5. Sigmund Freud
a. (May 6, 1856 – September 23 1939)
b. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigmund_Freud
A. Freud is known today as the “father of psychoanalysis”. He developed the idea of the unconscious mind- he believed that there were thoughts, wishes and feelings of which people were not aware of. These feelings and thoughts were repressed and often the cause of certain disorders. He searched for hidden meanings behind action such as jokes, slips of the tongue and dreams and also developed theories such as defense mechanisms and the id, ego and superego. He also introduced the concept of psychosexual stages.
B. Freud contributed to psychology because of his contribution of psychoanalysis and analyzing people based on their childhood experiences.
…show more content…
Carl R. Rogers
a. (January 8, 1902- February 4, 1987)
b. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Rogers
A. Rogers is a humanistic psychologist whose main contribution is client-centered therapy. One of his main beliefs was that people are basically good and when shown acceptance, genuineness, and empathy, they can reach their full potential. Rogers felt that a therapist should guide the client, but let the client find the solution to their problems for themselves. He also expanded psychotherapy to more areas.
B. Rogers’ contributions have changed psychotherapy. He introduced client centered therapy that revolves around the client’s needs, rather than a strict guideline. At the time, therapists were extremely rigid, but Rogers found that therapy was more effective for the client when the client took the lead.
C. I ranked Rogers 6th because he started a type of therapy that is still used today. His therapy emphasized the importance of genuineness, acceptance and empathy and proved to be effective. He also extended psychotherapy to more areas such as leadership and parent-child relationships. This extension is also important; psychotherapy is now used for a wide variety of things.
7 John B.
…show more content…
(January 9, 1878- September 25, 1958)
b. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_B._Watson
A. Watson’s contributions included behaviorism, the view that psychology should an objective science based on external behavior instead of cognitive processes. He is also known for the Little Albert experiment, in which he conditioned a little boy to have a fear of rats. This was done using his fear of loud noises, in which he presented the rat before the loud noise, causing Albert to fear the rat.
B. Watson’s contributions impacted psychology because he introduced behaviorism. Although the view that psychology should not include cognitive processes is not held by psychologists today, most agree that it should be an unbiased science, just as Watson proposed. In addition, with his Little Albert experiment, he showed that conditioning can be used to change responses in people.
C. I ranked Watson as 7th because of his influence on psychology today. Although his experiment was highly unethical, it showed how effective the use of conditioning can be. His work is highly discussed today and has contributed to the nature vs. nurture debate. It is also often used in modern therapies to eliminate unwanted behaviors and in animal training.
8. Alfred