History and Systems in Psychology

Catalog description

This course provides the student with knowledge about and understanding of the development of psychology as a science and profession. The course is also concerned with the nature of science, and aims at providing the student with an understanding of how scientific ideas develop, are applied, and change over time. Four general topic areas are examined: psychology’s historical roots in philosophy, natural science, and national cultures; the work of the early psychologists; the development of various “systems” or “schools” of psychology in the 20th Century; and contemporary evolution of professional psychology as a Health Service Profession increasingly embedded in the broad health care system.