Functionalism

Antecedents of Functionalism

Functionalism as a school arose as a protest against structuralism. Many antecedent forces were
said to be working behind the birth of this system. Those antecedent forces can be divided into two
classes-evolutionary theory and the psychology of William James.

Evolutionary theory

Spenser, Darwin and Galton were the three primary evolutionary sources that affected the
formulation of functionalism.

Herbert Spencer besides being a major figure in social thought, sociology, and social psychology,
Spencer is also known for producing the first complete evolutionary psychology. He observed
that changes in an individual’s life that occur as a result of learning are very similar to those that
occur in other species via selection.

Charles Darwin It was Charles Darwin and his ideas pertaining to evolution that brought about
a shift in the focus of psychology from the structure to the function of consciousness. Explaining
the observed variations among members of the same species, Darwin postulated that this
variability was inheritable. He described the process of natural selection and explained how it leads
to the survival of only those who are best suited for a given environment. Those who are not, are
eliminated by the same process. At all times, thus, a struggle for survival takes place — the ones
who survive are those that are able to successfully adapt to the demands of their changing
environment. Those unable to adapt, on the other hand, do not survive. With his work on evolution
and natural selection, Darwin became an important antecedent to the rise of functionalism. Being
an astute observer of both animal behavior as well as morphology, through his work on evolution,
Darwin was able to theorise the continuity between humans and animals. This was an important
development as it justified the continuation of the study of animal psychology. Darwin’s
evolutionary emphasis on adapting to one’s environment has been used by psychologists both as
a direct as well as indirect explanation of behavior, via instincts and principles of reinforcement
respectively.

Francis Galton Inspired by his cousin Darwin, chose to study heredity in human beings. More
specifically, he studied the inheritance of intelligence. In 1869, he published Hereditary Genius,
which described numerous studies on individual differences in intelligence. Galton’s work opened
the way for the emergence of the field of mental testing, a major aspect of the field of psychology.

The development of the first truly American school of thought of psychology, Functionalism,
is largely credited to the work of William James, considered to be the greatest American
psychologist. James launched and popularized psychology and made the scholars of the day realize
that this new branch had ample scope. James was also one of the major antecedent forces in
movements like functionalism, mental testing and behaviorism.

William James received his in medicine from Harvard University. He taught anatomy and
physiology at Harvard University. In fact during this period he became interested in experimental
psychology. William James established the first psychology laboratory in 1875 for presenting
undergraduate students a course entitled “The relations between physiology and psychology”.

William James wrote the book ‘The Principles of Psychology’ (1890), which eventually became
the central tenet of functionalism. According to which, the goal of psychology is to study how
people adapt to their environment, instead of examining the elements of consciousness.

In 1889 he became professor of Psychology at Harvard University. Soon afterwards his interest
shifted to philosophical problems and this marked his greatest period of productivity. In 1897 he
became professor of philosophy and published 6 major books. Thus academic position of William
James varied from a psychologist to a philosopher. During his psychology years he taught some
students who later on became eminent psychologists. E.L. Thorndike, R.S. Woodworth and James
Angel were among those.

William James Psychology emphasized upon applied or functional aspects of psychology. He

emphasized upon what was called pragmatism which stated that validation of any knowledge
in psychology must be done in terms of its utilities or values. In that sense he has been
considered as a pragmatist. As a pragmatist he had emphasized upon usefulness of a psychological
study.

His entire psychology can be explained as under:

Definition and subject matter of psychology: According to James “psychology is the science of
mental life, both of its phenomena and of their conditions”. By mental life he meant
consciousness. By phenomena he meant the subject matter that was found in experience. However
his concept of consciousness was different from structuralists for James consciousness was a
continuous and dynamic complex and not something static and of discrete bits joint together.

Methods: According to James psychology was a part of natural science and therefore the study of
human beings must be considered in their adaptation and readaptation to the environment. James
made use of the following three methods:

 Introspection: James considered introspection to be a natural gift of a person for which no

training is required .
 Experimentation: James was never a experimentalist although he made little use of
experiments he acknowledged the importance of experiments.
  Comparative method: this was a not a primary method but a subsidiary method to
introspection and experimentation. James used this method to study the mental life of
animals, children and even insane people.

Emotion: In explaining emotions James developed a theory known as the James-Lange theory of
emotion. James said that after perception of emotion provoking stimulus, emotional behavior
occurs and this is followed by emotional experience. Thus we see a bear, run away and therefore,
we become afraid. The paradigm becomes: Stimulus-Response-Experience. James also
emphasized that emotions behavior/response also include external reactions (running) as well as
internal reactions such as (change in BP, heart rate etc) this theory clearly outlined the interaction
of body and mind

Instincts: By instincts James meant unlearnt patterns of reacting. Influenced by Darwin he said
that instincts facilitate both human and animal in natural way. He also made it clear that human
beings, as compared to other species have more instincts as compared to other species.

