change from the moment of conception through death. Another
branch, personality psychology, attempts to explain both consistency and change in a
person’s behaviour over time, as well as the individual traits that differentiate the behaviour of one person from another when they confront the same situation. The major
issues relating to the study of personality will be considered in Chapter 11.
Physical and Mental Health
Health Psychology
Counselling psychologists who staff
college centres advise students on
career choices, methods of study,
and strategies for coping with
everyday problems.
If you suffer from constant stress, are frequently depressed, or seek to overcome a
fear that prevents you from carrying out your normal activities, your problems would
be addressed by one of the psychologists who devote their energies to the study of
physical or mental health: health psychologists, clinical psychologists, and counselling psychologists.
Health psychology explores the relationship between psychological factors and
physical ailments or disease. For instance, health psychologists are interested in how
long-term stress (a psychological factor) can affect physical health. They are also concerned with identifying ways of promoting behaviour related to good health (such as
increased exercise) or discouraging unhealthy behaviour such as smoking.
Clinical psychology is the branch of psychology that deals with the study, diagnosis, and treatment of abnormal behaviour. Clinical psychologists are trained to diagnose and treat problems ranging from the everyday crises of life, such as grief due to
the death of a loved one, to more extreme conditions, such as losing touch with reality.
Some clinical psychologists also conduct research, investigating issues that range from
identifying the early signs of psychological disturbance to studying the relationship
between family communication patterns and psychological disorders.
As we will see in Chapters 12 and 13, the kinds of activities carried out by clinical psychologists are varied indeed. It is clinical psychologists who administer and
score psychological tests and who provide psychological services in community mental health centres. Even sexual problems are often treated by clinical psychologists.
Like clinical psychologists, counselling psychologists deal with people’s psychological problems, but the problems they deal with are of a particular sort. Counselling psychology is the branch of psychology that focuses primarily on educational,
social, and career adjustment problems. Almost every college has a centre staffed with
counselling psychologists. This is where students can get advice on the kinds of jobs
they might be best suited for, methods of studying effectively, and strategies for resolving everyday difficulties, such as problems with roommates and concerns about a
Introduction to Psychology
specific professor’s grading practices. Many large business organizations also employ
counseling psychologists to help employees with work-related problems.
Two close relatives of counselling psychology are educational psychology and
school psychology. Educational psychology is concerned with teaching and learning
processes. It is, for example, concerned with ways of understanding intelligence, developing better teaching techniques, and understanding teacher-student interaction.
School psychology, in contrast, is the specialty area devoted to assessing children in elementary and secondary schools who have academic or emotional problems and developing solutions to such problems.
Understanding Our Social Networks
None of us lives in isolation; rather, we are all part of a complex network of social
interrelationships. These networks with other people and with society as a whole are
the focus of study for many different kinds of psychologists.
Social psychology, as we will see in Chapter 14, is the study of how people’s
thoughts, feelings, and actions are affected by others. Social psychologists focus on
such diverse topics as human aggression, liking and loving, persuasion, and conformity. For instance, social psychologists ask, “Does observation of televised violence
make people more aggressive?” “What is the role of physical attractiveness in choosing a spouse?” and “How are we influenced by salespeople?”
The study of the psychology of women concentrates on psychological factors relating to women’s behaviour and development. It focuses on a broad range of issues,
such as discrimination against women, the possibility that structural differences exist
in men’s and women’s brains, the effects of hormones on behaviour, and the causes of
violence against women (Greenglass, 1991; Chrisler, Golden, & Rozee, 1996; Matlin,
1996; Kimura, 1999).
Industrial-organizational psychology is concerned with the psychology of the
workplace. Specifically, it considers issues such as productivity, job satisfaction, and
decision-making (Cascio, 1995; Riggio & Porter, 1996; Spector, 1996; Aamodt,
1996). A related branch is consumer psychology, which analyzes people’s buying
habits and the effects of advertising on buyer behaviour. An industrial-organizational
psychologist might ask a question such as “How do you influence workers to improve
the quality of products they produce,” while a consumer psychologist might ask “How
does product quality enter into decisions to purchase a specific product?”
Finally, cross-cultural psychology investigates the similarities and differences in
psychological functioning in various cultures and ethnic groups. As we discuss
throughout this book, psychologists specializing in cross-cultural issues investigate
such questions as the following (Shweder & Sullivan, 1993; Goldberger & Veroff,
1995; Gergen et al., 1996): What are the social and psychological issues related to
multiculturalism (Berry, 1998)? How do child-rearing practices, which differ substantially among various cultures, affect subsequent adult values and attitudes? and Why
do cultures vary in their interpretation of what constitutes physical attractiveness?
Newer Speciality Areas
As the field of psychology matures, the number of specialty areas continues to increase (Bower, 1993; Koch, 1993). For example, evolutionary psychology, an increasingly influential area, seeks to identify behaviour patterns that are a result of our
genetic inheritance from our ancestors. Evolutionary psychology is rooted in the work
of Charles Darwin, whose On the Origin of Species in 1859 argued that a process of
natural selection produces traits in a species that are adaptive to their environment.
Following Darwin’s perspective, evolutionary psychology examines whether our genetic inheritance not only determines such traits as hair colour and race, but also holds
the key to understanding certain behaviours. As we’ll see in future chapters, recent
evidence suggests that a surprising array of behaviours, such as the degree to which
we are outgoing or introverted, may well be influenced by genetic factors (Plomin &
McClearn, 1993; Crawford & Krebs, 1997).
9
10
Chapter 1
Some more recent additions to the field of psychology are clinical neuropsychology and environmental psychology. Clinical neuropsychology unites the areas of
biopsychology and clinical psychology. It focuses on the relationship between biological factors, such as brain dysfunctions, and psychological disorders. Environmental
psychology considers the relationship between people and their physical environment.
Environmental psychologists have made significant progress in understanding how our
physical environment affects our emotions, the way we behave toward others, and the
amount of stress we experience in a particular setting. Forensic psychology focuses on
legal issues, such as deciding on criteria for determining whether a person is legally
insane, and whether larger or smaller juries make fairer decisions (Stern, 1992;
Palermo & Knudten, 1994; Davies et al., 1995; Gudjonsson, 1996).
“Is there a home court advantage?” “Are there personality differences between
people who participate in sports and exercise programs and those who don’t?” “Does
participation in sports reduce aggressive behaviour?” “How can we motivate ourselves
to perform at an optimal level?” Questions of this sort are addressed by sport and exercise psychology, the branch of the field that investigates the applications of psychology to athletic activity and exercise. It considers the role of motivation, the social
aspects of sports, and even such physiological issues as the impact of training on muscle development. The growing influence of the field is suggested by the fact that no
fewer than twenty sport and exercise psychologists were on site at the Olympics in Atlanta (Murray, 1996).
Psychologists interested in program evaluation also constitute a growing body.
They focus on assessing large-scale programs, usually managed by the government,
to determine whether they are effective in meeting their goals. For example, such
psychologists have examined the effectiveness of such governmental social services
as the Head Start preschool program and the Healthy Relationships dating violence
prevention curriculm (Rossi & Freeman, 1993; Sisk et al., 1996; Josephson et al.,
1999).
The Demographics of the Discipline
Help Wanted: Professor at a college of arts, science, and technology. Teach
undergraduate courses in introductory psychology and courses in specialty
areas of cognitive psychology, perception, and learning. Strong commitment
to quality teaching and student advising necessary. The candidate must also
provide evidence of scholarship and research productivity or potential.
Help Wanted: Industrial-organizational consulting psychologist. International
firm is seeking psychologists for full-time career positions as consultants to
management. Candidates must have the ability to establish a rapport with
senior business executives and to assist them with innovative, practical, and
psychologically sound solutions to problems concerning people and
organizations.
Help Wanted: Clinical psychologist. Ph.D., internship experience, and license
required. Comprehensive clinic seeks psychologist to work with children and
adults providing individual and group therapy, psychological evaluations, crisis
intervention, and development of behaviour treatment plans on multidisciplinary
team. Broad experience with substance abuse problems is desirable.
Psychology’s Workplace
Given the diversity of roles that psychologists play, it is not surprising that they are
employed in a variety of settings. Many doctoral-level psychologists are employed
by institutions of higher learning (universities and colleges) or are self-employed,
usually working as private practitioners treating clients. The next-most-frequent
employment settings are private for-profit and non-profit organizations, such as
Introduction to Psychology
11
hospitals, clinics, mental-health centres, and counselling centres. Other settings include government human-services organizations and schools (APA, 1996).
Why are so many psychologists found in academic settings? The answer is
that the three major roles played by psychologists in society—teacher, scientist, and
clinical practitioner—are easily carried out in such an environment. Very often psychology professors are also actively involved in research or in serving clients. Whatever their particular job site, however, psychologists share a commitment to
improving individual lives as well as society in general (Peterson, 1991; Coie et al.,
1993; Rheingold, 1994; Robertson, 1994; Gautier & Phillips, 1997).
The Education of a Psychologist
How do people become psychologists? The most common route is a long one. Most
psychologists have a doctoral graduate degree in the form of a Ph.D. This degree typically takes four or five years of work past the bachelor level (H. C. Ellis, 1992).
Some fields of psychology involve education beyond the doctorate. For instance,
doctoral-level clinical psychologists, who deal with people with psychological disorders, typically spend an additional year on a supervised internship at a health or mental
health agency or facility accredited by the Canadian Psychological Association and/or
the American Psychological Association. The profession of psychologist is regulated
in Canada and psychologists must be licensed by a provincial or territorial board
(Dobson & Breault, 1998). Although many psychologists work in a clinical setting,
others may teach, or work in specialized programs in government or industry.
An undergraduate major in psychology provides worthwhile preparation for a
variety of occupations, although it does not allow professional work in psychology per se.
For instance, many people in business, nursing, law, social work, and other professions
report that an undergraduate background in psychology has proven invaluable in their
careers. Undergraduates who specialize in psychology typically have good analytical,
higher-order thinking abilities, and they are able to synthesize and evaluate information
well—skills that are held in high regard by employers in business and industry and the
government.
People other than psychologists also deal with psychological issues, but their
training tends to differ in significant ways from that of psychologists. For instance,
although psychiatrists treat people with psychological disorders, they have medical
degrees and can prescribe medicine. Trained initially as physicians, they often focus
on the physical causes of psychological disorders. Consequently, they may be more
apt to employ treatments involving medications than to focus on psychological causes
of disorders. In addition, people in allied fields such as social work, marriage counselling, and school counselling often deal with psychological issues. However, their
direct training in psychology is more limited than that attained by psychologists.
Psychology in Canada and the United States
As a student of psychology in Canada, you might ask the question: is Canadian psychology the same as American psychology? The answer is yes it is and no it isn’t.
In many ways they are the same. They share the same early history, starting with
Wilhelm Wundt in 1879 (see The Roots of Psychology later in the chapter). They both
share the same branches on the family tree, the same major areas of specialization, and
they both use the same perspectives (see Today’s Perspectives). The psychological
communities in both countries are interested in many of the same issues. They both
have professional associations that support and regulate the work of psychology: The
American Psychological Association (APA) in the United States (founded in 1892)
and The Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) in Canada (founded in 1939) are
the largest but not the only ones.
In the beginning there was little to distinguish Canadian from American psychology. Sometimes the same person is significant in the history of both academic
communities. For example, an American, James Baldwin, teaching at the University of
Education in Psychology
12
Chapter 1
Toronto in the late 1800s and called “the first modern psychologist in Canada,” was a
founding member of the APA (Wright and Myers, 1982; Ferguson, 1993). Although
research and practice, in both countries, have much in common there are some significant differences between them.
They differ in scale. The much larger population in the United States provides a
larger research base. With many more universities, more research can be generated.
Academic credentials differ. In Canada, most psychologists with a doctoral-level degree will have a Ph.D. In the U.S., psychologists may have a Ph.D. (for those whose
focus is on research with original investigation) or a Psy.D. (for those who wish to
focus on the treatment of psychological disorders).
As both countries moved towards more applied psychology in the 1940s they
faced a division in their ranks between those psychologists who favoured academic
(pure) psychology and those who were interested in applied research. In Canada, the
emerging applied psychology remained rooted in the experimental, university, thesisbased model (Ph.D.) In the United States, there were more financial incentives to develop private teaching programs and the larger population could support such
initiatives (Dobson, 1995; Goodman, 2000). This tradition, in Canada, of a strong experimental and empirical focus translates into a tendency for Canadian clinical psychologists more than their American counterparts to work from a behavioural or
cognitive behavioural model (Hunsley and Lefebvre, 1990; Warner, 1991).
In both countries, because of their different historical, social, and cultural experiences, there are areas of special concern. In social psychology, as an example, both
will study violence, but the experience of it may differ. Canada’s universal health care
system makes issues of health and well-being different from those in the United
States. Canada’s federal multicultural policy creates a potentially different experience
around issues of ethnic diversity. Therefore studies in these areas will produce a
unique body of research. This knowledge is essential for those psychologists who are
involved in program planning or evaluation.
