Emergence of Psychology as a Science

History of Psychology

Psychology began as a branch of philosophy. We can see the influence of philosophy on psychology in how modern psychologists often theorise about certain hypotheses before experimenting.

We can also see its roots in how some concepts considered true are mostly or completely based on theory as they cannot fully be scientifically studied (for example, the Multi-Store Model of memory).

We will talk more about introspection next.

Fig. 1 - Psychology as a scientific practice stems from philosophical roots.

Emergence of Psychology as a Science

The emergence of psychology as a science occurred around the late 1870s when Wilhelm Wundt opened the first psychological laboratory to study the mind scientifically. Through paradigm shifts, psychology became scientific due to its controlled and standardised research methods, highly scientific technologies, and the peer-reviewed, replicable and valid research it produces.

Originally, psychology began as a mostly philosophical discipline, with a biological basis sprinkled in every so often. Wundt sought to study the mind empirically.

Wundt's Introspection and the Emergence of Psychology as a Science

The first person to consider themselves a psychologist was Wilhelm Wundt, who opened the first psychology laboratory in 1879 in Leipzig and developed the first experimental technique to be considered scientific: introspection.

This, as you would expect, had a huge impact on the course of psychology. Wundt demonstrated what other philosophers before him couldn’t: that this confusing entity of ‘the mind’ could be studied scientifically.

Wundt trained many students to become psychologists. Among them was Edward Titchener, the founder of an early approach known as Structuralism. Structuralist psychologists believe that the brain is composed of many parts, similar to the way that chemists break down chemicals into their smaller components. Titchener is just one example of the many psychologists directly influenced by Wundt’s work.

The Emergence of Psychology as a Science Timeline

Various approaches have shaped the emergence of psychology as a science, and we can see this in psychology's timeline. From psychoanalysis to behaviourism, to social learning theory and then cognitive and biological psychology, we can see the different approaches and how they have changed the way psychology operates.

Let’s take a look at the history behind each psychology discipline.

Psychoanalysis

Freud is known as the father of psychoanalysis, full of psychological theories and therapeutic practices trying to unlock the unconscious mind. Freud believed that unlocking unconscious memories and desires could relieve repressed memories and feelings.

While it involves talking to a psychotherapist in a therapeutic setting, psychoanalysis is not based on specifically measured scientific research. It is extremely subjective, based solely on the individual’s feelings and experience.

Behaviourism

One of the earliest approaches to psychology as a science was Behaviourism, which is still practised today. Behavioural psychologists believe that we can study behaviour objectively and scientifically and that all behaviour is acquired and maintained through conditioning.

Behaviourist psychologists disagreed with the scientific validity of introspection. Therefore, they studied human behaviour using the same techniques as other scientific disciplines.

In Behaviourism, there are two main types of conditioning: classical and operant.

Classical Conditioning

First studied by Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov, classical conditioning is when an individual becomes conditioned to perform a particular behaviour when presented with stimuli associated with that behaviour.

Pavlov discovered this conditioning when he was studying dogs’ digestion. He noticed that when the dogs saw the white lab coats of the lab assistants, they began to salivate, even when the assistants didn’t have food for them, because they had associated the assistants with their natural response to receiving food (salivating).

Fig 2. - Pavlov discovered classical conditioning when dogs learned new associations with food.

Operant Conditioning

Studied in the well-known experiments by BF Skinner, operant conditioning is the process in which an individual is conditioned to maintain or cease performing a behaviour by positive and negative reinforcement.

Skinner found that rats and pigeons can be conditioned to perform certain behaviours, such as pressing levers and pecking, if they experience a reward or punishment that encourages them to repeat the desired behaviour.

We can also observe this effect in humans.

Behaviourism took Wundt’s scientific approach to study psychology further. Behaviour is explicit and can be recorded and studied more objectively than thoughts, which meant that the Behaviourist focus on purely studying outward behaviour was considered more scientific.

Social Learning Theory

After the behaviourist approach, which dominated the first half of the 1900s, Bandura introduced the concept of Social Learning Theory. Similar to behaviourism, Bandura believed our behaviour was a direct result of stimuli.

However, he introduced the concept of mental processes and social interactions (observational learning) as having a role in behaviours, which was dismissed in the behaviourist approach as unscientific. Others argue there isn’t a way to objectively measure if someone is behaving a certain way because of what they have seen in their external environment.

Cognitive Psychology

Believing that people don’t simply observe and copy behaviour or that simply seeing how people behaved didn’t explain why people reacted in that way, cognitive psychology emerged.

In the 1930s, Jean Piaget introduced the notion of schemas, a collection of internal thought processes relating to specific stimuli that can be used to control behaviour. This can be measured in laboratories using complex computer programmes and scientific methods.

Biological Approaches

Another approach that uses scientific methods in psychological research is the work carried out from a biological perspective. This area of psychology aims to answer complex questions, such as the nature vs nurture debate and how the human mind works on a physiological level.

Research into human biology to explain human behaviour follows a scientific approach as advanced technology is used to follow the scientific method, which we will discuss more below.

Characteristics of Psychology as a Science

A main characteristic of psychology as a science is the idea of science and psychological approaches going through paradigm shifts. Thomas Kuhn introduced this as a way of explaining how scientific practice develops.

As previously mentioned, new approaches in psychology have developed the discipline into a science. These paradigm shifts (new approaches) occur when something cannot be explained by the current method being used, and so a new approach is used. Each new approach tends to be more objective and out of proportion with other approaches.

Also, to truly establish psychology as a science, it had to have scientific means of experimentation and terms that could be standardised across the science. Following the scientific method involves:

• Forming a hypothesis.
• Making observations.
• Refining theories and processes.
• Reporting results and theories.

Here are some terms used in the scientific method and psychological research.

Evolution of Modern Psychology

There are several ways psychology has evolved, from technological advances to meeting new societal norms and ethical standards.

The First Mental Health Facility

Since Wilhelm Wundt, psychology has had close links to the medical field. Prominent early psychologists such as Wundt and Pavlov were also doctors and physiologists. This also makes psychology more significant as a science, as its findings can be used in a medical setting to make big tangible differences in many people’s lives.

In the UK, a group of Quakers (a Christian denomination) led by William Tuke established the first human mental health treatment centre. This centre was called The York Retreat and focused on rehabilitation rather than medical treatment.

The First Brain Scans

In modern psychology, brain scans are one of the most objective and scientific methods we have to study the activity of our brains, which can have biological and psychological applications. However, it has taken centuries to develop and perfect this approach.

The first ever neuroimaging technique was created by Angelo Mosso in the 1880s. This was known as ‘human circulation balance’ and was a non-invasive technique that measured how blood distributes around the body when an individual experiences certain mental or emotional stimuli.

The next advancement in brain scanning technology was pneumoencephalography.

In 1927, Nobel prize-winning professor Egas Moniz developed a brain imaging technique that allowed researchers to see blood vessels in the brain more accurately than ever before by injecting bromides into the bloodstream. It was eventually swapped to iodides, which proved successful in providing neuroimages.

In modern times we mostly use MRI, FMRI and CT scans for brain imaging. These are highly scientific as they are objective and highly accurate. These are good examples of psychology’s development as a scientific discipline.

Psychologists have gone from simply thinking about thoughts to being able to produce high-quality imaging of brain areas to understand and treat some of the most complicated psychological disorders.

Fig. 3 - Neuroimaging techniques have advanced with modern technology.

Brain scans show us that as technology advances, psychology has accessed more scientific methods of research to produce more accurate and significant studies.