Introduction to psychology

THE NATURE OF PSYCHOLOGY

There were times when people used to say about psychology as the study of soul, mind, mental processes, etc. They perceived psychology as an occult science based on speculation, meditation, and some general statements about human beings. Psychology, however, developed along with other sciences. The subject of psychology, after passing through different developmental stages, drifted away from philosophy and became a separate independent scientific discipline. Presently, it fulfills all criteria of a science and the students study it in almost all universities of the world.

As we need to understand, predict and influence or control human behavior, we need to study the subject of psychology. Wherever the human beings are, either as individuals or a social group, the subject of psychology is very much there. Therefore, we can say that psychology is in all areas of human life. The subject of psychology is of utmost significance for better understanding the development of man and his behavior as an individual and as a social being.

What Psychology Is

The interest in understanding human beings has been around since the beginning of human life. Many thinkers and philosophers since ancient times have brought forth their ideas in different perspectives and forms. So, the history of psychology is as old as the existence of human beings.

The known history of psychology may be divided into two broad periods: (1) Pre-scientific extending from the Greek philosophers through the latter half of the 19th century, and (2) Scientific extending from about the last quarter of 19th century (1879) to the present.

During the pre-scientific period, there had been many definitions of psychology in historical perspectives. Since the ancient Greek philosophers until the mid-nineteenth century, we find reference to human problems and their solutions in philosophical writings. Psychology, in its gradual historical development, was considered as the study of soul, mind, mental processes, etc., and a discipline under philosophy. Psychology is derived from the Greek words psyche and logos, meaning, soul and study. To the Greeks, psychology is simply the study of the soul.

Psychology separated itself from philosophy and emerged as an independent discipline in the latter part of the nineteenth century. During the last century, as all sciences developed, psychology became scientific. The old literal definition of psychology as the study of soul was rejected as being very unscientific. For the last four centuries, philosophers translated psyche as mind and psychology as a study of mind. Later, it was defined as a study of mental processes. These definitions were also rejected as being unscientific. Currently, psychology is defined as the scientific study of behavior and mental processes, or the scientific study of human and animal behavior, or the scientific study of human behavior. The most prevalent definition of psychology is: It is the scientific study of human behavior.

Goals of Psychology

Psychology is chiefly concerned with human behavior, what makes people behave or act the way they do. In an attempt to explain that behavior, we must know the events in the environment that have caused such behavior; describe as to how they differ when observed with the same events; and predict the possible consequences of that behavior so as to help in the change and improvement of the lives of every individual.


1. Description. The first task for any psychologists is to gather information about the behavior being studied and to present what is known. For example, we describe Johns behavior in his classroom.
2. Explanation. Psychologists are not content to simply state the facts. Rather, they also seek to explain why people (or animals) behave as they do. Psychologists propose these explanations as hypotheses. Once these hypotheses are tested and completed, more explanations called theories are constructed. Usually a complex explanation, a theory is based on findings from a large number of experimental studies assembled to explain the results. Such theories improve our understanding which allows us to describe and explain behavior.
3. Prediction. The third goal of psychologists is to predict, as a result of accumulated knowledge, what organisms will do, and, in the case of human beings, what they will think of or feel in various situations. By studying descriptive and theoretical accounts of past behaviors, psychologists can predict subsequent behaviors.
4. Control. Some psychologists seek to influence or control behavior in helpful ways. Other psychologists conduct studies with a long-term goal to find out more about human or animal behavior. Others are more interested in discovering ways to use what we already know about psychological principles to solve more immediate problems.

Psychologists are interested in topics such as learning, emotion, intelligence, heredity and environment, differences between individuals, the nature and development of personality, group behavior, etc.

BRANCHES OF PSYCHOLOGY

Psychologists perform a wide variety of roles in a wide variety of areas. Like all other sciences, psychology as a various field has its many branches or fields of specialization. . The American Psychological Association (APA) has indicated more than 55 branches of psychology. Some of the fields of specialization in psychology are further described as follows:

General Psychology is defined as the study of general principles of normal human adult behavior such as attention, learning, perception, dreaming, thinking, intelligence, motives, emotions, and individual and social behavior in general.