In conclusion, it seems fair to say that, although their roots are the same and
much research is easily transferable, psychology in Canada and the United States has
evolved each in its own unique way. This is primarily as a result of a difference in
population size and a different historical and social experience.
Recap, Review, and Rethink
Recap
•
Psychology is the scientific study of behaviour and mental
processes.
•
Among the major branches of psychology are biopsychology;
experimental and cognitive psychology; developmental and
personality psychology; health, clinical, and counselling
psychology; educational and school psychology; social
psychology; psychology of women; industrial-organizational
psychology; consumer psychology; and cross-cultural
psychology. Many new specialty areas are also springing up.
•
Many psychologists are employed by institutions of higher
learning, and the balance are employed by hospitals, clinics,
community health centres, human-service organizations,
and schools or are engaged in private practice.
Review
1. The foundation of psychology today lies in
a. intuition.
b. observation and experimentation.
c. trial and error.
d. metaphysics.
2. Match each branch of psychology with the issues or
questions posed below.
a. Biopsychology
b. Experimental psychology
c. Cognitive psychology
d. Developmental psychology
e. Personality psychology
f. Health psychology
g. Clinical psychology
h. Counselling psychology
i. Educational psychology
j. School psychology
k. Social psychology
l. Industrial psychology
m. Consumer psychology
1. Joan, a college freshman, is panicking. She needs to
learn better organizational skills and study habits to cope
with the demands of college.
2. At what age do children generally begin to acquire an
emotional attachment to their fathers?
3. It is thought that pornographic films that depict violence
against women may prompt aggressive behaviour in
some men.
Introduction to Psychology
4. What chemicals are released in the human body as a
result of a stressful event? What are their effects on
behaviour?
5. John is unique in his manner of responding to crisis
situations, with an even temperament and a positive
outlook.
6. The general public is more apt to buy products that are
promoted by attractive and successful actors.
7. The teachers of eight-year-old Jack are concerned that he
has recently begun to withdraw socially and to show
little interest in school work.
8. Janet’s job is demanding and stressful. She wonders if
her lifestyle is making her more prone to certain
illnesses such as cancer and heart disease.
9. A psychologist is intrigued by the fact that some people
are much more sensitive to painful stimuli than others.
10. A strong fear of crowds leads a young woman to seek
treatment for her problem.
11. What mental strategies are involved in solving complex
word problems?
12. What teaching methods most effectively motivate
elementary school students to successfully accomplish
academic tasks?
13
13. Jessica is asked to develop a management strategy that
will encourage safer work practices in an assembly
plant.
Answers to Review Questions are on page 14.
Rethink
1. Why might the study of twins who were raised together and
twins who were not be helpful in distinguishing the effects
of heredity and environment?
2. Imagine you had a seven-year-old child who was having
problems learning to read. Imagine further that you could
consult as many psychologists as you wanted. How might
each type of psychologist approach the problem?
3. Are intuition and common sense sufficient for
understanding why people act the way they do? Why is a
scientific approach appropriate for studying human
behaviour?
A SCIENCE EVOLVES: THE PAST, THE
PRESENT, AND THE FUTURE
Some half-million years ago, people assumed that psychological problems
were caused by the presence of evil spirits. To allow these spirits to escape,
ancient healers performed an operation called trephining. Trephining
consisted of chipping away at a patient’s skull with crude stone instruments
until a hole was cut through the bone. Because archaeologists have found
skulls with signs of healing around the opening, we can assume that patients
sometimes managed to survive the cure.
***
The famous Greek physician Hippocrates thought that personality was
made up of four temperaments: sanguine (cheerful and active), melancholic
(sad), choleric (angry and aggressive), and phlegmatic (calm and passive).
These temperaments were influenced by the presence of “humours,” or
fluids, in the body. If one humour was out of balance, a physician would
seek to either increase the deficient humour (through a medicinal potion)
or decrease the excess (often through bloodletting).
***
According to the philosopher Descartes, nerves were hollow tubes
through which “animal spirits” conducted impulses in the same way that
water is transmitted through a pipe. When a person put a finger too close to
the fire, the heat was transmitted via the spirits through the tube, directly into
the brain.
***
Franz Josef Gall, an eighteenth-century physician, argued that a trained
observer could discern intelligence, moral character, and other basic
personality characteristics from the shape and number of bumps on a person’s
skull. His theory gave rise to the “science” of phrenology, employed by
hundreds of devoted practitioners in the nineteenth century.
While these “scientific” explanations may sound far-fetched, at one time they
represented the most advanced thinking regarding what might be called the psychology of the era. Even without knowing much about modern-day psychology, you can
surmise that our understanding of behaviour has advanced tremendously since these
䉴 What are the historical roots of
the field of psychology?
䉴 What approaches are used by
contemporary psychologists?
14
Chapter 1
Classical Studies in
Psychology
earlier views were formulated. Yet most of the advances have been recent, for, as sciences go, psychology is one of the new kids on the block.
Although psychology’s roots can be traced back to the ancient Greeks and Romans, and although philosophers have argued for several hundred years about some of
the same sorts of questions that psychologists grapple with today, the formal beginning of psychology is generally set at 1879. In that year, Wilhelm Wundt established
the first laboratory devoted to the experimental study of psychological phenomena in
Leipzig, Germany. At about the same time, William James was setting up his laboratory in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Throughout its almost twelve decades of formal existence, psychology has led
an active and dynamic life, gradually developing into a true science. As part of this
evolution, it has produced a number of conceptual perspectives, or models. These perspectives represent organized systems of interrelated ideas and concepts used to explain phenomena. Some of these perspectives have been discarded—as have the views
of Hippocrates and Descartes—but others have been elaborated and provide a set of
pathways for psychologists to follow (Wright & Myers, 1982; Hilgard, Leary, &
McGuire, 1991; Robinson, 1995; Benjafield, 1996; Benjamin, 1997).
Each of the perspectives offers a distinctive outlook, emphasizing different factors. Just as we may employ not one but many maps to find our way around a particular geographical area—one map to show the roads, one the major landmarks, and one
the topography of the hills and valleys—psychologists also find more than one approach useful in understanding behaviour. Given the range and complexity of behaviour, no single perspective or model will invariably provide an optimal explanation.
Together, though, the differing perspectives provide us with a means to explain the
extraordinary breadth of behaviour.
The Roots of Psychology
structuralism: Wundt’s model that
focuses on the fundamental elements
that form the foundation of thinking,
consciousness, emotions, and other kinds
of mental states and activities
introspection: A procedure used to
study the structure of the mind, in which
subjects are asked to describe in detail
what they are experiencing when they
are exposed to a stimulus
When Wilhelm Wundt set up the first psychology laboratory in 1879, his aim was to
study the building blocks of the mind. Considering psychology to be the study of conscious experience, he developed a model that came to be known as structuralism.
Structuralism focused on the fundamental elements that form the foundation of thinking, consciousness, emotions, and other kinds of mental states and activities.
To come to an understanding of how basic sensations combined to produce our
awareness of the world, Wundt and other structuralists used a procedure called introspection to study the structure of the mind. In introspection, people were presented
with a stimulus—such as a bright green object or a sentence printed on a card—and
asked to describe, in their own words and in as much detail as they could manage,
what they were experiencing. Wundt argued that psychologists could come to understand the structure of the mind through the reports that people offered of their reactions (Bjork, 1997).
Wundt’s structuralism did not stand the test of time, however. Psychologists became increasingly dissatisfied with the assumption that introspection could unlock the
fundamental elements of the mind. For one thing, people had difficulty describing
some kinds of inner experiences, such as emotional responses. (Try to analyze and explain the primary elements of what you are feeling the next time you experience anger,
for instance.)
Moreover, breaking down objects into their most basic mental units sometimes
seemed to be a most peculiar undertaking. A book, for example, could not be described by a structuralist as merely a book, but instead had to be broken down into its
various components, such as the material on the cover, the colours, the shapes of the
letters, and so on. Finally, introspection was not a truly scientific technique. There
Answers to Review Questions:
1. b
2. a-4, b-9, c-11, d-2, e-5, f-8, g-10, h-1, i-12, j-7, k-3, l-13, m-6
Introduction to Psychology
were few ways in which an outside observer could verify the accuracy of the introspections that people did make. Such drawbacks led to the evolution of new models,
which largely supplanted structuralism.
Interestingly, however, important remnants of structuralism still exist. As we
shall see in Chapter 7, the past twenty years have seen a resurgence of interest in people’s descriptions of their inner experience. Cognitive psychologists, who focus on
higher mental processes such as thinking, memory, and problem solving, have developed innovative techniques for understanding people’s conscious experience that overcome many of the difficulties inherent in introspection.
The model that largely replaced structuralism in the evolution of psychology
was known as functionalism. Rather than focusing on the mind’s components, functionalism concentrated on what the mind does—the functions of mental activity—as
well as the functions of behavior in general. Functionalists, whose model rose to
prominence in the early 1900s, asked what roles behaviour played in allowing people
to better adapt to their environments. Led by the American psychologist William
James, the functionalists examined the ways in which behaviour allows people to satisfy their needs (Johnson & Henley, 1990). By using functionalism, the famous American educator John Dewey developed the field of school psychology, proposing ways
that students’ educational needs could best be met.
Another reaction to structuralism was the development of gestalt psychology in
the early 1900s. Gestalt psychology is a model focusing on the study of how perception is organized. Instead of considering the individual parts that make up thinking,
gestalt psychologists took the opposite tack, concentrating on how people consider individual elements together as units or wholes. Their credo was “The whole is different
from the sum of its parts,” meaning that, when considered together, the basic elements
that compose our perception of objects produce something greater and more meaningful than those individual elements alone. As we shall see when we examine sensation
and perception in Chapter 3, the contributions of gestalt psychologists to the understanding of perception are substantial.
15
functionalism: An early approach to
psychology that concentrated on what
the mind does—the functions of mental
activity—and the role of behaviour in
allowing people to adapt to their
environments
gestalt (geh SHTALLT)
psychology: An approach to
psychology that focuses on the
organization of perception and thinking
in a “whole” sense, rather than on the
individual elements of perception
Women in Psychology: Pioneering Contributions
Despite societal constraints that limited women’s participation in many professions,
including psychology, women made major contributions in the early years of psychology (Russo & Denmark, 1987; Bohan, 1992). In the United States for example, Leta
Stetter Hollingworth coined the term “gifted” in reference to unusually bright children,
and she wrote a book on adolescence that became a classic (Hollingworth, 1928).
Another influential figure was Karen Horney (1937) (pronounced “HORNeye”), who focused on the social and cultural factors behind personality. She was one
of the earliest psychologists to advocate for women’s issues.
The 1930s and 40s were years that saw women, in increasing numbers, take
their places in teaching positions at Canadian universities. Mary Salter Ainsworth
began teaching at the University of Toronto in 1939. In 1950 she left for England, then
on to Uganda and the United States. A truly international scholar, her academic interests focused on developmental psychology.
Reva Gerstein, who taught at the University of Toronto in the early 1940s, was to
use her education in a career of service to Canada. Her work in the field of mental health
won her a national award in 1987. Among her many accomplishments was the Gerstein
Report, which provided a plan for deinstitutionalized psychiatric patients (Wright, 1992).
A distinguished lecturer and pioneer in the field of neuropsychology, Brenda
Milner began teaching psychology in the 1940s. Her research at the Montreal Neurological Institute, and McGill University has contributed substantially to our knowledge
of learning, memory, and speech functions of the brain. Awarded many honours, she
was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame in 1997 (Montreal Neurological
Institute, 1997).
Mary Wright, whose career in psychology has spanned 50 years, became the
first woman president of the CPA in 1969. Her research interests are in the areas of
Brenda Milner
16
Chapter 1
child development and education. She has written extensively on the history of psychology in Canada (Wright & Myers, 1982; Wright, 1993).
Despite the contributions of such women, psychology was largely a male dominated field in its early years. However, the number of women has been increasing
rapidly in recent years. Consequently, when future historians of science write about
psychology they will be recording a history of men and women (Denmark, 1994).
Today’s Perspectives
The early roots of psychology are complex and varied. It is not surprising, then, that
the field is so diverse today. However, it is possible to encompass the breadth of psychology by using just a few basic perspectives: the biological, psychodynamic, cognitive, behavioural, and humanistic perspectives. Each of these broad perspectives,
which continue to evolve, emphasizes different aspects of behaviour and mental
processes and steers the thinking of psychologists in a somewhat different direction.
Mary J. Wright
The Biological Perspective: Blood, Sweat, and Fears
biological perspective: The
psychological model that views
behaviour from the perspective of
biological functioning
When we get down to the basics, behaviour is carried out by living creatures made of
skin and guts. The biological perspective considers the behaviour of both people and
animals in terms of biological functioning: how the individual nerve cells are joined
together, how the inheritance of certain characteristics from parents and other ancestors influences behaviour, how the functioning of the body affects hopes and fears,
which behaviours are due to instincts, and so forth. Even more complex kinds of behaviours, such as a baby’s response to strangers, are viewed as having critical biological components by psychologists using the biological perspective. The biological
perspective also takes into account how heredity and evolution not only shape such
traits as height and hair colour, but also may influence behaviour.
