STRUCTURALISM, FUNCTIONALISM, AND INTROSPECTION 1

Structuralism, Functionalism, and Introspection: Contributions to Modern Psychology

Hossam Youssef

Grand Canyon University

PSY-810

Dr. Stacey Bridges

September 22, 2021

Structuralism, Functionalism, and Introspection: Contributions to Modern Psychology

Introduction

Later in the 1900s, Psychology developed as an own field and topic, being very different

from philosophy and biology in both form and organization. And with this, numerous ideas

began to hypothesize about the basic principles of human behavior. In the traditional

understanding of theories, human behavior was a challenging subject, and there were a variety of

methods for how to learn more about it. In order to examine the human mind, theorists have

come up with numerous theoretical approaches, including the theories of structuralism and

functionalism, which are completely different in their approach.

It is common to give credit for the creation of the scientific field of psychology to

Wilhelm Wundt, who is known for starting the first experimental psychology laboratory, the

Laboratory for Experimental Psychology. His training and teaching would come to have

enormous influence on the shape of American psychology. At the time, no other country could

offer graduate training in psychology. First-generation students returned to America and didn't

like Wundt's system, so they built a new one to fit their American personalities. Psychologists

became annoyed with the previous forms of mentalism and so came up with a more objective

method. Meanwhile, another set of theorists had come to despise Wundt's theory, believing it to

be far too artificial and analytic.

Introspection

Antecedents and Major Contributors:

Weger et al. (2019) stated that since the inception of psychology as an academic

discipline, scholars have utilized introspective methods in psychological research for years, and

it continues to be an integral part of developing theories and interpreting data. In current times,

introspection is an unfamiliar notion that has philosophical roots in the empiricist view that the

ability to know oneself is derived from self-observation that is comparable to observation of the

outside world. Dazinger (2001) stated that internal observation by a mind was questioned at the

time by both idealist and positivist philosophers, but it was at first considered an acceptable

notion. Introspection was also problematic because of this and was found to be inessential.

Others believed the function was small, such as Wilhelm Wundt, who thought it would be

restricted to laboratory situations where the conditions of internal observation could match those

of external observation. Araujo (2021) said that although Wundt earned his PhD in neuro-

physiology and had medical training, he was an instructor in philosophy. The fact that the

psychological concepts and theories he developed emerged within an interdisciplinary context

that no longer exists meant that his work fell out of fashion with modern psychologists.

Others, in particular throughout the early 1900s, were more optimistic that complex

mental processes might be studied introspectively. Behaviorism, however, disagreed, eschewing

introspective evidence in science altogether. The “verbal report” took its place, which was

considered an objective data point without a consideration of mind or awareness. The underlying

reasons for these findings were either blamed on medical problems or, more likely, on
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unexplained ‘under-the-radar' conduct. For many years, introspection was essentially forgotten as

a topic in psychological literature. People have recently started to acknowledge that introspection

is completely dependent on social and cultural variables.

In addition to a self-examination, introspection is used to refer to a study approach that

was initially introduced by Wilhelm Wundt, a German psychologist. Wundt's method instructed

participants to teach themselves to investigate the subject of their thoughts as deeply and

thoroughly as possible. Some experts say the word introspection, which was commonly used to

describe Wundt's approaches, is inaccurate. Introspection suggests an introspective degree of

seeking, but Wundt's approaches were actually more like formal experiments. Wundt's method

has a clear advantage over introspection, as it uses his technique of getting patients to associate

words with movements. In Wundt's lab, sensory stimuli were delivered to expert observers who

had been well-educated. Wundt thought that participants in an experiment should maintain a

highly attentive state of mind and exercise full control over the stimuli and the experimental

environment.

Multiple observations were made. What were these observations trying to prove?

Wundt's ideas were that the contents of the human mind consist of two components: senses and

feelings. Wundt said that academics who wished to study the mind were forced to do more than

merely isolate its structure or components. Instead, one must investigate how individuals go

about their daily lives in order to truly understand the world. Even though Titchener, who studied

under Wundt, used this method, some people believe he made up most of Wundt's ideas.