The self: for James self was equivalent to what me today call as personality. By the term self,
james meant ‘me’ or empirical self which consisted of a hierarchy of three aspects. At the bottom
of hierarchy was material self (our body and personal possessions), then comes social self (formed
on the basis of recognition of a person by other) and the top of hierarchy is spiritual self (various
psychological functions taken together)

Memory: James considered the ability to memorize something as the special characteristic of the
brain structure. He divided memory into two parts primary-short term memory and secondary-long
term memory

Mind body problem: James believed in the existence of both mind and body. He was an
interactionist and not a prallelist like Wundt. He believed that mind and body interact with each
other and not that they run simply parallel to each other.

Functionalists did not focus on the structure or composition of the mind; rather, they tried to study
it in terms of its functionality. Functionalism looked at the mind as comprising numerous functions
and processes that have consequences for an individual in the real world, and aimed to discern how
these mental processes help individuals adapt to their environment.

Functionalism as a new school of thought arose in response to the already existing experimental
psychology and structural psychology, both of which were seen as very limited in terms of their
focus of study. Both of these systems failed to answer something that was imperative to the
functionalists. Functionalists were looking for answers to questions like “what is the function of
the mind?” and “how does the mind do what it does?”

Functionalists were typically interested in understanding how individuals’ behaviors and

consciousness were functional in helping them adapt to their environment. That is, they focused
on the utilitarian value of human consciousness and behavior. This emphasis on functionality of
mental processes and behaviors eventually led to the functionalists developing an increasing
interest in applying psychological principles to day-to-day problems concerning how individuals
adapt to and successfully function in different environments. The functionalist movement, thus,
played a crucial role in the rapid development of applied psychology in America.

Functionalism was not just an opposition to existing perspectives. Functionalism is understood as

a set of values and procedures that emphasizes adaptability and empirically established
relationships, its influence can be seen on psychology even today.

Founders of Chicago’s Functional Psychology also referred to by James as the “Chicago

School.”

JOHN DEWEY, JAMES ROWLAND ANGELL and HARVEY CARR

Although William James had set the stage, Functionalism, as a school was formally formed by the
psychologists of Chicago University. Two main psychologists John Dewey and James Rowland
Angell are considered as the founders who came to teach psychology at the University of Chicago.
Harvey Carr is considered as the developer rather than founder.

John Dewey

Dewey published a book ‘Psychology’ in 1886. Ten years later in 1896, a critical starting point for
functionalism was the publication of John Dewey’s article The Reflex Arc Concept in Psychology
in Psychological Review (1896). This article is referred to as the “opening shot” of the functionalist
movement. The reflex arc refers to the connection between a sensory stimuli and motor responses
to it. In his paper, Dewey criticized both Wundt and Titchener for attempting to break down
behaviors and conscious experiences into discrete elements. He spoke against the ideas of
psychological molecularism, elementism, and reductionism associated with the reflex arc. While
advocates of the reflex arc contended that a given unit of behavior is limited to a stimulus and
individual’s response to it, Dewey proposed the notion that reflexes form circles rather than arcs.
The former viewpoint, for example, views a child’s behavior of withdrawing their hand from a
flame as one unit of behavior. Dewey, however, reasoned that because of this one experience with
fire, the child’s perception of the flame changes. Initially attracted by it, the child is now repelled
by the same flame. He, thus, argued that perception and movement should be considered as one
unit.

In essence, Dewey argued that just as consciousness cannot be studied in terms of its basic
elements, a reflexive response cannot be broken down into smaller sensorimotor elements. To
engage in such artificial and reductionist analysis is to cause behavior to become meaningless.
Dewey, thus, was opposed to such analysis of behavior. He proposed studying behavior in terms
of the role it plays in helping organisms adapt to their environment. The subject matter of
psychology was, therefore, identified as the total organism as it functions in its environment. The
evolutionary perspective greatly influenced Dewey’s ideas on what psychology should study. The
evolutionary approach emphasizes organisms’ struggle for survival, and both consciousness and
behavior play a role in ensuring one’s survival. It, therefore, makes sense for functionalism to
study these processes in relation to survival and adaptation. Dewey, however, never referred to his
psychology by the name of functionalism. Although he was against structuralism’s attempts at
breaking down behavior and consciousness into discrete elements, at the same time, he did not
believe that structure and function in this regard could be studied independently. It was other
psychologists, including James Rowland Angell, who advocated structuralism and functionalism
as two opposing forces. Dewey’s major contribution to the field of psychology, thus, was his
development of the philosophical framework for a new system. He also greatly impacted
subsequent work in the area by inspiring other psychologists and researchers. Angell gained the
leadership of the functionalist movement after Dewey retired from the University of Chicago in
1904.

