I actually address this in my introductory psychology class on a low-level
(overly simplistic) fashion. I basically tell my intro students that
psychology arose from philosophy (similar questions are asked about human
nature, etc.), when those questions began to be tested scientifically
rather than explored only through logic and reason. That is, philosophy
uses deductive reasoning to explore questions about human nature, behavior,
cognition, etc., whereas psychology tests these hypotheses scientifically.
How well that applies as a distinction today could be debated on both sides.
David
At 11:21 AM 2/19/01 -0800, Will Will wrote:
>Here is a silly question that was raised at the end of
>class today that took me back: What differentiates the
>fields of psychoogy from philosophy? This was asked
>during my 12-week Intro course that started today and
>I ended up having to say that I would get back to
>them.
>
>Any opinions would be more than welcomed.
>
>William Frederick
>Adjunct Faculty, Lake Land College
>
>__________________________________________________
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David T. Wasieleski, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Psychology and Counseling
Valdosta State University
229-333-5620
http://chiron.valdosta.edu/dtwasieleski
"If you want to be somebody else
If you're tired of fighting battles with yourself
If you want to be somebody else
Change your mind..."
--Sister Hazel
"Change Your Mind"
