The 7 main currents of psychology

The history of psychology has seen the birth of several schools and theoretical proposals.

Psychology is a young science, but despite its short vital trajectory, it has had time to create several psychological currents that establish the way in which research is conducted, the concepts and methods used to work, and the objective pursued.

In fact, the variety of theoretical and practical proposals about the direction that psychology can take has been surprisingly large, which does not mean that they cannot be summarized.

We will now see what these main currents of psychology are and what are or have been their characteristics. and what their characteristics are or have been.

The most relevant currents of psychology

Psychology as a discipline separate from philosophy appeared during the second half of the 19th century. Its birth is usually considered to have coincided with the inauguration of the research laboratory in psychology created by Wilhelm Wundt in 1879.

From that moment on, different approaches to psychology began to emerge, many of which appeared as a reaction to the rest. They are as follows.

1. Structuralism

This current appeared around 1890 and included members of the psychological research tradition inaugurated by Wilhelm Wundt. Edward Titchener was its main representativeHe defended the idea that the aim of psychology should be to discover the basic elements of consciousness and the way in which they interact with each other to create mental processes.

It is a reductionist a reductionist perspectiveIt was mechanistic, since it sought to investigate from the most basic elements in order to understand the most complex ones, and mechanistic, since it was based on the idea that a system as complex as the one that makes up our mind can be reduced to isolated parts, as if it were an engine.

Precisely because of its more academic than pragmatic approach, another current soon appeared to compete with it: functionalism.

2. Functionalism

One of the main currents of psychology that appeared at the beginning of the 20th century. Functionalism, which was born in the first decade of the 20th century, represents a rejection of the structuralist approachInstead of focusing on studying the components of the mind, it aimed at understanding mental processes. It did not focus on the "parts", but on the functioning, i.e. the psychological functions that take place inside our head (and, by extension, inside our body).

Moreover, while structuralism's approaches were concerned with very abstract and general questions, functionalism aspired to offer useful tools. The idea was to know how we function in order to be able to use that knowledge in everyday and specific problems.

Although he himself dissociated himself from functionalism, William James is considered to be one of the great historical figures in the development of psychology who best embodied the approaches and concerns of this current.

3. Psychoanalysis and psychodynamics

The psychodynamic current appeared for the first time through the work of Sigmund Freud, in the last years of the 19th century. It was based on the idea that human behavior, in its movements, thoughts and emotions, is the product of a struggle of opposing forces that try to impose themselves on each other. This struggle is unconsciousThe work of Sigmund Freud has given rise to many different psychological theories and schools of therapy, but according to the followers of this current it can be recognized through the interpretation of its symbolic manifestations.

Although Sigmund Freud's work has given rise to the creation of many different psychological theories and schools of therapy, the truth is that they do not currently have scientific backing. currently do not have scientific backing, among other things because of the criticismAmong other things because of the criticism that the philosopher of science Karl Popper made about this way of investigating.

4. Behaviorism

Behaviorism was consolidated shortly after psychoanalysis, and appeared as a current in psychology that opposed Freud and his followers, but also many other researchers with a tendency towards mentalism. Contrary to the latter, the behaviorists emphasized the importance of basing emphasized the importance of basing research on observable elements. behavior, avoiding as much as possible unjustified speculation and fleeing from the interpretation of acts in a symbolic key.

Fundamentally, the behaviorists were characterized by considering that the object of study of psychology should be behavior, and not what is usually understood by "mental processes" or, of course, any kind of speculation about the soul (although at a certain point they also began to study mental processes, although understood as behavior, just like motor behavior).

But although the behaviorists wanted to base their work on the study of matter and not of the soul, this does not mean that they devoted themselves to studying the brain, as a neurologist would do.

Unlike biopsychologists, in order to do their work, behaviorists did not need to know details about what was going on in the brain. did not need to know details about what happens in our nervous system when we perform certain tasks. system when performing certain tasks. Instead, they focused on studying the relationships that are created between stimuli and responses. For example, to know whether a reward system works or not in a company, it is not necessary to know which circuits of neurons are involved in this process.

Thus, in this current of psychology, the unit of analysis is contingency: the relationship between stimuli and their responses (both being observable and measurable). However, since measuring certain reactions to stimuli was considered immoral using human beings, they relied on animal experimentation, which gave much strength to comparative psychology.

Two of the most famous representatives of this stream of psychology were John B. Watson and B. F. Skinner. F. Skinner.

5. Gestalt

This current, which should not be confused with Gestalt therapy, was born in Germany to study psychological processes related to perception and the way in which solutions to new problems are arrived at.

For these researchers, both when we see an image and when we have an idea, we are able to create a global image about the environment and its potentialities, instead of just accumulating information piece by piece about what surrounds us and then making these elements fit together.

For example, when solving a puzzle, we don't just try and try until by chance we get it right, but a picture of the solution of the problem appears to us spontaneously. Wolfgang Köhler, for example, studied how chimpanzees come to conclusions about possible ways of modifying the environment to obtain food.

This group of researchers developed a series of rules, the so-called "laws of Gestalt", through which they described the processes by which our brains qualitatively different units of information from the data that reach it through the senses. through the senses.

6. Humanism

Technically, humanistic psychology is not characterized by proposing specific research or intervention tools, nor is it based on differentiated scientific presuppositions. What distinguishes it is the way in which psychology is linked to ethics and to a concept of the human being.

In this current, it is believed that the function of psychology should not be simply to obtain information and analyze it coldly, but rather to to make people happy.

In practice, this has meant that humanistic psychologists have relied heavily on phenomenology and have considered that the subjective and the non-directly measurable should also have value for psychotherapy and research. This has earned them much criticism, since it can be understood as a symptom that their orientation is dualistic.

One of the best-known representatives of this current was Abraham Maslowwho theorized about the hierarchy of human needs.

7. Cognitivism

Cognitivism was consolidated as a current in psychology at the end of the 1960s, and was a reaction to B. F. Skinner's behaviorism. a reaction to B. F. Skinner's behaviorism.. It meant a return to the study of mental processes that were not taken into account by behaviorists, and this led to a new concern for beliefs, emotions, decision-making, etc.

However, methodologically, this new trend was very influenced by behaviorism, and used many of its intervention tools and used many of its intervention and research tools.. Today, cognitivism is the dominant perspective.