Functionalism and structuralism differ in their primary focus. Functionalists were concerned with the operation of the mind as a whole and its purpose in helping an organism adapt. In contrast, structuralists focused on breaking down mental processes into their individual component parts.

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Championed by figures like William James, functionalism is a psychological perspective that investigates how mental activities help an organism adapt to its environment. This school of thought was heavily influenced by Darwin's theory of evolution, proposing that behaviors, like physical traits, are naturally selected because they serve a function for survival and reproduction. Functionalism focuses on the operation of the mind as a whole, rather than breaking it down into its individual components, which was the aim of structuralism.

Functionalism in Psychology

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020, April 22). Psychology (2nd ed.). OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction

OpenStax Psychology (2nd ed.) Textbook

Functional psychology was established by American scholars William James, John Dewey, and Charles Sanders Peirce. Their work was shaped by Charles Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection, which they used as a framework for understanding an organism's characteristics and behaviors.

Founders of Functional Psychology

Within the framework of functionalism and evolutionary theory, adaptation refers to a trait that serves a specific function for an organism's survival and reproduction. Such traits are believed to have been preserved through the process of natural selection.

Adaptation in Psychology

Comparison between Functionalism and Structuralism

A psychologist observes that the behavior of 'play' is common among the young of many mammal species. If this psychologist is guided by the principles of functionalism, which of the following questions would be the most central to their investigation?

In her theoretical work, Mary Whiton Calkins demonstrated how the distinct psychological frameworks of structuralism and functionalism could both be utilized to understand and explain self-psychology.

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