Psychology's History and Worldview - Learning Objectives.

Students will be able to:
Discuss psychology's roots in philosophy and natural science.
Describe the emergence of experimental psychology.
Describe the study of psychology pre-dating the establishment of modern scientific psychology.
Describe examples of ancient psychological research and theories.
Describe the development of psychology as an empirical science.
Describe phrenology.
Trace the history of psychology through each of its five major schools-of-thought.
Describe Sigmund Freud’s worldview on the nature of Man and contrast his view with a Christian view.
Describe Freudian/psychodynamic psychology.
Describe behaviorism and radical behaviorism’s claims about the nature of Mankind and contrast behaviorism with a Christian view.
Describe the structuralists.
Explain the contribution of Dr. Charles Bell, Franz Gall, Gustave Fechner, Wilhelm Wundt, Edward Titchener to the development of modern psychology.
Describe reductionism and its implications on the nature of Mankind.
Describe the functionalists.
Describe the influence of Herbert Spencer, Charles Darwin, and William James on modern psychology.
Summarize the theory of evolution as applied to human behavior and mental processes.
Describe behaviorism and contrast behaviorism and Freudian psychology at the level of the nature of Mankind.
Describe humanism and contrast humanism’s beliefs about the nature of Man with a Christian view. Recognize Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers as important figures in humanistic psychology.
Define self-esteem. Evaluate “selfism” in comparison to Biblical anthropology.
Describe cognitive psychology.
Describe neuro-biology
Describe various explanations for mental illness in terms of underlying worldview assumptions.