A school of psychology that emerged in the late nineteenth century United States, holding that mental processes should be studied in terms of the adaptive functions they perform for the organism, in contrast to structuralism's focus on breaking consciousness into its basic elements.
Facts
Central QuestionWhat do mental processes and consciousness do for the organism, rather than what are they made of? 1 Founded YearDated here to William James's The Principles of Psychology (1890), generally credited as the movement's founding text; functionalism itself emerged gradually in the United States in the late nineteenth century rather than at one defined moment. Connections
Held Differently
Source Wikipedia: Functionalism (psychology)
Founded By
Source Wikipedia: Functionalism (psychology)
Has Member
Source Harvey A. Carr (Wikipedia)
Source James Rowland Angell (Wikipedia)
Source Robert S. Woodworth (Wikipedia)
In Branch
Opposes
Source OpenStax: Psychology 2e: 1.2 History of Psychology
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Functionalism (psychology)
Wikimedia FoundationOpening paragraph
Functional psychology or functionalism refers to a psychological school of thought that was a direct outgrowth of Darwinian thinking
History section
The mind was considered to perform a diverse biological function on its own and can evolve and adapt to varying circumstances
Lead section
Functional psychology or functionalism refers to a psychological school of thought
Founded By: William James, Opening paragraph and History section
William James is considered to be the founder of functional psychology.
2. Wikipedia: The Principles of Psychology
Wikimedia FoundationIntroductionQuote, Introduction
The Principles of Psychology is an 1890 book about psychology by William James, an American philosopher and psychologist who trained to be a physician before going into psychology.
3. OpenStax: Psychology 2e: 1.2 History of Psychology
OpenStaxSection 1.2
Functionalism focused on how mental activities helped an organism fit into its environment.
Opposes: Structuralism, Section: Functionalism
In many ways, this particular perspective would have directly contradicted Wundt’s ideas of structuralism (Thorne & Henley, 2005).
View the Source James Rowland Angell (Wikipedia)
Has Member: James Rowland Angell, Biography, CareerQuote, Has Member: James Rowland Angell, Biography, Career
laying the foundations for the school of Functionalism
Harvey A. Carr (Wikipedia)
Has Member: Harvey A. Carr, LeadQuote, Has Member: Harvey A. Carr, Lead
a founding father of functionalist psychology
Robert S. Woodworth (Wikipedia)
Has Member: Robert S. Woodworth, Lead, schoolQuote, Has Member: Robert S. Woodworth, Lead, school
to describe his functionalist approach to psychology
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