James Rowland Angell

American psychologist who transformed functionalism from a movement into a working school.
James Rowland Angell succeeded in making the psychology department at the University of
Chicago an influential place so much so, that the department became an important training ground
for functional psychologists. In 1904, Angell published a textbook titled Psychology. In it, Angell
contended that the role of consciousness is to help an organism adapt and the goal of psychology,
therefore, should be to study how the mind helps in the process.

Angell is said to have transformed functionalism from a movement into a working school, despite
his protestations that the movement was too broad to be embodied within any single framework.
In 1904, he wrote a highly successful book called Psychology: An Introductory Study of Structure
and Functions of Human Consciousness. Within four years, it went through four editions,
evidence of the growing popularity of functionalism. His most important contribution to
functionalist psychology was his 1906 presidential address to American Psychological Association
entitled "The Province of Functional Psychology." In this speech, he made three major points,
drawing the battle lines between functionalism and structuralism. First, functionalism studies
mental operations, not mental elements. Second, functionalism views consciousness in terms of its
utility, mediating between an organism's needs and the pressures of its environment. And third,
functionalism regards mind and body as an inseparable unit

Later, in 1906, in his presidential address to the American Psychological Association (APA),
Angell highlighted what he believed was the “province” of functional psychology. Angell argued
that functionalism was not something new to psychology; rather, it was structuralism that was at
odds with the older and functional form of psychology. He further emphasized the following three
themes of the functionalist movement:
1) While structuralism focuses on mental elements, functionalism seeks to study mental
operations. Functionalists aimed to elaborate upon how mental processes work, what they do, and
under what conditions.

2) Functional psychology is the psychology of the functional role of consciousness. That is,
consciousness is seen in terms of its functional, practical utility as a mediator between an
organism’s needs and the demands of their environment. Angell reasoned that since consciousness
has survived over time, it must be because it serves a crucial function for the organism. Functional
psychologists were, thus, urged to identify what this function was, not only for consciousness, but
for specific cognitive processes as well.

3) Functional psychology also encompasses psychophysical (mind-body) relations. It focuses on

the total relationship of the organism to its environment. As a result, functionalists do not recognize
a distinction between mind and body. On the contrary, it regards them as belonging to the same
order, making transfer from one to the other relatively easy.

Harvey Carr

Harvey Carr entered the picture at a time when functionalism had been established as a separate
school of thought, no longer just an opposition to structuralism. He, thus, worked on elaborating
the theoretical positions earlier put forward by Angell. It was under Carr that functionalism at
Chicago gained maximum prominence as a formal system of psychology. Other contemporary
schools that were also coming up, like behaviourism, Gestalt psychology, and psychoanalysis,
were regarded by Carr as concerned with Functionalism only a restricted portion of the larger field
of psychology. He did not believe that these had much to add to functionalism, which was seen as
a broader, more encompassing viewpoint to psychology. He expressed his confidence in functional
psychology by hailing it as the American psychology Carr further refined functionalism with the
publication of his book Psychology in 1925. His work emphasized two points: 1) Mental activities
like memory, perception, judgement, etc. were identified as the subject matter of psychology. 2)
The function of such mental activities was thought to be to acquire, retain, organize, and evaluate
experiences and then to use them to guide one’s action. Specific actions in which mental activities
appeared were referred to by Carr as “adaptive” or “adjustive” behavior. Like other functionalists
before him, Carr, thus, propagated the importance of mental processes over content and elements
of consciousness. Further, he defined what such mental processes entail and what they accomplish.
By 1925, these notions had become accepted facts rather than areas of dispute in psychology. As
functionalist psychology became mainstream psychology, most psychologists at that time began
considering themselves functionalists to varying degrees. As a result, the label ‘functionalist’
started losing its significance. During that time, a psychologist was simply a psychologist. Their
functionalist viewpoint as part of their identity as a psychologist was not required to be mentioned.
With regard to methodology, Carr was accepting of both introspective and experimental methods.
Like Wundt, he believed that cultural creations (art, literature) can be sources of useful information
about mental activities that resulted in them.
Unlike structuralism, functionalism was not limited to a single methodology. However, the
emphasis of functionalism on objectivity led to the use of various objective controls when
introspection was to be used. Functionalists also gathered information from studies based on both
human and animal subjects. The functionalists played a major role in bringing about a shift in the
focus of psychology from the subjective study of the human mind and consciousness to the
objective study of observable behavior. They redefined American psychology to such an extent
that it eventually ended up focusing only on overt behavior, completely doing away with anything
that had to do with subjective concepts like the mind. Thus, functionalism paved the way for the
next revolutionary movement in psychology, which was the rise of Watson’s behavioral
psychology

