Psychology is the scientific study of mind, behavior, and thought processes. The document provides an introduction to psychology including definitions, history and origins, schools of thought, scope, branches, methods, relevance to nursing, and applications. Key points include that psychology assists in understanding human and animal behavior, its origins in the late 19th century laboratories of Wundt and others, major perspectives like psychoanalysis and behaviorism, broad scope across various fields, and use of methods like introspection, observation, experimentation and surveys.

1. INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY
MAHESH S WANGI
SHRI B.V.V’S INSTITUTE OF
NURSING SCIENCES BAGALKOTE

2. • Health: A complete state of physical, mental and social
wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or
infirmity (WHO, 1946).
• Mental Health: Is a state of emotional, psychological,
and social wellness.
• Mental Illness: Is a clinically significant behavioural or
psychological syndrome or pattern that occurs in an
individual and is associated with present distress

3. • Psychology: The study of mind, behaviour, emotions,
and thought processes.
• Psychology assists health professionals with
understanding their patients and themselves.
• The word of psychology made up of two Greek words –
‘psychi’ and ‘logos’. ‘Psychi’ means ‘soul’ and ‘logos’
means the ‘study of’ or ‘knowledge’—study of soul.

4. • DEFINITIONS OF PSYCHOLOGY
• Psychology is the science of human and animal behaviour;
it includes the application of behavioural science to human
problems.
• Psychology is the science of human behaviour. (Walter
Bowers Pillsbury—1911)
• Psychology is a science, which aims to give us better
understanding and control of the behaviour of the
organism as a whole. (William McDoughall—1949)
• Psychology is the investigation of human and animal
behavior and of the mental and physiological processes
associated with the behaviour. (Jackson—1976)

5. • HISTORY AND ORIGIN OF SCIENCE OF
( DEVELOPMENT) PSYCHOLOGY
The successes of the experimental method in the physical
sciences encouraged some philosophers to think that mind and
behavior could be studied with scientific methods.
• In 1879, the first psychological laboratory was established at the
University of Leipzig by the German philosopher and
psychologist Wilhelm Wundt (1832 – 1920).
• Wundt was the first to measure human behavior accurately and
is known as the ‘Father of Psychology’.

6. • Ancient Time:
• 1. Aristotle (322- 384 BC)
a. All beings have souls, which animate them.
b. Human have rational souls compared to
other animals.
• 2. Rene Descardes (1596 – 1650)
a. People are born with collection of knowledge
and some ideas are inborn, such as perfection).
b. Human body is similar to a machine, so it can
be studied.

7. • 3. John Locke (1632 – 1704).
-At birth, human mind is a blank
slate, on which experiences write
knowledge.
• 4. Francis Galton (1822–1911)
a. Studied individual differences.
b. He was considered as the
“Father of Mental tests”

8. • Modern Psychology
1. Wilhelm Wundt (1832- 1920)
a. He was considered as the “Father of Modern
Psychology.
b. He noted that mental process could be
investigated with objective technique
similar to other scientific fields.
2. G. Stanley Hall (student of Wundt)
- He established the first American psychology
laboratory at Johns Hopkins University in 1883.
3. Hermann Ebbinghaus (a German psychologist)
- He reported on the first experiments on
memory in 1885.

9. • School Thoughts
1.Structuralism (Wundt and his colleagues):
The aim was to study consciousness by breaking it down into
its components – mainly perception, sensation, affection.
2. Functionalism (William James and John Dewey):
Functionalism is a theory about the nature of mental states.
mental states are identified by what they do rather than by what
they are made of.

10. 3. Behaviorism
John B. Watson:
a. Internal mental processes cannot be observed, so they should
not
be studied.
b. Psychology should focus on the study of behaviour.
c. He believed that behaviours were automatic response to stimuli
from the environment not the result of internal mental
processes.
Behaviorism
Skinner (Operant Conditioning):
Skinner set out operant condition (reinforcing )to identify the
processes, which made certain operant behaviors more or less
likely to occur.

11. 4. Gestalt theory:
• Any psychological phenomenon, from perceptual processes
to human personality, should be studied as a whole
(holistically), and should not be broken down into
components.
5. Psychoanalysis (Sigmund Freud):
• The unconscious is responsible for most thought and
behavior in all people and the disorders of the mentally ill.

12. 6. Humanism Perspective:
• Humanists believed humans were inherently good and
that their own mental processes played an active role in
their behavior.
7. Cognitive Perspective:
• Explains behavior by looking at a person’s particular ways
of reasoning and thinking.

13. • SCOPE OF PSYCHOLOGY
• The scope of a subject can usually be discussed under the
following two headings:
1. The limits of its operations and applications.
2. The branches, topics and subject matter with which it deals.
The field of operation and applications of the subject
psychology is too vast.
• It studies, describes and explains the behaviour of living
organisms.
• It describes all types of life activities and experiences — whether
conative(intentional), cognitive or affective, implicit or explicit,
conscious, unconscious and subconscious of a living organism.

