EPSC 121: INTRODUCTION TO PYSCHOLOGY

What is psychology?
Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. Mental processes include
thoughts, feelings, perceptions, reasoning processes, memories, emotions and so on. Behaviour
encompasses both covert (indirectly observable) and overt (directly observable) behaviours.
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Psychology as a science
As a science, psychology is empirical, that is, it is based on experimentation and observation rather
than on opinion, belief or intuition. A science is a body of systematized knowledge that is gathered
by carefully observing and measuring phenomena. Psychologists carry out experiments and make
observations, which others can repeat; and they obtain data which others can verify. Research in
psychology follows scientific procedures which involve; collecting, analyzing, and interpreting
information or data regarding the behaviour under study.

Goals of Psychology
1. To describe behavior- through careful scientific observation or experimentation
2. To explain behavior- by conducting experiments to determine causes of behavior
3. To predict future behavior by trying to find out the factors related to a particular behavior
4. To change, control or modify behavior, especially maladaptive or inappropriate behavior

The origins of psychology growth of psychology

Psychology emerged as a formal science slightly over a century ago. Prior to the time it became a
formal science; issues related to psychology were studied as part of philosophy, sociology, and
physiology. In late 1800s, scientific methods were used to answer questions that had puzzled
philosophers and psychology became a formal scientific discipline separate from philosophy.

Psychology started as a formal discipline in the year 1879 when the first psychological laboratory
was established at the University of Leipzig by a German philosopher/psychologist namely,
Wilhelm Wundt. At about the same time, an American – William James set up his laboratory in
Cambridge, Massachusetts. These two are considered to be the founders of experimental
psychology. Through all these years, psychology has evolved as a true science.
The history of psychology can be divided into three main stages namely:
• The emergence of the science of the mind
• The study of behavior
• The cognitive psychology

MAJOR BRANCHES OF PSYCHOLOGY

A branch of psychology is an area of specialization in psychology. Since psychology became a
formal scientific discipline various branches of psychology have evolved.

1. Physiological Psychology
Physiological psychology is also known as biopsychology. It studies the relationship between the
brain and the rest of the nervous system to behaviour. It is concerned with the body as a biological
and neurological system. Physiological psychologists study perception, thought, learning,
personality and behaviour in relation to the underlying neurological activity – all of which are of
interest to the psychologists and professionals.

2. Developmental Psychology
Developmental psychology focuses on development from conception to death. Developmental
psychologists study growth and development in various stages of development (i.e., prenatal,

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infancy, childhood, adulthood, and old age). Issues studied include, physical, cognitive,
personality, moral, language, emotional and social development.

3. Social Psychology
This field of psychology studies the behaviour of people in group situations. It focuses on the
interaction between people, their perceptions of one another and the effect of groups on the
individual’s behaviour. Topics studied include; social perception, impression formation, aggression
and violence, formation and change of attitudes, leadership, conformity and social influence.

4. Personality Psychology
Personality psychology is concerned with the study of consistency and change of behaviour over
time. It focuses on individual differences that are how people differ in terms of their characteristics
such as anxiety, motivation, aggression, emotional stability and so on. It also looks at the causes of
individual differences and personality characteristics.

5. Clinical Psychology
It is a branch of psychology concerned with human behaviour and mental disorders, what causes
abnormal behaviour and its treatment. Clinical psychology is applied in the diagnosis and treatment
of psychological disorders. Clinical psychologists work in hospitals and clinics. It is applicable in
handling people experiencing trauma e.g. post-war trauma.

6. Counselling Psychology
Counselling psychology is similar to clinical psychology but is generally concerned with advising
and helping people solve milder emotional and personal problems. Counselling psychologists assist
people having problems with drug abuse, career choice and development, family living, study
habits, subject choice, stress management and so on.

7. Industrial Psychology
This is a field of specialization concerned with the human factor in the industrial or technological
settings, that is, about job satisfaction, how to increase morale and productivity, how to improve
services, and how to develop better job training and placement procedures. Industrial psychology
has contributed to the human engineering discipline referred to as ergonomics, which involves the
design of equipment and machinery that are more efficient and easier to use because they fit the
actual size, strength and capabilities of human beings who use them.

8. Consumer Psychology
This is a field of psychology that studies buying habits and the effects of advertising on buyer
behaviour. It also studies marketing strategies, determines characteristics of consumers and so on.
For example, in a sale offer in a supermarket you are promised a free gift for purchases worth a
certain amount of money, or prices of a few items are drastically reduced while those of others are
increased. This field explains why manufacturers and companies spend millions of shillings on
advertisements and promotions as a result of which they make good profits.

9. Educational Psychology
This is an area of psychology concerned with application of psychological principles, knowledge,
concepts, and techniques to problems in education. Educational psychologists help in analyzing
educational needs, developing curriculum and teaching materials, and evaluating instructional
programmes. It also focuses on how people learn and which teaching methods are effective.

10. Health Psychology

This is an area of psychology that studies the relationship between psychological factors and
physical ailments and diseases. For example, how stress affects physical health. It is also
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concerned with ways of promoting behaviour related to good health (such as increased exercise) or
discouraging unhealthy behaviour (such as smoking and drinking of alcohol).

11. Environmental Psychology

This is a field of psychology that is concerned with studying the relationship between a person’s
physical environment and his/her behaviour. A person’s physical environment can affect his/her
behaviour. For example, our religious beliefs, attitudes, prejudices and eating habits can be
attributed to our experiences in the immediate environment.

12. Military Psychology

This is an area of psychology specialises in the application of psychological principles and
knowledge in the military practices. It is designed to solve problems relating to the military.
Military psychologists play a significant role in:- Military psychological research, Screening,
selecting and placement of military personnel, Military training, Design and development of
military machinery to enhance performance, Counselling and rehabilitation of soldiers after war,
Leadership training, Psychometrics; psychologists have developed measurement tools that have
been useful to military personnel and practices.

MAJOR SCHOOLS OF PSYCHOLOGY

Different approaches or conceptual models have been used to study and explain behaviour in
psychology. Each of the approaches provides a different perspective (way of explaining behaviour)
emphasizing different factors. These approaches, also referred to as/perspectives or schools of
psychology, represent a view points or approaches to the explanation of behaviour and what
methods of study should be used.

1. Structuralism
Structuralism is one of the earliest schools of psychology that was founded by Wilhelm Wundt in
1879. Wundt established the first psychological laboratory in German at the University of Leipzig
and he is considered as the founder of experimental psychology. The setting up of this laboratory
marked the break of psychology from philosophy to science.

The goal of structuralisms was to find the units, or elements, which make up the mind. The first
step in the study of the mind was to describe the basic or elementary units of sensation, image and
emotion which compose it. They were mainly concerned with determining the components of
conscious thought.

Wundt used a technique called introspection to study the structure of behaviour. Introspection is
a method in which subjects are asked to describe in detail their thoughts and feelings. The
assumption was that one can understand the structure of the mind through the objective reports and
reactions of the subject. For example, a subject might be presented with a coloured light and asked
to describe it as minutely as possible.

However, other psychologists felt that structuralism was limited to only one area of behaviour and
had few practical applications and began a new school of psychology called functionalism.

2. Functionalism
William James was the leading force in the functionalism school of psychology. Functionalists felt
that psychology should study “what the mind and behaviour do”. They tried to study the
functions of mind and behaviour. They were specifically interested in the fact that mind and
behaviour are adaptive – they enable an individual to adjust to a changing environment.
Psychologists in this school of thought were influenced by Darwin’s theory of the survival for the
fittest. Instead of limiting themselves to the description and analysis of the mind, they did
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experiments on the ways in which learning, memory, problem solving and motivation help human
beings and animals to adapt to environments. Functionalists initiated the psychological testing
movement, changed the course of modern psychology and were responsible for extending
psychology’s influence on diverse areas in industry.

3. The Psychoanalytic Perspective

This approach was founded by Sigmund Freud, an Austrian physician whose area of specialization
was neurology (the study of disorders of the nerves and brain). In his treatment of neurological
patients, Freud noted that some of his patients presented symptoms that had no physical basis like
brain damage. These symptoms were real for the patients as if they had neurological causes. Freud
suspected that these problems were psychological in origin and as a result developed a complex and
sophisticated model of human behaviour known as psychoanalytic theory. From this theory he
developed the treatment known as psychoanalysis.

Freud believed that behaviour is brought about by inner unconscious forces, drives or impulses
over which the person has little control and are hidden from the awareness of the individual. It is
the expression of these unconscious drives which shows up in behaviour and thought. For example,
psychoanalysts believe that dreams and slips of the tongue are manifestations of what a person is
feeling within a subconscious psychic activity.

Freud also emphasized the importance of early childhood experiences on later personality
development. He coined the phrase, “the child is the father of the man”, to emphasize his belief
that our childhood experiences are stored in our unconscious state of mind and influence our
personality and behaviour when we are adults.