Because every behaviour can at some level be broken down into its biological
components, the biological perspective has broad appeal. Psychologists who subscribe
to this perspective have made major contributions to the understanding and betterment
of human life, ranging from developing cures for certain types of deafness to identifying medications to treat people with severe mental disorders.
The Psychodynamic Perspective: Understanding the Inner Person
psychodynamic perspective: The
psychological model based on the belief
that behaviour is motivated by inner
forces over which the individual has
little control
To many people who have never taken a psychology course, psychology begins and
ends with the psychodynamic perspective. Proponents of the psychodynamic perspective believe that behaviour is motivated by inner forces and conflicts over which
the individual has little awareness and control. Dreams and slips of the tongue are
viewed as indications of what a person is truly feeling within a seething cauldron of
unconscious psychic activity.
The psychodynamic view is intimately linked with one individual: Sigmund
Freud. Freud was a Viennese physician in the early 1900s whose ideas about unconscious determinants of behaviour had a revolutionary effect on twentieth-century
thinking, not just in psychology but in related fields as well. Although many of the
basic principles of psychodynamic thinking have been roundly criticized, the perspective that has grown out of Freud’s work has provided a means of not only treating mental disorders, but also understanding everyday phenomena such as prejudice
and aggression.
The Cognitive Perspective: Comprehending the Roots of Understanding
Sigmund Freud
cognitive perspective: The
psychological model that focuses on
how people know, understand, and think
about the world
The route to understanding behaviour leads some psychologists straight into the mind.
Evolving in part from structuralism, the cognitive perspective focuses on how people
know, understand, and think about the world. The emphasis is on learning how people
comprehend and represent the outside world within themselves. Cognitive psychologists seek to explain how we process information and how our ways of thinking about
the world influence our behaviour.
Introduction to Psychology
17
Psychologists relying on this perspective ask questions ranging from whether a
person can watch television and study at the same time (the answer is “probably not”)
to how people figure out for themselves the causes of others’ behaviour. The common
elements that link cognitive approaches are an emphasis on how people understand
and think about the world and a concern about describing the patterns and regularities
of the operation of our minds.
The Behavioural Perspective: Observing the Outer Person
While the biological, psychodynamic, and cognitive approaches look inside the organism to determine the causes of its behaviour, the behavioural perspective takes a very
different approach. The behavioural perspective grew out of a rejection of psychology’s early emphasis on the inner workings of the mind, suggesting instead that observable behaviour should be the focus of the field.
John B. Watson was the first major American psychologist to advocate a behavioural approach. Working in the 1920s, Watson was adamant in his view that one
could gain a complete understanding of behaviour by studying and modifying the environment in which people operated. In fact, he believed rather optimistically that by
controlling a person’s environment, it was possible to elicit any desired sort of behaviour. His own words make this philosophy clear: “Give me a dozen healthy infants,
well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I’ll guarantee to
take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select—
doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief, and yes, even beggar-man and thief, regardless
of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations and race of his ancestors”
(Watson, 1924). In more recent times, the behavioural perspective was championed by
B. F. Skinner, who, until his death in 1990, was the best-known contemporary psychologist. Much of our understanding of how people learn new behaviours is based on
the behavioural perspective.
As we will see, the behavioural perspective crops up along every byway of psychology. Along with the influence it has had in the area of learning processes, this perspective has also made contributions in such diverse areas as the treatment of mental
disorders, the curbing of aggression, the resolution of sexual problems, and even the
halting of drug addiction.
behavioural perspective: The
psychological model that suggests that
observable behaviour should be the
focus of study
John B. Watson
The Humanistic Perspective: The Unique Qualities of Homo Sapiens
Rejecting the views that behaviour is determined largely by automatic, biological
forces, by unconscious processes, or solely by the environment, the humanistic perspective instead suggests that people are naturally endowed with the capacity to make
decisions about their lives and to control their behaviour. Humanistic psychologists
maintain that everyone has the power to develop higher levels of maturity and fulfillment. In their view, people will strive to reach their full potential if given the opportunity. The emphasis, then, is on free will, the human ability to make decisions about
one’s life.
The humanistic perspective assumes that people have the ability to make their
own choices about their behaviour, rather than relying on societal standards. In this
view, it is not a person’s role or status that is important, but whether they live up to
their full potential.
More than any other approach, the humanistic perspective stresses the role of
psychology in enriching people’s lives and helping them to achieve self-fulfillment.
While somewhat more limited than the other perspectives, the humanistic perspective
has had an important influence on psychologists, reminding them of their commitment
to the individual person and society.
It is important not to let the abstract qualities of the humanistic perspective, or of
the other broad approaches we have discussed, lull you into thinking that they are
purely theoretical. These perspectives underlie ongoing work of a practical nature, as
we will discuss throughout this book. As a start, consider the Applying Pscyhology in
the 21st Century box.
humanistic perspective: The
psychological model that suggests that
people are in control of their lives
free will: The human ability to make
decisions about one’s life
18
Chapter 1
pplying Psychology in the 21st Century
Psychology and the Reduction of Violence
A bomb explodes during the 1996
Olympics in Atlanta, killing one person
and injuring dozens more. A terrible
tragedy plays itself out at Columbine
High School in Colorado. Violence is the
reality we live with. No country, in fact
no community, is unaffected. It invades
our homes: Two young sisters are murdered in their suburban Toronto home. It
invades our streets: A 14-year-old girl in
British Columbia is viciously beaten and
then drowned by youths her own age. It
invades our schools: One student is killed
and another injured when an Alberta boy
takes a gun to school.
In the aftermath of these events, we
may feel disgusted, sad, or angry. We
become fearful for ourselves and for our
children. On the anniversary of Columbine dozens of Toronto schools were patrolled by uniformed police officers and
parents kept children home because of
fears of violence.
Yet violence is not going unchallenged, and the field of psychology is
playing a key role in efforts to reduce
this social ill. Psychologists specializing
in diverse areas and employing the major
perspectives of the field are making a
concerted effort to understand and reduce
violence as well as to deal with its aftermath (Pepler & Slaby, 1994; Human
Capital Initiative, 1997; Osofsky, 1997;
Jaffe, 1999). Their work is reflected in
several key areas:
• Examining the notion that a
“cycle of violence” perpetuates
violent behaviour across
generations. According to the
“cycle of violence” explanation,
abuse and neglect during
childhood make people more
likely to abuse and neglect their
own children (Widom, 1989).
Research in developmental
psychopathology by Muller and
Diamond at York University
(1999) found a relationship
between physical maltreatment by
both fathers and mothers and
elevated levels of aggression in
both sons and daughters, as early
as preschool. They also found a
consistence in these patterns
across generations.
Developmental psychologists
have found a considerable amount
of evidence to support the “cycle
of violence” notion. However, the
evidence does not tell the full
story: Being abused does not
inevitably lead to the abuse of
one’s own children. Only onethird of people who have been
abused or neglected as children go
on to abuse their own children
(Kaufman & Zigler,1987). Current
research is aimed at determining
when a childhood history of abuse
is most likely to result in adult
Violence occurs in many forms, such as the bomb blast that shook the Olympic Games
in Atlanta.
violence, and how the cycle can be
broken.
• Examining the effects of media
violence. Violence on television is
common. One survey found that of
94 prime time programs
examined, 48 showed at least one
act of violence, including 57
people killed and 99 assaulted
(Hansom & Knopes, 1993).
Although they cannot be
fully certain, most social and
developmental psychologists
agree that observation of media
aggression enhances the likelihood
that viewers will act aggressively.
In an extensive study done for the
Department of Canadian Heritage,
and Health Canada, Wendy
Josephson (1995) examined the
effects of television violence on
children of different ages. She
found that although all ages are
affected, preschoolers are
particularly vulnerable. She and
others have also found that
observing media aggression serves
to desensitize viewers to displays
of aggression, leading them to
react with passivity to actual
incidents of aggression (Molitor &
Hirsch, 1994; Josephson, 1995;
Palermo, 1995).
Although television receives a
lot of attention in this regard, the
Internet is another media source
that increasingly provides
interactive violence, allowing
people not only to observe
violence but also to participate in
it. One of the more popular games
has players hitting, teasing, and
abusing each other until they are
driven sobbing out of the game. It
has 25,000 registered users
(Spencer, 2000).
• Considering the role of biological
factors in aggression. Several
psychologists have considered the
issue of whether biological factors
are linked to aggression. For
instance, psychologist James
Dabbs, Jr., believes that there is a
link between hormones and
aggressive behaviour, based on
research in the areas of
biopsychology and social
Introduction to Psychology
psychology. Examination of a
large group of prisoners found that
males with higher testosterone
levels were more likely to have
committed personal crimes of sex
and violence, while those with
lower levels of testosterone were
more apt to have committed
property crimes involving
burglary, theft, and drugs. If this
work, which is controversial, is
supported by other studies, the
future may hold the controversial
possibility of medical treatments
designed to reduce violence in
perpetrators (Dabbs, 1993; Dabbs
et al., 1995).
• Identifying methods for reducing
youth violence. The rate of young
people, in Canada, charged with
violent crimes is 77 percent higher
than it was a decade ago. Of
significant concern is the
increasing violence reported for
female youths. Since 1988 the
increase in violent crime rates for
female youth is 127 percent for
males it is 65 percent (Juristat
report on Youth violent crime,
December 21, 1999).
Psychologist Ervin Staub
argues that a combination of
factors such as a lack of
nurturance, neglect, and harsh
treatment; frequent observation of
violence; difficult life conditions;
and poverty, prejudice, and
discrimination result in higher
rates of violence. He also suggests
ways of reducing violence. For
example, he has developed a
training program for inner-city
students. Through a combination
of role playing, videotaping, and
structured discussion, these students
are taught to respond to provocative situations in ways that do not
involve aggression (Staub, 1996a,
1996b; Loeber & Hay, 1997).
In Winnipeg, a three-year
study on violence prevention is
being evaluated (see Pathways
Through Psychology). The
program taught students to deal
with anger, to be assertive not
aggressive, and to recognize the
effect of media on behaviour as
well as other issues related to
dating relationships. Preliminary
results suggest that students in the
program did demonstrate a
decrease in violent behaviour by
the end of the program (Josephson
et al., 1999).
Bullying is an ongoing area of
concern for many psychologists
and educators. Debra Pepler and
colleagues at the LaMarsh Centre
for Research on Violence and
Conflict Resolution at York
University investigate issues
related to youth violence, bullying,
and intervention (Pepler et al.,
1995; Craig & Pepler, 1996).
In Coquitlam, B.C., a schoolbased, anti-bullying program
called Bully B’ware was
developed by a team of educators
and counsellors. Workshops
targeted at teachers, parents and
students, are designed to raise
awareness, about bullies and
victims. Developers believe that it
is critical to educate and mobilize
the 60 percent of students who are
neither victim nor bully not to
tolerate the bullying of others.
(Bully B’ware Productions)
• Reducing sexual aggression. In
1998 there were over 21,000
reported cases of sexual assaults
against Canadian women
(Tremblay, 1999). Psychologists
from several different branches of
the field—including specialists in
clinical psychology,
developmental psychology, and
the psychology of women—have
been working to devise ways of
reducing sexually aggressive
behaviour. Objectives of a
program for young male offenders
accused of sexual and physical
assault, include developing an
understanding of their hurtful
behaviour as well as developing
19
remorse for their behaviour and
empathy for their victims. They
are also taught to identify the
situations that might lead them to
repeat their aggressive behaviour
(Mamabolo, 1996).
• Helping children who are the
victims of violence. More than
225,000 Canadian children are
abused in their communities each
year (Carney, 1999). The belief
that children who are abused
directly or who are witness to
violence may have similar
adjustment problems has
prompted Peter Jaffee and
colleagues to focus on prevention.
They believe there should be more
early intervention for high-risk
children. Two models developed
for the National Crime Prevention
Council included initiatives such
as home visitation programs for
high-risk parents. Programs that
involve schools and community
agencies are also important. One
such program developed in
London, Ontario, has shown
positive results.
This is an area of research where
Canadian and American studies can
help each other. A program called
Multisystemic Therapy (MST),
developed by Scott Henggler and
his associates in South Carolina,
is being tried in five Ontario
communities. The program provides
youth with intensive intervention in
the home, school, and community
(Jaffee & Baker, 1999).
As we can see, psychologists are
playing important and quite varied roles
in combating violence. And violence is
not the only societal problem to which
psychologists are contributing their expertise in an effort to alleviate human
suffering. As we will explore in Applying Psychology in the 21st Century boxes
in every chapter, the basic principles of
psychology are being used, as we move
into the new century, to address a wide
range of social problems.
20
Chapter 1
CONNECTIONS: PSYCHOLOGY’S
UNIFYING THEMES
䉴 What is the future of
psychology likely to hold?
As you consider the many topical areas and perspectives that make up the field of psychology, you may find yourself thinking that you’ve embarked on a journey into a fragmented discipline that lacks cohesion. You may fear that psychology consists merely of
a series of unrelated, separate subject areas, no closer to one another than physics is to
chemistry. In fact, such a conclusion is not unreasonable, given that psychology covers
so many diverse areas, ranging from a narrow focus on the minute biochemical influences on behaviour to a broad focus on social behaviour in its most encompassing sense.