Titchener was fascinated by looking at individual experiences and described every detail of his

own thoughts. In contrast, Wundt was interested in examining the total conscious experience.
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Application in Psychology Today:

In their article, Weger et al. (2018) argued that many of the perceived limits of

introspection (such as its allegedly subjective character and its post hoc status) are well-founded.

While introspection has lost popularity as a research tool, the advantages of self-reflection and

self-analysis are still to be discovered. Introspection is important to gaining insights about one's

personal mental occurrences, according to Trnka and Smelik (2020). The major benefit of first-

person observation is the ability to see the internal aspects of one's mental life, as opposed to

being limited to views of the exterior actions. Extensive applications of introspection have

already been effectively employed in various domains.Introspection is a valuable tool for

developing a better understanding of one's self. There's information that can't be attained in any

other manner. It provides a framework for connecting various events and their various reactions.

Wundt's revolutionary approaches contributed much to advance the goal of making psychology

more scientific, yet there were significant shortcomings to the introspective method. The practice

of introspection, which Titchener was an outspoken advocate for, has especially been ridiculed

for its rampant usage. Introspection, in the view of schools of thought like functionalism and

behaviorism, has little scientific credibility and impartiality. Results are impossible to evaluate or

reproduce, as the procedure is entirely subjective.

To examine your own feelings and conduct, introspection is a powerful technique.

Introspection is employed in psychotherapy and utilized as a method of assisting clients to

acquire awareness of their own thoughts and behavior. Despite Wundt's important contributions

to experimental psychology, its researchers have found that the many disadvantages of

employing introspection as an experimental approach outweigh the benefits.

Structuralism

Antecedents and Major Contributors:

The human mind has many components, which Wundt and Titchener hoped to learn

about through introspection. These two scientists both held the view that the classification of

experiences and sentiments was a vital component of comprehending humanity (Chung &

Hyland, 2012). Wundt disagreed with Titchener, who viewed pictures as a subset of mental

components. In their study, Wundt and Titchener both employed experimental methods. Despite

this, Wundt was of the opinion that psychology could not be studied exclusively as an

experimental science. He thought that naturalistic observation and historical analysis were

necessary for studying psychology. The authors, Gozli and Deng (2018), say that Edward B.

Titchener developed a structuralist theory of consciousness based on the practice of

introspection. This method was designed to develop a framework for categorizing experience. In

order to have its own domain, psychology needed to be handled using a taxonomy of

psychological categories instead of by thinking about psychological experience in terms of

physiological or non-conscious elements, or behavioral inclinations.

Titchener wanted to legitimize psychology as a reputable scientific discipline, and his

objective was to compare it to physics and chemistry. He was certain that research needed to be

done in a lab, which he viewed as analogous to conducting research in the fields of physics,

chemistry, and other hard sciences. Titchener's Structuralism in psychology is defined by his

opinion. He felt that everything a human might think, feel, or do could be placed in a table with

the elements on the periodic table as a guide. Titchener thought it was necessary to know the

properties of each portion of the mind but not how those pieces came together as a whole. He
STRUCTURALISM, FUNCTIONALISM, AND INTROSPECTION 7

believed as if each piece was understood, all one would need to do is study how all the pieces

work together and think about the origins of behavior and thoughts. Shook (1995) believes that

instrumentalism and functionalism originated from John Dewey's teleological conception of

intelligence and human action. The structuralism in psychology that Titchener defended in the

late 1890s contrasted with Wundt's functionalism. Yet, researches that provide a clearer and

more fundamental look at Wundt are also allowed, since they enable the clarification of Wundt's

basic premises.

