Final answer:
The focus of structuralism was to uncover the elements of the mind, while behaviorism focused on identifying what thoughts, feelings, and behaviors could be used for.
Step-by-step explanation:
The focus of structuralism was to uncover the elements of the mind, while behaviorism focused on identifying what thoughts, feelings, and behaviors could be used for. Structuralism, pioneered by Wundt, aimed to understand the cognitive experience by breaking it down into its component parts and introspecting.
Behaviorism, on the other hand, advanced by figures like Watson and Skinner, dismissed the introspective method as too subjective and concentrated on observable behavior. The Cognitive Revolution eventually re-emphasized the importance of studying the mind, incorporating insights from linguistics, neuroscience, and computer science.
Before psychology was an academic discipline, matters of the mind were examined by philosophers. In the early 20th century, psychology shifted from a focus on inner experiences to observable behaviors, a transition that is significantly represented by the work at Johns Hopkins University and Pavlov's conditioning experiments.
This change culminates in behaviorism's stance that behaviors through learning and external stimuli interactions are the primary objects of psychological study.