Structuralism And Cognitivism In Psychology

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In psychology, the roots of structuralism, behaviorism, and cognitivism have significantly impacted its methods of critical thinking to analyze data. Structuralism focuses on introspection of conscious experiences, behaviorism is associated with the principles of learning, and cognitivism is defined through mental processes. Structuralism can also be perceived as the study of inputs, whereas behaviorism is outputs and cognitivism makes connections with both factors. Although these perspectives differ and have slightly diminished over the years, they have marked an everlasting influence on psychology today to help it evolve over time. To analyze Jake’s situation with his advanced college classes, these three perspectives will all differ in …show more content…

However, it contrasts through the usage of insight which helps us understand the environmental sources and nature of issues whereas structuralism does not. Cognitivism focuses on the connections between our internal and external influences to determine how we interpret our thoughts. For Jake the combination of his difficult class and negative emotions towards failing supports the idea that he has an anxiety disorder. According to the principles of cognitivism, it can be determined that Jake immediately sensed that the course was extraneous, giving him the interpretation that he was destined to fail the course. There was a positive correlation between his melancholic emotions for the class and his growing anxiety for failure which resulted in his disorder. This resulted in his anxious thoughts. For other students, they may perceive the class to be hard but this could drive them to work harder and succeed. However, since Jake interpreted his situation negatively it increased his chances of having anxiety. To resolve this, he could condition his mind with positivity by using motivational statements and stopping his negative thinking. With this procedure, it would help diminish Jake’s self-destructive mindset and …show more content…

Today’s form of psychology has been heavily influenced by structuralism, behaviorism, and cognitivism which allows psychologists to have a variety of methods to observe and analyze data. Instead of focusing on a certain point of view, today psychology incorporates external and internal factors with our behaviors and thoughts. Psychology also has many specialties such as clinical, industrial, pediatric, biological and experimental. This allows medical professionals and psychologists to have an accurate analysis of their work since they have mastered their field of choice. Since Jake is in college, he would report to his local clinical psychologist on campus. Clinical psychologists work in universities or have their own private practice. They work with patients with mental disorders and have the authority to diagnose them. Jake would tell his clinical psychologist about his overwhelming emotions towards his courses and that it has been persistent throughout the semester. He would then be advised to have an assessment to diagnose him with an anxiety disorder. If he does, Jake will have the ability to choose from medication or therapy sessions to improve his mental health. With these options, his chances of stabilizing his stress are

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