THE 8 MAIN PSYCHOLOGICAL CURRENTS AND THEIR AUTHORS - PSYCHOLOGY - 2024

The psychological currents study the behavior of the human being from different perspectives, with different theories and ideas. For example, behaviorism emphasizes behavior, while cognitivism emphasizes thoughts. However, there are not only these two.

The currents of psychology have developed throughout history. As Hermann Ebbinghaus, one of the most important thinkers in the field of the study of human behavior, said, "Psychology has a long past but a short history." With these words, Ebbinghaus captures the essence of development in this field.

All schools of psychology have been influential in their own way; however, most psychologists hold eclectic views that combine aspects of each of the streams. Next, we will describe the main schools that have been most influential in the history of psychology.

Main psychological currents

- Structuralism

The ideas of Wilhelm Wundt, the German psychologist who opened the first experimental psychology laboratory in 1879, laid the foundation for the first school of thought in psychology, known as structuralism.

It was actually one of Wundt's students, Titchener, who formally established this school. Structuralism, as the name suggests, focused on investigating the structure of the mind.

Wundt believed that psychology should focus on dividing consciousness into its basic elements, in the same way that a child breaks down a toy to reveal its component parts.

Wundt

The idea of ​​determining the specific structure of something as abstract and dynamic as the mind may seem absurd to many today. However, the structuralists were confident that they could not only carry out this goal, but could also do it scientifically.

Wundt advanced the introspection technique as a "scientific" tool that would allow researchers to reveal the structure of the mind. Introspection involves looking within: analyzing and trying to make sense of our own internal experiences as they occur.

Using this technique, trained subjects were presented with various forms of stimuli and asked to describe as clearly and "objectively" as possible what they were experiencing at the time.

The reports were later examined to determine the basic elements of consciousness. For example, if you are presented with a piece of cake, it would not be enough to simply identify the type of food in front of you. It would also be necessary to explain the basic elements of the cake that are identifiable through the senses.

For example, the taste, smell, texture, color and shape of the cake could be described in as much detail as possible.

Structuralism played a very important role in shaping the field of psychology during the years in which it was developing. Wundt and his followers helped establish psychology as an independent experimental science, and their emphasis on the scientific method of inquiry remains a key aspect of the discipline today.

However, the structuralists could not escape criticism of their theories. Despite his noble attempts at scientific research, introspection was not ideal for this purpose, as no two people perceive the same thing in the exact same way. The reports of the subjects, in this way, tended to be subjective and conflicting.

Some of the most aggressive criticisms of structuralism came from William James, one of the psychologists who proposed the functionalist perspective on psychology.

- Functionalism

William James

From the point of view of the American academic William James, the structuralists were deeply wrong. The mind is flexible, not stable; consciousness is continuous, not static. Attempts to study the structure of the mind in this way are futile and frustrating.

According to William James, it was more useful to study function than to study the structure of the mind. Function, in this sense, can mean two things: how the mind works or how mental processes promote adaptation.

Clearly influenced by Charles Darwin and the principle of natural selection, James believed that mental processes had vital functions that allowed us to adapt and survive in a changing world.

Therefore, while the structuralists asked “what happens” when we develop mental activities, the functionalists questioned more the way in which these processes occur and why.

Functionalism contributed greatly to the development of psychology. He extended the subject of psychology and the variety of methods used to collect data. For example, functionalists' emphasis on adaptation led them to promote the study of learning, as it is believed to improve our adaptability and chances of survival.

Their interest in the reason for the occurrence of some mental processes also led them to develop an extensive investigation on motivation. Functionalists are also credited with bringing the study of animals, children, and abnormal behavior into psychology, as well as the emphasis on individual differences.

Furthermore, while structuralists established psychology as a pure science, functionalists expanded this narrow focus by also concentrating on the practical applications of psychology to real-world problems.

Regarding research methods, the functionalists expanded the existing repertoire using tests, questionnaires and physiological measures, in addition to introspection.

However, the functionalists also had their flaws. Like the structuralists, they relied too heavily on the technique of introspection, with all the previously mentioned disadvantages, and were criticized for providing a vague definition of the term "function."

Neither structuralism nor functionalism remained at the forefront of psychology for long. Both made significant contributions to psychology, but neglected a very important influence on human thought and behavior: the unconscious. This is where Sigmund Freud made his big debut.

- Psychoanalysis

Sigmund Freud

When mentioning the word psychology, almost everyone comes to mind Sigmund Freud. Like the structuralists and functionalists before him, Freud was interested in studying covert behaviors but, contrary to his predecessors, Freud was not satisfied with just examining conscious thought and began to study the unconscious as well.

Freud compared the human psyche to an iceberg: only a small part is visible to others; most are below the surface. Freud also believed that many of the factors that influence our thoughts and actions lie outside of consciousness and operate entirely in our unconscious.

Psychology, therefore, needed to study these unconscious drives and motives in order to arrive at a more complete understanding of the individual.

Not all modern psychologists support Freud's psychoanalytic theory, but none can deny the impact this man had on psychology.

