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Structuralism: Psychology’s First School of Thought
January 26, 2018 Kendra Cherry Comments Offon Structuralism: Psychology’s

First School of Thought
Structuralism is regarded as the earliest school of thought in psychology. While

structuralism is usually associated with Wilhelm Wundt, it was actually his
student, Edward Bradley Titchener, Who was largely responsible for presenting
structuralism as history remembers it.
Let’s take a closer look at structuralism, how it formed, and influence it had on
psychology.
A Brief History of Structuralism
Psychology itself did not emerge as as a discipline separate from biology and
philosophy until the late 1800s. It was the founding of the very first experimental
psychology laboratory in Leipzig, Germany that formally established psychology
as a separate science. It was the scientist or Wilhelm Wundt who was
responsible for establishing the lab, which is why he is widely regarded as the
father of psychology.
Wundt was interested in studying the inner workings of the mind in an objective
and scientific manner. He utilized a method known as introspection which
involves training observers to carefully analyze the contents of their thoughts.
While his methods don’t stand up to the rigor of today scientific methods, they
did help make psychology a more scientific discipline.
Wundt’s background was in physiology, which is why many of his experiments
involved things such as looking at reaction times and sensory processes. Wundt
Believe that he could carefully analyze each element of the mind, breaking
things down into smaller parts, in order to understand how the mind works. In
much the same way as a physiologist might look at different parts of the body in
order to understand how these parts function together.
During this period of history, many areas of science were focused on what is
known as elementalism, or breaking things down to their smallest possible parts.
This approach had led to a number of important discoveries (consider our
understanding of things such as cells, molecules, atoms, and DNA), so it is not
surprising that this same approach entered the emerging field of psychology as
well.
Structuralism: The Basics
How can structuralism be defined? Structuralism was, essentially, the study of

all of the many elements of human consciousness.
Much like we might break down all of the parts of a substance into its many
different chemical components, Wundt believed that consciousness was also
made up of numerous parts. Through his process of introspection, he believed
that he could scientifically analyze and identify the various elements of the
human mind.
The introspection process involved presenting some type of stimulus to a highly

trained observer. The observer would then report on their experience, including
thoughts, feelings, sensations, and perceptions.
While Wundt is credited as the founder of structuralism, he didn’t not use the
term to refer to his approach. Instead, he called his to his approach to
psychology as volunteerism.
It was actually his student, Edward B. Titchener, who coined the term
structuralism. Titchener is credited with introducing Wundt’s work in America,
yet critics note that he largely misrepresented much of his mentors work.
Despite this, Titchener became a strong force in early psychology and is
responsible for establishing the very first school of thought in psychology.
What Impact Did Structuralism Have on Psychology?
Thanks to Titchener’s influence, structuralism became and important force

during the early years of psychology. But it was not without its critics. The
school of thought known as functionalism soon emerged, partially in response to
structuralism. Rather than simply looking at the parts of consciousness,
functionalism stressed looking at the purpose and function of human thought and
behavior.
The two schools of thought became competing elements in psychology. The

psychologist Mary Whiton Calkins called for a reconciliation between the two
approaches, but Wundt famously derided functionalism as merely “literature”
while American psychologist and philosopher William James dismissed
structuralism as having “no thought.”
While many schools of thought continue to have an influence today,

structuralism essentially disappeared when Titchener died.
While structuralism was relatively short-lived, it played an important role in the

development of early psychology and had an influence on the emergence of
experimental psychology. So why study structuralism if it has been largely
replaced by other schools of thought such as psychoanalysis, behaviorism, and
cognitive psychology? Structuralism still has an important role to play during the
beginnings of psychology, and understanding how it emerged can give students a
greater appreciation of how psychology developed into what it is today.
References:
Schultz, DP & Schultz, SE. A History of Modern Psychology. Boston, MA: Cengage
Learning; 2016.

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Search for:

HOMEHISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGYStructuralism: Psychology’s First School of

Structuralism: Psychology’s First School of Thought

January 26, 2018 Kendra Cherry Comments Offon Structuralism: Psychology’s

Structuralism is regarded as the earliest school of thought in psychology. While

A Brief History of Structuralism

Structuralism: The Basics

How can structuralism be defined? Structuralism was, essentially, the study of

The introspection process involved presenting some type of stimulus to a highly

What Impact Did Structuralism Have on Psychology?

Thanks to Titchener’s influence, structuralism became and important force

The two schools of thought became competing elements in psychology. The

While many schools of thought continue to have an influence today,

While structuralism was relatively short-lived, it played an important role in the

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