Final answer:
The first research in psychology investigated consciousness using a technique called introspection, a method by which an individual examines their internal experiences objectively. Wilhelm Wundt was a notable practitioner of this technique. It was later replaced by behaviorism and eventually the cognitive revolution.
Step-by-step explanation:
The first research in psychology aimed at understanding consciousness utilized a method known as introspection. This technique involves examining one's own conscious experience as objectively as possible. Wilhelm Wundt, a pioneer in psychology, practiced introspection to explore the components that combined to form our conscious experience. While other psychologists like Freud and behaviorists had different approaches to psychology, it was introspection that marked the first systematic investigation into consciousness.
Introspection was considered a way to make human internal perception similar to how a scientist observes natural phenomena, despite the data being subjective. This method laid the groundwork for future psychological study, although it was later overshadowed by the behaviorist emphasis on observable behavior and the subsequent cognitive revolution that reintegrated a focus on mental processes.