Final answer:
Wilhelm Wundt believed that analysis of the mind's structure through introspection could uncover the basic components of cognitive experiences. As a structuralist, he set up the first psychology lab, focusing on breaking down mental processes, an approach extended by his student, Edward Titchener.
Step-by-step explanation:
Wilhelm Wundt and Structuralism
Wilhelm Wundt, often considered the father of psychology, held the belief that the mind's structure could be understood by dissecting cognitive experiences into their basic components. As a structuralist, he pioneered the method of introspection, also referred to as 'internal perception', to observe and analyze the workings of consciousness. Under this framework, Wundt established the first psychology laboratory in Leipzig in 1879, where he conducted experiments on reaction times to stimuli, aiming to measure cognitive processes to the millisecond precision.
Wundt's approach was rooted in the concept of voluntarism, suggesting that an individual possesses free will and should be aware of the intentions behind psychological experiments. The work done in his lab laid the groundwork for structuralism in psychology. This view emphasizes breaking down mental processes into individual elements, differing from approaches like functionalism, which focused on the purposes of mental processes, or Freud's psychoanalytic theory, which delved into the unconscious mind's influence on behavior.
Edward Titchener, a student of Wundt, further developed structuralism, making it a key school of thought in early psychology. It is important to distinguish Wundt's structuralism from Freudian theory and post-structuralist critiques, as these represent divergent lines of thought within the discipline of psychology.