FREE ESSAY ON THE HISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGY

THE HISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGY

The History of psychology
Roots of modern psychology remain in the past at the time of ancient Greece, yet the
beginning of psychology has been around for nearly a century. It's exact date is 1879, in
Leipzig, Germany. Leipzig was the first laboratory for experimental psychology. Wilhelm
Wundt was really the first person to actually call himself a psychologist. He was the
first person to have an experimental laboratory for psychology. Hermann Von Helmholtz was
psychologist in mathematics and experimental mathematical physics. His works are
connected with the eye, the ear, and the nervous system. Another person was a German as
well, his name was Gustav Fechner, he studied how physical stimulation is translated into
sensations, all three of these guys then came up with determinism. 
Structuralism, introduced in the United States by Edward Titchener, emphasizes the what
of mental contents rather than the why or how. This theory is based on presuming all
mental experiences could be understood in a combination of events of elements broken into
smaller chunks. An example could be smelling a fragrance and trying to analyze what the
ingredients are. The argument is that this simplistic theory is based on sensations of
the consciousness. 
Functionalism, according to William James, is the ability for learned habits that help
organisms adapt to the environment and function effectively. Structuralism searches for
elements and contents, but functionalism goes into the property of the mind and it's
interactions with the environment. John Dewy is a famous functionalist who used this
theory in looking for ways to improve education. In order to understand a behavior,
action, or thought, it is important to understand the function or purpose it serves not
what the structure may be. In otherwords, explain behaviorism rather than control them.
Evolutionism, a theory developed by Charles Darwin, proposes that all species have
ever-changing traits that help organisms and species survive in what is called natural
selection process. Functionalism deals with behavior whereas evolutionism deals with the
process of behavior and mental processes. Structuralism on the other hand deals with what
makes up the structure or human mind.