PSY502 Short Notes Set 2

PSY502 SHORT NOTES By PIN2 · LESSON 06 · Renaissance

Renaissance is a French word meaning “rebirth it is the period between 13th to 16th centuries AD The term Renaissance is used to describe the development of western civilization that marked the transition from medieval (middle age) to modern times

RENE DESCARTES

He originated the Cartesian coordinates and Cartesian curves; he is often said to be the founder of analytical geometry. He discarded tradition and supported rationalization and logic rather than ideas based upon experiences. Emotion was finally physiological at base and argued that the control of the physical expression of emotion would control the emotions themselves. Descartes’s main method of acquisition of knowledge was to doubt everything called skepticism (doubt the truth of something) Descartes had come to the conclusion that he could doubt everything except his thinking Rene Descartes went on to say that because he thinks therefore he exists. Descartes gave his conclusion as a French term: “Cogito ergo sum.” It means that “I think therefore I am.” The two parts of the human beings are: o The part that thinks o The part that acts He proclaimed that the body is like a machine that obeys the orders of the mind body and soul dualism The soul affects the body by a gland that he called “Pineal Gland, Two types of thoughts: o Innate thoughts (by birth)

o

Acquired thoughts (experience)

LESSON 07

THOMAS HOBBES (ASSOCIATIONIST)

Materialist thinkers were of the view that matter is dynamic, which means that matter changes from one form to another This idea of finding similarities between man and machines given by Thomas Hobbes is called “mechanical materialism

He further proclaimed that motion in the brain creates thoughts According to Hobbes three things create association: Habits Wishes Repetition Hobbes was of the opinion that our thoughts and emotions are caused by the motion the external stimuli He wrought a book “Leviathan”.

JOHN LOCKE (ASSOCIATIONIST)

He is considered to be the founder of British Empiricism Tabula rasa According to Locke, we learn by two ways: a) Sensations b) Reflection

LESSON 08

DAVID HUME (ASSOCIATIONIST)

His first philosophical book, Treatise of Human Nature

Cause and effect Utilitarian approach according to which knowledge must serve life and it must have a purpose. Hume denied the existence of material world(things exist as long as we see them) Hume also distinguished between violent passions and calm passions. 1. Violent passions for example are love and hate 2. calm passions are aesthetic and moral feelings Pragmatism which means that everything has to have a practical application and reason concept of James which David Hume called as utilitarian approach

FRENCH REVOLUTION

One of the greatest revolutions in the history of mankind is the French Revolution that took place in France in 1789. Violent revolt against the government marking the end of monarchy and feudalism in France

Denis Diderot

He was of materialist point of view proposing that matter is dynamic and the movement of particles creates sensations and feelings in a body Memory is the functions of the brain and man and animals possess memory. He further proclaimed that the purpose of knowledge was not just to know the truth but it was to increase the power of man.

Augusta Comte

He is considered as the founder of the school of philosophy known as positivism Comte is also considered as the first Sociologist There is no difference in the chemical elements of trees, animals and man. He also said that scientists should avoid moral or ideological judgments which make their study biased He wrought a book, “the Course of Positive Philosophy No cause and effect. He purported that we should gather information and then tries to formulate connections between different pieces of information or facts gathered. There are three stages of growth and development. a) 1st This was when man explained and understood events by referring to the super natural, gods and spirits b) 2nd This stage was when man explained events in mechanical terms c) 3rd It was when man understood and explained events in a deterministic way

LESSON 09

WILHELM LIEBNIZ

First German philosopher/psychologist He called atom as Monads. Monads are spiritual in nature and they are permanent and indestructible That he proposed that the soul and the body exist and operate parallel to each other. This view of parallelism of soul and body is termed as psycho-physical parallelism.

IMUNEL KANT

Believed in empiricism Support concept of association Kant proposed that mind has the capacity to give meaning to sensations and observation mind is responsible for interpreting these sensations and deciding how the person and the body have to react. No material existing of mind Psychology cannot be a science