4. Gestalt psychology
This school of psychology was founded in Germany around 1912 by Max Wertheimer and his
colleagues Kurt Koffka and Wolfgang Kohler. The German word gestalt means “form”, or
“configuration, or organized whole”. Gestalt psychologists felt that structuralism was wrong in
portraying the mind as being made up of elements. The gestalt psychologists maintained that the
mind should be thought of as resulting from the whole sensory activity and the relationships and
organization within this pattern. They felt that no single aspect of behaviour could be understood
by itself, but only as part of a “whole” pattern of behaviour. The whole is greater and more
meaningful than the individual elements alone (the whole is greater than the sum of its parts). They
also emphasized the importance of the context or background in creating meaning for a specific
event. This school of psychology has made significant contributions in the understanding of
personality and perception.

5. Behaviourism
Behaviourists felt that observable behaviour should be the focus of study rather than mental
processes and unconscious experiences. The proponents of this school of thought include, J. B.
Watson, B. F. Skinner and F. L. Thorndike. Behaviourists felt that the scientific method in
psychology should be limited to the study of behaviours that can be directly observed and verified.
Watson believed that by controlling a person’s environment, any desired behaviour could be
obtained irrespective of his/her talents, abilities, heredity and other factors.

Behaviourists believed that behaviour is a response to a stimulus (an object or event that causes an
organism to respond in the environment) and behaviour can be accounted for by learning.
Behaviour that has been rewarded in the past will likely be repeated again whereas behaviour that is
not reinforced is likely to become extinct. This perspective was criticized for overemphasizing
visible behaviour and environmental influences on behaviour to the extent of ignoring thought and

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subjective experiences. This approach had significant influence on learning, behaviour
modification, and use of reinforcement or rewards to bring out desired behaviour.

6. Humanistic Psychology
Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow are some of the most influential psychologists associated with
the humanistic approach. This school of psychology developed as a reaction against the idea that
behaviour is determined by forces beyond our control or by environmental forces. It emphasizes on
free-will, that is, the human ability to make choices and decisions to live more creative, meaningful
and satisfying lives. Humanistic psychologists emphasized the importance of inner, subjective self,
consciousness and feelings. Each one of us is seen as a unique individual with both the need and
ability to fulfil our unique and optimum potential according to Abraham Maslow. This school of
thought has made major contributions in counselling which is the process of assisting another
person to find a solution to his/her problems through discussions with a counsellor.

7. Cognitive Psychology
The psychologist who is closely associated with this school of thought is Jean Piaget who was a
Swiss psychologist. This view was a reaction against radical behaviourists like Skinner, who
regarded cognition (thought) as outside the realm of psychology. Piaget believed that the ability to
process information undergoes dramatic transformation as children grow from one stage of
development to another. According to Piaget, the difference in behaviour in children and adults
reflects the difference in their ability to know, understand and reason about things and events
around them which develops systematically. Children need to see and feel things in order to know
and understand them, but adults know and understand things and events through abstract reasoning
and conceptual analysis.
The new view came to be known as cognitive psychology and focused on reasoning and the mental
processing of information. Cognitive psychology studies how we gather, encode and store
information from our environment using mental processes such as, perception, memory, imagery,
concept formation, problem solving, reasoning, decision making and language. Cognitive
psychologists take an information processing approach based on the idea that humans are like
computers in that both take in information, process it and produce a response/behaviour.

8. Physiological or Biological Psychology

This school of thought explains behaviour in terms of the biological functioning of the body. It
emphasizes that genetic, physiological and neurological factors and processes determine behaviour.
The influence of the nervous system, particularly the brain is very crucial. Psychobiological
development is based on changes in brain growth, which are genetically determined, that is,
maturation. Normal behaviour or mental health is functions of a normally functioning healthy
nervous system. A problem or disease affecting the nervous system, which includes the brain, will
affect human behaviour, causing problems in learning and normal living.

9. The Eclectic View

Most contemporary psychologists recognize that these perspectives are not mutually exclusive from
each other and hence the eclectic view/perspective which allows blending of ideas from different
perspectives. The eclectic approach adopts principles and practices from several orientations or
schools of thought. This approach holds that human behaviour cannot be understood fully by
taking one perspective. Each perspective focuses on a different aspect of human behaviour and as
such may be seen as complementary rather than competing. The five basic perspectives or
approaches that influence modern psychology are the psychoanalytic, behaviouristic, humanistic,
cognitive, and biological approaches.

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 BIOLOGICAL AND ENVIROMENTAL BASIS OF BEHAVIOUR
Introduction
A controversy has existed among psychologists on how heredity and environment contribute to
the differences in human behaviour and how much of human behaviour is inherited and how much
is acquired through experience within the environment. How does the central nervous system
(CNS), which consists of the brain and spinal cord and the peripheral nervous system (PNS),
which consists of the nerves in the body outside the central nervous system, affect our behaviour?
How does the endocrine system, which consists of glands that help, regulate our behaviour by
secreting hormones, or chemicals into our blood stream? Behaviour is influenced by both heredity
(nature) and environment (nurture).

I. GENETIC INFLUENCE

Biology affects behavior also through mechanisms of heredity regulated by genetic principles.
The nature versus nurture controversy— that is, how much of our behavior is due to inherited
factors and how much due to environmental factors—is a question that has plagued scientists for
years and is still unresolved.

Genetic principles: Genetics is the study of heredity, the manner in which traits and
characteristics (for example, eye color) are passed from parent to offspring. Each human cell,
except sex cells, contains 23 pairs of chromosomes, a total of 46. (Sex cells—the sperm and the
egg—each contain 23 chromosomes but form a total of 46 when they unite.) Chromosomes are
strands of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) in the nuclei of cells that carry genetic information, genes.

Conception occurs when a sperm penetrates and fuses with an ovum, creating a single cell known as
a zygote. The zygote contains all the genetic material (half from the sperm and the other half from
the ovum) needed to create a unique developing individual. Genes contain chemically coded
instructions that cells need to become specialized and to perform specific functions in the body.
The genes are arranged on chromosomes. With the exception of gametes, every human cell
contains 23 pairs of chromosomes, with one member of each pair contributed by each parent. Every
cell contains a duplicate of the genetic information in the first cell, the zygote. 22 pairs of
chromosomes control the development of most of the body while the 23rd pair determines, among
other things, the individual’s sex. Zygote with XX and XY combination will become females and
males respectively. The X chromosome that is contributed by the mother to her son is believed to be
the carrier of sex-linked, predominantly male defects and illnesses such as colour blindness,
hereditary baldness, haemophilia etc. The 23 chromosomes contain 40,000 to 100,000 genes that
carry the hereditary characteristics. These characteristics or traits are contained in pairs or complex
combinations of genes. A gene that expresses a trait when paired with itself or with any different or
subordinate gene is referred to as a Dominant gene. A gene that expresses a trait only when paired
with a similar gene is referred to as a Recessive Gene. E.g. the gene for pigmented skin is a
dominant gene while that for unpigmented skin (Albinism) is recessive. If pigmented skin is
represented by B and unpigmented skin by b, the figures below show the possible outcomes of the
off springs. Father is BB (pigmented skin) and mother is unpigmented (albino) bb

Mother
Father B B
B Bb Bb
B Bb Bb

Note that all the offspring will have pigmented skins but they will be carriers of the unpigmented
skin gene. In case the off springs marry other carries, the following is likely to occur.

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 Mother
Father B B
B BB Bb
B Bb Bb

One offspring will be pigmented and not a carrier of the pigmented skin, while two will be
pigmented but carriers of the unpigmented gene, and the other one will be unpigmented (albino).

The characteristic that is manifested or observed in a given individual is referred to as the

Phenotype while the genetic make-up or the inherited chromosomal make-up of a given individual
is referred to as the Genotype.

Genetic versus Environmental Influence

Heredity shapes behaviour and development by providing a framework of personal potentials and
limitations that are altered by environmental factors such as nutrition, culture, disease, learning,
parents, peers, home, and school and so on. Environmental factors determine how much of our
inherited potentials or capacities will be realized. For example, a child with a very high inherited
academic potential will not achieve high grades unless he or she is exposed to an ideal and
conducive learning environment. The observed academic achievement in this case may be far much
below the child’s inherited ability. The influence of environment on behaviour and development
begins immediately after conception and continues until death. During prenatal (before birth)
development a number of factors can affect the foetus before it is born. The mother’s nutrition and
exposure to disease, drugs and radiation through x-ray can result to malformation of the baby, low
birth weight, mental retardation and other permanent effects.

Without the interaction of heredity and environment behaviour may not be manifested. For
example a child will not learn language unless he/she is exposed to a spoken language. As one
grows, there is a constant interaction or interplay between the forces of nature and nurture. Our
heredity does not change, but produces various physical changes that occur throughout our life time.
Psychologists today support an interactions model or approach on the relative contribution of
genetic and environmental factors differs from one trait to another. A certain trait may be
determined largely by heredity but not much by environment and vice-versa.

