Our textbook starts off by addressing the most prominent stereotype of psychology: it's all just common sense. The authors argue that psychology is actually quite challenging, thank you very much, and there are many instances where our common sense will trick us. This is why pssychology is the science (keyword SCIENCE).
Next, the textbook delves into the dangers of pseudoscience and explores a list of logical fallacy, which I find entertaining because I come across so many of them in daily conversation. Some days I'll even go so far as to use a few myself. ;)
After this, Lilienfeld debriefs us on six scientific principles for ensuring that psychology remains a SCIENCE. A brief-ish history of psychology follows and leads into a discussion of psychology today - the professions, the debates, the applications.
In conclusion, Chapter 1 is a pretty typical introduction to introductory psychology.
As for a visual to support what I have written, I think this picture does a pretty quality job:
...or maybe I just think it's way too funny.
Psychology is often referred to as just being common sense or easy or not being a scientific field. All of these are very wrong, as you stated. Psychology is a much more involved field of study then most of the general public knows, or gives credit to, and we got a good introduction to this throughout the semester. I also thought the upside down pictures of President Obama were really cool. I initially didn't see anything wrong with them, and was surprised when I flipped my book upside down!