Depending on the genes we inherit and the environmental influences we are exposed to, we will act apon a situation differently. This is what makes us human. In the maturation theory, some aspects of development such as the ability to speak a language are thought to be due to an inbuilt process. As children are born and start to grow and develop, they see different things
THEORIES OF LEARNING: Piaget’s Theory of Intellectual Development. Piaget’s theory has two main parts, the first relates to how knowledge is acquired, and the second deals with the particular order in which different ways of thinking develop(Nixon & Aldwinckle, 2002).Piaget suggests that intelligence is adaptation, and as we begin to experience our environment we must adjust to it. Piaget also reflects that humans are naturally predisposed in acquiring information in an order that makes sense to survive in the world (Nixon & Aldwinckle, 2002). Piaget also explains the term “schemata” as the way we mentally organize our experiences of the world, and adaptation occurs as a result of assimilation and accommodation, which is the process of responding to new events, or objects, using existing mental structures (Nixon & Aldwinckle, 2002). Piaget’s theory of intellectual development is broken down into four stages; Sensorimotor, Preoperational, Concrete operational, and Formal operational (Nixon & Aldwinckle, 2002).
Synaptic Plasticity explains how the brain changes and adapts in fundamental ways. When the brain is engaged in a new learning experience, the brain creates neuron pathways. neural pathways, also known as circuits, are passageways made for communicating neurons. When a person has the ability to learn new ideas quickly, the neurons receive and create new passageways for a quicker route to store information. All of the neurons have a meeting point called the Synapse.
People are always changing through new experiences, positive or negative, and by discovering new characteristics about themselves or even just by meeting someone new. Psychology is the scientific study of behavior – anything an animal or person does, feels, or thinks. Topics of psychological study include social relationships, the brain and the chemicals that influence it, vision, human development, the causes of normative and atypical behavior and much more. (Kuther & Morgan; 2007) It is also important in a lot of different ways, for instance the studies that
He grew up in one of the most exciting times in human history, when the basis of modern science was being laid down by early psychophysicalists like Billroth, Helmholtz and Brucke (Sulloway, 1979). While, Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory endured condemnation and in some cases outright ridicule when it was first published, it has produced many groundbreaking insights about unconscious, the role of internal conflict, and the importance of early childhood experiences in personality development (Weiten, W. 2004, p 480). Furthermore these theories are supported by research which demonstrated that firstly, unconscious forces can influence behavior, secondly, internal conflict plays a key role in generating psychological distress, thirdly, early childhood experiences can have powerful influences on personality and finally, people do use defense mechanisms to reduce their experience of unpleasant emotions (Westen, 1998; Westen & Gabbard, 1999). In 1915 Freud published essay Instincts and Their Vicissitudes in which he put forward an idea “the three great polarities that dominate mental life”, pleasure-unpleasure, active-passive and internal-external (Freud,
I will also describe the major underlying assumptions of a biopsychological approach. Psychology has come a long way since the 18th century and is more widely thought of as a science, especially now since it is known that the brain and body are, “inextricably linked” (Wickens, 2005). Research has shown us that the mind can do more than just reason. It is unified with the body; the mind and body are one. In fact is has been discovered that there is a perception or an
Researchers have tested and advanced his theories and many existing views in cognitive psychology are based on Piaget’s theories. Piaget anticipated that cognitive development and development of mental abilities, happens as we become accustomed to the altering world around us. He described adaption as the nonstop process of using the environment to learn and of learning to alter to changes that come about in the environment. He suggested that adaptation consists of two related process which he called assimilation and accommodation. These two ways are the processes in which we interconnect with the environment.
Misperception of sounds that can be referred to as phonological reanalysis helps determine the root sources that are associated with sound change in terms of articulatory variability and acoustic ambiguity. Acoustic ambiguity shows how the listener may end up arriving to an unintended meaning from their perception. On the other hand, due to the broadening of language through introduction of new words others, it complicates the listener’s ability to effectively identify the correct sound heard, due to the acute similarity to other existing words. Therefore, it raises the inability to correctly articulate and interpret the sound that the speaker produces.
1. Define psychology. Briefly describe the evolution of modern psychology. Psychology, as defined by Psychology and Life (19th Edition), is the scientific study of the behavior of individuals and their mental processes (Gerrig, R. J. and Zimbardo, P. G. 2). My interpretation of this definition is that psychology, while unique to each person, is the culmination of all experiences which ultimately identifies a being and can at times predict or evoke certain behaviors.
McDougall (1919) argued strongly for the separation of social psychology from sociology and anthropology, while also arguing that social processes should be studied experimentally. Arguably, however, social psychology was first established as a distinct discipline at the beginning of the 20th century with the publication of Floyd Allport’s (1924) book Social Psychology – an influential book that was subsequently adopted by teachers of psychology for many years. Inspired by the growth of experimental psychology in the USA, Allport argued that social psychology would develop as a discipline if it approached its questions as an experimental science. Others followed this perspective (e.g., Murphy and Murphy, 1931) and this North American approach to social psychology rapidly replaced the German tradition. Early work in social psychology was also strongly influenced by behaviourism.