Studies on Heredity and Environment

(a) Studies on intelligence
Research findings on the contributions of heredity and environment have revealed the following:
Family relationships and correlation coefficients
Relationship Correlation Coefficient
• Identical twins reared together 0.75
• Identical twins reared apart 0.65
• Fraternal twins reared together 0.50
• Siblings reared together 0.20
• Biological parent and child, lived together 0.40
• Biological parent and child, lived apart 0.20
• Adoptive parent and child, lived together 0.15
• Adoptive siblings reared together 0.30
• Cousins reared apart 0.15

The table shows average correlations in IQ scores for people of various relationships as obtained
from studies of IQ similarity. Higher correlations indicate greater similarity. Greater genetic
similarity is associated with greater similarity in IQ, suggesting that intelligence is partly inherited.
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Living together is associated with greater IQ similarity, suggesting that intelligence is partly
governed by the environment. Whenever there is more similarity in either or both environment and
genetics, the IQ correlation is fairly high. It is not possible to determine how much of our
intelligence is contributed to by heredity or environment. The role of genes can only be realized in
the context of an environment and similarly, environment is irrelevant and of no consequence
without heredity.

(b) Studies in restricted environments

Institutionalized or children brought up in an orphanage tend to be retarded in skills such as talking,
speech and walking. This could be attributed to lack of maternal attention and stimulation. If
placed in a favourable environment, such children are able to overcome the difficulties. Animals
(e.g., dogs, rats etc) reared in restricted environment also fail to manifest their heredity potential.
When compared with animals raised in normal environments, they are inferior in orientation tests,
maze tests and emotional development as well.

II. THE NERVOUS SYSTEM

Physiology is an integral part of psychology which involves study of the nervous system and how it
affects behaviour. The human nervous system, especially the brain is highly developed and more
complex compared to that of other animals.

The nervous system is divided into two major divisions: central; constituting the brain and spinal
cord; and peripheral which includes nerves outside the central nervous system serving muscles,
glands and sensory receptors.

The Neuron
This is the basic unit of the nervous system (a single nerve cell). Neurons transmit information
throughout the body as well as the brain. Each neuron receives and sends signals to other neurons.
A neuron has three basic features: dendrites, cell body and an axon.
The dendrites receive information from other neurons. Each neuron may have hundreds or
thousand of dendrites.
The cell body or soma has several functions;
• It integrates the electrical information coming from the dendrites.
• It absorbs needed nutrients.
• It produces the majority of protein molecules needed for normal functioning of the cell.

Structure of a Neuron

The axon which is a tube-like structure transmits neural information to axon terminals (nerve
endings). It is highly sensitive to changes in the electrical charge of its membranes. If the electrical
charge is sufficient, an action potential (an electrochemical impulse) is initiated at the junction
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between the soma and the axon. This action potential travels down and branches into the axon
terminal buttons. These terminal buttons form junctions with other neurons and with muscles,
which in turn are activated by chemicals released by the terminal buttons.

Neurons in different parts of the nervous system may differ in size and shape but they all have the
three major parts. While a neuron is a single cell consisting of the three parts discussed, a nerve is a
bundle of axons that have a similar function. The nervous system is made up of millions of neurons,
which make up the basic structural units of the nervous system. About 80 percent of all neurons are
found in the brain. There are three types of neurons:
• Sensory neurons: these neurons carry information from the sense organs to the central nervous
system. They are also called afferent neurons.
• Connector neurons: these neurons are found within the spinal cord and the brain. They receive
information from the sensory neurons and send them to the brain for processing. They are also
referred to as interneurons or intermediate neurons.
• Motor neurons: these neurons carry information from the central nervous system to the
muscles or glands. They are also known as efferent. They receive messages from the brain and
take them to the required sites like muscles. For any observable response/behaviour, all the
three types of neurons must be involved.

Neurons do not touch one another. They are separated by a gap between them known as a synapse.
When an action potential reaches the axon terminals, it causes neurotransmitters to be released into
the synaptic gap, the space between the two cells. Neurotransmitters are chemicals (such as
acetylcholine, histamine, and serotonin) released from terminal buttons into the synaptic gap. These
chemicals cross the gap and stimulate/excite the pre-synaptic terminals of the next cell which in
turn releases an electrical charge or spark. The neurotransmitters may either have excitatory or
inhibitory effect on their target cells. Excitatory neurotransmitters instruct the receiving neuron
to fire or conduct an action potential. Inhibitory neurotransmitters instruct the receiving neuron
not to fire an action potential.

Psychoactive drugs (drugs that affect the nervous system) have their effect by either increasing or
decreasing the amount of neurotransmitters released into the synapse. Alcohol and pain killers
suppress the release of neurotransmitters or increasing the release of inhibitory neurotransmitters.
Caffeine and cocaine increases the amount of neurotransmitters in the synapse or directly activates
receptor sites on the dendrites – thus they have a stimulating effect on the nervous system.

Peripheral Nervous System

The peripheral nervous system (PNS) connects the central nervous system to the rest of the body. It
includes all the nerves going to and from the brain and the spinal cord. It serves to transmit neural
impulses to and from the brain and the spinal cord. It consists of two systems, the somatic and the
autonomic nervous systems. The two divisions work jointly with the CNS in carrying out their
functions.

The somatic nervous system directs the movement of the skeletal muscles, which are usually under
our voluntary control. It regulates voluntary actions e.g. walking, sitting down, eating etc.

The autonomic nervous system controls the more automatic (self-regulating) bodily functions such
as heart rate, sweating and breathing, which are beyond our voluntary control. It maintains
homeostasis – the regulation of body balances necessary for survival. It regulates the glands, heart
muscles, muscles of the blood vessels, internal organs and other involuntary responses.

The autonomic nervous system is made up of two systems, the parasympathetic and the
sympathetic nervous systems. These two tend to work in opposition to each other in regulating
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the functioning of such organs as the heart, intestines and the lungs. The parasympathetic nervous
system is dominant when a person is in a relaxed, non-stressful physical and mental state (performs
bodily maintenance). It slows the heart rate, lowers blood pressure, dilates arteries, and increases
digestive and eliminative processes. The sympathetic nervous system which is an emergency
system takes over when a person is under some type of stress, or some type of mental and physical
strain. It stops digestive and eliminative processes, increases blood pressure, respiration, and heart
rate and causes several hormones to be released into the bloodstream. It prepares the body to fight,
fright or flight.

Peripheral nervous system

(All nerves going to and from the CNS)

Somatic nervous system Autonomic nervous system

(All nerves carrying sensory and (Regulates bodily functions -
motor information – voluntary) automatic

Parasympathetic nervous Sympathetic nervous system

system (maintains basic (Activates body to deal with
bodily functions) stress)

Subdivisions of the Peripheral Nervous System

The actions of the parasympathetic and sympathetic branches

of the Autonomic Nervous system
Body system/organ Parasympathetic Sympathetic
Pupil Constricts Dilates
Salivary glands Stimulates salivation Decreases salivation
Blood vessels Constricts Dilates
Heart Slows Speeds
Airways in lungs Constricts Opens
Hair Relaxes Erects
Sweat glands Constricts Opens
Stomach Increase contractions Reduces contractions
Bladder Contracts Relaxes
Reproductive system Relaxes Excites

III. THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM

The central nervous system consists of the brain and the spinal cord. The brain is the control
centre for all voluntary behaviour (such as writing, computing and talking) and a good part of
involuntary behaviour (such as feeling embarrassed). The spinal cord contains the structures
responsible for reflex actions and the nerve fibres that link the brain and other parts of the body.

The Spinal Cord

It is the part of the nervous system found within the spinal column which is involved in reflexes
and the relay of neural information to and from the brain. It is involved in all the voluntary and
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reflex responses of the body below the neck. A reflex is a simple, automatic response integrated
within the spinal cord such as a knee jerk. The spinal cord has two major components, the grey
matter and white matter. The grey matter near the centre contains mainly cell bodies within
which information is processed within the spinal cord itself. The white matter is the outer layer of
the spinal cord. Within the white matter, axons transmit information to and from the brain. When
damaged, all muscles served by sections of the spinal cord below the damaged part will not function
normally and a person may be paralyzed.

The Brain
The brain is the control centre for the body. It controls what we do, think and feel. The major
divisions of the brain are the cerebrum, consisting of the cerebral cortex and sub cortical areas,
the cerebellum and the brain stem.

(i) The Cerebral Cortex

The cerebral cortex makes the outside surface of the brain.. It is composed of two hemispheres
connected by a thick band of fibers called Corpus callosum and control opposite sides of the body.
Each hemisphere is divided into four areas or lobes according to their general functions and
structures. The four areas are the frontal, parietal, occipital and temporal lobes.

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The Frontal Lobe
The frontal lobes are located at the top front portion of the brain in both hemispheres and are
associated with self-awareness, initiative and ability to plan ahead. At the back of the frontal lobes
lies the motor control area which controls all voluntary body movements. A specialized area in
the left frontal lobe on the surface of the brain near the bottom of the motor control area is the
broca’s area, which controls the muscles used to produce speech. The remaining part consists of
association cortex that is believed to control mental operations or complex psychological functions
such as, thought, perception, imagery, problem solving, emotions, memory, language and thinking.

The Parietal Lobes

The parietal lobes are located behind the frontal lobes. They control body sensations such as touch,
pain, pressure and temperature are channelled to the parietal lobes and memory about the
environment.

The Occipital Lobes

The occipital lobes are located at the back of the brain. They mainly control vision and visual
perceptions. Damage or injury to this area can affect vision.

