The Project Gutenberg EBook of Psychology, by Robert S. Woodworth
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Title: Psychology
A Study Of Mental Life
Author: Robert S. Woodworth
Release Date: February 25, 2010 [EBook #31382]
Language: English
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PSYCHOLOGY ***
Produced by Don Kostuch
[Transcriber's notes]
This text is derived from an unedited version in the Internet Archive.
Page numbers are indicated by numbers enclosed in curly braces, e.g. {99}. They have been located where page breaks occurred in the original book.
Labels and text in a figure that are not mentioned in the figure description are included as a comma separated list, as in "(Figure text: cochlea, vestibule, 3 Canals)".
Lengthy footnotes and quotations are indented.
Obvious misspellings and typos are corrected but inconsistent spelling is not resolved, as in coordinate and coördinate.
Here are the appearances of the heading levels.
Header 1
Header 2
Header 3
Header 4
Here are the definitions of some unfamiliar words (to me).
amour propre: self-esteem; self-respect.
esprit de corps: camaraderie, bonding, solidarity, fellowship.
motility (motile): moving or capable of moving spontaneously.
unwonted: unusual.
[End Transcribers's notes]
PSYCHOLOGY
A STUDY OF MENTAL LIFE
BY
ROBERT S. WOODWORTH, Ph. D.
Professor of Psychology in Columbia University
NEW YORK
HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY
1921
COPYRIGHT, 1921
BY
HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY
Printed in the U.S.A.
PREFACE
A few words to the reader are in order. In the first place, something like an apology is due for the free way in which the author has drawn upon the original work of many fellow-psychologists, without any mention of their names. This is practically unavoidable in a book intended for the beginner, but the reader may well be informed of the fact, and cautioned not to credit the content of the book to the writer of it. The author's task has been that of selecting from the large mass of psychological information now available, much of it new, whatever seemed most suitable for introducing the subject to the reader. The book aims to represent the present state of a very active science.
Should the book appear unduly long in prospect, the longest and most detailed chapter, that on Sensation, might perfectly well be omitted, on the first reading, without appreciably disturbing the continuity of the rest.
On the other hand should any reader desire to make this text the basis of a more extensive course of reading, the lists of references appended to the several chapters will prove of service. The books and articles there cited will be found interesting and not too technical in style.
Much advantage can be derived from the use of the "Exercises". The text, at the best, but provides raw material. Each student's finished product must be of his own making. The exercises afford opportunity for the student to work over the material and make it his own.
A first or preliminary edition of this book, in mimeographed sheets, was in use for two years in introductory classes conducted by the author and his colleagues, and was subjected to exceedingly helpful criticism from both teachers and students. The revision of that earlier edition into the present form has been very much of a coöperative enterprise, and so many have coöperated that room could scarcely be found for all their names. Professor A. T. Poffenberger, Dr. Clara F. Chassell, Dr. Georgina I. Gates, Mr. Gardner Murphy, Mr. Harold E. Jones and Mr. Paul S. Achilles have given me the advantage of their class-room experience with the mimeographed book. Dr. Christine Ladd-Franklin has very carefully gone over with me the passages dealing with color vision and with reasoning. Miss Elizabeth T. Sullivan, Miss Anna B. Copeland, Miss Helen Harper and Dr. A. H. Martin have been of great assistance in the final stages of the work. Important suggestions have come also from several other universities, where the mimeographed book was inspected.
R. S. W.
Columbia University
August, 1921
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
PAGE
WHAT PSYCHOLOGY IS AND DOES
1
Varieties of Psychology
2
Psychology as Related to Other Sciences
5
The Science of Consciousness
7
The Science of Behavior
8
Introspection
10
Objective Observation
11
General Lines of
Psychological Investigation
14
Summary and Attempt at a Definition
17
Exercises
19
References
20
CHAPTER II
REACTIONS
21
The Reaction Time Experiment
22
Reflex Action
24
The Nerves in Reflex Action
26
Internal Construction of the Nerves and Nerve Centers
31
The Synapse
34
Coördination
37
Reactions in General
39
Exercises
42
References
44
CHAPTER III
REACTIONS OF DIFFERENT LEVELS
45
Different Sorts of Stimuli
47
The Motor Centers, Lower and Higher
49
How the Brain Produces Muscular Movements
53
Facilitation and Inhibition
54
Super-motor Centers in the Cortex
56
Speech Centers
57
The Auditory Centers
59
The Visual Centers
62
Cortical Centers for the Other Senses
68
Lower Sensory Centers
64
The Cerebellum
66
Different Levels of Reaction
65
Exercises
67
References
67
CHAPTER IV
TENDENCIES TO REACTION
68
Purposive Behavior
70
Organic States that Influence Behavior
72
Preparation for Action
74
Preparatory Reactions
77
What the Preparatory Reactions Accomplish
79
What a Tendency Is, in Terms of Nerve Action
82
Motives
84
Exercises
86
References
88
CHAPTER V
NATIVE AND ACQUIRED TRAITS
89
The Source of Native Traits
90
Reactions Appearing at Birth Must Be Native
91
Reactions That Cannot Be Learned Must Be Native
92
Experimental Detection of Native Reactions
93
Is Walking Native or Acquired?