Associationism and behaviourism: contribution of Watson

Associationism was never a formal and distinct school of psychology. It existed as a movement
both prior and subsequent to the emergence of the experimental psychology of Wundt. As a
movement, it arose from British empiricism. Older associationism and modern associationism
were the two forms of associationism.

In a formal sense, associationism started with David Hartley, a British philosopher. Later on,
philosophers like James Mill, John S. Mill, Alexander Bain and Herbert Spencer developed and
elaborated it. From these older associationists, the experimental psychologists took over their
various principles like contiguity, similarity, etc., and applied in their fields of investigation like
learning, remembering, forgetting, etc.

Modern associationists like Ebbinghaus, Pavlov, Bekheterev and Thorndike emphasized upon the
association of stimulus and response that they considered as the fundamental principle of learning.
Ebbinghaus invented nonsense syllables and forgetting curve. Pavlov and Bekhterev emphasized
upon such association by formulating theory of conditioned reflex and motor conditioning
respectioely. Thorndike's emphasis upon such association led to what was called connectionism.
Connectionism, as a system, defined psychology as the study of stimulus-response connections or
bonds held together by associations.

Behaviorism (extreme form of associationism)

Pavlov, Watson, Skinner Behaviorism focuses only on the relation between observable behavior
and environmental events or stimuli. The idea was to make physical whatever others might have
called “mental.” Behaviorism may be considered an extreme version of associationism. It focuses
entirely on the association between the environment and an observable behavior.
Psychological Review in 1913 under the title Psychology as the Behaviourist view it marked the
official launching of behaviourism as a school and became known as behaviourists's manifesto.
The chief charateristics of behaviourism as outlined in this manifesto were as under :

(i) Psychology, for behaviourists, is a purely objective experimental branch of natural science.

(ii) Introspection forms no essential part of the methodology of psychology.

(iii) The study of consciousness does not yield any data of scientific importance. Hence, it should
be eliminated as the proper subject for investigation.

(iv) The proper subject-matter of psychology is both simple and complex behaviour.

Watson founded behaviourism in 1913 at John Hopkins University where he was chairman of the
department of psychology. This school was founded as a protest against structuralism and
functionalism. Due to its dominant position, it earned the nick-name of being second force in
psychology, the first force being psychoanalysis and third force was humanistic,
phenomenological and existential psychology.

Watsonian behaviourism ideology is listed below:

 Watsonian behaviourism had two subsystems--primary and secondary. Watsonian

primary behaviourism had two major aspects-positive aspect and negative aspect.

Watson's positive aspect was his emphasis upon objective psychology. He wanted to apply
the techniques and principles of animal psychology to human psychology. For him, the
study of behaviour rather than consciousness was the major source of data for
psychologists. Such aspect of behaviourism was termed as empirical behaviourism or
methodological behaviourism.

The negative aspect of Watsonian behaviourism was his rejection of introspective

psychology of Titchener and Wundt as well as Angell's functionalism. He rejected
introspective data of Titchener and lodged a strong protest against Angell's functionalism
because it had accepted introspective data by maintaining an interactionistic role. In 1919
Watson adopted a metaphysical position that denied the existence of mind or
consciousness. This was called as metaphysical or radical behaviourism.

 Definition of Psychology: For Watson, psychology is a branch of natural science that

studies human behaviour. In a very clearest sense Watson's system was an S-R (stimulus-
response) psychology. By stimulus, he meant, any object in the environment or any change
in bodily tissues themselves. By response, he meant, anything done by the organism.
Watson's behaviourism had two specific objectives- to make prediction about response
 after knowing the stimulus and to make prediction about the stimulus after knowing the
response..
 Methods of Psychology: Observation, Conditioned-reflex technique, Testing.
 Nature of the data: Watson always emphasized upon objective data which can be
quantitatively analysed.
 Mind-body problem: Watson as well as other behaviourists denied mind or
consciousness. They pointed out--one body and no mind. According to his stand,
psychology was concerned only with bodily responses- responses of muscles and glands
to stimuli. Thus Watson’s behaviourism was a ‘mind-less’ psychology.