The Temporal Lobes

The temporal lobes are located on the sides of the brain. Their major functions are auditory
perception (hearing), language, memory and some emotional control. They are also important in
the formation of new concepts and memories.

(ii) Sub Cortical Brain Areas

The sub cortical brain areas are found in the centre of the brain and are surrounded by the cerebral
cortex. They include the corpus callosum, thalamus, hypothalamus and a group of structures
collectively known as limbic system. The corpus callosum connects the cerebral hemispheres and
makes it possible for the hemispheres to communicate or coordinate with each other. The thalamus,
which is located below the corpus callosum serves as the major sensory relay centre for the brain.
The hypothalamus lies below the thalamus. Its major function is homeostasis, that is, the
regulation of the internal environment of the body. It controls blood temperature, the
concentration of salt and sugar in the blood, the concentration of hormones and other chemicals in
the body. The hypothalamus also controls behaviours such as sexual response, rage, anger, eating
and drinking, sleeping, waking and emotion. It is also a part of a group of subcortical and cortical
structures collectively known as limbic system. The limbic system is an interconnected group of
structures involved with emotional behavior particularly aggression, rage, fear, pleasure and other
intense arousals. It comprises of the hypothalamus, hippocampus, amygdala, septum, parts of the
thalamus and parts of the frontal and temporal cortical lobes.

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(iii) The Cerebellum
The cerebellum is located at the base of the brain. It regulates posture (maintenance of balance
when walking, riding, sitting etc), muscular coordination and motor activities/movements. The
cerebellum also controls the automatic adjustments of posture and receives inputs from all areas of
the brain, including the cortex, the sub cortex, and the brain stem.

(iv) The Brain Stem

The brain stem lies below the sub cortical brain areas and in front of the cerebellum and consists of
the Pons, medulla and the reticular activating system. The Pons is involved in functions such as
respiration, movement, facial expression and sleep. The Medulla is located at the bottom of the
brain and at the top of the spinal cord. It mainly controls automatic bodily functions such as
breathing, heartbeat and swallowing. The Reticular activating system (RAS) which is also known
as the Reticular formation filters incoming information. It is important for attention and arousal.
This part of the brain is also responsible for various degrees of alertness and wakefulness and if
damaged one can go into coma resembling sleep.

IV. THE ENDOCRINE SYSTEM

The nervous system and the endocrine system work together to direct our behaviour and maintain
our body’s normal functioning. The nervous system activates the endocrine system to secrete
hormones which are passed into the blood stream which circulates them throughout the body. The
endocrine system consists of several glands that release hormones into the blood stream. The
hormones affect behaviour and also the nervous system. These glands include the pituitary,
thyroid, adrenal, gonads and the pancreas.

(a) The Pituitary Gland

It is located at the base of the brain. One of the major hormones produced by the pituitary gland is
the growth hormone which controls the growth of the skeletal system. Too much growth hormone
produces gigantism and too little of it produces dwarfism. The pituitary gland is also called the
master gland because it regulates the functioning of the other glands (especially the thyroid,
adrenal glands and the gonads). It functions mostly under the control of the hypothalamus, to which
it is attached. In women, it controls the production of milk.

(b) The Thyroid Gland

The thyroid gland is located in the neck region. It produces thyroxin hormone, which controls
metabolism rate of the body (i.e., the rate at which energy is produced and expended). A person
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with an overactive thyroid (termed hyperthyroidism) tends to be thin, tense, excitable and nervous.
An under active thyroid (termed hypothyroidism) can cause inactivity, sleepiness, slowness and
overweight among adults. In infancy, hypothyroidism limits development of the nervous system
and can cause mental retardation. Deficiency of iodine which is part of the thyroxin hormone
causes goitre which is the swelling of the thyroid gland.

(c) The Adrenal Gland

The adrenal glands are located at the upper end of the kidneys. They are always two, with an inner
core/layer called adrenal medulla and an outer layer called adrenal cortex. The adrenal medulla
is the source of adrenaline, which helps the body to perform in emergencies by increasing heart
rate, permitting the flow of sugar and oxygen etc. It also influences emotional behaviours such as
crying and aggression. The adrenal cortex produces hormones called corticoids whose function is
to regulate salt balance in the body and helps the body to adjust to stress. The adrenal cortex is also
a secondary source of sex hormones.

(d) The Gonads

The gonads are the testes and ovaries. They produce gametes (sperms and ovum). Among other
hormones the ovaries produce oestrogen which influences sex drive, development of secondary
sexual characteristics (e.g., the development of breasts and pubic hair) and ovulation. One of the
major male hormones is testosterone which influences sex drive, development of secondary sexual
characteristics (e.g., the development of beards and deep voice). The hormones produced by the
gonads contribute to the physical and psychological development during the onset of adolescence
and continues to influence sexual responsiveness throughout adulthood.

(e) The Pancreas

The pancreas secretes insulin – a hormone that controls the amount of sugar circulating in the
blood. If little insulin is produced, there will be more sugar freed from the liver and vice versa.
Diabetes results due to non-insulin production. This affects brain functioning which utilizes about
¼ of the sugar in the body.

MOTIVATION
Motivation can be defined as the totality of internal processes which impels an organism to satisfy
a need. It can also be defined as the process of initiating, sustaining and directing behavior towards
a particular goal. A motive is what causes a person to act in a certain way. It is in the choice of the
activity itself as well as the persistence and intensity with which the activity is pursued.

Types of Motives
(i) Primary Motives
Primary motives are motives that are based on the biological needs of an organism that must be met
for survival. They are guided by the biological functioning of the organism and include the need for
food, water, air, avoidance of pain, regulation of blood temperature, sleep, removal of body wastes
etc. These needs arise by creating tension in the body whenever there is an imbalance. This sends
signals to the brain that directs action or behavior.
(ii) Secondary Motives
These are also known as acquired or learnt motives, and are learnt as the organism matures and
interacts with the environment. Examples include need for affiliation, love, social approval, self-
esteem, knowledge, self actualization and money.

According to Abraham Maslow, the organism is dominated by unsatisfied wants and this is what
organizes its behavior. The satisfaction of one need leads to the urge to satisfy another need
(Maslow’s hierarchy of needs). A need is an internal state of imbalance or deficiency which has to
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be rectified. A drive can be defined as an aroused state of the organism which leads to action. It is
therefore the motive or force within the individual that activates behavior and directs it towards a
goal. Drives are inferences made from observed behavior and are assumed to be tensions induced
by lack of something or need.

An incentive is something desired for the purpose of fulfilling a need. When needs and drives find
direction towards specific incentives, the individual can be described as having acquired a motive.
These energies acquire direction in the following ways:-
a) Through changed perception: Needs increase the general level of arousal [neural and
muscular activation], and they also operate to change perception patterns that may increase
attentiveness to conditions that promise some satisfaction.
b) Through the process of reinforcement: Eventually the responses that result in satisfaction
become more strengthened and the individual seems to value the objects, persons, and
activities that brought the drive reduction.
c) Set and intention: As a result of previous reinforcement and punishments, and tough verbal
instructions and self instructions, a person builds expectations as to the drives reducing
possibilities in a new situation. Reinforcement therefore influences the intention of a person to
learn in a new situation.
d) Personality and self-concept: Personality factors and self-concept factors influence behavior
of a child in relation to his/her goals and to the others, the kind of a person he/she believes
himself/herself to be, and the kind of fears and aspirations he/she, will be major or important
in determining the things that a child will strive for.

Motivational Sequence

Need drive activity satisfaction and drive reduction

Theories of Motivation
Theories of motivation fall into two broad categories: Biological theories and Psychological
theories

Biological Theories
These theories look at the inborn processes that control and direct behavior. They include:
a) Instinct Theory: Instincts are behavior patterns that are unlearned or inborn which are
uniform in their expression and universal in a species. This theory suggests that there are
some inborn genetic components to motivation (instincts), and hence organisms behave in
certain ways because they are naturally predisposed to act that way. Examples include
maternal instincts in female species.
b) Drive-reduction Theory: The theory assumes that motivated behavior begins with a
physiological need or deficiency. The need produces a drive or aroused psychological state
that is directed towards satisfying that need. Through experience, the organism learns the
specific activities that need to be performed to satisfy a particular need. Examples include
the sex drive, contact with others, etc.

Psychological Theories
Why do people continue to look for money even when all the basic needs have been satisfied?
Psychological theories focus on psychological factors, and include:
a) Incentive Theory: This theory assumes that motivation results from environmental or
external stimuli that pull an organism towards certain behavior. Such behavior follows a
goal-directed sequence such that a biological need produces a drive in which the individual
is ready to respond to the relevant stimuli known as an incentive.

