History of Psychology

Today, psychology is defined as "the scientific study of behavior and mental processes". Philosophical interest in the mind and behavior dates back to the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Persia, Greece, China, and India.

Learn more about early roots of psychology in the Boundless open textbook.

They say that psychology has a long past, but a short history. Learn more about how psychology began, its history through the years, and where it is today.

Many ancient cultures speculated on the nature of the human mind, soul, and spirit. Psychology as a scholarly study of the mind and behavior in Europe dates back to the Late Middle Ages. It was widely regarded to a branch of philosophy until the middle of the nineteenth century. During the last quarter of the nineteenth century, however, psychology in the West began to be seriously pursued as a scientific enterprise.

It's important to know about the history of psychology because as with any other discipline, it didn't develop in a vacuum, so it's useful to have some knowledge of the individuals and the schools.

One of the most complex and interesting fields of study is psychology. The human mind is an interesting place, that we're only just beginning to understand. Over the last 100 years, though, we have made great strides as a society in understanding what goes on inside the mind.

We have chosen to highlight some of the most influential psychologists, psychiatrists, therapists, and thinkers in history, giving a brief biography of their beginnings and their contributions to their profession.

This module provides an introduction and overview of the historical development of the science and practice of psychology in America. Ever-increasing specialization within the field often makes it difficult to discern the common roots.

387 BC Plato suggested that the brain is the mechanism of mental processes. 335 BC Aristotle suggested that the heart is the mechanism of mental.

A timeline of the history of psychology.