PSYCHOLOGY-UniversityofNorthCarolinaat…：心理学-北卡罗来那大学….pptVIP

PSYCHOLOGY What is Psychology? Psychology is a word deriving from Greek roots: Psyche – “soul” or “mind,” Logos – “word” Psychology is the systematic study of behavior and experience The Goals of Psychologists Psychologists engage in the study of psychology in order to understand, explain, predict and control behavior What are the major philosophical issues that are relevant to this study? Why we do what we do (causes of behavior). Relationship of brain activity and the “mind” (Mind-Brain Problem). Role of heredity and environment. The Major Philosophical Issues Free will versus determinism – are the causes of behavior knowable, and is behavior predictable? Free will is the belief that behavior is caused by an individual’s independent decision-making What does independent mean? Determinism is the assumption that everything that happens has a cause or determinant in the observable world. We can isolate specific determinants of behavior. Major Philosophical Issues Which perspective holds that behavior is fully predictable? A determinist assumes everything that happens has a cause that can be known A believer in free will assumes that even with complete information regarding causes and conditions, predictions regarding human behavior can never be fully accurate How many of you believe you have free will? Major Philosophical Issues The mind-brain problem: -?How is experience related to the organ system called the brain? Thoughts versus Brain activity Dualism is the belief that the mind is separate from the brain but somehow controls the brain and through it also the rest of the body Monism is the view that conscious experience is generated by and therefore is inseparable from the brain Major Philosophical Issues The mind-brain problem Data from brain imaging research such as PET (positron emission tomography) suggests that brain activity and mental activity are two aspects of the same thing Yet the question is far from resolved Major Philosophical Issues The natu