Yet despite the seeming disparity among the various topics and perspectives, the
differences in some ways are only skin deep. The field is actually more unified than a
first glimpse might imply, in terms of both the links between psychology’s branches
and perspectives and the key issues that psychologists address.
The Links Between Psychology’s Branches and Perspectives
The field’s five major perspectives play an important role in integrating the various
branches of the discipline. Specifically, a psychologist from any given branch might
choose to employ any one, or more, of the major perspectives.
For example, a developmental psychologist might subscribe to the psychodynamic perspective or the behavioural perspective or any of the other perspectives.
Similarly, a clinical psychologist might use the behavioural perspective or the cognitive perspective or one of the other perspectives. The perspectives may be used in different ways by various psychologists, but the assumptions of a given perspective are
similar regardless of the subfield to which it is applied.
Of course, not every branch of psychology is equally likely to employ a particular perspective. Historically, some kinds of psychologists have been more apt to rely
on certain perspectives, and some perspectives have proven more useful than others to
psychologists attempting to deal with a particular topical area.
For example, biopsychologists studying the brain are most likely to employ the
biological perspective, given its emphasis on the biological foundations of behaviour.
At the same time, most biopsychologists reject the psychodynamic perspective’s reliance on unconscious determinants of behaviour. Similarly, social psychologists who
are interested in explaining the roots of prejudice are more likely to find the cognitive
perspective of use than the biological perspective.
Psychology’s Future
We have examined the foundations from which the field of psychology has evolved.
But what does the future hold for the discipline? Although the course of scientific development is notoriously difficult to predict, several trends do seem likely to emerge
in the not-so-distant future:
• Psychology will become increasingly specialized. In a field in which practitioners
must be experts on such diverse topics as the intricacies of the transmission of
electrochemical impulses across nerve endings and the communication patterns
of employees in large organizations, no one individual can be expected to master
the field. Thus, it is likely that specialization will increase as psychologists delve
into new areas (Bower, 1993; Koch, 1993; Plomin, 1995).
• New perspectives will evolve. As a growing, maturing science, psychology will
develop new perspectives to supplant current approaches. Moreover, older
perspectives may merge to form new ones. We can be certain, then, that as
psychologists accumulate more knowledge they will become increasingly
sophisticated in their understanding of behaviour and mental processes (Boneau,
1992; Gibson, 1994; Andreasen, 1997).
Introduction to Psychology
21
• Explanations for behaviour will simultaneously consider genetic and
environmental factors, as well as biological and social influences. For instance,
it is clear that phenomena such as memory cannot be fully understood without
reference to the biological mechanisms that allow memories to be stored as well
as the situational influences regarding what information is attended to in the
first place (Eichenbaum, 1997; Veitch & Gifford, 1997; Segal, Weisfeld, &
Weisfeld, 1997).
• Psychological treatment will become more accessible and socially acceptable as
the number of psychologists increases. More psychologists will focus on
prevention of psychological disturbance, rather than just on its treatment. In
addition, they will act as consultants to the growing number of volunteer and
self-help groups as can be seen in Pathways Through Psychology in Chapter 12
(Jacobs & Goodman, 1989; R. E. Fox, 1994; Pepler et al., 1995; Gautier &
Philips, 1997).
• Psychology’s influence on issues in the public interest will grow. Each of the
major problems of our time—such as the threat of terrorism, racial and ethnic
prejudice, poverty, and environmental and technological disasters—has
important psychological ramifications (Archer, Pettigrew, & Aronson, 1992;
Calkins, 1993; Cialdini, 1997). While psychology alone will not solve these
problems, its major accomplishments in the past (many of which are
documented in other chapters of this book) foretell that psychologists will make
important practical contributions toward their resolution.
• Psychology will take the growing diversity of the country’s population into
account. As the population of Canada becomes more diverse, the consideration
of racial, ethnic, linguistic, and cultural factors will become more critical to
psychologists providing psychological services and conducting research. The
result will be a field that can provide an understanding of human behaviour in its
broadest sense (Goodchilds, 1991; Brislin, 1993; Berry & Laponce, 1994; Fowers
& Richardson, 1996; Gautier & Philips, 1997).
Cross-cultural
Psychology
Recap, Review, and Rethink
Recap
•
Traces of the early perspectives of structuralism,
functionalism, and gestalt psychology can be seen in the
major perspectives used by psychologists today.
•
The dominant psychological perspectives encompass
biological, psychodynamic, cognitive, behavioural, and
humanistic approaches.
•
In the future, the field of psychology is likely to become
more specialized; to consider both biological and
environmental factors; to take the increasing diversity of the
country’s population into account more fully; and to
become increasingly concerned with the public interest.
Psychological treatment is also likely to become more
accessible.
Review
1. The statement “In order to study human behaviour, we must
consider the whole of perception rather than its component
parts” is one that might be made by a person subscribing to
which perspective of psychology?
2. Identify the perspective that suggests that abnormal
behaviour may be the result of largely unconscious forces.
3. “Psychologists should worry only about behaviour that is
directly observable.” This statement would most likely be
made by a person using which psychological perspective?
4. Psychology is currently moving toward increased
specialization. True or false?
Answers to Review Questions are on page 22.
Rethink
1. How are today’s major perspectives of psychology related
to the earlier models of structuralism, functionalism, and
gestalt psychology?
2. Consider some event that has recently been well-publicized
in the news. How might the different perspectives of
psychology be used to explain the event?
22
Chapter 1
While we may notice that someone
is in trouble, we may not provide
help. The concept of diffusion of
responsibility helps explain why
individuals in a crowd are not likely
to assist strangers in distress—each
bystander assumes that others will
take the responsibility for helping.
RESEARCH IN PSYCHOLOGY
䉴 What is the scientific
method, and how do
psychologists use theory and
research to answer questions
of interest?
䉴 What are the different
research methods employed
by psychologists?
䉴 How do psychologists
establish cause-and-effect
relationships in research
studies?
Imagine that you are on a busy street and a fight breaks out. Nearby a young man
is being beaten. Do you stop and help? Do you call the police? Do you walk right
by? Do you watch and do nothing to intervene? Can you remember a situation where
you saw someone in trouble and did nothing? Do you remember what you thought at
the time?
If you did nothing you are not alone. Bystander inaction is all too common.
Possibly the best known case of bystander inaction involved a woman named
Kitty Genovese who was attacked by a man near an apartment building in New York
City in the mid-1960s. At one point during the assault, which lasted thirty minutes, she
managed to free herself and screamed, “Oh, my God, he stabbed me. Please help me!”
In the stillness of the night, no fewer than thirty-eight neighbors heard her screams.
Windows opened and lights went on. One couple pulled chairs up to the window and
turned off the lights so they could see better. Someone called out, “Let that girl alone.”
But shouts were not enough to scare off the killer. He chased her, stabbing her eight
more times, and sexually molested her before leaving her to die. And how many of
those thirty-eight witnesses came to her aid? Not one person helped (Rogers & Eftimiades, 1995).
In A Textbook of Social Psychology, Alcock, Carment and Sadava (2000) tell a
story about a young woman from Scarborough, Ontario. She died in very similar circumstances to Kitty Genovese, crying for her life while no one helped.
Both of these cases remain dismaying—and puzzling—examples of “bad
Samaritanism.” The general public, as well as psychologists, found it difficult to explain how so many people could stand by without coming to the aid of the victims.
One easy explanation, supplied by many editorial writers, was that the incidents
could be attributed to the basic shortcomings of “human nature.” But such a supposition is woefully inadequate. For one thing, there are numerous examples of people
who have placed their own lives at risk to help others in dangerous situations.
Answers to Review Questions:
1. gesalt
2. psychodynamic
3. behavioral
4. true
Introduction to Psychology
23
Clearly, then, “human nature” encompasses a wide range of both negative and
positive responses. Consequently it does not provide a very satisfying explanation for
the bystanders’ unhelpful behaviour. The mystery, then, of the lack of bystander intervention in both incidents remained unsolved.
Psychologists in particular puzzled over the problem and after much research finally reached an unexpected conclusion: The two women might well have been better
off had there been just a few people who heard their cries for help rather than the
many that did. In fact, had there been just one bystander present in each instance, the
chances of that person intervening might have been fairly high. For it turns out that the
fewer witnesses present in a situation such as the two in question, the better the victim’s chances of getting help.
How did psychologists come to such a curious conclusion? After all, logic and
common sense clearly suggest that the presence of more bystanders would produce a
greater likelihood that someone would help a person in need. This seeming contradiction—and the way psychologists resolved it—illustrates a central task for the field of
psychology: the challenge of asking and answering questions of interest.
Posing Questions: The Scientific Method
The challenge of appropriately framing those questions of interest to psychologists and
properly answering them has been met through reliance on the scientific method. The
scientific method is the approach used by psychologists to systematically acquire
knowledge and understanding about behaviour and other phenomena of interest
(Hazen & Trefil, 1991; Leong & Austin, 1996). It consists of three main steps: (1)
identifying questions of interest, (2) formulating an explanation, and (3) carrying out
research designed to lend support to or refute the explanation.
Theories: Specifying Broad Explanations
In using the scientific method, psychologists start with the kinds of observations about
behaviour with which we are all familiar. If you have ever asked yourself why a particular teacher is so easily annoyed, why a friend is always late for appointments, or
how your dog understands your commands, you have been formulating questions
about behaviour. Psychologists, too, ask questions about the nature and causes of behaviour, although their questions are typically more precise.
Once a question has been formulated, the next step in the scientific method involves developing theories to explain the phenomenon that has been observed. Theories are broad explanations and predictions concerning phenomena of interest. They
provide a framework for understanding the relationships among a set of otherwise unorganized facts or principles.
Growing out of the diverse models of psychology described earlier,
theories vary both in their breadth and in the level of detail they employ. For example,
one theory might seek to explain and predict as broad a phenomenon as emotional experience in general. A narrower theory might purport to predict how people display
the emotion of fear nonverbally after receiving a threat. An even more specific theory
might attempt to explain how the muscles of the face work together to produce expressions of fear.
All of us have developed our own informal theories of human behaviour, such as
“People are basically good” or “People’s behaviour is usually motivated by self-interest” (Sternberg, 1985a; Sternberg, 1990; Sternberg & Beall, 1991). However, psychologists’ theories are more formal and focused. They are established on the basis of a
careful study of the psychological literature to identify relevant research conducted and
theories formulated previously, as well as psychologists’ general knowledge of the field
(McGuire, 1997).
scientific method: The approach
used by psychologists to systematically
acquire knowledge and understanding
about behaviour and other phenomena
of interest
theories: Broad explanations and
predictions concerning phenomena of
interest
24
Chapter 1
In an ambiguous situation, the
presence of others behaving as if
there is no emergency will indicate
to the observer that help is not
required.
Psychologists Bibb Latané and John Darley, responding specifically to the Kitty
Genovese case, developed a theory based on a phenomenon they called diffusion of responsibility (Latané & Darley, 1970). According to their theory, the greater the number of bystanders or witnesses to an event that calls for helping behaviour, the more
the responsibility for helping is perceived to be shared by all the bystanders. Because
of this sense of shared responsibility, then, the more people present in an emergency
situation, the less personally responsible each person feels—and the less likely it is
that any single person will come forward to help.
Hypotheses: Crafting Testable Predictions
hypothesis: A prediction, stemming
from a theory, stated in a way that allows
it to be tested
While such a theory makes sense, it represented only the beginning phase of Latané
and Darley’s investigative process. Their next step was to devise a way of testing their
theory. To do this, they needed to derive a hypothesis. A hypothesis is a prediction
stated in a way that allows it to be tested. Hypotheses stem from theories; they help to
test the underlying validity of theories.
Just as we have our own broad theories about the world, so do we develop hypotheses about events and behaviour (ranging from trivialities, such as why a particular professor is such an eccentric, to more meaningful matters, such as what is the best
way for people to study). Although we rarely test them systematically, we do try to determine whether or not they are right. Perhaps we try cramming for one exam but
studying over a longer period of time for another. By assessing the results, we have
created a way to compare the two strategies.
Latané and Darley’s hypothesis was a straightforward derivation from their
more general theory of diffusion of responsibility: The more people who witness an
emergency situation, the less likely it is that help will be given to a victim. They could,
of course, have chosen another hypothesis (for instance, that people with greater skills
related to emergency situations will not be affected by the presence of others), but
their initial formulation seemed to offer the most direct test of the theory.
Psychologists rely on formal theories and hypotheses for many reasons. For one
thing, theories and hypotheses allow psychologists to make sense of unorganized,
separate observations and bits of information by permitting them to place the pieces
within a structured and coherent framework. In addition, theories and hypotheses
offer psychologists the opportunity to move beyond already known facts and principles and to make deductions about as yet unexplained phenomena. In this way, theories and hypotheses provide a reasoned guide to the direction that future investigation
ought to take.
Introduction to Psychology
25
In sum, then, theories and hypotheses help psychologists pose appropriate questions. But how are such questions answered? As we shall see, the answers come from
research.
