Acta Psychologica Sinica

Abstract

Hattori Unokichi’s Teaching Materials of Psychology (in Chinese) has not been fully understood by Chinese psychological field since there is not available literature. Now, the original version of this book reveals that the book derived from Hattori Unokichi’s teaching practice in China since 1902. It was published in Japan in November 1905 and circulated in China. It was a psychological textbook for the students at Jingshi Daxutang (former Peking University).

Hattori Unokichi defined psychology as the exploration of the mechanism of mind activities, and observation was the main research method in psychology. However, he did not regard experimental method as the main one in psychological studies although he acknowledged its importance. In those years, scholars believed that it was not easy to use experiment to explore psychological phenomena. The psychological system in Teaching Materials of Psychology was based on the tripartite division (cognition, affect, will), and the author focused on the mental process, not on individual difference. Teaching Materials of Psychology embodies evolutionary approach to psychology and emphasizes service for education. This book reveals the main concepts and dominant system of psychology at the beginning of 20th century.

Hattori Unokichi’s teaching of psychology was the beginning of modern scientific psychology in Chinese higher education. Hattori Unokichi confirmed the psychological value of Chinese traditional culture and took it into consideration in this textbook. Therefore, we can find that Chinese traditional culture was absorbed into this discipline when Western psychology was introduced to China. The development of Chinese modern psychological terms benefited from the Chinese Characters in Japanese psychological field. With the background of cultural change, Hattori Unokichi directly adopted the current psychological terms in Japan to settle the difficulties of establishing Chinese psychological terms. The fact that Japanese psychological terms were created with Chinese Characters has proved the psychological value of Chinese culture, and absorption and transmission of Japanese modern knowledge in Chinese elite intellectuals promoted the input of Japanese psychological terms created with Chinese characters.

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