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 b) Value/Expectancy Theory: This theory explains how mental appraisal, thoughts and
expectations determine motivation. It assumes that if a goal is attractive and highly valued,
but the person does not expect to succeed no matter how hard they try, the motivation will
be low, and the reverse is true. Hence, motivation depends on expectations and the
possibility of achieving.
c) Attribution Theory: This theory looks at motivation in terms of how people perceive the
causes of success or failure, because this affects the way they will act. Hence, if success is
attributed to internal and stable factors (such as ability or effort) that are relatively fixed,
motivation will be high. If success is attributed to external or unstable factors such as luck or
favoritism, the motivation will be low. The reverse is true for failure.
d) Motivational Hierarchy Theory: This theory was advanced by Abraham Maslow, and it
accounts for both biological and psychological needs. It is based on the belief that people
have numerous needs that compete for attention. These needs are arranged in such a way
that some are basic to survival, and must be satisfied before the person moves to the next
higher needs. These needs include physiological needs, safety needs, need to belong, esteem
needs, and self-actualization. They are arranged in form of a pyramid as shown below.

Maslow’s (Pyramid) Hierarchy of Needs

MOTIVATION AND BEHAVIOR

There are two kinds of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Intrinsic motivation is the motivation that comes from within the individual and not out of external
rewards. This kind of motivation derives from the enjoyment or satisfaction of engaging in an
activity. Examples of intrinsic motivation include interest, curiosity, exploration, etc. The resulting
activity is rewarding in itself, and failure to engage in that activity will result in internal
psychological tensions that will drive the individual into action. Intrinsic motivation has a long-term
effect on behaviour.

Extrinsic motivation is the motivation based on obvious external rewards and not inherent
satisfaction of the activity. It is the desire to perform an activity because it attracts external rewards
or avoidance of punishment or something unpleasant. Examples include higher pay, promotion,
avoidance of pain, etc.

Behavior is shaped by motivation in a variety of ways:

1. Curiosity and exploration: people are naturally curious about their world. Hence, curiosity
is a strong motive in human behavior. Experiments have shown that the desire to explore
may be in-born. The less familiar an object or environment is, the more likely it is to attract
attention and handling. Extreme newness, however, may be frightening, and will sometimes
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 be handled with fear and caution. Curiosity satisfying activities fulfill individuals’ need to
learn, which is an obviously necessary for adaption and survival.
2. Social approval: The need for social approval is a strong motive for behavior. Starting from
a very early age, a child learns that behaving in a certain way brings them a smile, a hug, or
other forms of approval from parents and significant others. Hence, most things are not done
for their own sake, but to get approval of others, appreciation, help or even love. This may
answer to the need for security, esteem belonging, and human contact.
3. Achievement: Although this need is closely associated with the need for social approval,
many people work for achievement in its own right. People strive for very high or low goals,
not because they are motivated towards success, but because they want to avoid failure.
4. Aggression: Aggression can be defined as an act intended to injure or harm others. There is
contention as to whether aggression is inborn or learnt. Aggression is a common feature
across all cultures. Aggression may be viewed as a consequence of not fulfilling other kinds
of drives, which results in frustration. Some people demonstrate aggression with verbal or
physical assault against other people or objects when some social needs are not met. When
aggression is reinforced, it becomes a general pattern of behavior.

EMOTIONS
Emotions are defined as stirred-up or aroused state of an individual that involves mental, physical
physiological factors. Emotions are generally the feelings associated with behavior. Emotions have
an impact on the behavior of the person experiencing them as well as the perceptions and the
responses of others. There are four major components of emotions:
1. Physiological component: This involves the active changes in the physical body. When the
body is emotionally aroused, heart beats faster, pupils dilate, breathing becomes faster etc.
2. Cognitive component: Emotions are partly generated by an individual’s cognitive appraisal
of a certain situation. Thoughts, beliefs and expectations are important determinants of type
and intensity of emotions. Culture plays a part in expression of some emotions.
3. Behavioral component: This involves the various forms of expression that emotions may
take (outward observable signs) in form of facial expression, bodily posture, gestures, voice
tone etc. These expressions communicate emotions from one person to the next.
4. Subjective experience: This refers to the private, subjective experience of having an
emotion. It includes element of pleasure, displeasure or boredom. The observed expression
sometimes differs from person to person.

The Physiology of Emotions

Most emotions involve a general, non-specific arousal of the nervous system. The limbic system,
frontal lobes of the brain, the hypothalamus and the autonomic nervous system trigger
physiological reactions involved in emotions. The sympathetic system produces observable
symptoms of emotions while the parasympathetic system controls behavior and is active when a
person is relaxed.

Theories of Emotions
Several theories have been advanced to explain the causes of emotional arousal.
a) James-Lange Theory has it that emotions depend on the feedback from the body.
According to this theory, people feel sorry because they cry, and they feel afraid because
they tremble, not the other way round.
b) Cannon-Bard Theory proposes that felt emotions and bodily reactions in emotion are
independent of each other, and both are triggered simultaneously. According to this theory,
people first perceive potential emotion-provoking situations in the environment, and then the
brain part responsible for action is activated.

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 c) Facial-feedback hypothesis proposes that changes in facial expressions produce or
intensify emotional reactions. It has it that facial expressions provide information about
what emotion is being felt. Thus, a person who is smiling must be happy.
d) Cognitive labeling Theory maintains that the emotions people feel are due to interpretation
of an aroused body state. It is how the physiological arousal is interpreted and labeled that
determines the specific emotions experienced. Hence, a person crying at a wedding must be
due to joy, and one crying at a funeral is labeled as due to sadness.

Common Emotions
1. Fear- the tendency to run away or to avoid certain situations, especially painful ones. It is
usually in response to real or imagined danger. It is closely related to anxiety, but it is more
intense and specific.
2. Anxiety-fear that is caused by uncertainty about something real or imaginary. It is a
response to a vague subjective fear. Prolonged anxiety is detrimental to an individual.
3. Anger-a disruptive and unhealthy emotion which is learned and a response to environmental
stimuli. It can be caused by frustration, and is a dangerous emotion which must be vented
(expressed) to avoid tension and stress.
4. Pleasure - a positive constructive emotion which involves the feeling of enjoyment,
satisfaction and happiness. It is a feeling of gratification after fulfilling a need or reaching a
goal.
5. Affection-an emotion characterized by a feeling of fondness, liking and attachment to
others. People respond positively to qualities that underlie affection eg sympathy, kindness,
patience, courtesy and interest.
6. Aggression- an emotional behavior aimed at hurting or harming other people. The term
applies to feelings of anger and hostility.

Effects of Emotions
• Emotions act as a source of motivation to behaviour. For example, emotions such as fear,
love, anxiety and anger may act as motives that direct people to engage in goal-directed
behaviour.
• Emotional arousal tends to produce alertness and interest in the task at hand. Usually
people perform at their optimum at moderate levels of arousal.
• Source of enjoyment and relaxation to our lives. They add pleasure and excitement to life.
Life would be dreary without the feelings that add colour and spice to living.
• Emotions can also act as a source of strength and endurance to the body. You can do
unusual work under emotional excitement which appears difficult in normal conditions. For
example, if you are chased by a dog you can jump a five feet high wall which you cannot
under normal circumstances.
• Intense emotions may result in decrease in performance. Imagine that you are in the
wilderness with only one match stick that must light for you to prepare a meal, chances are
that you will not succeed because you will be too anxious and nervous; or you are facing an
enemy with only one bullet to go, chances are that you are likely to miss him/her.
• Constant emotional tensions may cause insomnia (lack of sleep), restlessness, fatigue,
headache, lack of appetite and so on. Excessive emotional stress can affect memory and
cause memory lapses.
• Prolonged emotional stress and experiences can disturb the total personality of an individual
and may lead to neuroticism. In military training, constant emotional pressure can disturb
the trainee’s learning ability and also affect concentration.

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 HUMAN LEARNING
Introduction
Learning is a very important process in human behavior. It plays an important role in language,
attitudes, beliefs and even personality, all which are developed through learning. Learning refers to
a relatively permanent change in behavior that occurs due to experience.

Types of Learning
Learning can be explained from different perspectives of psychology. These include:
a) Cognitive learning, which has to do with thinking
b) Affective learning, which has to do with feelings
c) Psychomotor learning, which has to do with movement skills
d) Verbal learning, which involves use of language and symbols
e) Motor learning, which has to do with motor skills or movement

Theories of Learning
Different psychologists have developed different theories in attempt to explain how learning takes
place. Below are some theories of learning.

1. Classical Conditioning Theory

This theory was developed by a Russian psychologist, Ivan Pavlov in 1927. It was one of the first
theories of learning, hence the name classical. It explains a learning procedure in which a neutral
stimulus is paired with a natural stimulus until the neutral stimulus elicits a response.

Pavlov, while working with dogs in his laboratory, noticed that the dogs began to salivate when
they were about to be fed, even before they saw or smelled the food. They could even salivate at the
sight of the pan with which they were fed, or upon hearing the footsteps of the person coming to
feed them. This suggested to Pavlov that these stimuli had somehow become signals for the food
itself. This led him to carry out a series of experiments in which he would ring a bell just before
presenting the food. Food naturally elicits salivation in dogs. But Pavlov found that after repeating
this for some time, the sound of the bell alone began to elicit salivation. This demonstrated that
learning had taken place, since the dogs were able to respond to a neutral stimulus that they had not
responded to before it was paired with food.

