History of Psychology

  • Hippocrates
    400 BCE

    Hippocrates

    He believed mental illness came from the brain, not gods or magic. This changed how people viewed mental health.
  • Aristotle
    350 BCE

    Aristotle

    He studied memory, emotions, and learning. His ideas influenced psychology for centuries.
  • Rene Descartes

    Rene Descartes

    He believed the mind and body are separate but connected. This idea shaped early psychology.
  • Wilhelm Wundt

    Wilhelm Wundt

    He opened this first psychology lab. This is when psychology officially became a science.
  • William James

    William James

    He focused on how behavior helps people adapt. He believed actions have a purpose.
  • Sigmund Freud

    Sigmund Freud

    He introduced the unconscious mind. he believed hidden thoughts influence behavior.
  • Ivan Pavlov

    Ivan Pavlov

    He discovered that learning can happen through association. His dogs learned to react to sounds.
  • John B. Watson

    John B. Watson

    He believed psychology should only study observable behavior. This started behaviorism.
  • Little Albert Experiment

    Little Albert Experiment

    This experiment showed that fear can be learned through conditioning.
  • B.F. Skinner

    B.F. Skinner

    He studied how rewards and punishment affect behavior. This helped explain habits.
  • Abraham Maslow

    Abraham Maslow

    He created the hierarchy of needs. He believed basic needs come before personal growth.
  • Carl Rogers

    Carl Rogers

    He believed people grow best with support and understanding. He focused on empathy in therapy.
  • Cognitive Revolution

    Cognitive Revolution

    Psychologists started focusing on thinking, memory, and problem solving again.
  • Stanford Prison Experiment

    Stanford Prison Experiment

    This study showed how situations and roles can strongly affect behavior.
  • Decade of the Brain

    Decade of the Brain

    Psychologists focused more on the brain and how it controls behavior.