Finding Answers: Psychological Research
Research, systematic inquiry aimed at the discovery of new knowledge, is a central ingredient of the scientific method in psychology. It provides the key to understanding
the degree to which theories and hypotheses are accurate.
Just as we can develop several theories and hypotheses to explain particular phenomena, so we can use a considerable number of alternative means to carry out research.
First, though, the hypothesis must be restated in a way that will allow it to be tested, a
procedure known as operationalization. Operationalization is the process of translating
a hypothesis into specific, testable procedures that can be measured and observed.
There is no single way to go about operationalizing a hypothesis; it depends on
logic, the equipment and facilities available, the psychological model being employed,
and ultimately the ingenuity of the researcher (Creswell, 1994). For example, one researcher might develop a hypothesis in which she operationalizes “fear” as an increase
in heart rate. In contrast, another psychologist might operationalize “fear” as a written
response to the question, “How much fear are you experiencing at this moment?”
We will consider several of the major tools in the psychologist’s research kit. As
we discuss these research methods, keep in mind that their relevance extends beyond
testing and evaluating theories and hypotheses in psychology. Even people who do not
have degrees in psychology, for instance, often carry out rudimentary forms of research on their own. For example, a supervisor may need to evaluate an employee’s
performance. A physician might systematically test the effects of different dosages of
a drug on a patient. A salesperson may compare different persuasive strategies. Each
of these situations calls for the use of the research practices we are about to discuss
(Breakwell, Hammond, & Fife-Schaw, 1995; Shaughnessy & Zechmeister, 1997;
Graziano & Raulin, 1997).
Furthermore, a knowledge of the research methods used by psychologists permits us to better evaluate the research that others conduct. The media constantly bombard us with information about research studies and findings. Knowledge of research
methods allows us to sort out what is credible from what should be ignored. Finally,
there is evidence that studying some kinds of research methods in depth allows people
to learn to reason more critically and effectively (Lehman, Lempert, & Nisbett, 1988;
Leshowitz et al., 1993). Understanding the methods by which psychologists conduct
research may enhance our ability to analyze and evaluate the situations we encounter
in our everyday lives.
operationalization: The process of
translating a hypothesis into specific,
testable procedures that can be measured
and observed
Archival Research
Suppose that, like psychologists Latané and Darley, you were interested in finding out
more about emergency situations in which bystanders did not provide help. One of the
first places to which you might turn would be historical accounts. By using newspaper
records, for example, you might find support for the notion that a decrease in helping
behavior has accompanied an increase in the number of bystanders.
Using newspaper articles is an example of archival research. In archival research, existing records, such as census data, birth certificates, or newspaper clippings, are examined to confirm a hypothesis. Archival research is a relatively
inexpensive means of testing a hypothesis, since someone else has already collected
the basic data. Of course, the use of existing data has several drawbacks. For one
thing, the data may not be in a form that allows the researcher to test a hypothesis
fully. The information may be incomplete, or it may have been collected haphazardly
(Stewart & Kamins, 1993).
In most cases, though, archival research is hampered by the simple fact that
records with the necessary information do not exist. In these instances, researchers
often turn to another research method: naturalistic observation.
archival research: Research in
which existing records, such as census
data, birth certificates, or newspaper
clippings, are examined to confirm a
hypothesis
26
Chapter 1
Close to election time, surveys may
be done, following a debate by
party leaders to monitor people’s
attitudes in an attempt to predict
who may win.
Naturalistic Observation
naturalistic observation: Research
in which an investigator simply observes
some naturally occurring behaviour and
does not intervene in the situation
In naturalistic observation, the investigator simply observes some naturally occurring behaviour and does not intervene in the situation. For example, a researcher investigating helping behaviour might observe the kind of help given to victims in a
high-crime area of a city. The important point to remember about naturalistic observation is that the researcher is passive and simply records what occurs (Erlandson et al.,
1993; Adler & Adler, 1994).
While the advantage of naturalistic observation is obvious—we get a sample of
what people do in their “natural habitat”—there is also an important drawback: the inability to control any of the factors of interest. For example, we might find so few naturally occurring instances of helping behaviour that we would be unable to draw any
conclusions. Because naturalistic observation prevents researchers from making
changes in a situation, they must wait until appropriate conditions occur. Furthermore,
if people know that they are being watched, they may alter their reactions, resulting in
behaviour that is not truly representative of the group in question.
Survey Research
survey research: Research in which
people chosen to represent some larger
population are asked a series of
questions about their behaviour,
thoughts, or attitudes
There is no more straightforward way of finding out what people think, feel, and do
than asking them directly. For this reason, surveys are an important research method.
In survey research, people chosen to represent some larger population are asked a series of questions about their behaviour, thoughts, or attitudes. Survey methods have
become so sophisticated that even with a very small sample researchers are able to
infer with great accuracy how a larger group would respond. For instance, sampling
just a few thousand voters is sufficient to predict within one or two percentage points
who will win a Federal election—if the sample is chosen with care (Fowler, 1995;
Schuman & Presser, 1996; Weisberg, Krosnick, & Bowen, 1996).
Researchers investigating helping behaviour might conduct a survey asking people to indicate their reasons for not wanting to come forward to help another individual. Similarly, researchers interested in learning about sexual practices have carried
out surveys to learn which practices are common and which are not, and to chart
changing notions of sexual morality over the past several decades.
While asking people directly about their behaviour seems in some ways the most
straightforward approach to understanding what people do, survey research has several
potential drawbacks. For one thing, people may give inaccurate information because of
memory lapses or because they don’t want to let the researcher know what they really
believe about a particular issue. Moreover, people sometimes offer responses they think
the researcher wants to hear—or, in just the opposite instance, responses they assume
the researcher doesn’t want to hear. In some cases, unscrupulous pollsters ask biased
questions deliberately designed to yield a particular result, for either commercial or political purposes.
Introduction to Psychology
27
Drawing by Handelsman; © 1993 The
New Yorker Magazine, Inc.
The Case Study
What is it that makes violent video games so appealing? Is there something in
the personality or background of players that leads to the choice to play? Does playing
them increase aggressive behaviour? In order to answer these questions, psychologists
might conduct a case study. In contrast to a survey, in which many people are studied,
a case study is an in-depth, intensive investigation of an individual or small group of
people. Case studies often include psychological testing, a procedure in which a carefully designed set of questions is used to gain some insight into the personality of the
individual or group being studied (Stake, 1995; Kvale, 1996).
When case studies are used as a research technique, the goal is often not only to
learn about the few individuals being examined, but to use the insights gained from the
study to improve our understanding of people in general. However, generalizations must
be made cautiously. For instance, the degree to which a small group of participants are
representative of the general population is certainly open to question.
case study: An in-depth, intensive
investigation of an individual or small
group of people
Correlational Research
In using the research methods that we have described, researchers often wish to determine the relationship between two behaviours or between responses to two questions
on a questionnaire. For example, we might want to find out if people who report that
they attend religious services regularly also report that they are more helpful to
strangers in emergency situations. If we did find such a relationship, we could say that
there was an association—or correlation—between attendance at religious services
and being helpful in emergencies.
In correlational research, the relationship between two sets of factors is examined to determine whether they are associated, or “correlated.” The strength and direction of the relationship between the two factors is represented by a mathematical
score, known as a correlation, that can range from +1.0 to –1.0.
A positive correlation indicates that as the value of one factor increases, we can
predict that the value of the other factor will also increase. For example, if we predict
that the more students study for a test, the higher their subsequent grades on the test,
and that the less they study, the lower their test scores, we are expecting to find a positive correlation. (Higher values of the factor “amount of study time” would be associated with higher values of the factor “test score,” and lower values of “amount of
study time” would be associated with lower values of “test score.”) The correlation,
then, would be indicated by a positive number, and the stronger the association between studying and test scores, the closer the number would be to +1.0.
correlational research: The
relationship between two sets of factors
is examined to determine whether they
are associated, or “correlated”
28
Chapter 1
Many studies show that there is an
association between the observation
of violence in the media and
aggression on the part of viewers.
However, we cannot say that the
observation of violence causes the
aggression.
On the other hand, a correlation with a negative value tells us that as the value of
one factor increases, the value of the other decreases. For instance, we might predict
that as the number of hours spent studying increases, the number of hours spent in
recreational activities will decline. Here, we are expecting a negative correlation, ranging between 0 and –1. More studying is associated with less recreation, and less studying is associated with more recreation. The stronger the association between study and
play, the closer to –1.0 would be the correlation. For instance, a correlation of –.15
would indicate that there is little association between the two factors; a correlation of
–.45 would indicate a moderate negative relationship; and a correlation of –.80 would
indicate a strong negative association.
Of course, it’s quite possible that no relationship exists between two factors. For
instance, we would probably not expect to find a relationship between number of
study hours and height. Lack of a relationship would be indicated by a correlation
close to 0; knowing how much someone studies does not tell us anything about how
tall he or she is.
When we find that two variables are strongly correlated with one another, it is
tempting to presume that one factor causes the other. For example, if we find that more
study time is associated with higher grades, we might guess that more studying causes
higher grades. While not a bad guess, it remains just a guess—because finding that two
factors are correlated does not mean that there is a causal relationship. Although the
strong correlation suggests that knowing how much a person studies can help us predict
how he or she will do on a test, it does not mean that the studying caused the test performance. It might be, for instance, that people who are interested in the subject matter
tend to study more than those who are less interested, and that it is the amount of interest that actually causes test performance, not the number of hours spent studying. The
mere fact that two factors occur together does not mean that one causes the other.
Another example illustrates the critical point that correlations tell us nothing about
cause and effect but only provide a measure of the strength of a relationship between two
factors. We might find that children who watch a lot of television programs featuring high
levels of aggression are apt to demonstrate a relatively high degree of aggressive behaviour,
while those who watch few television shows that portray aggression are apt to exhibit a
relatively low degree of such behaviour (see Figure 1-2). But we cannot say that the aggression is caused by the TV viewing, because several other explanations are possible.
For instance, it may be that children who have an unusually high level of energy
seek out programs with aggressive content and are more aggressive. The children’s
energy level, then, may be the true cause of the children’s higher incidence of aggression. Finally, it is also possible that people who are already highly aggressive choose
to watch shows with high aggressive content because they are aggressive. Clearly,
then, any number of causal sequences are possible—none of which can be ruled out by
correlational research.
Introduction to Psychology
Possible cause
Choosing to watch
television shows with
aggressive content
Possible result
Viewer aggression
Choosing to watch
television shows with
aggressive content
29
FIGURE 1-1 If we find that
frequent viewing of television
programs having aggressive content
is associated with high levels of
aggressive behaviour, we might
cite several plausible causes,
as suggested in this figure.
Correlational findings, then, do not
permit us to determine causality.
Unusually high
energy level
High viewer aggression
High viewer aggression
Choosing to watch
television shows with
aggressive content
The inability of correlational research to demonstrate cause-and-effect relationships is a crucial drawback to its use. There is, however, an alternative technique that
does establish causality: the experiment.
Experimental Research
The only way that psychologists can establish cause-and-effect relationships through
research is by carrying out an experiment. In a formal experiment, the relationship between two (or more) factors is investigated by deliberately producing a change in one
factor in a situation and observing the effects of that change on other aspects of the situation. In an experiment, then, the conditions required to study a question of interest
are created by an experimenter, who deliberately makes a change in those conditions
in order to observe the effects of that change.
The change that an experimenter deliberately produces in a situation is called the
experimental manipulation. Experimental manipulations are used to detect relationships between variables, which are behaviours, events, or other characteristics that
can change, or vary, in some way.
Several steps are involved in carrying out an experiment, but the process typically begins with the development of one or more hypotheses for the experiment to
test (Broota, 1990). Recall, for example, the hypothesis derived by Latané and Darley
to test their theory of helping behaviour: The more people who witness an emergency
situation, the less likely it is that any of them will help a victim. We can trace the way
these researchers designed an experiment to test this hypothesis.
Their first step was to operationalize the hypothesis by conceptualizing it in a
way that could be tested. Doing so required that Latané and Darley take into account
the fundamental principle of experimental research mentioned earlier. Experimenters
must manipulate at least one variable in order to observe the effects of the manipulation on another variable. But the manipulation cannot be viewed by itself, in isolation;
if a cause-and-effect relationship is to be established, the effects of the manipulation
must be compared with the effects of no manipulation or a different manipulation.
Experimental research requires, then, that the responses of at least two groups be
compared with each other. One group will receive some special treatment—the manipulation implemented by the experimenter—while another group receives either no
treatment or a different treatment. Any group receiving a treatment is called an experimental group, while a group that receives no treatment is called the control group.