The food here is referred to as the unconditioned stimulus (US), because it does not involve any
learning. The salivation that occurred in response to the food is called the unconditioned response
(UCR), because the dog does not have to learn to respond to the food by salivating. The sound of
the bell, which was originally a neutral stimulus, lost its neutrality after conditioning now becomes
the conditioned stimulus (CS), because the dog has been conditioned to respond to it. The
salivation that occurs in response to the sound of the bell is called the conditioned response (CR).

For effective conditioning to occur, the conditioned stimulus (CS) should come just before the
unconditioned stimulus (UCS), because this is necessary for the new association to be established.
Several trials are necessary for the conditioning to occur, although some responses may be learnt
with only one trial.

Characteristics of Classical Conditioning

These are also known as principles of learning, because they tend to occur with other types of
learning as well.
1. Reinforcement: this is anything or any event which, when presented immediately after a
behavior, increases the frequency of that behavior in future. In classical conditioning, the
pairing of a CS with an UCS constitutes reinforcement because the UCS (food) will
strengthen the relationship between the CS (bell) and the CR (salivating).
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 2. Extinction: This is the weakening and the disappearance of the learnt response when
reinforcement is withheld. If the bell continues to be sounded without the food, it will lose
its power to elicit the response, and the conditioned response becomes extinct.
3. Spontaneous recovery: This is the reappearance of a previously extinguished response
when the conditioned stimulus is re-introduced after some delay.
4. Generalization: this refers to a process in which a conditioned response to a stimulus is
generalized to a similar category of stimuli. For example, the fear a child may have for a
nurse following an injection may be generalized to any person wearing a white overcoat.
5. Discrimination: This is a process whereby a subject learns to respond to only one stimulus
and not to others. It takes place when the target stimulus is the only CS that is paired with
the UCS. For example, a dog may learn to respond to a particular tune of a bell, and when
another bell is sounded, no response results. The dog has learnt to discriminate between
tones and salivates only when the target one sounds.

2. Operant Conditioning Theory

This is a model of learning in which the frequency of a behavior is increased or decreased
depending on the consequences. It was advanced by B.F. Skinner. Unlike classical conditioning
where the original behaviors are natural, biological responses to a stimulus, operant conditioning
applies to voluntary responses which the organism performs deliberately in order to produce a
desirable outcome. The organism operates in its environment, producing certain outcomes that
determine whether the behavior will recur or not. Operant conditioning is also known as
instrumental conditioning because the behavior of the organism is instrumental or facilitative in
achieving a certain goal. The organism is instrumental or responsible for generating rewards for its
activities or behaviors.

In developing the theory, skinner conducted experiments using animals. In one experiment, a rat
was placed in a box (Skinner’s box), within which was a food delivery mechanism with a press bar
and food pellets. The hungry rat was free to move within the box, and in search of food it
accidentally or out of curiosity pressed the bar. The food pellets dropped out. This random activity
was repeated, and the rat pressed the bar more frequently. It finally learnt to consistently to press
the bar to obtain food.

According to Skinner, what stimulated the bar-pressing activity is not important. What is significant
is that the rat pressed the bar (response), and as a result food pellets dropped (reinforcement).
Whether or not the rat will repeat the behavior is determined by the consequences of the behavior. If
the consequences are negative, chances are that the behavior will be avoided, but if they are
pleasant, then the behavior will be repeated and sustained for as long as it is reinforced.

Types of Reinforcement
There are several types of reinforcement;
1. Positive reinforcement- This refers to anything which increases the probability of a
behavior to occur. It occurs when something desirable is given or added to increase the rate
of a response. Positive reinforcement can be primary or secondary. A primary positive
reinforcer is something that the organism does not have to learn to like, and comes
naturally, such as food, water, etc. A secondary positive reinforcer is something that the
organism has to learn to like through conditioning.
2. Negative reinforcement is something which is removed to increase the occurrence of a
response. It occurs when something bad or aversive is removed. It may involve removal of
punishment. Punishment can also be positive or negative. Positive punishment refers to the
application of something aversive, which helps reduce a behavior. Negative punishment is
the reducing of an undesirable behavior by taking away a reward.

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Schedules of Reinforcement
A schedule of reinforcement is a program that determines how often a behavior is going to result in
a reward. The following are the main types of schedules:
1. Fixed Interval Schedule: The rewards are given after a fixed length of time
2. Variable Interval Schedule: Reinforcers are distributed after a varying length of time
3. Fixed Ratio Schedule: The behavior must occur a certain number of times before the
reward is given
4. Variable Ratio Schedule: Reinforcers are distributed based on an average number of
correct responses, but the order is not definite
5. Random Schedule: There is no correlation between the behavior and the rewards.

3. Social Learning Theory

This theory suggests that people learn through imitation and modeling. This happens through
watching other people such as parents, peers, adults etc, and doing what they do. Social learning
theory was advanced by Albert Bandura. It may take place in any context, social, moral,
intellectual, emotional or even physical behavior. Children pick up these behaviors consciously or
unconsciously through direct imitation, or vicarious conditioning or reinforcement (how seeing
other rewarded or punished for particular action increases or decreases behavior). He demonstrated
that children can learn aggression by watching aggressive movies or violence and vice versa.

There are some factors that facilitate social learning. These include:-
a) Attention- attention must be paid to the modeled behavior for it to be learned
b) Memory- The observed behavior must be mentally processed and stored in the long-term
memory
c) Mental skills- Practice and rehearsal are necessary to reproduce the behavior perfectly
d) Reinforcement- If the model is rewarded, the observer shares the reward vicariously
e) Identification- a child must feel the need to identify with someone (hero) for modeling to
be effective.
f) Status of the model- The higher the status of the model, the more likely they are to be
copied
g) Nurturant model- a model who is nurturing (friendly, caring, considerate) is more likely to
be copied
h) Consistency of behavior- Consistent behavior is more likely to be copied.

MEMORY, RETENTION AND FORGETTING

Introduction
Memory is part and parcel of the learning process. This is partly because, unless past experience can
be remembered, it is not possible to conclude that learning took place. Memory helps people to
remember facts and events. Memory refers to the process by which people encode, store and
retrieve information.

Stages of Memory
Researchers have identified at least three distinct stages of memory. These are sensory, short-term
and long-term memory.

a) Sensory Memory- This is the memory at the level of the senses. Sense organs are capable
of retaining information, but only for a very short time. Immediately after experiencing
something, the sensory system contains briefly an image of the incoming information, even
after the stimulus has disappeared. The information in the sensory memory is temporary,
lasting for a second or so. It involves a continued excitement of the sense organ itself. Any
information that is registered in sensory, memory is available to be selected for attention and
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 for processing into more permanent type of memory called the short-term memory (STM),
or in the long-term memory (LTM).

b) Short-term Memory (STM)

Information received from the sensory register in raw form is processed in the short-term
memory, where it is retained for a short while. The STM consists of what is in the
immediate awareness at any given time; hence it is called the working memory. This
information is either processed for further storage in a more permanent way, or it is ignored.

c) Long-term Memory (LTM)

The long-term memory is the final storage for information, and has unlimited capacity and
duration. Information in the LTM can be stored for a lifetime. The transfer of material to the
LTM requires a process known as encoding, which involves the preparation or organization
of information in a useful and meaningful way so that it can be easily remembered. It needs
to be organized so that it can be easily available for future reference and can be updated by
new information.

During the transfer of information from STM to LTM, incoming information is encoded or tagged
to be filed in the appropriate place. If this is not properly done, it may not be available or accessible
later. Some of the organization and filling apparently takes place when one is asleep. Hence, sleep
and rest may enhance the ability to recall learnt, material because there is less interference from
additional information.

Environment Sensory Short-term Long-term

Stimuli (input) register/sensory memory (STM) memory
(LTM)

Discarded Forgotten
Information information

Information Processing for Retention

Types of long term memory
i. Episodic memory – personal memories and events experienced in a specific time and place.
ii. Semantic memory – facts and concepts not linked to a particular time
iii. Procedural memory – motor skills and habits – knowledge of ‘how’
iv. Emotional memory – learned emotional responses to various stimuli e.g. Disgust, fear,
anxiety

Memory Retrieval
This is the process of returning LTM content to STM for analysis or awareness. Sometimes, a cue
may be necessary in memory retrieval. A cue is a stimulus or a hint that triggers retrieval. Research
has found that when thinking or the retrieval process is left unfinished, the brain will keep working
on the problem unconsciously until an answer is obtained. This is called the Zeigarnik effect.

FORGETTING
Forgetting is the inability to recall, recognize or relearn at an improved rate. It may be due to
storage failure, in which the memory trace was never satisfactorily created or consolidated initially.

