Essay Psychology

Is Psychology a Science? Essay
The British Psychological Society states that 'Psychology is the scientific study of people, the mind
and behaviour' (BPS). In this essay I will be discussing what is actually meant by this and whether
psychology fits into both the traditional views of a science, as well as more contemporary
perspectives. It is widely suggested that Psychology is a "coalition of specialities" meaning it is
multi–disciplinary (Hewstone, Fincham and Foster 2005, page 4). I will therefore examine
whether it could be considered wrong to think that all parts of the discipline should neatly fit into
one view of a scientific approach. In order to be considered a science, Psychology must consequently
adhere to using a scientific method. If this were, as usual,...show more content...
Studies such as the afore mentioned Milgram study showed that what may appear to be the most
expected outcome may, in truth, be very different. I would also go on to argue that in actuality all
sciences are some adaptation of common sense (Oppenheimer, 1956), leaving Psychology in this
way, no different to any of the others. Ben Goldacre even argues that particular forms of science,
such as neuroscience, regularly offer empirically incorrect research in reputable journals, claiming
statistically significant results without the appropriate statistical tests (Guardian). Furthermore, there
are three main aspects which were customarily associated with a science: metaphysical, theoretical
and methodological assumptions. Under metaphysical it is believed that to gain scientific status
requires the certainty that the subject matter i.e. human thought/ behaviour, is similar to that of other
accepted sciences. This could then be true for Psychology, as particularly since Darwin's suggestion
of a continuity between behaviours of humans and other species, behaviour has become more
scrutinised. However, this must be assumed in respect of determinism, suggesting predictions could
be made. 'Heisenbergs uncertainty principle' suggests that when relating evidence of indeterminism
within the universe to human behaviour, it proves ambiguous, and with parts of the discipline
believing strongly in free will it seems difficult to establish a common ground (Valentine E.R. page
2).
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Essay on The History of Psychology
The History of Psychology In order to discuss Psychology's history, it is important to understand
that psychology still does not have one unifying approach unlike the natural sciences; even the
definition of Psychology and what it truly means is still undecided. However I shall attempt to
review chronologically its philosophical origins, include how the science of Physics and Biology
were placed in history and how they influenced research and determined the development of
Psychology as its recognised today. Beginning with the philosophers Plato and Aristotle (between
428– 347) in ancient Greece, they began to ask...show more content...
For example, the taste of lemonade (perception) to be a molecule of conscious experience could be
analyzed in terms of elements (sensations) i.e. sweet, sour, cold, warm, bitter, and how it was
identified by introspection (observation). Wundt's structuralism was quickly abandoned because it
could not be empirically or scientifically tested, it was also criticised for favouring deterministic
structural forces over the ability of individual people to act refusing the suggestion of freewill. But at
the end of the 19th century and lasting only 25 years Structuralism was still seen as a historically
important school of thought and it was the movements that it developed, rather than structuralism
itself that pushed forward the progress of psychology Functionalism as a psychology developed from
the philosophy of Pragmatism (practical, matter–of–fact way of approaching or assessing situations
or of solving problems). William James (1842–1910) laid the foundations with the publication of
"Principles of Psychology" a book that gave Psychology its distinction and it's well used definition
"the science of mental life" for its study. He introduced a methodology for the inclusion of conscious
mental processes and believed consciousness to be the primary object of psychology

A Career as a Psychologist Essay
Psychologists are very important people; they help millions of people with their everyday
struggles and problems that they have to deal with. Not only do psychologists help people with
problems that they cannot handle on their own, they also are scientists who study human minds
and behaviors. With being a psychologist, there are many different careers to choose from within
this profession (Explore Health Careers). The first type of psychologists to choose from is a
clinical psychologist. Clinical psychologists help people with counseling and psychotherapy. They
work with people who have all around life problems, such as new adjustments in life. Clinical
psychologists also help people who have emotional disorders or...show more content...
They also provide consolation to courts and attorneys in different types of legal proceedings (Psyris).
Next is an organization psychologist, which helps in the productivity of groups and individuals in a
workplace. These types of psychologists focus on improving the function of organizations, and to
keep individuals healthy within the organization (Psyris). Another type of psychology to choose from
is a counseling psychologist. These are important psychologists because they teach people how to
deal with their everyday problems. They help their patients determine their problems and help them
understand the problems they are facing. Not only do counseling psychologists help their patients
with the issues they are experiencing at home but also in their workplace or their community in
general. By helping their patients identify their strengths and resources, is how counseling
psychologists help them with their problems (Bureau of Labor Statistics). The next type of
psychology is the developmental psychologist. Developmental psychologists work with
psychological processes and development that takes place throughout life. They study aging and
problems the elderly may face, but this type of psychologist mainly focuses on children and
adolescents (Bureau of Labor Statistics). The last type of psychologist to choose from is the social

