Philosophical Notioins

Psychology borrows much of the assumptions particularly from the universe and its occupants. It also uses substances and materials as well as matter in general to explain these theories at length. Accordingly, these theories have been infiltrated by philosophical notions that make them skewed.  Therefore, contemporary psychological theories have been influenced by philosophical assumptions where it is believed that many psychologists bring in other theories, approaches, and assumptions from other thinkers within and outside psychology, say philosophy as a way of supplementing their reasoning. For instance, psychologists rely on this philosophical notion that the abundance of things is ever changing with time paving way for new ones. This provides a platform to excogitate the extent to which philosophy has influenced the theories of psychology. In so doing, notions such as the permanency of things where philosophers reason that things are on the move and are shown in the present world. It becomes doubtful when it comes to those things that are disposable and replaceable.  These notions are, therefore, reflected especially in today's artistic works some of which are made of materials that have been discarded, others of the materials that are disposable and replaceable, thus confusing many in situations which do not allow psychologists to know if their interaction is stable or permanent (Heraclitus, 1979). This is also seen in Heraclitus’s notion when he puts that it is impossible to step two times into the same river, in which case, the whole world is all the time moving from one point to another as the river which is in motion throughout.

Accordingly, Heraclitus’ notion of the world is on a continuous change implies the theories of negations, meaning exists is and does not, and it is and at the same time it is not.  However, if it happens to be true, then perhaps this contradiction should be put in a simple language which is a really challenging notion as it defies both philosophical sense and a common sense. The contradiction here is when he brings the argument of stepping into the river and not stepping into the same river which is indeed a contradicting statement.  Certainly, we can step into the same river, but at the same time we do not step into the same river, it (the river) is and also is not itself. If nothing is permanent, then it certainly would follow that nothing is absolute; if nothing is permanent, then everything is ever changing.

On the other hand, gradual absorption of techniques and concepts into the psychologist’s original theoretical taste brings a transformation to both. By so doing, psychologists aim at maintaining their theoretical techniques to fill in the gaps their original reasoning was unable to fill.  For instance, Democritus’ atomic theory lessens the act that it is impossible to divide things into infinity and advocates for the eternal existing nature of void motion and space. He thought that the atoms are really impenetrable and their density is directly proportionate to their volume. He also argued that motions exist as a result of passive and active affection (Leibniz, 1988). He showed the distinction between primary motion and the secondary effects of this motion, that is, reaction and impulse. This forms the basis of the law of necessity which rules over all the things in nature. Following up his notion about atoms, he introduced the theory of images which impress human senses; from this influence, he deduced thought and sensation. Accordingly, this theory explains why men are incapable to understand the phenomena which we witness, and it is communicated from the impressions by some beings of enormous stature resembling the human figure which live in the air. He employed his theory in practical philosophy implying that happiness depends on an even temperament. From this belief, he deduced his prudential principles and moral principles. The utterances of this philosopher are unquestionably good, but they may lack some sense of reference in real life events. They, therefore, provide us with best evidence for the better understanding of moral learning and application in their past life. They also provide a clear image of the nature of activities that the Socrates engaged in. The best known philosophers also drew their quotations from the preceeding philosophers as a basis for their argument.

The reasoning that the world is made from perception and sensation is a clear indication of the influence philosophy has on psychology. Psychology brings a different view on what the two are where sensation is composed of ideas on how the brain reacts towards a certain stimuli. Perception, on the other hand, occurs when interpreting sensations in the brain, but there is no clean separation of sensations and perceptions even though they are related.  The difference is what happens out in the physical world and the internal events to which people react to stimuli. In psychology, the study of the relations between physical events and the related psychological experiences which is here referred to as psychophysics explores the relations between physical events and the related psychological experiences (Taylor, 1999). Using this reasoning for examination, there is an argument that those things that a person digests in the mind depict the entire world outside his or her soul. The fact that the interpretation of a sensation gives the image of the world outside brings a counter argument that perception and sensation are two sides of the same coin.