Psychology

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(Notable Historical Psychologists: Added Kinsey.)
(Just doing this to get them off the "Lonely Pages" list.)
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Furthermore, psychology generally focuses on individuals. This is in contrast to, for example, [[sociology]], which focuses more on group behavior and society, or [[biology]], which focuses on physiological processes. Nevertheless, there is often interdisciplinary overlap (e.g., between social psychology and sociology). A burgeoning trend is to investigate the neurological causes of thought and behavior, creating considerable overlap between some areas of psychology and [[neuroscience]] (e.g., [[cognitive neuroscience]], [[behavioral neuroscience]], and [[social cognitive neuroscience]]).
 
Furthermore, psychology generally focuses on individuals. This is in contrast to, for example, [[sociology]], which focuses more on group behavior and society, or [[biology]], which focuses on physiological processes. Nevertheless, there is often interdisciplinary overlap (e.g., between social psychology and sociology). A burgeoning trend is to investigate the neurological causes of thought and behavior, creating considerable overlap between some areas of psychology and [[neuroscience]] (e.g., [[cognitive neuroscience]], [[behavioral neuroscience]], and [[social cognitive neuroscience]]).
  
== Notable Historical Psychologists ==
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==Notable Historical Psychologists==
 
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<li>[[Wilhelm Wundt]], created the first psychology lab. Father of modern psychology.
 
<li>[[Wilhelm Wundt]], created the first psychology lab. Father of modern psychology.
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<li>[[Alfred Kinsey]], conducted research on human sexuality.
 
<li>[[Alfred Kinsey]], conducted research on human sexuality.
 
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==See Also==
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*[[Memory]]
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*[[Biological Evolution]]
  
 
[[category:psychology]]
 
[[category:psychology]]

Revision as of 09:20, 26 December 2007

Psychology is the scientific study of the human mind and behavior.

Modern psychology began in 1879 when Wilhelm Wundt founded the first psychological laboratory at the University of Leipzig. Psychologists generally believe that experiments (rather than introspection, tradition, or revelation, for example) are the best way to understand human behavior.

Contents

Areas of Psychology

Some broad areas of study in psychology are:

  • Cognitive psychology studies mental processes, such as memory, attention, and learning.
  • Social psychology examines how individuals are affected by other people. Common research topics include aggression, altruism, stereotyping and prejudice, attitudes, and group decision-making. A large emphasis in social psychology is social cognition, which is concerned with the mental processes underlying how we think about ourselves and others.
  • Sensation and perception studies the mental processes underlying vision and other senses (e.g., object perception, change blindness, or visual illusions).
  • Abnormal psychology studies aberrant and pathological behaviour, including psychological disorders (e.g., schizophrenia and depression).
  • Clinical psychology is the clinical application of abnormal psychology. Clinical psychologists are professionals who apply psychological principles to the treatment of mental illness. Clinical psychologists are trained to be both practitioners and scientists, and to emphasize empirically-validated treatments, which often distinguishes them from generic counsellors or therapists.
  • Physiological psychology focuses on the biological and neurological underpinnings of the mind and behavior.
  • Behavioral psychology studies learning, often in animals, with a focus on observable behavior rather than mental processes.
  • Personality psychology is concerned with individual differences in behavior. Personality psychology focuses on how people act similarly across different situations.
  • Industrial-Organizational psychology is an applied branch of social psychology. It examines how people behave in organizations such as businesses and bureaucracies. It investigates, for example, leadership, power, productivity, and organizational loyalty.
  • Forensic psychology examines individuals in the justice system. Common research areas include eyewitness testimony, deception, decision-making in juries, and predicting recidivism in parolees. Despite popular perceptions, criminal profiling is a minor aspect of forensic psychology. (Criminal profilers are usually law enforcement agents, not psychologists.)
  • Ethology, or animal psychology, is the study of animal behavior, often with the goal of discovering principles that can be generalized to human behavior too.

Differences Between Psychology and Other Disciplines

Psychology is different than other disciplines concerned with human behavior (e.g., philosophy, sociology, and anthropology) because it emphasizes the scientific method.

Furthermore, psychology generally focuses on individuals. This is in contrast to, for example, sociology, which focuses more on group behavior and society, or biology, which focuses on physiological processes. Nevertheless, there is often interdisciplinary overlap (e.g., between social psychology and sociology). A burgeoning trend is to investigate the neurological causes of thought and behavior, creating considerable overlap between some areas of psychology and neuroscience (e.g., cognitive neuroscience, behavioral neuroscience, and social cognitive neuroscience).

Notable Historical Psychologists

  • Wilhelm Wundt, created the first psychology lab. Father of modern psychology.
  • William James, founded the psychology department at Harvard University.
  • Sigmund Freud, based on case histories, wrote extensively about childhood, personality, society, and the unconscious. Significantly influenced popular ideas about psychology.
  • B.F. Skinner, emphasized empiricism and the study of observable behavior rather than subjective mental processes.
  • Jean Piaget, conducted seminal research into the origins of intelligence in children.
  • Albert Bandura, investigated how individuals learn from others and developed social learning theory.
  • Alfred Kinsey, conducted research on human sexuality.

See Also

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