The core principles of structuralism include the following; (1) study psychological

theories through the use of specific methods, (2) define psychological phenomena by cataloguing

and classifying data, (3) use new knowledge gained about philosophical and psychological

problems to formulate general theories, (4) prove the relevance of psychology as a scientific

discipline, and (5) demonstrate the interconnectedness of the sciences and psychology. Titchener

thought that all scientific discoveries came from information gained via experience, which is

crucial to cognition and knowledge. He realized that there are several points of view that may be

applied to a same experience, which differ according to the person doing the experiencing. The

fundamental distinction for Titchener was that human experience was required to understand

psychological phenomena, but other physical disciplines didn't need to depend on human

judgment.

Titchener got disappointed when he realized that his work was inadequate and that he had

overlooked or underestimated some of the mental processes involved in human experience. He

concluded that emotions were just a consequence of pictures and sensations, rather than

comprising three key components (images, sensations, and affections). On the other hand,

Titchener considered the idea that feeling emotions may range from good to bad sensations. He
STRUCTURALISM, FUNCTIONALISM, AND INTROSPECTION 8

further theorized that pictures may be classified as a form of sensation. For Titchener, human

experience was less concrete and better described as abstract and continuous rather than distinct

and discrete. In a book published in 2011, Moulines asserted that structuralism is not much of a

movement. Structuralists are said to be a group of people who are united in their beliefs on

science, yet are often vastly divided in other areas. Most of their endeavors aim to explain issues

in a range of scientific areas, but they also concentrate on rebuilding the ideas in those areas.

This assortment of individuals includes not only philosophers, but also several scientists from

various academic fields who are interested in implementing the general theory in their own field.

A lot of structuralist literature consists of case studies.

Application in Psychology Today:

Defending introspection as an objective, scientific approach was a challenge. It was

believed that people will give incorrect information about their emotions and experiences. In

addition, structuralism pays little attention to personal and emotional growth, individual

diversity, the progress of knowledge, and everyday application. Behaviorism, since it focused on

what could be observed, concentrated on the connection between the conduct of people and what

they experienced in their environment. The knowledge gained about learning, skills, and

behavior origins was really profound. Behaviorism was inherently scientific because of the

scientific character of its techniques, namely because of its quantitative and measurable

character. Behaviorists, who saw mental processes as inaccessible, disagreed with structuralists

on the importance of the internal. Behaviorists, who have concentrated on environment-based

behavioral occurrences, examine how conduct affects one's surroundings. Introspection

techniques didn't work nearly as well as this strategy did.

Though structuralism was too inflexible to last, it created a critical pathway for

psychology in the future as stated by Schultz and Schultz (2016). Titchener led the battle in

which psychology finally became recognized as a hard science. He was the first to wage this

long battle. He further dealt with relevant matters in psychology, such attention, connection,

meaning, and emotion. Despite not inventing a mental elements' periodic table, his approaches,

which rely on empiricism, are still widely employed today in psychology. Whatever school of

thought you may be a part of, contemporary psychology has shown us that structuralism

underpins all forms of therapeutic intervention. To find out how all your experiences throughout

your life fit together. A wide range of academic disciplines has contributed to understanding

subjective and retrospective feelings and perceptions, which is the foundation of language and

everything it encompasses.

Functionalism

Antecedents and Major Contributors:

The start of functionalism began with the impact of John Locke's political philosophy on

the American and French Constitutions. His opinions on education have influenced every scholar

who has followed in his footsteps. No intrinsic concepts exist at birth in the mind. When we are

born, our mind is a blank slate that takes in a number of sensory inputs. Everything we know

comes from our senses. The mind's capacity to store and correlate a range of sensory inputs and

connections gives rise to new knowledge. In turn, the intellect is docile. Reality is how the world

seems to us. The senses provide the mind with elements to portray that reality. The contents of

this file are separate from the rest of the research materials. The information in one's thoughts
STRUCTURALISM, FUNCTIONALISM, AND INTROSPECTION 10

that describes the item one is seeing or hearing. We may obtain thoughts by using our senses to

gather ideas and then thinking about and evaluating them. Knowledge is knowledge, not

anything related to our senses.

