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Lesson 1

Psychology is defined as the scientific study of behavior and mental processes in both humans and animals, focusing on understanding the relationship between the two. The main goals of psychology include observation, description, understanding, explanation, prediction, and control of behavior and mental processes. Various branches of psychology, such as clinical, industrial/organizational, health, consumer, environmental, sport, and forensic psychology, address different aspects of human behavior and mental health.

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6 views3 pages

Lesson 1

Psychology is defined as the scientific study of behavior and mental processes in both humans and animals, focusing on understanding the relationship between the two. The main goals of psychology include observation, description, understanding, explanation, prediction, and control of behavior and mental processes. Various branches of psychology, such as clinical, industrial/organizational, health, consumer, environmental, sport, and forensic psychology, address different aspects of human behavior and mental health.

Uploaded by

faisalhayyat194
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Adopted by -Dr.

Ghulam Ishaq Introduction to Psychology Basics of Psychology

Definition of Psychology

“Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes …. Human or Animal”

Behavior is overt, manifest, obvious, and easy to study; the mental processes that help carryout

these behaviors are covert, underlying, hidden, and not easy to study. Besides behavior, what

causes these behaviors to occur and the mental processes involved in it is an important area of

interest for a psychologist.

Goals of Psychology

Main and important goals of psychology, or in other words of understanding human behavior

and mental processes, are;

• To understand the nature and mechanisms of behavior and mental processes

• To develop an understanding of the relationship between behavior and mental processes

• To apply this understanding to real life situations and, on the basis of this understanding,

predict for the future

• To employ the scientific approach for developing this understanding

In short, the main goals of psychology are:

a) Observation,

b) Description,

c) Understanding,

d) Explanation,

e) Prediction, and

Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom." – Aristotle


Adopted by -Dr. Ghulam Ishaq Introduction to Psychology Basics of Psychology

f) Control of human behavior and mental processes.

Popular areas of psychology

Clinical Psychology

A branch of psychology concerned with the study, diagnosis, and treatment of abnormal

behavior. It is the oldest as well as the most well known branch of psychology. Clinical

psychologists are trained to diagnose and treat problems ranging from the every day crises of life

such as grief due to the death of a loved one, to more extreme conditions, such as a loss of touch

with reality. Some clinical psychologists also conduct research, investigating issues that range

from identifying the early signs of psychological disturbance, and studying the relationship

between how family members communicate with one another, to the understanding of a wide

variety of psychological disorders.

Industrial / Organizational Psychology

A branch of psychology that studies the psychology in action at the workplace, including

productivity, job satisfaction, and decision-making.

Health Psychology

The branch of psychology that explores the relationship of psychological factors and physical

ailments or disease e.g. Health psychologists are interested in how the long- term stress (a

psychological factor) can affect physical health. They are also concerned with identifying ways

of promoting behaviors related to good health (such as exercise) or discouraging unhealthy

behaviors (such as smoking, drinking etc).

Consumer Psychology

Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom." – Aristotle


Adopted by -Dr. Ghulam Ishaq Introduction to Psychology Basics of Psychology

A branch of psychology that studies and explains our buying habits and our effects of advertising

a buying behavior. Mainly dealt with the likes and dislikes and preferences of people

Environmental Psychology

A branch of psychology, that focuses upon the relationship between people and their physical

environment. It is one of the newly emerging, and in-demand, areas of psychology.

Environmental psychologists have made significant progress in understanding how our physical

environment affects the way we behave toward others, our emotions, and how much stress we

experience in a particular setting.

Sport Psychology

The branch of psychology, that studies the psychological variables that have an impact upon the

sportspersons’ performance; e.g. how stress can affect sport performance, how morale can be

boosted, the role of self-concept and esteem, the impact of crowd behavior etc. Forensic

Psychology The branch of psychology that investigates legal issues and psychological variables

involved in criminal behavior ; e.g. what factors determine criminal tendencies, how criminals be

reformed, deciding what criteria indicate that a person is legally insane, and whether larger and

smaller juries make fairer decisions.

End of Lesson 1

In psychology, as in life, the first step to growth is recognizing what you don’t know.

Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom." – Aristotle

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