Essay about Psychology is a Science
Psychology is definitely not what I thought it was. It is not just a therapist wanting to take your
money and not do anything for it. Psychology is an exact science that uses the scientific method to
figure out problems. Things like astrology and graphology are not a real science, they do not use
true science to deduct things and find a true answer.
There are a lot of different ideas within the history of psychology. There was Structuralism, which
focused on the structure of the mind. Fuctionalism believed in adapting to ones environment, Gesalt
Psychology, focusing on the whole rather than the parts, Behaviorism, no studying of the mental
processes, only behaviors, and Psychoanalysis, which only focused on the unconscious mind.
There...show more content...
Behavioral view in which our behavior is primarily shaped by our learning. Trait view, the results
from our own special combination of traits. And Sociocultural view, behavior is influenced by our
culture and social experiences.
The psychology world is changing rapidly. More and more people are getting their education in
psychology. There are five different types of psychological research.
1.Experiments. The researcher controls all the conditions of an experiment.
2.Correlational studies. No experimental manipulation, only study of the relationships between the
variables.
3.Surveys. Opinions, responses, etc.
4.Naturalistic Observations. Research of people or animals in their own home surroundings.
5.Case Studies. Involving either one individual, or at most, a few.
Bias come up a lot too in psychology. There are personal bias?, which involve your beliefs, opinions,
preferences, etc. These can cause people to ignore data that they otherwise would?ve counted. Then
there is expectancy bias?. This can be telling someone to expect something before it happens so that
they assume something and come to flawed conclusions.
Basically, psychology is all around us and everything we do or say can be from a deeper place
than we realize. A simple smile at someone else can tell you how they are feeling simply by seeing
the reaction on their face. Although you may not think it?s

Essay on Educational Psychology
One of the more popular areas of psychology is Educational Psychology. Educational Psychology
can be explained several ways. The idea is to study theories and concepts from different parts of
psychology and apply them in educational settings. These educational settings may occur in different
school settings such as preschool. The goal of educational psychology is to create a positive
student–teacher relationship. Educational psychology uses five different types of psychology,
behavioral, cognitive, developmental, and social cognitive, and constructivist in this research paper
I will be briefly discussing each type of psychology listed above. Behaviorism is the point of view
where learning and behavior are described and explained in terms...show more content...
Some examples are belief, desire, ideas and motivation. Next, cognitive psychologists think memory
structures determine how information is perceived, processed, stored, retrieved and forgotten.
Cognitive psychology include perception, categorization, memory, knowledge representation,
language and thinking processes. "The relationship of cognitive psychology to classroom is like the
relationship of physics to engineering. Knowledge of the mind gleaned from cognitive psychology
experiments will not tell teachers how to teach children, any more than knowledge of physics can
prescribe what a bridge should look like" (Willingham, 2009) Developmental psychology is the point
of view that occurs in learners over the course of a period of time. The developmental perspective
includes theories that are continuous and discontinuous. Discontinuous theories are stage–like. The
processes of learning and development involve distinct stages, which are characterized by qualitative
differences in behavior. Theorists who use discontinuous theories use a specific beginning and end
period for each stage. Continuous theories explain that learning and development generally happen
in incremental processes. Learning involves changes throughout the lifespan. "Contemporary views
on the nature of cognitive development have been vastly influenced by the work of one man. This
was Jean Piaget (1896–1980), once a biologist, who turned his

Why I Chose Psychology
What do you want to choose as your major in college and why?
I want to choose psychology as my major in college. It has been my interest since I was a kid and
for the past four years I have been interested in criminal psychology. Since I was 10 I watched my
mom prosecute criminals and it fascinated me how they were so different from everyone that I
knew. I want to study their brains and see if I can find out if there is a trigger that can be studied
and developed so we know how to help people with this issue. I also am a strong believer in
second chances. I know it's a risky thing to believe in but I do believe that some people emphasis on
some can't get a hold of their feelings and there's a chance that with some treatment, therapy and
medication, that we could put another helpful citizen in the world.
What experience do you have which will prepare you for that major?
My mom is a district attorney and I've heard all about her murder trials. I've watched people go to
jail since I was young and it's always fascinated me. Also when I'm 18 I can tour and volunteer in the
local prison and do ride–alongs.
What are your career plans? How did your interest in this career develop?
I want to know as much about psychology as possible. I plan to...show more content...
The only thing that has negatively impacted my academic performance is going back–and–forth
between my mom and dad's house. Most people have divorced parents but I split my time up
Monday Tuesday with my dad Wednesday Thursday with my mom and I switch every Friday
Saturday and Sunday. Over the years this has caused me to be very unsettled and to not have all
my things in one place which causes disorganization. One of the reasons I'm excited for college is
to finally have everything in one place! All in all I feel very lucky that I haven't had anything that
was detrimental to my academic performance.
Explain the circumstances and how you responded to