Unlike Wundt, who tried to understand the nature of consciousness, William James and

his functionalist associates focused on what he called the functions that animals and humans

evolved, which in this case means knowing why humans and animals have formed the mental

characteristics they have (Hunt, 1993). For James, what you think about only matters in how you

act. "My thinking is first and last and always for the sake of my action," he wrote in his

psychology textbook (James, 1890). Charles Darwin's (1809-1882) concept of natural selection

helped inspire James and the other Functionalists, who believed that physical traits evolved

because they had a beneficial impact on the individual or group. The functionalists thought that

Darwin's theory was applicable to all aspects of human nature, not only physical traits. The brain,

according to functionalists, has evolved to fulfill a specific role in human experience.

Hergenhahn and Henley (2013) explained that the concept of functionalism began with

James who viewed psychology as studying how behavior impacts society, and therefore it had a

specific focus on studying function. A major tenant of functionalism is that mental processes

help organisms adapt to their surroundings. Functionalists focused on the functions of the entire

mind, not just specific components, as the structuralists did. James, like Wundt, thought that

introspection was a valid way to investigate mental processes, but James also employed more

objective techniques, including the use of recording equipment and more formal studies of

physiological and anatomical factors.

Functionalism's most important member was William James. The important groundwork

of modern psychology was largely his work, but he left no “school” of thought because he was
STRUCTURALISM, FUNCTIONALISM, AND INTROSPECTION 11

not able to take his theories farther. He supported some of the functionalist's principles, and he

was one of the most famous American psychologists. According to James, who was materialist

and a supporter of evolution, science was in direct conflict with the idea of free will.

Additionally, he claimed that free will transcends science. Choices can be seen in voluntary

behavior. Behavior management requires managing our thoughts about how we behave. “Action

ideas” might lead to action or are intentionally restrained. The habits and instincts that define the

individual are outside of free choice, according to James. A habit becomes engrained when one

continues doing it, and frequent repetition can reinforce one's brain function. Instincts are

unrefined, acquired behaviors. It's a misconception that instincts are “blind and invariable” and

may be taught.

Application in Psychology Today:

The research into functionalism was mainly responsible for the advancements and

developments of the research into self-esteem, which has so far been beneficial to the global

community. Success divided by pretending equals self-esteem, according to James. For James,

we should be more confident in ourselves as our self-esteem rises with each step we take in our

career. Our alternatives to boost self-esteem are to either reduce our expectations of ourselves or

do better at something. Our knowledge of how we react to our thoughts and the possible

connection to depression and self-esteem have both been made more comprehensive with this

hypothesis. The lessons learned from Functionalism are helping us understand how the brain

works and how the data is used by psychologists, counselors, and social workers, especially

when they interact with those who are suicidal or depressed.

Even though functionalism isn't technically a psychological school anymore, it has been

adopted and implemented into psychology and has influenced the discipline in numerous ways.

Functionalist research in the past was influential, giving rise to the discipline of evolutionary

psychology, which uses Darwinian ideas about natural selection to understand human and animal

behavior. The underlying idea of evolutionary psychology is that several human psychological

processes, including memory, emotion, and personality, are crucial in helping people adapt.

Evolutionary theory helps us explain many diverse behaviours, including how and why we are

attracted to certain people, how we generalize about people's characteristics, and the origins of

certain diseases.

Conclusion

Introspection, Structuralism, and Functionalism are essential in modern experimental

psychology and have each played an important role. The most noteworthy aspect of this work is

the application of science in several psychology fields and the fact that the tenets of behaviorism

have been impacted by these views. Through the use of structuralism and introspection,

psychology went from the humanities to the laboratory and, in the process, fostered the growth

of linguistics, cultural and social psychology. Functionalism, which included studies of children,

animals, and the disabled, further increased the range of information by include behavior studies.

In addition, it brought new study methods, such as puzzle boxes, mazes, and mental challenges.
STRUCTURALISM, FUNCTIONALISM, AND INTROSPECTION 13

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