(In some experiments there are multiple experimental and control groups, each of
which is compared with another.)
experiment: The investigation of the
relationship between two (or more)
factors by deliberately producing a
change in one factor in a situation and
observing the effects of that change on
other aspects of the situation
experimental manipulation: The
change that an experimenter deliberately
produces in a situation
variables: Behaviours, events, or other
characteristics that can change, or vary,
in some way
treatment: The manipulation
implemented by the experimenter
experimental group: Any group
receiving a treatment
control group: A group that receives
no treatment
30
Chapter 1
In this experiment, preschoolers’
reactions to the puppet are
monitored.
independent variable: The variable
that is manipulated by an experimenter
dependent variable: The variable
that is measured and is expected to
change as a result of changes caused by
the experimenter’s manipulation
By employing both experimental and control groups in an experiment, researchers are able to rule out the possibility that something other than the experimental
manipulation produced the results observed in the experiment. With no control group,
we couldn’t be sure that some other factor, such as the temperature at the time we
were running the experiment, the colour of the experimenter’s hair, or even the mere
passage of time, wasn’t causing the changes observed.
For example, consider a medical researcher who thinks she has invented a medicine that cures the common cold. To test her claim, she gives the medicine one day to
a group of 20 people who have colds, and finds that 10 days later all of them are
cured. Eureka? Not so fast. An observer viewing this flawed study might reasonably
argue that the people would have gotten better even without the medicine. What the
researcher obviously needed was a control group consisting of people with colds who
don’t get the medicine, and whose health is also checked 10 days later. Only if there is
a difference between the experimental and control groups can the effectiveness of the
medicine be assessed. Through the use of control groups, then, researchers can isolate
specific causes for their findings—and draw cause-and-effect inferences.
Returning to Latané and Darley’s experiment, we note that the researchers
needed a means of operationalizing their hypothesis in order to proceed. They decided they would create a bogus emergency situation that would appear to require
the aid of a bystander. As their experimental manipulation, they decided to vary the
number of bystanders present. They could have had just one experimental group
with, say, two people present, and a control group for comparison purposes with just
one person present. Instead, they settled on a more complex procedure involving
three groups—consisting of two, three, and six people—that could be compared
with one another.
Latané and Darley had now identified what is called the experimenter’s independent variable. The independent variable is the variable that is manipulated by an experimenter. In this experiment, the experimental manipulation was the number of
people present.
The next step was to decide how they were going to determine the effect that
varying the number of bystanders had on participants’ behaviour. Crucial to every experiment is the dependent variable, the variable that is measured and is expected to
change as a result of changes caused by the experimenter’s manipulation.
Latané and Darley had several possible choices for their dependent measure.
One might have been a simple Yes/No measure of helping behaviour on the part of the
participants or subjects, the people taking part in the experiment. But the two investigators decided they also wanted a measure that provided a more precise analysis of
Introduction to Psychology
helping behaviour. Consequently, they determined that they would also measure the
amount of time it took for a participant to provide help.
Latané and Darley now had all the components of an experiment. The independent variable, manipulated by them, was the number of bystanders present in an emergency situation. The dependent variable was whether the bystanders in each of the
groups provided help and the amount of time it took them to do so. Like all experiments, then, this one had both an independent and a dependent variable. (To remember
the difference, you might recall that a hypothesis predicts how a dependent variable
depends on the manipulation of the independent variable.) All true experiments in psychology fit this straightforward model.
The Final Step: Random Assignment of Participants. To make the experiment
a valid test of the hypothesis, the researchers needed to add a final step to the design:
properly assigning participants to receive a particular treatment.
The significance of this step becomes clear when we examine various alternative procedures. For example, the experimenters might have assigned just males
to the group with two bystanders, just females to the group with three bystanders,
and both males and females to the group with six bystanders. Had they done so,
however, any differences they found in helping behaviour could not be attributed
with any certainty solely to group size, since the differences might just as well be
due to the composition of the group. A more reasonable procedure would be to ensure that each group had the same composition in terms of gender; then the researchers would be able to make comparisons across groups with considerably
more accuracy.
Participants in each of the experimental groups ought to be comparable, and it is
easy enough to create groups that are similar in terms of gender. The problem becomes
a bit more tricky, though, when we consider other participant characteristics. How can
we ensure that participants in each experimental group will be equally intelligent, extroverted, cooperative, and so forth, when the list of characteristics—any one of which
may be important—is potentially endless?
The solution is a simple but elegant procedure called random assignment to
condition. In random assignment to condition, participants are assigned to different experimental groups or “conditions” on the basis of chance and chance alone.
The experimenter might, for instance, put the names of all potential participants
into a hat and draw names to make assignments to specific groups. The advantage
of this technique is that participant characteristics have an equal chance of being
distributed across the various groups. By using random assignment, the experimenter can be confident that each of the groups will have approximately the same
proportion of intelligent people, cooperative people, extroverted people, males and
females, and so on.
The following set of key elements is important to keep in mind as you consider
whether a research study is truly an experiment:
• An independent variable, the factor that is manipulated by the experimenter
• A dependent variable, the variable that is measured by the experimenter and
expected to change
• A procedure that randomly assigns participants to different experimental groups
or “conditions” of the independent variable
• A hypothesis that ties the independent and dependent variable together.
Only if each of these elements is present can a research study be considered a
true experiment in which cause-and-effect relationships can be determined. (For a
summary of the different types of research that we’ve discussed, see Table 1-1.)
Were Latané and Darley Right? By now, you must be wondering whether Latané and Darley were right when they hypothesized that increasing the number of bystanders in an emergency situation would lower the degree of helping behaviour.
31
random assignment to
condition: A procedure in which
participants are assigned to different
experimental groups or “conditions” on
the basis of chance and chance alone
32
Chapter 1
Table 1-1
Research Strategies
Correlational Research
Experimental Research
General process:
Researcher manipulates a situation
in order to observe the outcome of
the manipulation
Researcher observes a previously
existing situation but does
not intervene
Intended result:
Learn how changes in one factor
cause changes in another
Identify associations between factors
Types:
Archival research (examines records
to confirm a hypothesis)
Naturalistic observation
(observation of naturally occurring
behaviour, without intervention)
Survey research (asking questions of
people chosen to represent a larger
population)
Case study (intensive investigation
of an individual or small group)
Experiment (investigator produces a
change in one factor to observe the
effects of that change on other
factors)
According to the results of the experiment they carried out, their hypothesis was
right on target. To test the hypothesis, they used a laboratory setting in which participants
were told that the purpose of the experiment was to hold a discussion about personal
problems associated with college. The discussion was to be held over an intercom, supposedly to avoid the potential embarrassment of face-to-face contact. Chatting about personal problems was not, of course, the true purpose of the experiment, but participants
were told that it was as a way of keeping their expectations about the experiment from
biasing their behaviour. (Consider how they would have been affected if they had been
told that their helping behaviour in emergencies was being tested. The experimenters
could never have gotten an accurate assessment of what the participants would actually
do in an emergency. By definition, emergencies are rarely announced in advance.)
The sizes of the discussion groups were two, three, and six people, which constituted the manipulation of the independent variable of group size. Participants were
randomly assigned to one of these groups upon their arrival at the laboratory.
As the participants in each group were holding their discussion, they suddenly
heard one of the other participants (in reality a trained confederate, or employee, of
the experimenters) lapse into what sounded like an epileptic seizure:
I-er-um-I think I-I need-er-if-if- could-er-er-somebody er-er-er-er-er-er-er
give me a little-er give me a little help here because-er-I-er-I’m-er-er-h-hhaving a-a-a real problem-er-right now and I-er-if somebody could help me
out it would-it-would-er-er s-s-sure be-sure be good . . . because-er-there-erer-a cause I-er-I-uh-I’ve got a-a one of the-er-sei—er-er-things coming on
and-and-and I could really-er-use some help so if somebody would-er-give
me a little h-help-uh-er-er-er-er-er c-could somebody-er-er-help-er-us-us-us
[choking sounds]. . . . I’m gonna die-er-er-I’m . . . gonna die-er-help-er-erseizure-er- [choking sounds, then silence] (Latané and Darley, 1970, p. 379).
The participants’ behaviour was now what counted. The dependent variable was
the time that elapsed from the start of the “seizure” to the time a participant began trying to help the “victim.” If six minutes went by without a participant’s offering help,
the experiment was ended.
As predicted by the hypothesis, the size of the group had a significant effect on
whether a participant provided help (Latané & Darley, 1970). In the two-person group
(in which participants thought they were alone with the victim), the average elapsed
Introduction to Psychology
33
athways Through Psychology
Wendy Josephson
Associate Professor of Psychology
University of Winnipeg
Education: B.A., M.A., Ph.D.
University of Manitoba
Home: Winnipeg, Manitoba
As an undergraduate student in psychology, I took my first course in social psychology from Bob Altemeyer, a wonderful classroom teacher and an inspiring researcher in the area of authoritarianism.
I was captivated by social psychology
from the very first lecture. Of all the disciplines and sub-disciplines I had encountered, I thought social psychology
asked the best questions, and had very interesting answers. I still think that.
As a professor at a small undergraduate university, my work includes teach-
Wendy Josephson
ing courses in social and organizational
psychology, research in the areas of violence and aggression, and service to the
university and the community. Service to
the university includes working on department or university committees and
service to the community involves making my research useful to people outside
the university world. For example, I have
given talks to various educational, community, and industry groups including
the Canadian Cable Television Association about the effects of television violence on children. I served as one of the
academic advisers to Mediascope and the
Children’s Action Network. The project
was to create a guide to help producers of
children’s educational television comply
with U.S. federal requirements.
There are three accomplishments that
I consider most important in my research: The first is a field experiment
that I conducted on the effects of television violence on children’s play behaviour, which was published in the Journal
of Personality and Social Psychology in
1987. It demonstrated in a real-life setting that boys’ aggressiveness toward
each other could be significantly affected
by having watched a violent television
program, especially if there were other
cues in their play setting that were associated with the TV violence.
The second accomplishment is the report that I wrote for the Department of
Canadian Heritage in 1995. It reviewed
the effects of television violence on children of different ages, and made suggestions for ways in which parents and the
television industry could enhance the
positive effects of television and reduce
its negative effects.
The third is a study that I’m doing
now with my colleague Jocelyn Proulx,
at the Prairie-based research network
called RESOLVE (Research and Education for Solutions to Violence and Abuse).
The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) has
funded a project in which we provided
activities from the Healthy Relationships
dating violence prevention curriculum to
grade seven, eight and nine students in
six Winnipeg schools over a three-year
period. We are currently evaluating the
effects that the program had on students’
knowledge, attitudes and behaviour. This
project is important because understanding how to prevent violence early in
close relationships could have tremendous impact on individual and family
happiness. It was also an opportunity to
demonstrate that a lot could be accomplished in a collaboration among academic researchers, school divisions, government (Manitoba Culture, Heritage,
and Citizenship) and community organizations (the Halifax group, Men for
Change, which developed the Healthy
Relationships program).
As a psychologist, I love to do research
that answers interesting questions about
human behaviour. But the work that is really important to me has to do more than
just answer questions. I want the knowledge that is gained from my research to
make a difference in people’s lives.
Source: Wendy Josephson, Ph.D. University of
Winnipeg. <[email protected]>
time was 52 seconds; in the three-person group (the participant, the victim, and one
other person), the average elapsed time was 93 seconds; and in the six-person group
(the participant, the victim, and four others), the average time was 166 seconds. Considering a simple Yes/No measure of whether help was given confirms the elapsedtime pattern. Eighty-five percent of the participants in the two-person-group condition
helped; 62 percent in the three-person-group condition; and only 31 percent helped in
the six-person-group condition.
Because these results are so straightforward, it seems clear that the original hypothesis was confirmed. However, Latané and Darley could not be sure that the results
were truly meaningful until they examined their data using formal statistical procedures. As discussed in this book’s Appendix, statistical procedures—which entail several kinds of mathematical calculations—allow a researcher to determine precisely the
likelihood that results are meaningful and not merely the outcome of chance.
34
Chapter 1
replication: The repetition of findings
using other procedures in other settings,
with other groups of participants, before
full confidence can be placed in the
validity of any single experiment
The Latané and Darley study contains all the elements of an experiment: an independent variable, a dependent variable, random assignment to conditions, and multiple experimental groups. Because it does, we can say with some confidence that group
size caused changes in the degree of helping behaviour.
Of course, one experiment alone does not resolve forever the question of bystander intervention in emergencies. Psychologists require that findings be replicated,
or repeated, using other procedures in other settings, with other groups of participants,
before full confidence can be placed in the validity of any single experiment. [In this
case, the experiment has stood the test of time. In a review of some fifty studies carried out in the ten years following the original experiment, the finding that an increase
in the number of bystanders leads to decreased helping has been replicated in numerous other studies (Latané & Nida, 1981).
In addition to replicating experimental results, psychologists need to test the limitations of their theories and hypotheses in order to determine under which specific circumstances they do and do not apply. It seems unlikely, for instance, that increasing
the number of bystanders always results in less helping. Therefore it is critical to understand the conditions in which exceptions to this general rule occur. For example,
we might speculate that under conditions of shared outcomes, in which onlookers experience a sense that a victim’s difficulties may later affect them in some way, help
would be more readily forthcoming (Aronson, 1988). Testing this hypothesis (for
which, in fact, there is some support) requires additional experimentation.
Like any science, then, psychology increases our understanding in small, incremental steps, with each step building upon previous work. The work is carried out on
many fronts and involves many people—individuals such as Wendy Josephson, whose
work is discussed in the Pathways Through Psychology box.