22
It may also be due to retrieval failure, in which the memory trace is present but lacks an adequate
cue for evoking it. Several theories have been formulated to explain how it occurs.

i) Decay Theory
This theory assumes that memory disappears or deteriorates with the passage of time. There
appears to be decay or fading of memory traces of information due to the continuous metabolic
processes of the brain. The traces of information that were learned slowly disintegrate and become
extinct as time lapses. Because we have a limited capacity for processing information rehearsal
can prevent decay. However, as we may agree with this theory, it doesn’t explain why sometimes
we are able to remember things we learned long time ago.

ii) Consolidation Theory

This theory assumes that memory trace needs undisturbed period of time to be firmly fixed.
Certain conditions occurring soon after an experience can eradicate the memory before it becomes
permanent. Physical and emotional shock can cause forgetting of recent events possibly due to the
disruption of normal neural functioning. For example, people who suffer brain injury may not
remember what happened before an accident even though their memory of the distant past is
normal. The accident disrupts immediate memories before they have a chance to consolidate.

iii) Interference Theory

This theory proposes that forgetting occurs because of what happens between point A, when the
information is learnt and point B, when the person is required to recall what he/she learned a while
ago. We forget something because other information blocks its retrieval. This type of forgetting is
common with similar materials. There are two types of interference effect, namely retroactive
inhibition and proactive inhibition. Retroactive inhibition involves forgetting something because
information learned afterward interferes with it. For example, when a child goes to school and
starts to learn a second language say, Kiswahili he/she may have difficulties in remembering his/her
mother tongue. Proactive inhibition involves forgetting something because information learned
previously or earlier interferes with it.

iv) Motivated Forgetting Theory

This theory assumes that we wish to forget something unpleasant or something that would cause
pain, anxiety or embarrassment. In such cases the information is not forgotten because it is still in
the LTM and could be remembered if the protective mechanism were overcome. In short, we forget
certain experiences as a matter of choice.
v) Retrieval Failure Theory
This theory assumes that memories stored in LTM are never forgotten but rather are shortly
inaccessible as a result of interference, emotional state and lack of adequate cues. Sometimes we
may require the setting in which we learnt to be able to recall. For example, soldiers may recall
better if they are tested in the room or field they were trained. We may fail to recall something at a
particular moment, but when conditions are different the information comes back more or less
automatically.

How to Improve Memory

There are several methods that can be used to improve the ability to retain information in the LTM.
1. Recitation: This method involves repeating what has been learnt, a method which improves
retrieval
2. Summarizing: This involves paraphrasing of major points of the learnt material, and it
helps to enhance memory
3. Over-learning: This means learning beyond the point of mastery. It is beneficial with
material that needs to be remembered for a long time.

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 4. Chunking: This involves grouping a set of items into sub groups for easy recall. It may be
applicable to telephone numbers.
5. Spaced practice: This is about having breaks in between the period of study. The break
allows the mind to store information, and is better than continuous study.
6. Sleep/ rest: Sleeping or resting after study reduces interference and enhances memory
consolidation.
7. Review: This involves going over the learnt concepts again and again.
8. Organization: Material that is learnt can be organized to enhance recall. This may call for
breaking it into smaller units and linking them to each other, so that recall of one leads to the
recall of the other.
9. Cueing: this may involve highlighting the key concepts or terms that help in recall.
10. Mnemonic devices: These are strategies used to aid memory. They involve organization of
information visually or verbally for easy recall, using special phrases or symbols that
represent group information.

HUMAN PERSONALITY
Personality refers to the psychological and behavioural characteristics by which each person can be
identified, and thereby compared and contrasted with other people. Those aspects of human
behaviour that make each person unique also comprise their personality. It is the personality which
makes people to act in a consistent and predictable manner both in different situations and over
extended periods of time. It can be seen as the total organization of an individual’s character,
temperament, intellect and physique which is responsible for his/her adjustment. Temperament can
be seen as the inherited dispositions underlying personality; the emotions and temper which are
controlled by biological enzymes in the body. The ability to control one’s emotions is referred to as
temperament. Character, on the other hand, encompasses such qualities as honesty, self-control,
sense of justice and persistence.

Theories of Personality
There are different ways in which our perception of other people takes place. Our beliefs about
which characteristics or traits tend to cluster together in individuals, together with scientifically
established principles about the behaviour of different people under varying circumstances, have
resulted in the development of various theories of personality. Theories of personality help us to
predict how someone is going to behave on the basis of the prevailing personality characteristics
and the situation a person is in.

1. Psychodynamic Theory of Personality

According to Freud, there are three levels of consciousness:
• Conscious (small): this is the part of the mind that holds what you are aware of. You can
verbalize about your conscious experience and you can think about it in a logical fashion.
• Preconscious (small medium): this is ordinary memory. So although things stored here
aren’t in the conscious, they can be readily brought into conscious.
• Unconscious (enormous): Freud felt that this part of the mind was not directly accessible to
awareness. In part, he saw it as a dump box for urges, feelings and ideas that are tied to
anxiety, conflict and pain. These feelings and thoughts have not disappeared and according
to Freud, they are there, exerting influence on our actions and our conscious awareness.
We can use the metaphor of an iceberg to help us in understanding Freud's topographical theory

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 Freud's View of the human mind

Sigmund Freud conceived of personality as a dynamic system of energies directed by three

structures: the id, the ego and the super ego. Each is a complex system in its own right, and
behaviour in most situations involves the activity of all three.

The Id
The id is made up of inherited biological instincts and urges present at birth. It is “self-serving”,
irrational, impulsive and totally unconscious. The id operates on the pleasure principle, meaning
that pleasure. Newborn infants are sometimes described as “all id,” since they desire immediate
satisfaction of their needs. Most id energies are directed towards discharge of tensions associated
with sex and aggression.

The Ego
The ego, sometimes described as the “executive”, draws its energies from the id. The ego wins
power to direct the personality by matching the desires of the id with external reality. The ego is
directed by the reality principle (which involves delaying action until it is appropriate). The
operation of the reality principle results in “secondary process thinking”, which is basically
realistically problem solving. The ego is thereby a system of thinking, planning and deciding. It is
in conscious control of the personality.

Super ego
The super ego acts as a judge or censor for the thoughts or actions of the ego. One part of the
superego, called the conscience, represents all actions for which a person has been punished. The
“ego ideal” represents all behaviour one’s parents approved or rewarded. The “ego ideal” is a
source of goals and aspiration. In Freud’s view, a person with a poorly developed super ego may
exhibit a delinquent, criminal or anti-social personality. In contrast, an overly strict or repressive
super ego will cause inhibitions, rigidity or intolerable guilt.

Personality Development
Sigmund Freud’s theory of human development provides a clear picture of how a person’s
personality develops from childhood up to adulthood. The cumulative treatment and interaction

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subjected to a person, right from birth through the growth stages until one attains adulthood,
influences the kind of personality that a person develops.

Oral Stage (0 -1 yr)

During the first year of life, most of the infant’s pleasure comes from stimulation of the mouth. If a
child is overfed or frustrated, oral traits may be created. Adult expressions of oral needs include,
gum-chewing, nail biting, smoking, kissing, overeating and alcoholism.

Anal Stage (1 – 3 yrs)

Between the ages of one and three years, the child’s attention shifts to the process of elimination.
When his parents attempt to toilet-train him, the child can gain approval or aggression by “holding
on” or “letting go”. Therefore, harsh toilet training may establish such responses as a personality
trait. Freud characterized the “anal retention” (holding on) personality as obstinate, stingy, orderly
and compulsively clean. The “anal expulsive” (letting go) personality is disorderly, destructive,
cruel or messy.

Phallic Stage (3 – 6 yrs)

Stage characterized by increased sexual interest causes the child to become physically attracted to
the parent of the opposite sex. In males, this generates the “Oedipus conflict”, in which the boy
feels rivaled by his father for the affection of the mother. Freud felt the father threatens the male-
child. To alleviate his anxieties, the boy must identify with the father. Identification causes him to
take the father’s values and to form a conscience. The counterpart to the Oedipus conflict, the
“Electra-conflict,” the girl loves her father and competes with the mother.

Latency (7 – 11 yrs)
This is not a stage but an interlude, during which sexual needs are quiet and children put psychic
energy into conventional activities like schoolwork and sports.

Genital Stage (12 onwards)

The genital stage begins at puberty and is marked by a growing capacity for mature and responsible
social and sexual relationships. The genital stage culminates in heterosexual love and the
attainment of full adult sexuality.

Ego Defense Mechanisms

One of Freud’s most important contributions to psychology was his conceptualization of the ego-
defense mechanisms. He viewed personality as an energy system with psychic energy being
distributed among the id, ego and superego. The id originally had all the psychic energy, but the ego
also needs psychic energy to function. Hence, a state of conflict exists between the driving forces of
the id and restraining forces of the ego and superego. Most of the time, the outer forces of the world
function to satisfy the wishes ego, but sometimes the ego is threatened. When it receives excessive
stimulation, it is flooded with anxiety. This anxiety is in three forms: reality anxiety- caused by
dangers in the external world; neurotic anxiety- resulting from fear that the instincts will get out of
control and cause the individual to do something for which they might get punished; and moral
anxiety which is the fear of the conscience.