Introduction to Psychology Essay examples
Introduction to Psychology The concern about life is a main human characteristic. No matter if his
concern is concentrated in himself or in persons or things that surround him and constitute his
environment, everybody wants to know why people, himself included, behave the way they
behave. Everybody, also, wants to improve his behavior, so as to live in harmony with himself and
the society. The Greek word Psychology, is a word consisted of the words
ψυχή–soul and λόγος–utterance, talk. So,
generally, psychology is the science that examines the soul. But , since the psychologists work on
the problems of the personal, family, school, professional and social life, we could say, more...show
more content...
The heartbeats, the movements of our head are behavior. The way we eat, the way we drink, the
way we walk, we talk, are behavior. The construction of a bridge, the composition of a song are
behavior. The fantasies of a child, the dreams of a adolescent, the illusions of an alcoholic are
behavior. Although we are all familiar with human behavior, a little do we understand or we can
explain about it. Since our infancy we learn about behavior through the experiences and the
knowledge that we get by observing other people or having relations with them. Living in society
leads us to watch and try to explain the way people behave. But that is not always easy. Sometimes
we cannot understand even ourselves. Psychology comes to give answers to all this uncertainty.
Therefore, according to modern psychology, the term behavior means all the conscious,
unconscious, verbal, mental and kinetic expressions of ourselves. Psychology uses statistic
researches so as to distinguish the normal behavior from the abnormal one. Such a thing is very
difficult because every society has its own behavior standards, and, consequently, an act that is
normal according to one society, may be abnormal according to another. For example, polygamy is
not permitted in Europe, but it is permitted in certain societies in Africa. So, the judgement of a
behavior must bear in mind the social environment in which it takes place .

Essay about Psychology Theories
I chose Gestalt Psychology for my first perspective, it is how people experience objects and
perceive things as a whole. Gestalt allows us to look at everyday objects and distinguish them
from their surroundings. Without the Gestalt Theory people would see every atom that made up
a whole object. As I look at my computer screen, I do not see every little atom, I see the screen as
a whole. From this perspective, learning objects as a whole instead of each individual part is
beneficial because it allows us to open our minds for new learning experiences. However, there may
be things in life that do not provide enough visual clues to determine what it is supposed to be. The
Functionalist Theory is based on behavior and mental life. It...show more content...
This allows us to be able to avoid waling into a hole or hitting our head on a door. Humanistic
Personality Theory is more of a behavioral theory. I can say they both deal with the "here and
now" issues though. The Functionalist Theory however is associated with the Humanistic
Personality Theory because they are both behavioral and mental theories. Functionalism is based
on experiences and how it affects our current behavior. With the Humanistic Theory and its
beliefs of dealing with the present functionalism allows you to retrieve memories to help you
make your decision. I believe that functionalism also contributes to self worth. My whole life I
have been achieving accomplishments, whether big or small, and it gives me a self worth to look
back at all of them. "Cognitive theory is focused on the individual's thoughts as the determinate of
his or her emotions and behaviors and therefore personality. Many cognitive theorists believe that
without these thought processes, we could have no emotions and no behavior and would therefore
not function. In other words, thoughts always come before any feeling and before any action."
("Cognitive theory in," 2004) Cognitive theory could have an effect on Gestalt Psychology
because if a person has a learning disorder is can change how they perceive things. They may not
be able to distinguish every day objects for what they truly are. My six year old cousin has down
syndrome.