Clinical Psychology is the study of diagnosis and treatment of emotional or psychological problems such as anxiety, depression, mental illness, delinquency, mental retardation, alcoholism, and so on.

Counseling psychology is the study of diagnosis and treatment or helping people with milder problems of social and emotional adjustment such as child, marriage and family problems. Counseling psychologists also help normally-adjusted people with such tasks as setting vocational goals and/or further improvement in life.

Developmental Psychology involves the study of factors that shape human behavior from the prenatal period till the end of life. Developmental psychologists may focus on a specific problem area, such as development of thinking or perception, or he may focus on a specific period, such as childhood or adolescence.

Social Psychology. It is concerned with the impact of groups upon individual behavior. Such problems as attitude change, conformity, liking, aggression, etc., fall within this area.


Comparative Psychology it is the scientific study of animal behavior. It deals with such problems as perception, learning, memory, emotion, and intelligence. It is known as comparative psychology since it studies the similarities and differences between the behavior of different kinds of animals. It asks questions such as: At what level of evolution does reasoning appear? Is human learning different from other organisms? Such study is in ultimate benefit for human beings.

Educational Psychology specializes in child development, and handles problems of children with learning disabilities. Educational psychologists evaluate the educational progress of children in the classroom and conduct consultations with parents and teachers regarding the childrens behavioral problems that may affect their academic performance.

Political Psychology is the study of political behavior of political parties, pressure groups, leaders, governance, etc.

Physiological Psychology is concerned with the relationship between bodily processes and behavior. Physiological psychologists may, for example, conduct research on how the brain regulates various motivations such as hunger and thirst or they may be involved in the study of chemical processes underlying aggression.

Cross-Cultural Psychology is the study of different cultures interacting with one another, their positive or negative influence as accommodation or antagonism, and how they may adjust with one another.

Differential Psychology studies the differences and similarities among people. It seeks to find out whether differences in such characteristics as race, sex, or nationality have something to do with a persons abilities. It asks such questions as: Do males possess greater reasoning ability than females?

Vocational Guidance helps individuals especially students in the choice of a career or vocation for gainful employment, examines their abilities, aptitudes and interests, and guides individuals to grow in their vocations.

METHODS OF RESEARCH IN PSYCHOLOGY

Every science has its own methods of research. Also, psychology has its own research methods.
The commonly used research methods in psychology are:
1- Observational Techniques: The most basic technique for acquiring knowledge in psychology, as in other sciences, is observation. Two kinds of observation have been employed in psychological research (a) Introspection and (b) Naturalistic Observation


2- Clinical Method: This method is also called Case History method and its aim is diagnosis and treatment. It is used only when people come to psychologists with personal problems..

3-Survey Method: A survey is an attempt to estimate the opinions, characteristics, or behaviors of a particular population by investigation of a representative sample. It is more systematic field-study.
Survey method is employed by psychologists in investigating a variety of problems. For example, customer attitudes towards certain products.

4. Experimental Method: The most powerful tool of psychology, as of all sciences, is the study method known as the experiment - in which the psychologist, in his laboratory, makes a careful and rigidly controlled examination of cause and effect. Experimentation is a kind of observation made under accurately known conditions. Just as the chemist can determine that combining hydrogen and oxygen will produce water, the psychologist can determine that certain conditions will result in certain measurable changes in the behavior of his subjects, either human or animal.

Schools of psychology

Human beings in general and the psychologists in particular have strived to understand human behavior in different perspectives. The following are just a few of the major perspectives that have influenced contemporary psychology

1- The Biological Perspective.

The study of physiology played a major role in the development of psychology as a separate science. This perspective emphasizes the physical and biological bases of behavior. It explains the neurobiological mechanism that underlies behavior and mental processes, e.g., electrical stimulation on the parts of the hypothalamus that results in over eating or no eating at all.

2- The Behavioral Perspective.

