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Psychology is a surprisingly young science — and its path from 19th-century philosophy to a modern research discipline is anything but a straight line. This lesson walks through the major paradigm shifts in Section 1.2 of OpenStax Psychology 2e, from Wundt's introspection experiments and Freud's unconscious mind to the cognitive revolution and the feminist and multicultural critiques that forced the field to confront its own blind spots. Whether you're studying for an exam or just curious about how the science of the mind actually developed, this deep dive covers the full arc. In this video: • Wundt's structuralism and the introspection method — measuring reaction times to 1/1000th of a second using a brass reaction-time apparatus • William James and functionalism — applying Darwin's theory of evolution to ask what mental processes are *for*, not just what they're made of • Freud's psychoanalytic theory — the unconscious as a 'basement of the mind' accessed through dream analysis, free association, and slips of the tongue • Gestalt psychology's challenge to structuralism — why a melody is more than the sum of its individual notes • Behaviorism from Watson to Skinner — the Skinner box, operant conditioning, and why the behaviorists threw the mind out of the science of the mind • Humanism's response — Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Rogers' client-centered therapy restoring human agency and dignity • The WEIRD blindspot, Naomi Weisstein's feminist critique, George Sánchez's work on biased intelligence testing, and the Clark doll studies' role in Brown v. Board of Education #OpenStax #Psychology #HistoryOfPsychology #IntroPsychology #PsychologyStudent OpenStax Content adapted from "OpenStax Psychology 2e", by OpenStax licensed under CC BY 4.0. Content based on Web Version: Apr 23, 2026. Read the textbook online https://openstax.org/details/books/psychology-2e Music first girl talking to me. by ikkun (ex. Barradeen) | https://soundcloud.com/ikkunwastaken Royalty Free Music by https://www.free-stock-music.com Creative Commons / Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en_US
Answer each question based on what was presented in the video lesson. No outside knowledge is needed — all answers can be found in the video.
Answer each question using what you learned in the video. Questions progress from recall to application — try to answer in your own words without re-watching first.
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