Essay on Psychologists
Psychology is the study of human behavior, how we think, feel and act. Psychologists study both
normal and abnormal behavior to understand it. Psychologists also try to use what we learn from
that study to help people change aspects of their behavior that they want to change. Areas of
psychology are clinical, industrial, and developmental. Careers in Psychology offer varied
opportunities.
Employment opportunities for capable psychologists are expected to be slightly better than average
over the next several years. However, if you're interested in a career in Psychology, you should know
that the training program to become a psychologist is a long one. There is also stiff competition for
places in graduate training programs in Psychology....show more content...
A person with only a bachelor's degree cannot legally practice psychology in the states. They can
hold psychology related positions. With a bachelor's degree in Psychology, salary starts at about
$17,000 a year.
With a doctoral degree in Psychology and one year of a supervised internship, a student can
become a legal psychologist. In many states, it is required that one pass an exam before practicing
Psychology. One with a doctoral degree can have a salary of $45,000 per year, on the low end. After
schooling, the field of Psychology can expand many ways.
To give you an idea, here are some indepth looks at various fields.Some psychologists work in the
health care field. They practice in hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, and both public and private
clinics. They may work individually or in teams with other health care professionals such as
physicians, nurses, social workers, and so forth. Psychologists in health care provide assessment
and treatment services to persons with mental and emotional disorder. Because of the growing body
of scientific knowledge about the role of psychological factors in physical health and disease,
psychologists also play a role

Essay about Behavior Psychology
Behavior Psychology Psychology is defined as a science that focuses on the study of and to explain
the way human's think, behave, and feel. The behaviourist school of psychology is concerned with
the explanation of behaviour through observable outcomes without making reference to mental
events. Behaviourism is very narrow and can be strongly objected in its approach to psychology as it
does not consider the mental thought process involvement in behaviour. This school of psychology
is very much about nurture rather than...show more content...
The belief is that human behaviour can be trained because human emotions are so malleable
therefore personality is forever changeable (Cohen, 1979). Behaviour is simply a reaction to a
stimulus which once learned becomes part of learned habit. It was also believed learning occurs
through the reinforcement of certain aspects of the situation. Reinforcement is when something is
added to the situation which makes the same reaction in that situation more likely in future
(McInerney, 1998). The belief was that most of behaviour is a result of what has been learnt, which
is to say that it is the result of the environment rather than biological influences. Therefore the study
of learning and the conditions under which it occurs is the core project of behaviourism (Tennant,
1997) Behaviouristic therapy is aimed at the modification of behaviour especially undesirable ones
by mainly reinforcing the desirable behaviour and suppressing or punishing the undesirable and
unwanted behaviour. Once the therapist has identified the behaviour and triggering factors they may
employ several techniques to condition or recondition the person's behaviour. These methods of
therapy have been derived and adapted by experiments done by earlier behaviourists such as Pavlov,
Watson and Skinner. Methods used today

The Science of Psychology Essay
The Science of Psychology
"Psychology is the scientific study of mind, brain and behaviour. Some of what you do learn may
seem like 'common sense', or at least familiar to you because you are learning about topics in which
you can relate to. However some things you may believe is true, but is incorrect. The way we know
this is through the application of scientific methods."
Mark Leary suggests that the subject matter of psychology is much more familiar to most people
than is the subject matter of physics or biology; we see behaviour all around us. Psychology would
be an odd science of thought and behaviour if it only considered thoughts and behaviours completely
foreign to people's...show more content...
An example of this is; one of the simplest rules of behaviour is that if you reward someone for
doing something, they are more likely to do it again (the principle of reinforcement. How many
people out there actually verbalise this rule and use it consistently? Certainly not the mother who
rewards her child's tired tantrum in the street by buying them a toy or a magazine, nor the person
who showers their partner with attention and affection when they are having a jealous sulk at a party.
If you take Milgram's study of obedience, you can see that, the teacher obeyed the person with
authority. If you met a policeman in the street and he asks you where you were the following
night, because an incident happened and you may have been around the area or the time it
happened, you would do as the policeman asks as he has more authority, so it may seem like
common sense, as it is something you would see happening in everyday life. But Milgram's study
was a scientific experiment to see whether people would go as far as killing a person by authority.
Also if you look at the surroundings and at how the experiment was set up it was all very scientific,
based in a make–believe laboratory. With scientific equipment, so a lot of it actually was more
scientific than common sense, which is explained above that scientific methods usually way up more
than common sense.
Zimbardo's study