He opened new frontiers in this area and proposed one of the most comprehensive theories of personality ever written, complete with explanations of how the unconscious mind works and how personality develops in the first years of life.

Many later theorists were directly or indirectly influenced by Freud, as they constructed, modified or reacted to his sometimes controversial views. Freud's work led to the development of the first form of psychotherapy, which has been modified and used by countless number of therapists during the history of psychology.

All of this, using Freud's analogy, is just the "tip of the iceberg" as to the importance of his contributions.

No other school of psychology has received as much attention, admiration, and criticism as Freud's psychoanalytic theory. One of the most popular criticisms questions the fact that Freud's theories lack empirical support, since his concepts could not be scientifically proven.

Nor did Freud provide information about how post-childhood experiences contribute to personality development. Furthermore, he focused primarily on psychological disorders rather than more positive and adaptive behaviors.

- Behaviorism

John watson

Despite their differences, structuralism, functionalism, and psychoanalysis had in common an emphasis on mental processes: events that cannot be perceived with the naked eye.

John B. Watson, the father of behaviorism, strongly opposed this approach and started a revolution in psychology. Watson was an advocate of scientific scrutiny but, for him, covert behaviors, including mental processes, could not be studied scientifically.

The emphasis, from this perspective, should be focused solely on observable behavior. Behaviorists believed that human behavior could be understood by examining the relationship between stimuli (events that occur in the environment) and responses (observable behaviors).

Behaviorists saw no need to use subjective techniques such as introspection to infer mental processes. What had once been the study of the mind had become the study of observable behavior.

Skinner

BF Skinner, another famous behaviorist, supported Watson's view by advancing the idea that human behavior could be explained by reinforcement and punishment (observable factors, from the environment around us), without even considering internal mental processes.

Other later behaviorists took a more balanced point of view, accepting the study of both covert and observable behaviors. These behaviorists are known as cognitive behaviorists.

Watson's need for greater objectivity helped psychology to become a science rather than remain a branch of philosophy. Many of the learning theories used by psychologists today were born from the behavioral school of thought and are frequently used in behavior modification and in the treatment of some mental disorders.

However, Watson's strict behaviorist point of view was not superior to the emphasis placed by structuralists and functionalists on mental life. Undoubtedly, "many aspects of human experience (thinking, intrinsic motivation, creativity) are outside the strict behavioral definition of what psychology is" (Walters, 2002, p.29).

These aspects must also be studied to understand the mind of the individual in a more complete way. This was one of the key arguments of another of the emerging schools of thought known as Gestalt psychology.

- Gestalt psychology

Fritz Perls, considered the founder of Gestalt psychology

The word "Gestalt" means "shape, pattern or whole." Gestalt psychologists believed that psychology should study human experience as a whole, not in terms of separate elements as structuralists intended.

His slogan, "the whole is more than the sum of the parts", conveyed the idea that meaning is often lost when psychological events are separated; Only when these pieces are analyzed together and the entire pattern is visible can we find true meaning in our experiences.

For example, imagine separating the words you are reading into letters and placing them on the page however you want. You would not be able to discern anything with meaning. Only when letters are properly combined to form words and words are structured in sentences can you extract meaning from them. The "whole" then becomes something different, something greater than the sum of its parts.

Gestalt psychologists, such as Max Wertheimer, extensively investigated various aspects of cognition, including perception, problem solving, and thinking.

Additionally, his insistence on studying individuals and experiences as a whole is still preserved in psychology today. His work also led to the emergence of a form of psychotherapy widely practiced by modern psychologists.

- Humanistic psychology

Carl rogers

With the emergence of the previously mentioned schools of thought, psychology gradually took shape. However, not everyone was satisfied with the way things were progressing.

Among these people were humanistic psychologists, such as Carl Rogers, who did not feel comfortable with the very deterministic view held by the two major forces in psychology: psychoanalysis and behaviorism.

Determinism is the idea that our actions are controlled by forces that are beyond our control. For psychoanalysts, these forces are unconscious; for behaviorists, they exist in the environment around us.

Humanistic psychologists, such as Abraham Maslow, see humans as free agents capable of controlling their own lives, making their own decisions, setting goals, and working towards them. Humanism holds a positive view of human nature, emphasizing that humans are inherently good.

A unique form of therapy also emerged from this school of thought, with an emphasis on helping people reach their full potential. This is a big difference from psychoanalysis, which only focused on reducing maladaptive behaviors.

- Cognitivism

Also known as cognitive psychology, it is the current that studies internal mental processes such as attention, memory, perception, use of language, thinking, problem solving or creativity.

Albert Ellis is considered the father of this discipline developed to provide tools that help the individual to recover from brain injuries and improve their memory or possible learning disorders.

- Systemic psychology

There is controversy as to whether it is a psychological current or rather a technique, since its basis derives from the general theory of systems, cybernetics and communication and not from its own theory.

In any case, it is a discipline with therapeutic purposes that aims to improve disorders and diseases arising from their interaction with the social context and their relationship with it.