95
Universality as a Criterion of Native Reactions
97
Some Native Traits Are Far from Being Universal
98
Why Acquired Traits Differ from One Individual to Another
99
What Mental Traits Are Native?
100
Exercises
103
References
104
CHAPTER VI
INSTINCT
105
The Difference Between an Instinct and a Reflex
107
An Instinct Is a Native Reaction-Tendency
109
Fully and Partially Organized Instincts
111
Instincts Are Not Ancestral Habits
113
Instincts Not Necessarily Useful in the Struggle for Existence
114
The So-called Instincts of Self-preservation and of Reproduction
115
Exercises
117
References
117
CHAPTER VII
EMOTION
118
Organic States That Are Not Usually Classed as Emotions
119
How These Organic States Differ from Regular Emotions
120
The Organic State in Anger
121
Glandular Responses During Emotion
122
The Nerves Concerned in Internal Emotional Response
124
The Emotional State as a Preparatory Reaction
125
"Expressive Movements," Another Sort of Preparatory Reactions
126
Do Sensations of These Various Preparatory Reactions Constitute the Conscious State of Emotion?
128
The James-Lange Theory of the Emotions
129
Emotion and Impulse
130
Emotion Sometimes Generates Impulse
132
Emotion and Instinct
134
The Higher Emotions
136
Exercises
136
References
136
CHAPTER VIII
INVENTORY OF HUMAN INSTINCTS AND PRIMARY EMOTIONS
137
Classification
138
Responses to Organic Needs
139
Instinctive Responses to Other Persons
145
The Play Instincts
151
Exercises
170
References
171
CHAPTER IX
THE FEELINGS
172
Pleasantness and Unpleasantness Are Simple Feelings
173
Felling-tone of Sensations
174
Theories of Feeling
175
Sources of Pleasantness and Unpleasantness
178
Primary Likes and Dislikes
180
Other Proposed Elementary Feelings
184
Exercises
186
References
186
CHAPTER X
SENSATION
187
The Sense Organs
188
Analysis of Sensations
197
The Skin Senses
197
The Sense of Taste
201
The Sense of Smell
203
Organic Sensations
204
The Sense of Sight
204
Simpler Forms of the Color Sense
209
Visual Sensations as Related to the Stimulus
212
Color Mixing
214
What Are the Elementary Visual Sensations?
216
Theories of Color Vision
220
Adaptation
224
Rod and Cone Vision
226
After-images
226
Contrast
227
The Sense of Hearing
228
Comparison of Sight and Hearing
231
Theory of Hearing
234
Senses of Bodily Movement
236
Exercises
241
References
243
CHAPTER XI
ATTENTION
244
The Stimulus, or What Attracts Attention
245
The Motor Reaction in Attention
248
The Shifting of Attention
251
Laws of Attention and Laws of Reaction in General
256
Sustained Attention
257
Distraction
259
Doing Two Things at Once
260
The Span of Attention
261
Summary of the Laws of Attention
262
Attention and Degree of Consciousness
265
The Management of Attention
267
Theory of Attention
268
Exercises
270
References
270
CHAPTER XII
INTELLIGENCE
271
Intelligence Tests
272
Performance Tests
275
Group Testing
276
Some Results of the Intelligence Tests
278
Limitations of the Intelligence Tests
281
The Correlation of Abilities
288
General Factors in Intelligence
285
Special Aptitudes
288
Heredity of Intelligence and of Special Aptitudes
289
Intelligence and the Brain
292
Exercises
294
References
295
CHAPTER XIII
LEARNING AND HABIT FORMATION
296
Acquired Reactions Are Modified Native Reactions
297
Acquired Tendencies
299
Animal Learning
302
Summary of Animal Learning
310
Human Learning
311
Human Compared with Animal Learning
313
Learning by Observation
317
The Learning of Complex Practical Performances
321
Higher Units and Overlapping
323
Moderate Skill Acquired in the Ordinary Day's Work
326
Habit
328
Exercises
330
References
331
CHAPTER XIV
MEMORY
332
The Process of Memorizing
333
Economy in Memorizing
333
Unintentional Learning
346
Retention
348
Recall
364
Recognition
357
Memory Training
360
Exercises
364
References
365
CHAPTER XV
ASSOCIATION AND MENTAL IMAGERY
366
What Can Be Recalled
366
Memory Images
368
Limitations of Imagery
371
The Question of Non-Sensory Recall
373
Hallucinations
375
Free Association
376
Controlled Association
381
Examples of Controlled Association
384
Exercises
386
References
388
CHAPTER XVI
THE LAWS OF ASSOCIATION
389
The Law of Exercise
389
The Law of Effect
391
Limitations of the Law of Exercise
393
Association by Similarity
395
Association by Contiguity
396
The Law of Combination
398
The Law of Combination in Recall
413
The Laws of Learning in Terms of the Neurones
414
Exercises
418
References
418
CHAPTER XVII
PERCEPTION
418
Some Definitions
421
The Difference Between Perception and Sensation
423
Perception and Image
425
Perception and
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