Anxiety serves an important function of warning individuals of impending danger by signaling the
ego that unless appropriate measures are taken, the ego will be overthrown. Anxiety, therefore, is a
state of tension that motivates an individual into action. When the ego cannot deal with the anxiety
through rational methods, it resorts to unrealistic measures known as ego defense mechanisms.
These include the following:
1. Repression- involves removal of painful or dangerous thoughts and experiences from
conscious awareness through selective amnesia. For example, a person who has witnesses
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 the murder of the mother may not easily forget this traumatic event, but may push it to the
unconscious. This removal is however not complete, and may be revealed through dreams or
slip of the tongue.
2. Compensation- when a person tries to get what they missed in another way. A married
couple without a child may lavish a dog with the love they could have given to a child, a
person who is not very attractive and is unable to get a friend of the opposite sex may devote
to studies.
3. Reaction formation- involves a defensive reaction in which a dangerous impulse is
replaced by a feeling or behaviour pattern that is just the opposite. For example a person
who hates another may shower them with love and affection openly.
4. Denial-involves the refusal to acknowledge unpleasant realities by simply ignoring their
existence. A common example is that many people may deny the reality of death of
someone close.
5. Rationalization- involves coming up with logical, ethical or socially acceptable reasons for
a person’s behaviour. For example when people make a wrong choice, they may convince
themselves that they did not really need what they wanted- to soften the blow of
disappointment and unable them to cope.
6. Projection- a person may direct their unacceptable feelings towards others, or blame others
for his/her own faults. He may also wish to see what he wishes in other people. A student
who does not like a teacher may claim that the teacher does not like him.
7. Identification- This applies when someone admires another person so strongly that they
begin to behave and act like that person. The identification may also be used by a person to
get what they want.
8. Sublimation- Refers to the re-channeling of one’s interests and activities into fairly similar
activities when the originally desired goal cannot be obtained. For example, a student who
fails to qualify for a medical profession may find satisfaction in paramedical courses such as
pharmacy or nursing.
9. Displacement- involves shift of emotion from a threatening target to a safer one. For
example, a man who is harassed by the boss at work get home to harass the wife, who may
in turn harass the house-help.
10. Regression- happens when a person exhibits behaviour that is characteristic of an earlier
developmental stage. Adults using this defence mechanism may weep in certain situations,
or an older child may sometimes revert to bed-wetting.
11. Rationalization- This is sometimes called the “sour grapes syndrome”. A person who fails
to achieve a goal may end up arguing that that goal has many disadvantages. For example, a
person who fails to make it in school may argue that learned people don’t make a lot of
money anyway.

2. Humanistic Theory of Personality Development

Carl Rogers holds the view that positive and negative evaluations by others cause a child to
develop internal standards of evaluations called conditions of worth. Learning to evaluate some
experiences or feelings as “good” and others as “bad” is directly related to a later capacity for
positive self-regard. Rogers believes that many adult adjustment problems are caused by an attempt
to live by the standards of others. He believes congruent and self-actualizations are encouraged by
substituting organism valuing for conditions of worth.

Humanists view people as unique and set apart from the rest of the animal kingdom. Humanists
consider self-image a central determinant of behaviour and personal adjustment.

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Factors that affect personality
1. Physical factors-(physique). An individual’s personality may differ according to their
physique- height, build, or bodily defects. So is the influence of organic states of the body
such as fatigue, hunger or body sugar. Diseases may also affect an individual’s personality.
2. Chemical factors-(chemistry of the humors or glandular secretions in the body). Persons in
whom blood, yellow bile, black bile and phlegm dominate the humors are classified into
Sanguine, Choleric, Melancholic and Phlegmatic respectively.
3. Glandular secretions- these determine personality depending on whether they are from
ducts or not. Those secretions which are through ducts include saliva, sweat, and tears. Too
much or too little may create disorders in the body which may affect personality, such as hot
tempered. Those produced by ductless glands mix with the blood and spread to various parts
of the body, e.g. hormones. These tend to have a greater influence on personality if they are
inadequate or excessive.
4. Social factors- Personality is not a passive entity, but a product of socialization agents such
as family, peers, home and school. People act in response to environmental stimuli, and they
abide by rules, prohibitions, taboos, and customs. However, this works hand-in-hand with
individual nature.
5. Hereditary factors- This is what a person gets at birth from ancestors. It is the force by
which some characters of the previous generations are transmitted to the descendants
through genes. Though heredity cannot be changed, the environment may influence the
extent to which these genes will develop. Genetic determinants including biological
dispositions and organic conditions mostly include intelligence and temperament. However,
it has been proven that children start their lives with different temperamental blue prints
which are unique and which later help shape their personalities.
6. Psychopathology- This is the branch of medicine referring to the study of diseases of the
mind. It is possible that there is a genetic influence on behaviour disorders which make a
person to have to be so disorganized that they fail to control themselves. These disorders
include psychotic illnesses (schizophrenia, manic depression and paranoia) and non-
psychotic illnesses (neurotic illness, personality disorders and drug addiction).

ABNORMAL BEHAVIOUR
Abnormal psychology is the scientific study of psychological disorders. These disorders affect
the way people feel, think, speak, and behave. The field of abnormal psychology may be called
psychopathology. Standards of normal and abnormal behaviour differ from society to society and
change as social conditions and customs change. Psychiatrists are doctors specialising in the field
of mental illness- they are medically trained and can prescribe medicine while Clinical
psychologists have a background in neuroscience and psychology and are not medically trained and
cannot prescribe medicine.
Abnormality means anything that is not normal. This definition covers a wide range of
abnormalities. It is hard to define what we mean by “abnormal” because:
• There is no absolute distinguishing line between normal and abnormal
• No single definition is enough to take into account all the different types of behaviour that
might be called abnormal
• There is no shared characteristic of all that we call abnormal - things that are abnormal can
have nothing at all in common.

There are several ways in which people have tried to define abnormality. These are:

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 i. Statistical Deviation
Anything that happens infrequently or does not conform to the established standards can be defined
as abnormal. For example, a child whose IQ is significantly low or high can be considered as
abnormal.

ii. Social Deviation

Deviation from social norms is another way of defining abnormality. For example, if a soldier who
has behaved normally starts to behave strangely (such as becoming obsessively religious) then
he/she can be referred to a psychiatrist.

iii. Subjective Distress

If someone feels that they have a problem, and is so serious that it is disturbing their day-to-day
living, this can be used to diagnose abnormality. For example, if you are suffering from anxiety,
then someone can say the anxiety is unnecessary.

iv. Disability or Dysfunction

If a behaviour is causing a problem, it can be diagnosed as abnormal. If it were causing a
dysfunction, then treatment would be needed. The key feature is that the behaviour prevents normal
functioning.

v. Abnormality as the Absence of Normality

If “normality” is defined, then abnormal means not fitting that definition. It is estimated that 20%
of people have a psychological disorder.

The DSM Classification System

Mental illness is classified today according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM IV), published by the American Psychiatric Association (1994).
The DSM uses a multiaxial or multidimensional approach to diagnosing because rarely do other
factors in a person's life affect their mental health. It assesses five dimensions:
• Axis I: Clinical Syndromes
• Axis II: Developmental Disorders and Personality Disorders
• Axis III: Physical Conditions
• Axis IV: Severity of Psychosocial Stressors
• Axis V: Highest Level of Functioning
SPECIFIC MENTAL DISORDERS
i. Anxiety Disorders
They are classified as neuroses. These are mental disorders where there is dysfunction. The
dysfunction takes the form of an exaggeration of certain behaviours or symptoms which occur
normally in just about everyone. The person is still in touch with reality, and knows that they
have a problem. Symptoms of anxiety disorders include; tension, nervousness, sweating, heart
palpitations, dizziness, trembling and concentration problems.
ii. Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is classified under psychosis. Psychoses are mental disorders where the individual is
not in touch with reality. Schizophrenia is a specific sort of psychosis, characterized by thought,
language and behaviour disturbances. There is more than one type of schizophrenia. Blenler (1911)
introduced the term “schizophrenia” split (schism) of the mind (phrenos). It implies splitting of
cognition from emotion.

Different people with schizophrenia present different symptoms. Patients do not recognize that they
are ill or that what they are doing is wrong and therefore they cannot communicate their feelings.
Speech is disorganized. Five different kinds of schizophrenia have been identified:
• Paranoid
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 • Catatonic
• Disorganized
• Undifferentiated or simple, and
• Residual schizophrenia

iii. Mood Disorders

These are disorders of feeling, also known as affective disorders. There are two main types of
affective disorders.
• Unipolar depression – where the person has one consistent, recurrent state-generally that of
being depressed.
• Bipolar depression – where the person experiences more than one emotional state as part of
their problem.

Depression involves resistant negative moods, depleted energy, the altering of sleep habits, and
altered motivation and behaviours. Depression becomes a problem when it leads to dysfunctional
behaviour and persists. Major depressive disorders include:
• Psychotic depression
• Melancholic depression
• Seasonal affective disorder

iv. Eating Disorders

There are two main types of eating disorder:
• Anorexia nervosa is an illness that stems from an intense fear of becoming fat, and a
distorted body image. Symptoms include: Dramatic weight loss, Obsessions and neuroses, A
need for personal control, Depression, Low oestrogen levels, Negative attitudes towards
sexual activity. More common in teenage females (14 to 16 yrs) than males.
• Bulimia nervosa is characterized by binge eating, where there is little control over how
much is taken in. Typically, these binges will be followed by self-induced vomiting,
fasting, vigorous exercise, or excessive use of laxatives as the bulimic person tries to prevent
weight gain by getting rid of the calories. More in women (on set 18yrs).

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