Psych 101: Classic Schools of Thoughts in Psychology

Psych 101: Classic Schools of Thoughts in Psychology

"Throughout the history of psychology, many different theories and schools of teachings have dominated. Each school of teaching corresponded to a different perspective of how humans generally operated.  While you don't have to agree with the general theme of a perspective, it is important to be able to know of them in order to fully understand modern psychology teachings. Below are listed the primary perspectives associated with the psychological teachings over the years.  Keep in mind though there are 8 in total to learn from. 

Humanist Perspective

The main idea associated with the humanist perspective is that each individual has the capacity for free will and choice. Those who lean on this perspective believe that each action produced from an individual is a result from a decision, whether conscious or unconscious, that they are in complete control of.  For example, a psychologist who believes in the humanist perspective may rationalize an individual who doesn't socialize by saying they find their emotional and spiritual needs are met internally.  A drawback from following this theory is that many of the ideas that are provided in defense of it are not easily testable using the scientific method. More often than not, modern psychology teaches the humanist perspective as a historical trend as opposed to a contemporary trend. Often times, however, therapists find using the humanist perspective with troubled patients allow individuals to overcome significant obstacles in their lives. Notable humanists are Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers.  

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Psychoanalytic Perspective 

The central idea of the psychoanalytic perspective is its focus on the unconscious mind. in the unconscious mind, decisions are made for the individuals using processes that they have no control over or access to.  The unconscious mind only presents itself through subtle ideas and thoughts that have to be analyzed in order to understand. The most common methods of analysis came in the form of dream analysis and word association.  The perspective would rationalize an introvert as someone who prefers not to socialize because of a traumatic experience in the past  involving other people. Many of the beliefs of the psychoanalytic perspective are not testable. The most notable psychoanalyst is Sigmund Freud. 

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Neuroscience Perspective 

To those who follow the neuroscience perspective, the driving forces behind the actions of individuals are biological processes that take place throughout our body. For example, genes, hormones, and the brain are the primary controllers of the human, not free will. Someone who follows the neuroscience thought process would explain introversion as a genetic tendency towards solitude. Biopsychology is a recent perspective and as such, is rapidly growing and seems to be one of the most dominant forces of modern psychology. 

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Evolutionary Perspective

Evolutionary psychologists try to explain the actions and thoughts of individuals through the p recess of natural selection. In essence, the advantageous traits dominate while negative traits are filtered out of the population over several generations. Because evolutionary psychologists are occupied with broad strokes of civilization over time, their work is generally not applicable to individuals. Like neuroscience, evolutionary psychology is a relatively new perspective and is a rapidly growing field of study. 

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Behavioral Perspective 

Behaviorists explain human actions and responses based on past conditioning. In addition, they focus exclusively on observable responses, meaning they disregard the idea of studying thoughts and emotions. In general, they believe that rewards and punishments for past actions can be used to rationalize all behavior. For example, someone may be introverted because in the past, they were punished for socializing with others. Environmental conditions dictate the behavior of individuals and, according to behaviorists free will does not exist. 

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Overall, each perspective has advantages and disadvantages to follow them. Some, such as the psychoanalytic perspective, are seen as outdated and archaic. Others, such as the neuroscience perspective , are gaining traction and increasingly being found in the published works of scientists.  "

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