Course Contents

1 Why study the history of psychology. Introduction to the course 2 Philosophical influences on modern psychology: Mechanism, empiricism, determinism, reductionism. René Descartes 3 British empiricists: Locke, Berkeley and Hume 4 British empiricists: Hartley, James Mill & John Stuart Mill 5 Physiological influences on modern Psychology: Early developments, Helmholtz 6 Weber and Fechner 7 Formal founding of psychology: Wundtian Psychology 8 Structuralism (E.B. Titchener) 9 Functionalism 10 Behaviorism: Antecedent influences and J.B. Watson 11 Neo-behaviorists: Tolman, Guthrie, Hull & Skinner 12 Gestalt Psychology 13 Psychoanalysis 14 Humanistic Psychology 15 Cognitive Psychology 16 Contemporary Psychology

Course Synopsis

The course is designed to acquaint students with the history of Psychology, primarily the immediate background from which Modern Psychology emerged and the different schools and ideologies that have been a part of its rich historical landscape from the late nineteenth century to the present.The course aims at providing learners an opportunity to:  Explore Psychology’s roots and origins  Learn about the major figures, movements and schools of thought that contributed to and shaped present day psychology  Acquire the hindsight necessary for a sound understanding of the field

Course Learning Outcomes

The course will enable students to  Learn about the forces and agents that helped shape Modern Psychology during the 17th to the 19th century.  Acquire an in-depth understanding of the different schools of thought in Psychology  Appreciate the diversity and dynamism that has characterized the field