Essay about Definition of Psychology
Definition of Psychology
The term psychology comes from two Greek words: psyche, which means
1. The spirit or soul. 2. The human mind. 3. In psychoanalysis, the mind functioning as the center of
thought, emotion, and behavior.
And logos, "the study of." or according to modern researches "science"
These root words were first combined in the 16th century, at a time when the human soul, spirit, or
mind was seen as distinct from the body.
Definition of Psychology:
Psychology is one of the youngest sciences. It is still going through the process of its development.
There has been much fierce controversy about its definition. It has been variously defined as the
science of soul,...show more content...
Great psychologist like Sigmand Freud support this fact.
The science of Behavior:
J.B. Watson described Psychology as the science of Behavior.. He said that external action or
behavior is the only concern of Psychology. He totally ignored mental processes. He said that what
goes on in our mind eventually comes out as our behavior. But this is not true for all times so this
was considered incomplete.
Now a days the most comprehensive definition of Psychology is:
"Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior, and its application to solve human
problems"
OR
"Psychology is the schematic study of behavior and mental processes"
This definition contains three elements. The first is that psychology is a scientific enterprise that
obtains knowledge through systematic and objective methods of observation and experimentation.
Second is that psychologists study behavior, which refers to any action or reaction that can be
measured or observed–such as the blink of an eye, an increase in heart rate, or the unruly violence
that often erupts in a mob. Third is that psychologists study the mind, which refers to both conscious

and unconscious mental states. These states cannot actually be seen, only inferred from

Essay about psychology
As described, there are 10 different perspectives of early psychology. These perspectives are:
Structuralism, functionalism, Gestalt psychology, Behavioral, psychodynamic, humanistic,
physiological, evolutionary, cognitive, and cultural and diversity. I will only be looking at three of
these perspectives still in common use today here is a summary of each.
     The behavioral perspective "focuses on the observable
behaviors; thus it does not speculate about mental processes such as thinking." (Davis and
Palladino, 2005).Unlike the other approaches, the behavioral perspective accentuates how it is
important to learn and understand and doesn't focus on coconscious. B. F. Skinner, a well known
...show more content...
Educator's and parents need to be very careful, in my opinion, when using only this approach
with their children. Humanists will not label any behavior as "bad" or "wrong" but instead they
will focus on the individuals right to choose what they will do or what decision they make on their
own. In schools today I believe we place to much emphasis on making the child feel they have
done well no matter the level of work they have produced or the actions they have chosen to take.
The humanistic approach can work well when trying to improve a child's self–esteem or cure
shyness but, when a child is not told they are doing something wrong how will they then learn
what is considered right and wrong in society? "We've got youngsters here now who . . . are under
the authority of the school [and] are being persuaded that there is a better way, and that way is to
make their own decisions. They're being induced to make decisions about activities that the citizenry
of the state have decided are wrong" (http://www.probe.org/docs/psy–educ.html) When used in
conjunction with behaviorism and cognitive psychology a child will gain a much better
understanding of their place in the world as well as what is expected of them in regards to behavior.
      "Many psychologists have accepted the cognitive perspective –
where the focus is on how thought occurs, memory processes, and

Essay on Clinical Psychology
Clinical psychology aims to understand, treat and prevent psychological distress and dysfunction
thus to encourage good health, good adaptive thinking and a healthy lifestyle. People working in this
field research into mental dysfunction suffered by the patients, assess their cognitive state of mind
and perform psychotherapy to decrease the psychological symptoms and/ or the underlying causes.
There are many sub divisions of therapies focusing on different routes of cure/prevention.
Biologically, chemotherapy and psychosurgeries are available; but below I will discuss the
treatments available psychologically. Psychologically, there are various treatments mainly the
psychodynamic and the behavioural approach. The main psychodynamic...show more content...
In contrast behaviour in the unconsciousness state lacks awareness of self and the environmental
situations. In between these is the preconscious state where thoughts from the unconscious state, that
are not suppressed, thus can be brought to the conscious by slowly recalling the thoughts.
Upon this differentiation Freud discovered that these symptoms resulted from the unconscious
decisions made following psychological conflicts experienced at the present moment. One specific
case, involved a young boy, who mother was asking him to sign a letter accusing the father of
abusing him, in order support her in their divorce. However the boy, knowing that both parents are of
no harm couldn't decide whether to sign the letter in favour of the mother or not to in favour of the
father (unconscious psychological conflict). Thus this resulted in the boy suffering paralysis (mental
neurotic dysfunction).
Such neurosis are maladaptive behaviours, that doesn't resolve but instead avoids the under lying
situation. This initiates from childhood feelings, memories, wishes and experiences that are
emotionally attached.
Freud's theory of personality defines that the psychological conflicts experienced by the individuals'
link to the compromises made against the forces of cognitive construct. Id, this form of cognitive
construct is from the unconscious that follows the

Essay Psychology

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