Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior, encompassing various branches such as clinical, cognitive, developmental, forensic, health, and social psychology. Individual differences among people arise from hereditary and environmental factors, influencing traits such as interests, attitudes, and self-concept. The study of human behavior aids advancements in mental health, education, and organizational behavior, highlighting the importance of learning processes, personality types, and their development.

3. What is psychology?
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior,
according to the American Psychological Association.
It is the study of the mind, how it works, and how it
affects behavior.

5. Branches of psychology
Clinical psychology
Clinical psychology integrates science, theory, and practice in
order to understand, predict and relieve problems with
adjustment, disability, and discomfort. It promotes adaption,
adjustment, and personal development.
A clinical psychologist concentrates on the intellectual,
emotional, biological, psychological, social, and behavioral
aspects of human performance throughout a person's life, across
varying cultures and socioeconomic levels.

6. Cognitive psychology
Cognitive psychology investigates internal mental processes,
such as problem solving, memory, learning, and language. It
looks at how people think, perceive, communicate, remember,
and learn. It is closely related to neuroscience, philosophy, and
linguistics.
Cognitive psychologists look at how people acquire, process, and
store information.
Practical applications include how to improve memory, increase
the accuracy of decision-making, or how to set up educational
programs to boost learning.

7. Developmental psychology
This is the scientific study of systematic psychological
changes that a person experiences over the life span,
often referred to as human development.
It focuses not only on infants and young children but
also teenagers, adults, and older people.
Factors include motor skills, problem solving, moral
understanding, acquiring language, emotions,
personality, self-concept, and identity formation.

8. Evolutionary psychology
Evolutionary psychology looks at how human
behavior, for example language, has been affected by
psychological adjustments during evolution.
An evolutionary psychologist believes that many human
psychological traits are adaptive in that they have
enabled us to survive over thousands of years.

9. Forensic psychology
Forensic psychology involves applying psychology to criminal
investigation and the law.
A forensic psychologist practices psychology as a science within
the criminal justice system and civil courts.
It involves assessing the psychological factors that might
influence a case or behavior and presenting the findings in court.

10. Health psychology
Health psychology is also called behavioral medicine or
medical psychology.
It observes how behavior, biology, and social context
influence illness and health.

11. Neuropsychology
Neuropsychology looks at the structure and function of
the brain in relation to behaviors and psychological
processes. A neuropsychology may be involved if a
condition involves lesions in the brain, and assessments
that involve recording electrical activity in the brain.

12. Occupational psychology
In a corporate setting, a psychologist can help boost
productivity and enhance employee retention.
Occupational or organizational psychologists are involved in
assessing and making recommendations about the performance
of people at work and in training.
They help companies to find more effective ways to function,
and to understand how people and groups behave at work.
This information can help improve effectiveness, efficiency, job
satisfaction, and employee retention.

13. Social psychology
Social psychology uses scientific methods to understand how
social influences impact human behavior. It seeks to explain
how feelings, behavior, and thoughts are influenced by the
actual, imagined or implied presence of other people.
A social psychologist looks at group behavior, social perception,
non-verbal behavior, conformity, aggression, prejudice, and
leadership.
Social perception and social interaction are seen as key to
understanding social behavior.

14. Science of Psychology
The science of psychology benefits society and enhances our
lives.
Psychologists examine the relationships between brain function
and behavior, and the environment and behavior, applying what
they learn to illuminate our understanding and improve the
world around us.

15. Individual psychology, body of theories of the Austrian
psychiatrist Alfred Adler, who held that the main motives of
human thought and behavior are individual man’s striving for
superiority and power, partly in compensation for his feeling of
inferiority.
Every individual, in this view, is unique, and his personality
structure—including his unique goal and ways of striving for it—
finds expression in his style of life, this life-style being the product
of his own creativity.
Nevertheless, the individual cannot be considered apart from
society; all important problems, including problems of general
human relations, occupation, and love, are social.

16. Individual differences
Individual differences stand for the variation or deviations among
individuals in regard to a single characteristic or number of
characteristics.
It is stand for those differences which in their totality distinguish
one individual from another. So, we can say that individual
differences is the differences among humans that distinguish or
separate them from one another and makes one as a single unique
individual.

18. TYPES OF INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Differences in Interest
Interest may refer as a motivating force that impels us to attend to
a person, a thing, or an activity. So in educational field differences
in interest means you observe some students like a particular
subject, teacher, hobby or profession than other.
Difference in Attitude
Difference in attitude is psyche related to some thing. Few
learners have positive attitude towards a specific topic, subject,
and profession than other. The role of education in society is to
develop positive attitude.

19. Difference in Values
Values are the things that are given importance by an
individual. Some learners value materialist life style other moral
or religious life style etc. So education must mould the mind of
young generation to have a balance values between materialism
and spiritualism.
Study Habits
It is clearly observable that some students markedly differ from
other students in study habits. Some students are studious and
study all the subjects with interest but other may not. Some study
in isolation and some in group.

