easy and brief view of schools of thought

           Schools of thought

"A group of individuals who share common assumptions, work on common problems and use common methods is known as school  of thoughts''  
in past psychologist often identified themselves exclusively with one single school of thought but today most psychologist have an eclectic outlook on psychology .they often draw an ideas and theories from different schools rather than holding to any singular perspective.
following are the important schools of thought:

1:Structuralism

In psychology ,a systematic movement founded in Germany by Wilhelm Wundt and mainly identified with Edward B,Titchener  .structuralism sought to analyze the adult mind (defined as the sum total of experiences from birth to the present) in the terms of the simplest definable components and then to find the way in which these components fit together in complex forms.

Primary aim 

the primary aim proposed by Titchener is to analyze the structure of mind.every conscious state of the mind is to be analyzed and dissected to determine its constituent parts.

 second aim

the second aim is to determine how these parts are combined and how their connection is achieved.

third aim

the final aim of structural psychology by Titchener is to discover the general laws which control these combinations of elements which eventually form the various structures of consciousness.

Introspection:

introspection can be define as , observation or examination of one's own mental and emotional state ,mental processes or act of looking within oneself.
the only possible mean of access to the conscious experiences in structuralism is introspection.

criticism or objections

• the most severe objection on structuralism is it's method of introspection .those who opposed it considered it to be the most unreliable technique .    
• structuralism was objected for its methodology and its narrowness .

beside these criticisms introspection is still used in many areas of psychology .

2:Functionalism

functionalism was proposed by Woodworth in 1948.

definition:

A psychology that attempts to give an accurate and systematic answer to "what do men do,and why do they do it" is called functional psychology or functionalism.

a functionalist is characteristically concerned with the function of organism behavior and consciousness in adaptations to its environment. 

3:Behaviorism

the founders of behaviorism was John B. Watson,Pavlov and B.T Skinner.

Definition:

"A school of psychology that confines itself to the study of observable and quantifiable aspects of behavior  and excludes subjective phenomena such as emotions or motives is known as behaviorism"

Explanation:

From the beginning it was a revolt ,a rebel against all the existing psychology.Watson want to make psychology truly objective science .he rejected the introspection as the method of psychology and also rejected the consciousness as its subject matter. he said that the goal of psychology is not only to describe behavior but also to predict and control the behavior.

Methods:

When the introspection was totally rejected the Watson stated two important methods for studying behavior:

1. observation.
2. measurement.      

  4:Gestall psychology:

Meaning:from Greek Gestalt means form,pattern or whole.

Founders:

The founders of Gestall psychology was young three German psychologist Max Wertheimer(1880-1943),Kurt Kofka(1886-1941), and Wofgang Kohler(1887-1967).but Gestall view point was first advanced by Max werthimer .

Definition:

the psychology which is define as the study of immediate experiences of the whole organism ,which include all the areas of psychology is known as Gestall psychology.

Basic postulates:

there are basic two postulates or principles of Gestall psychology:

1. The world as we perceived it is not same as the real world.
2. Some of our perceptions of objects came naturally as primitive organizations quite independent of learning.

5:Psychoanalysis:

Freud was the founder of psychoanalysis.

Definition:

Psychoanalysis is a set of psychological and psychotherapeutic theories and associated techniques created by Austrian physician Sigmund freud .

Characteristics :

• Freud point of view was his belief  that mental life is like an ice-berg and only a portion is exposed to view .
• According to Freud our behavior is influenced by vast areas of unconscious thoughts , impulses and desires.
• Freud theorized that many unconscious conflicts can greatly influence the future.
• He brought a new awareness of the importance of childhood experiences for latter personality development.

6:Humanistic psychology:

A fairly recent development in psychology is a point of view know as Humanistic psychology.

introduction:

Humanistic psychology is a psychological perspective which rose to prominence in the mid 20th century in response to the limitations of psychoanalyses theory and behaviorism .its most important founders are Carl-Rogers and Abraham Maslow .   

   Basic points:

1. Humanists argued that the fundamental characteristics of man is ,self awareness and self consciousness which differentiating him from the animals.
2. the humanist attempts to understand an organisms subjective experiences and view of the world,not to predict or control its overt behavior.
3. Man is fundamentally good ,future orientation is optimistic.
4. Maslow's viewed creativity in all people at birth .
5. He considers human being as a wanting animal ,who rarely reaches a state of satisfaction because he is always desiring for something.

briefly we can say that humanistic psychology is an optimistic movement within psychology emphasizing on human potentials for growth and fulfillment .