Exploring the Evolution and Impact of Psychology

Introduction Psychology, also known as the study of the mind and behavior, is a multifaceted field of study. Today’s psychology significantly differs from its origins. Many have influenced the field and implemented new practices, theories, and ideas that placed psychology in a class of its own. In order to gain a full understanding of psychology, one must spend time exploring the most systematic way to integrate areas and issues in modern psychology; the history and its origins. (Cherry, K., n.d.) First, it is important to note the significance and relevance of the past for the present. To gain an understanding of psychology’s history, one must consider the course in which the discipline was navigated. The Zeitgeist, or intellectual climate

The only framework that binds these diverse areas and approaches and gives them a coherent context is their history. Two ways to examine the historical expansion of scientific psychology are the naturalistic and personalistic theories.

Personalistic Theory The personalistic theory is the view that progress and change in scientific history are attributable to the ideas of a unique individual. It focuses on the achievement and contributions of specific individuals. The theory also suggests that historical scientific outcomes would not exist had it not been for the appearance of “Great” men and women; this theory maintains that the person makes the times. The American psychologist/historian Edwin Garrigues Boring tells us:

The Great-man theory of history is as old as history, as old as the kings who caused the records of their deeds to be cut in stone in order to let posterity know how it was that they had so carved out human destiny, as old as man’s belief that he himself is a free agent who chooses his acts to shape his own life and the life of those others his deeds affect. (E.G. Boring,

Titchener introduced what is known today as structuralism or dealing with conscious experience as dependent on experiencing persons. He played a major role in women being accepted into the field of psychology. This happened at a time when women and minorities were not awarded the same opportunities and privileges of their white male counterparts. He went very much against the Zeitgeist by opening the door to women and allowing them into the world of psychology. This was something that most other male psychologists were not willing to do. (Schultz, D. P., & Schultz, S. E.,