Recap, Review, and Rethink
Recap
•
The scientific method is a systematic method of inquiry
consisting of identifying questions of interest, formulating
an explanation, and carrying out research.
•
Theories—broad explanations or predictions about
phenomena—and hypotheses—research predictions that can
be tested—are two important tools of scientific research.
•
Key research methods include archival research, naturalistic
observation, survey research, and the case study.
•
In correlational research, the relationship between two variables is examined to determine whether they are associated,
although cause-and-effect relationships cannot be established.
•
In a formal experiment—the only means of determining
cause-and-effect associations—the relationship between
factors is investigated by deliberately producing a change in
one factor and observing changes in the other.
Review
a. Directly asking a sample of people questions about their
behaviour
b. Examining existing records to confirm a hypothesis
c. Looking at behaviour in its true setting without
intervening in the results
d. In-depth investigation of a person or small group
3. Match each of the following research methods with a
problem basic to it:
1. Archival research
2. Naturalistic observation
3. Survey research
4. Case study
a. May not be able to generalize to the population at large.
b. People’s behaviour may change if they know they are
being watched.
c. The data may not exist or may be unusable.
d. People may lie in order to present a good image.
4. A friend tells you that “Anxiety about speaking in public
and performance are negatively correlated. Therefore, high
anxiety must cause low performance.” Is this statement true
or false, and why?
1. An experimenter is interested in studying the relationship
between hunger and aggression. He defines aggression as
the number of times a participant will hit a punching bag.
What is the process of defining this variable called?
5. A psychologist wants to study the effect of attractiveness on
willingness to help a person with a math problem.
Attractiveness would be the __________ variable, while
amount of helping would be the __________ variable.
2. Match the following forms of research to their definition:
1. Archival research
2. Naturalistic observation
3. Survey research
4. Case study
6. The group in an experiment that receives no treatment is
called the _________ group.
Answers to Review Questions are on page 36.
Introduction to Psychology
Rethink
1. Can you describe how a researcher might use naturalistic
observation, case study methods, and survey research to
investigate gender differences in aggressive behaviour at
the workplace? First state a hypothesis, then describe your
research approaches. What positive and negative features
does each method have?
35
this claim in terms of the research procedures and designs
discussed in this chapter? What sort of research would
establish a cause-and-effect relationship between tobacco
use and cancer? Is such a research study possible?
3. In running an experiment, you decide to take the first
twenty available participants and assign them to the
experimental group and assign the next twenty to the
control group. Why might this not be a good idea?
2. Tobacco companies frequently assert that no experiment has
ever proved that tobacco use causes cancer. Can you explain
RESEARCH CHALLENGES: EXPLORING
THE PROCESS
It is probably apparent by now that there are few simple formulas that psychologists
can follow as they carry out research. They must make choices about the type of study
to conduct, the measures to take, and the most effective way to analyze the results.
Even after they make these essential decisions, they must still consider several critical
issues. We turn first to the most fundamental of these issues: ethics.
䉴 What are the major issues that
underlie the process of
conducting research?
The Ethics of Research
Put yourself in the place of one of the participants in the Latané and Darley experiment. How would you feel when you learned that the person who you thought was
having a seizure was, in reality, a paid accomplice of the experimenter?
Although you might at first experience relief that there had been no real emergency, you might also feel some resentment that you had been deceived by the experimenter. And you might also experience concern that you had been placed in an
unusual situation—one that may have dealt a blow to your self-esteem, depending on
how you had behaved.
Most psychologists argue that the use of deception is sometimes necessary to
prevent participants from being influenced by what they think is the study’s true purpose. (If you knew that Latané and Darley were actually studying your helping behaviour, wouldn’t you automatically have been tempted to intervene in the emergency?)
To avoid such outcomes, researchers must occasionally use deception.
Nonetheless, because research has the potential to violate the rights of participants, psychologists are expected to adhere to a strict set of ethical guidelines aimed at
protecting participants (Canadian Psychological Association, 1991). These guidelines
are based on the following four principles:
Ethics in Research
• Respect for the dignity of persons: value the intrinsic worth of the individual.
• Responsible caring: careful consideration that outcomes will not cause harm.
• Integrity in relationships: doing what is morally good for the profession.
• Responsibility to society: promoting the greatest good for society.
In both the United States (APA, 1992) and Canada (CPA, 1991) ethical guidelines do allow the use of deception. All experiments involving deception, in fact, all
experiments using human subjects must be reviewed by the responsible agencies. In
Canada, this is the Ethics Review Board of the institution to which the researcher belongs. Guidelines for these boards come from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, which serves as the national funding agency. (Rosnow et.
al., 1993; Rosenthal, 1994; Kimmel, 1996; Dunbar, 1998; Stark, 1998).
One of the key ethical principles followed by psychologists is that of informed consent. Before participating in an experiment, participants must sign a
document affirming that they have been told the basic outlines of the study and are
informed consent: A document
signed by participants affirming that
they have been told the basic outlines of
the study and are aware of what their
participation will involve
36
Chapter 1
College students are readily
available and widely used research
subjects, but they may not be
sufficiently representative of the
general population.
aware of what their participation will involve, what risks the experiment may hold,
and the fact that their participation is purely voluntary and may be terminated at any
time (Sieber, 1993; Mann, 1994; Stanley & Guido, 1996; Stark, 1998; O’Neill, 1998).
Exploring Diversity
Choosing Participants Who Represent the Scope of Human Behaviour
When Latané and Darley, both college professors, decided who should be used as participants in their experiment, they turned to the people who were most readily accessible to them: college students. In fact, college students are used so frequently in
experiments that psychology has been called—somewhat contemptuously—the “science of the behaviour of the college sophomore” (Rubenstein, 1982).
The use of college students as participants has both advantages and drawbacks. The
big benefit is their availability. Because most research occurs in university settings,
college students are readily available. Typically, they participate for either extra
course credit or a relatively small monetary payment, making the cost to the researcher
minimal.
The problem with relying on college students for participants is that they may not
adequately represent the general population. College students tend to be younger and
better educated than a significant percentage of the rest of the population of the United
States. Moreover, their attitudes are likely to be less well formed, and they are apt to
be more susceptible than older adults to social pressures from authority figures and
peers (Sears, 1986).
These concerns apply to Canada as well, where many psychology departments in
Canadian universities use introductory psychology students as subjects.
When a science that purports to explain human behaviour in general disregards a significant proportion of the population in drawing conclusions, something is amiss. Conse-
Answers to Review Questions:
1. Operationalization. 2. 1. b; 2. c; 3. a; 4. d 3. 1. c; 2. b; 3. d; 4. a 4. False; correlation does not imply causation. Just because two
variables are related does not mean that one causes the other. It could be the case that poor performance causes people to become more
anxious, or that a third factor causes both of these effects. 5. independent; dependent 6. control
Introduction to Psychology
37
quently, psychological researchers have become increasingly sensitive to the importance
of using participants who are fully representative of the general population (Gannon
et al., 1992; Youngstrom, 1994).
Should Animals Be Used in Research?
It is not just psychologists working with humans who operate under strict ethical constraints; researchers who use animals as subjects in experiments have their own set of
exacting guidelines to ensure that animals do not suffer (APA, 1993; CPA, 1996).
Specifically, researchers must make every effort to minimize discomfort, illness, and
pain, and procedures subjecting animals to distress may be used only when an alternative procedure is unavailable and when the research is justified by its prospective
value. In Canada animal welfare is governed under the Criminal Code. There are two
provincial acts that are specific to lab animals. However, the primary regulatory body
for lab animals is the Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC), which was founded
in 1968. Most of the universities and private institutions, where animals are used, hold
a Certificate of Good Animal Practice from the CCAC. Those that do not would find it
very difficult to obtain funding for research (CPA, 1996).
Why should animals be used for research in the first place? How can we dare to
infer human behaviour from the results of research employing rats, gerbils, and pigeons? The answer is that the 7 or 8 percent of psychological research that does employ animals has a different focus and is designed to answer different questions than
research that uses humans. For example, the shorter life span of animals (rats live an
average of two years) allows researchers to learn about the effects of aging in a much
more rapid time frame than if they studied aging using human participants. Moreover,
the very complexity of human beings may obscure information about fundamental
phenomena that can be more plainly identified in animals. Finally, some studies require large numbers of subjects who share similar backgrounds or who have been exposed to particular environments—conditions that could not practically be met with
human beings (Gill et al., 1989; Domjan & Purdy, 1995; Gallagher & Rapp, 1997;
Mukerjee, 1997).
Research using animals as subjects has provided psychologists with information
that has profoundly benefitted humans. For instance, animal research furnished the
keys to detecting eye disorders in children early enough to prevent permanent damage,
communicating more effectively with severely retarded children, and reducing chronic
pain in people, to name just a few results (APA, 1988; Domjan & Purdy, 1995; Botting & Morrison, 1997).
Despite the demonstrated value of research that uses animals as subjects, their
use in psychological research remains controversial (Orlans, 1993; Plous, 1991,
1996a, 1996b; Birke & Michael, 1995), with some people calling for stringent restrictions or even a complete ban on the practice (Bowd & Shapiro, 1993; Barnard &
Kaufman, 1997). However, most psychologists support animal studies that involve observation or confinement, although surveys find that a majority are not supportive of
studies that involve pain or death. Furthermore, most believe that existing ethical
guidelines are sufficiently stringent to provide protection for animals while still allowing valuable animal research to continue (Plous, 1996a).
Research involving animals is
controversial but, when conducted
within ethical guidelines, yields
significant benefits for humans.
Animals in Research
Threats to Experiments: Experimenter and
Participant Expectations
Even the best-laid experimental plans are susceptible to experimental bias—factors
that distort an experimenter’s understanding of how the independent variable affected
the dependent variable. One of the most common forms of experimental bias that experimenters need to exclude is experimenter expectations, whereby an experimenter
unintentionally transmits cues to participants about the way they are expected to behave in a given experimental condition (Harris, 1991; Blanck, 1993; Rosnow &
experimental bias: Factors that
distort an experimenter’s understanding
of how the independent variable affected
the dependent variable
38
placebo: A bogus treatment, such as a
pill, “drug,” or other substance without
any significant chemical properties or
active ingredient
Chapter 1
Rosenthal, 1994, 1997). The danger is that these expectations will bring about an “appropriate” behaviour—one that may not have otherwise occurred. For example, if Latané and Darley had unintentionally behaved toward participants in the two-bystander
condition as if they expected them to help, but unintentionally let on that they had low
expectations for helping in the six-person bystander condition, these variations in experimenter behaviour—no matter how unintended—might have affected the results.
A related problem is participant expectations about appropriate behaviour. If
you have ever been a participant in an experiment, you know that you quickly develop
ideas about what is expected of you, and it is typical for people to develop their own
hypotheses about what the experimenter hopes to learn from the study. If these expectations influence a participant’s behaviour, it becomes a cause for concern, since in
that case it is no longer the experimental manipulation producing an effect, but rather
the participant’s expectations.
To guard against participant expectations biasing the results of an experiment,
the experimenter may try to disguise the true purpose of the experiment. Participants
who do not know that helping behaviour is being studied, for example, are more apt to
act in a “natural” way than if they are told their helping behaviour is under scrutiny.
Latané and Darley decided to misinform their participants, then, telling them that the
purpose of the experiment was to hold a discussion among college students about their
personal problems. In doing so, they expected that their participants would not suspect
the true purpose of the experiment.
In some experiments, it is impossible to hide the actual purpose of the research.
In cases such as these, other techniques are available. For example, suppose you were
interested in testing the ability of a new drug to alleviate the symptoms of severe depression. If you simply gave the drug to half your participants and not to the other half,
participants given the drug might report feeling less depressed merely because they
knew they were getting a drug. Similarly, the participants who got nothing might report
feeling no better because they knew that they were in a no-treatment control group.
To solve this problem, psychologists typically use a procedure in which all participants receive a treatment, but those in the control group actually receive a placebo treatment. A placebo is a bogus treatment, such as a pill, “drug,” or other substance without
any significant chemical properties or active ingredient. Because members of both groups
are kept in the dark as to whether they are getting a real or a bogus treatment, any differences that are found can be attributed to the quality of the drug and not to the possible psychological effects of being administered a pill or other substance (Roberts et al., 1993).
But there is still one more safeguard that a careful researcher must apply in an
experiment such as this. To overcome the possibility that experimenter expectations
will affect the participant, the person who administers the drug shouldn’t know
whether it is actually the true drug or the placebo. By keeping both the participant and
the experimenter who interacts with the participant “blind” as to the nature of the drug
that is being administered, researchers can more accurately assess the effects of the
drug. This method is known as the double-blind procedure.
The Informed Consumer of Psychology
Thinking Critically about Research
Critical Thinking Skills
If you were about to purchase an automobile, it is unlikely that you would stop at the
nearest car dealership and drive off with the first car a salesperson recommended. Instead, you would probably mull over the purchase, read about automobiles, consider
the alternatives, talk to others about their experiences, and ultimately put in a fair
amount of thought before you made such a major purchase.