Behavioral psychology is a perspective that focuses on
1- learned behavior rather than the internal workings of the brain and the nervous system.
2- This approach considers that environmental conditions are important in establishing objective assessment of the individuals development

3- The Cognitive Perspective.

Cognitive psychologists believe that the mind actively processes the information it receives by the systems of neurons in the brain and transforms these into new form of activities, such as reading, seeing, and memorizing. The information processing system is like a modern computer in which the information is selected, compared and combined with other information that is already in memory, transformed, rearranged, etc.


4- The Psychodynamic Perspective.
The psychodynamic perspective originated from the work of  HYPERLINK "http://psychology.about.com/od/sigmundfreud/p/sigmund_freud.htm" Sigmund Freud. This perspective emphasizes the role of the  HYPERLINK "http://psychology.about.com/od/uindex/g/def_unconscious.htm" unconscious mind, early childhood experiences, and interpersonal relationships to explain human behavior and to treat people suffering from mental illnesses. It believes that most behavioral processes stem from the unconscious which is made up of fears, thoughts, and wishes that the person is unaware of them

5- The Humanistic/Phenomenological Perspective.

During the 1950s, a school of thought known as  HYPERLINK "http://psychology.about.com/od/historyofpsychology/a/hist_humanistic.htm" humanistic psychology emerged. This perspective emphasizes the role of motivation on thought and behavior. It focuses on subjective experiences and concerns about the individuals own perception and interpretation of event. We can learn more about human nature by studying ones perception of himself and of his world rather than observing his overt actions. A humanist rejects the views that behavior is determined mainly by biological forces, mechanisms, or the unconscious experience

Although there are many different ways to think about human thought and behavior and there are many difference among these ways, but most of the psychologists agree on eight general statements that accurately describe human behavior and mental processes.
1-Human beings are biological creatures whose biological and physiological influence and limit behavior.
2-People can also be understood in the context of their culture, ethnic identity, and gender identity.
3- Each person is unique, yet enough similarities exist among individuals to allow a true science of behavior study
4-Human lives are a continuous process of change developing from birth to death.
5- Behavior is motivated, not random or aimless.
6- Human beings are social subjects that prefer to interact with others.
7- People play an active part in choosing their experiences and constructing perceptions.
8- Behavior can be either adaptive or maladaptive

Normal versus abnormal

It is not always easy to distinguish between what is normal and abnormal. Environmental, cultural, mental state and legal criteria can help us think about what is normal and what is abnormal.
Generally abnormal behavior is, maladaptive, or personally distressful behavior.
There are many approaches to classify the abnormal behavior


1-Abnormality as deviation from average: this statistically based views abnormality as deviation from the average, so the rare behavior in a given society or culture is the abnormal behavior.
This concept may be correct in some aspects and not in others, for example if you prefer soft music during reading your duties, while others not, or somebody prefers corn lakes as breakfast in a culture which not custom for that.
On the other hand a person with high IQ will be labeled as abnormal according to this approach.


2-Abnormality as deviation from the ideal: a behavior will be considered as abnormal if it deviated enough from some kind of cultural or ideal standards.
But the society has many standards that are not fixed over time and place. This makes this approach difficult to apply. As the concept of generous or wastrel, brave or rash.
3-Abnormality as a sense of subjective discomfort: an abnormal behavior is that which followed by sense of discomfort, anxiety, guilt, or produce harms to others.
4-Abnormality as inability to function effectively: most people can walk, feed themselves, works, and get along with others and generally lives as productive members in the society.
According to this approach people who are unable to function effectively and adapt to the demands of the society are considered abnormal. Like the homeless unemployed person who lives in the street although he had choose this life style.
5-Abnormality as legal concept: any behavior which violated the law considered as abnormal behavior.

Classification of abnormal behavior:

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV), is a classification system of abnormal behaviors which aids psychologists and other mental health professionals in diagnosing and treating mental disorders. DSM-IV includes the major categories of abnormal behavior which are
anxiety disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive disorders and phobias;
affective disorders, which are disturbances of mood such as depression;
schizophrenic disorders, which are characterized by major disturbances in personality and distortion of reality;
and various personality disorders.











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