History and Systems of Psychology: An Introduction to the Course

Instead of reading a standard textbook and covering almost every detail of the history of the field, we will focus on "primary sources." In other words, instead of reading about the people and ideas that make up psychology's history, as much as possible we will read the original works of these individuals and discuss what they have to say. This may make for more difficult reading, but it will also give us an opportunity for discussion that is lacking in a straight lecture course.

I will attempt to conduct the class along the lines of a "preceptorial" with an emphasis on discussion rather than lecture, although I have set aside a few "lecture days" this term. We will be reading words written in different times and places, often by people with worldviews profoundly different from our own.

I make no pretense that we will be able to cover everything that is important in the history of our field. We will, however, do our best to hit most of the high spots. The history of psychology is primarily the history of people arguing over a set of questions about human nature that has been around since there have been people. This term, we will follow these arguments throughout time and hopefully discover how our current beliefs have been shaped by the debates that have come before us.

Some of the major questions that we will encounter over and over in this course are as follows:

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Is there such a thing as the "mind," and if so, how does it relate to the physical body?

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How are humans related to other animals?

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Is there free will or is human behavior determined?

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Can mental events be studied scientifically?

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What makes us what we are? Nature or Nurture? Heredity or environment?

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What is the best way to study human beings? Objectively or subjectively? Qualitatively or Quantitatively? Looking for general principles of behavior or attempting to understand individuals as persons?

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To what extent to we need to understand biology in order to understand human nature?

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How rational is human thought and behavior?