In contrast, many of us are considerably less conscientious when we expend our intellectual assets than when we disperse our financial resources. People jump to conclusions on the basis of incomplete and inaccurate information, and only rarely do they
take the time to critically evaluate the research and data to which they are exposed.
Introduction to Psychology
39
Because the field of psychology is based on an accumulated body of research, it is
crucial for psychologists to scrutinize thoroughly the methods, results, and claims of researchers. Yet it is not just psychologists who need to know how to evaluate research
critically; all of us are constantly exposed to the claims of others. Knowing how to approach research and data can be helpful in areas far beyond the realm of psychology.
Several basic questions can help us sort through what is valid and what is not.
Among the most important questions to ask are the following:
• What are the foundations of the research? Research studies should evolve from a
clearly specified theory. Furthermore, we must take into account the specific
hypothesis that is being tested. Unless we know what hypothesis is being
examined, it is not possible to judge how successful a study has been. We need
to be able to see how the hypothesis has been derived from an underlying
theory, and in turn to consider how well the design of the study tests that
hypothesis.
• How well was the study conducted? Consider who the participants were, how
many were involved, what methods were employed, and what problems in
collecting the data the researcher encountered. For instance, there are important
differences between a case study that reports the anecdotes of a handful of
respondents and a careful survey that collects data from several thousand people.
• What assumptions lie behind the presentation of the results of the study? It is
necessary to assess how well the statements being made reflect the actual data, as
well as the logic of what is being claimed. For instance, the American Cancer
Society announced in 1991 that a woman’s odds of getting breast cancer had
risen to 1 in 9. It turned out, though, that these were cumulative probabilities,
reflecting the likelihood that a woman would develop breast cancer sometime
between birth and age 110. For the vast majority of a woman’s life, the odds of
getting breast cancer are considerably lower. For instance, for women under the
age of 50, the risk is closer to 1 in 1,000 (Blakeslee, 1992; Kolata, 1993).
Similarly, when the manufacturer of Brand X aspirin boasts that “no other
aspirin is more effective in fighting pain than Brand X,” this does not mean that
Brand X is better than every other kind of aspirin. It just means that no other
brand of aspirin works better, and that others may actually work just as well as
Brand X. Expressed in the latter fashion, the finding doesn’t seem worth
bragging about.
These basic principles can help you assess the validity of research findings that you
come across—both within and outside the field of psychology. The more you know
how to evaluate research in general, the better you will be able to assess what the field
of psychology has to offer.
Recap, Review, and Rethink
Recap
•
Among the major ethical issues faced by psychologists are
deception in experiments and the use of animals as subjects.
•
Threats to experiments include experimenter expectations
and participant expectations.
Review
1. Ethical research begins with the concept of informed
consent. Before signing up to participate in an experiment,
participants should be informed of
a.
b.
c.
d.
the procedure of the study, stated generally.
the risks that may be involved.
their right to withdraw at any time.
all of the above.
2. List three benefits of using nonhuman animals in
psychological research.
3. Deception is one means experimenters can use to try to
eliminate participants’ expectations. True or false?
4. A procedure in which the experimenter does not know
whether participants are receiving an actual treatment or not
is known as the __________-__________ procedure.
40
Chapter 1
5. A study is reported which shows that men differ from
women in their preference for ice cream flavors. This study
was based on a sample of two men and three women. What
might be wrong with this study?
Answers to Review Questions are on page 42.
Rethink
2. A researcher strongly believes that college professors in
general show female students less attention and respect in
the classroom than they show male students. She sets up an
experimental study involving observation of classrooms in
different conditions. In explaining the study to the
professors and students who will participate, what steps
should the researcher take to eliminate experimental bias
based on both experimenter expectations and participant
expectations?
1. A pollster studies people’s attitudes toward welfare
programs by circulating a questionnaire via the Internet. Is
this study likely to reflect accurately the views of the
general population? Why or why not?
l o ok i n g
B A C K
What is psychology and why is it a science?
1. Although the definition of psychology—the scientific study
of behaviour and mental processes—is clear-cut, it is also
deceptively simple, since “behaviour” encompasses not just
what people do, but their thoughts, feelings, perceptions,
reasoning, memory, and biological activities.
What are the different branches of the field of psychology?
be applied to the workplace, while consumer psychologists
consider the factors that influence people’s buying habits.
Cross-cultural psychology examines the similarities and
differences in psychological functioning among various
cultures. The newest areas of specialization include
evolutionary psychology, clinical neuropsychology,
environmental psychology, forensic psychology, sport and
exercise psychology, and program evaluation.
2. Psychology includes a number of major specialty areas.
Biopsychologists focus on the biological basis of behaviour,
while experimental psychologists study the processes of
sensing, perceiving, learning, and thinking about the world.
Cognitive psychology, an outgrowth of experimental
psychology, considers the study of higher mental processes,
including thinking, language, memory, problem solving,
knowing, reasoning, judging, and decision making.
Where do psychologists work?
3. The branches of psychology that study change and
individual differences are developmental and personality
psychology. Developmental psychologists study how people
grow and change throughout the life span. Personality
psychologists consider the consistency and change in an
individual’s behaviour as he or she moves through different
situations, as well as the individual differences that
distinguish one person’s behaviour from another’s when
each is placed in the same situation.
What are the historical roots of the field of psychology?
4. Health, clinical, and counselling psychologists are primarily
concerned with promoting physical and mental health.
Health psychologists study psychological factors that affect
physical disease, while clinical psychologists consider the
study, diagnosis, and treatment of abnormal behaviour.
Counselling psychologists focus on educational, social, and
career adjustment problems.
5. Educational psychologists investigate how the educational
process affects students, while school psychologists
specialize in assessing and treating children in elementary
and secondary schools who have academic and/or emotional
problems.
6. Social psychology is the study of how people’s thoughts,
feelings, and actions are affected by others. The psychology
of women concentrates on psychological factors relating to
women’s behaviour and development. Industrialorganizational psychologists focus on how psychology can
7. Psychologists are employed in a variety of settings.
Although the primary employment sites are universities and
colleges, many psychologists are found in hospitals, clinics,
community mental health centres, and counselling centres.
Many also have practices in which they treat patients
privately.
8. The foundations of psychology were established by
Wilhelm Wundt in Germany in 1879. Early conceptual
perspectives that guided the work of psychologists were
structuralism, functionalism, and gestalt theory.
Structuralism focused on identifying the fundamental
elements of the mind, largely by using introspection.
Functionalism concentrated on the functions performed by
mental activities. Gestalt psychology focused on the study
of how perception is organized into meaningful units.
What approaches are used by contemporary psychologists?
9. The biological perspective focuses on the biological
functioning of people and animals, reducing behaviour to
its most basic components. The psychodynamic perspective
takes a very different approach. It suggests that there are
powerful, unconscious inner forces and conflicts about
which people have little or no awareness and which are
primary determinants of behaviour.
10. Cognitive approaches to behaviour consider how people
know, understand, and think about the world. Growing out
of early work on introspection and later work by the
gestaltists and functionalists, cognitive perspectives study
how people understand and represent the world within
themselves.
Introduction to Psychology
11. The behavioural perspective de-emphasizes internal
processes and concentrates instead on observable behaviour.
It suggests that an understanding and control of a person’s
environment is sufficient to fully explain and modify
behaviour.
12. The humanistic perspective is the newest of the major
perspectives of psychology. It emphasizes that people are
uniquely inclined toward psychological growth and higher
levels of functioning and that they will strive to reach their
full potential.
What is the future of psychology likely to hold?
13. Several emerging major trends may influence the future of
psychology. Psychology will become increasingly
specialized; its explanations will increasingly consider
genetic and environmental factors simultaneously; it will
take the growing diversity of the countrys population into
account more fully; and it will become increasingly
concerned with the public interest. In addition,
psychological treatment is likely to become more accessible
and socially acceptable.
What is the scientific method, and how do psychologists use
theory and research to answer questions of interest?
14. The scientific method is an approach psychologists use to
understand the unknown. It consists of three steps:
identifying questions of interest, formulating an
explanation, and carrying out research that is designed to
lend support to the explanation.
15. Research in psychology is guided by theories (broad
explanations and predictions of phenomena of interest) and
hypotheses (derivations of theories that are predictions
stated in a way that allows them to be tested).
What are the different research methods employed by
psychologists?
16. Archival research uses existing records, such as old
newspapers or other documents, to confirm a hypothesis. In
naturalistic observation, the investigator acts mainly as an
observer, making no change in a naturally occurring
situation. In survey research, people are asked a series of
questions about their behaviour, thoughts, or attitudes. The
case study is an in-depth interview and examination of one
person. These methods rely on correlational techniques,
which describe associations between various factors but
cannot determine cause-and-effect relationships.
How do psychologists establish cause-and-effect relationships
in research studies?
17. In a formal experiment, the relationship between factors is
investigated by deliberately producing a change—called the
experimental manipulation—in one of them and observing
changes in the other. The factors that are changed are called
variables—behaviours, events, or persons that can change,
or vary, in some way. For a hypothesis to be tested, it must
be operationalized, a process in which the researcher
translates the abstract concepts of the hypothesis into the
actual procedures used in the study.
18. In an experiment, at least two groups must be compared with
one another to assess cause-and-effect relationships. The
group receiving the treatment (the special procedure devised
by the experimenter) is the experimental group, while the
second group (which receives no treatment) is the control
group. There also may be multiple experimental groups, each
of which is subjected to a different procedure and then
compared with the others. The variable that experimenters
manipulate is the independent variable. The variable that they
measure and expect to change as a result of manipulation of
the independent variable is called the dependent variable.
19. In a formal experiment, participants must be assigned to
treatment conditions randomly so that participant
characteristics are evenly distributed across the different
conditions.
What are the major issues that underlie the process of
conducting research?
20. One of the key ethical principals followed by psychologists
is that of informed consent. Participants must be informed,
prior to participation, about the basic outline of the
experiment and the risks and potential benefits of their
participation. Researchers working with animals must also
follow a rigid set of ethical guidelines for the protection of
the animals.
21. Experiments are subject to a number of threats, or biases.
Experimenter expectations can produce bias when an
experimenter unintentionally transmits cues to participants
about his or her expectations regarding their behaviour in a
given experimental condition. Participant expectations can
also bias an experiment. To help eliminate bias, researchers
use placebos and double-blind procedures.
Key Terms and Concepts
psychology (p. 4)
structuralism (p. 14)
introspection (p. 14)
functionalism (p. 15)
gestalt psychology (p. 15)
biological perspective (p. 16)
psychodynamic perspective (p. 16)
cognitive perspective (p. 16)
behavioural perspective (p. 17)
humanistic perspective (p. 17)
free will (p. 17)
41
scientific method (p. 23)
theories (p. 23)
hypothesis (p. 24)
operationalization (p. 25)
archival research (p. 25)
naturalistic observation (p. 26)
survey research (p. 26)
case study (p. 27)
correlational research (p. 27)
experiment (p. 29)
experimental manipulation (p. 29)
variables (p. 29)
treatment (p. 29)
experimental group (p. 29)
control group (p. 29)
independent variable (p. 30)
dependent variable (p. 30)
random assignment to condition (p. 31)
replication (p. 34)
informed consent (p. 35)
experimental bias (p. 37)
placebo (p. 38)
42
Chapter 1
Ep i
l o g u e
The field of psychology, as we have seen, is broad and diverse. It encompasses many different branches and specialties
practiced in a variety of settings, with new branches arising and coming to prominence all the time. Furthermore, we
have seen that even within the various branches of the field, it is possible to adopt several different approaches, including the biological, psychodynamic, cognitive, behavioural, and humanistic perspectives.
We have also seen that, for all its diversity, psychology is united in its use of the scientific method and its reliance on creating productive theories and crafting testable hypotheses. We’ve considered the basic methods psychologists use to conduct research studies, and we’ve explored some of the major challenges that psychologists have to deal
with when conducting research, including ethical considerations, potential bias, and the question of significance.
Before we turn to the biology of behaviour, return for a moment to the opening prologue of this chapter, which
discusses the incidents at the two high schools. In light of what you’ve learned about the branches, perspectives, and
methods of psychology, consider the following questions:
1. How might a psychodynamic perspective explain why the killers decided to go on a shooting spree or why anyone
would copy the event? How would the explanation differ from that given by a psychologist using the behavioural
perspective?
2. Assume that two developmental psychologists are considering the effects of witnessing the murder of a fellow
student on future development. How would the questions and studies of interest to the psychologists differ if one
employed the biological perspective and the other the behavioural perspective?
3. How might social psychologists explore the effects of watching news reports of the Columbine incident on
viewers’ aggression?
4. How might researchers conduct an experiment to test a drug that they believe reduces aggression? What would the
independent variable and dependent variable be in such an experiment?
Answers to Review Questions:
1. d 2. (1) We can study some phenomena in animals more easily than we can in people, having greater control over environmental
and genetic factors. (2) Large numbers of similar participants can be easily obtained. (3) We can look at generational effects much more
easily in animals, because of their shorter life span, than we can with people. 3. true 4. double-blind 5. There are far too few
participants. Without a larger sample, no valid conclusions can be drawn about ice cream preferences.