20. Difference in Psychomotor Skills
Psychomotor Skill is related to some skill acquisition. Some
students differ in this area also. Some students like football,
other cricket, etc. Some students easily learn operating a
machine and some may not. A wise teacher should diagnose
students’ psychomotor skills abilities and encourage them in that
direction.
Difference in Self Concept
Difference in self concept is the totality of attitudes, judgment,
and values of an individual relating to his behavior, abilities, and
qualities. So some students have positive self concept than boost
their confidence level and perform better against those who have
negative self image.

21. Causes of Individual Differences
1. Hereditary (Nature)
Individuals have various endowments, abilities, and capacities
provided by hereditary. Which decide the path of progress and
development of an individual.
Hereditary also put limits upon individuals’ growth and
development in various dimensions.
Hereditary also contributes to sex, intelligence, and other specific
abilities.

22. 2. Environment (Nurture)
Environment also plays key role in individual differences. No
person from birth to death gets the same environment. Individual
differences occur on the basis of simulation received by
individual from his or her internal and external environment.
This may include family set up, peer group, economic statues,
education etc.

23. How to Study Human Behavior
The study of human behavior has played an important role in
improving the lives of people who have mental health and
behavioral disorders. It has also facilitated advancements in areas
such as early childhood education, organizational behavior
management, and public health.

24. Behaviorism: it’s the environment
Influenced by prominent thinkers like John B. Watson and B.F.
Skinner, behavioral psychology gained popularity between 1920
and 1950. With its focus on observable behavior instead of mental
states, behaviorism provided a systematic way to study human
behavior.
Behaviorists argue that behavior is learned in interaction with our
environment, and that all behaviors are learned through
experience

25. What is classical conditioning?
In his experiments with dogs, Pavlov paired the sound of a bell
(new stimulus) with the presentation of food (naturally occurring
stimulus). Eventually, the dogs started salivating when hearing
the bell, even when no food was presented (new association).
And voilà, new behavior is learned.

26. What is operant conditioning?
The second learning principle, operant conditioning, describes the
way our behavior is shaped by consequences. Specifically, it
states that reward and punishment can influence the likelihood
that behaviors occur again.

27. Social learning theory: it’s other people
Social learning theory was proposed in the 1970’s by Albert Bandura, who
believed that conditioning alone could not account for all behaviors. At its core,
social learning theory proposes that people learn from observing
others.
This observational learning does not only occur when observing another person,
but also when listening to descriptions of behavior or viewing symbolic models.
From very early on, this provides us with many learning opportunities.
Importantly, social learning theory emphasizes that behavior is also influenced
by mental states, like motivation or thoughts.
Another difference with behaviorism is that observational learning does not
necessarily lead to permanent behavioral changes. In other words, people
might learn new information without actually showing new
behaviors.

28. Relational Frame Theory: it’s our language
Relational Frame Theory (RFT) was developed in the 2000’s by
Steven Hayes, Dermot Barnes-Holmes and Brian Roche, and
builds upon classic behaviorism. What’s new in this theory is the
role of human language in learning new behavior.
Specifically, RFT researchers argue that language enables us to
learn new information indirectly. The key learning processes of
this theory are centered on relations between stimuli, or
relational frames.

29. What is Personality
Personality is the product of social interaction in group life. In
society every person has different traits such as skin, color, height
and weight. They have different types of personalities because
individuals are not alike.
It refers to the habits, attitudes as well as physical traits of a person
which are not same but have vary from group to group and society
to society, everyone has personality, which may be good or bad,
impressive or unimpressive.

30. It develops during the process of socialization in a culture of a
specific group or society.
One cannot determine it of an individual exactly because it varies
from culture to culture and time to time.
For example, a killer is considered criminal in peace time and hero
in war.
The feeling and actions of an individual during interaction moulds
the personality.
It is the sum of total behaviors of the individual and covers both
overt and covert behaviors, interests, mentality and intelligence.
It is the sum of physical and mental abilities and capabilities.

31. Types of Personality
Extrovert Personality
This type has the tendency to live mostly outside the like to live
with others. Those individuals are highly socialized and have
contact with outside people in the society. They want to join other
groups who are more in number. These type of people are drivers,
excessive drinkers, smokers, robbers, thieves, wicked persons etc.

32. Introvert Personality
Introvert is opposite to extrovert. Those people
are always live alone in their rooms and do not
want to go outside. They have their own
imaginary world. They are teachers, scientists,
thinkers and philosophers.

33. Ambivert Personality
Between extrovert and introvert personalities there is a third one
type called ambivert.
People belonging to this type enjoy both the groups and attend
them. They have middle mind and want to live in both parties.
Sometimes they join outside people but sometimes they live in their
own rooms.

34. Personality
Development Tips
Should be a better listener
Good conversation
Be positive in outlook and
attitude
More reading and building
interest
Should be a good courteous
Interaction with new people
Helpful to other people
Give respect if you want
respect
Confident about yourself

35. Five Personality Traits സ്വഭാവവിശേഷങ്ങൾ
Openness to experience
Conscientiousness: the quality of wishing to do one's work or duty well
and thoroughly.
Extraversion: It indicates how outgoing and social a person is
Agreeableness
Neuroticism: the degree to which a person experiences the world as
distressing, threatening, and unsafe.

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