Explain the differences between the Gestalt and behaviorist revolts against Wundtian psychology.
Wundtian psychology was put forward by Wilhelm Wundt. His work emphasized on objective measurement and control. It seemed to observe the working of consciousness in a structured way. His theory revolved around finding the atoms (building blocks) of consciousness, and proceeding towards understanding the way these atoms combined to create the experience.
The Gestalt psychology was a movement which cropped up in Germany in 1912. This theory proposes that entirety is more important than the individual tendencies. The perception of a visual scene as a whole helps in finding order and unity, among the unrelated parts. It considers learning process as a whole, not just the external stimulus response.
The behaviorist theory came up in the United States. It treated psychology as a science, where the theories are required to be supported, by giving empirical data. Psychology was treated objectively, where behavior of a being is based only on observation. It is not influenced by internal events. Behaviorism does not differentiate between human and animal subjects. Hence, research can be carried out on both the humans and animals.
Wundtian psychology faced revolts from behaviorists and gestalts. The two revolts even had difference among themselves. The behaviorist always viewed psychology as Newtonian science. They were not in agreement with the concept of consciousness. The Germans accepted the holistic approach of Wundt, but opposed the reduction to atoms. They believed that there was more to perception than what met the eye.