14. • It studies not only human behaviour, but also human
experience, language and other forms of communication.
• It employs to all the living creatures irrespective of their
species, caste, colour, age, sex, mental or physical state.
• It also studies the behaviour of the animals, insects, birds
and plant life.
• They study how individuals and society interact and how they
behave as members of small and large groups.

15. • Branches of psychology

16. • Pure Psychology
• It provides the framework and theory.
• It deals with the formulation of psychological principles and
theories.
• It suggests various methods and techniques for the analysis,
assessment, modification and improvement of behavior.
• Applied Psychology
• The theory generated through pure psychology finds its
practical shape.
• Here we discuss ways and means of the applications of
psychological rules, principles, theories and techniques with
reference to the real practical life situations.

17. • Branches of Pure Psychology
General Psychology
• General psychology deals with the fundamental rules, principles and
theories of psychology in relation to the study of behavior of a normal
adult.
Abnormal Psychology
• Abnormal psychology deals with the behavior of individuals who
are unusual. It studies mental disorders, their causes and treatment.
Social Psychology
• Social psychology deals with the group behavior and interrelationships
of people with other people.

18. Physiological Psychology
• This branch of psychology describes and explains the biological and
physiological basis of behavior. It concerns the structure and functions
of sense organs, nervous system, muscles and glands underlying all
behavior.
Parapsychology
• Parapsychology deals with extrasensory perceptions, causes of rebirth,
telepathy and allied problems.
Geopsychology
• This branch of psychology describes and explains the relation of
physical environment particularly weather, climate and soil with
behavior.

19. Developmental Psychology
• This branch of psychology describes the processes and factors that
influence the growth and development in relation to the behavior of an
individual from birth to old age.
Experimental Psychology
• This branch of psychology studies the ways and means of carrying out
psychological experiments by using scientific methods.
• Experimental psychologists do basic research in an effort to discover
and understand the fundamental and general causes of behavior.

20. • Branches of Applied Psychology
 Educational Psychology
• Educational psychology is a branch of applied psychology, which
tries to apply the psychological principles, theories and techniques to
human behavior in educational situations. (aspects of the teaching
/learning process)
 Clinical Psychology
• This is the largest subfield of psychology.
• This branch of applied psychology describes the causes of mental
illness, abnormal behavior of a patient and suggests treatment and
effective adjustment of the affected person in society.

21.  Industrial Psychology
• Tries to seek application of the psychological principles, theories
and techniques for the study of human behavior in relation to
industrial environment.
• Industrial psychologists apply psychological principles to assist
public and private organizations with their hiring and placement
programs.
 Legal Psychology
• Tries to study the behavior of persons like clients, criminals,
witnesses, etc.
• The root cause of crime, offence, dispute or any legal case can be
properly understood through the use of this branch of psychology.

22.  Military Psychology
• It is concerned with the use of psychological principles and
techniques in military science.
• How to keep the morale of the soldiers and citizens high during
war time, how to secure better recruitment of the personnel for
the fighting capacities and organizational climate and
leadership, etc.
 Political Psychology
• This branch of psychology relates itself with the use of
psychological principles and techniques in studying politics and
deriving political gains.

23. • Applications of Psychology
• In the Field of Education
• Theories of learning, motivation and personality, etc. have been
responsible for shaping and designing the educational system
according to the needs and requirements of the students.
• In the Field of Medicine
• A doctor, nurse or any person who attends the patient, needs to
know the science of behavior to achieve good results.
Psychology has contributed valuable therapeutic measures like
behavior therapy, play therapy, group therapy, psychoanalysis,
etc. for the diagnosis and cure of patients suffering from
psychosomatic, as well as mental diseases.

24. • In the Field of Business and Industry
• It has highlighted the importance of knowledge of consumer’s
psychology and harmonious interpersonal relationship in the field of
commerce and industry.
• In the Field of Criminology
• It has helped in detection of crimes and in dealing with criminals.
• In the Field of Politics
• It has proved useful to the politicians and leaders to learn the qualities
of leadership for leading the masses.

25. • In the Filed of Guidance and Counseling
• It has provided valuable help in relation to guidance and counseling in
educational, personal as well as vocational areas.
• In the Field of Military Science
• Psychology helps in the selection, training, promotion and
classification of defense personnel. In fighting the enemy, the morale
of the defense personnel and of citizens must at all costs be high and
this can only be achieved by providing suggestions, insight and
confidence.
• In the Field of Human Relationship and Self-Development
• Finally it has helped human beings to learn the art of understanding
their own behavior, seeking adjustment with their self and others and
enhancing, as well as actualizing their potentialities to the utmost
possible.

26. • RELEVANCE TO NURSING
• Psychology has become necessary in every profession including
nursing today.
• This is because of increasing emphasis being laid out on the
interplay of body, mind and spirit in the health status of every
individual.
• The knowledge of psychology will help the nurse to understand
the problems and needs of patients and attend to them.
• It will help the nurses to understand such abnormal behaviors and
help the patients in the management and cure.

27. • The learning of psychology helps a nurse in the following
ways:
To Understand Her Own Self.
To Understand Patients.
To Recognize Abnormal Behavior.
To Understand Other People.
To Provide Quality Care to Patients.
Help Patients Adjust to the Situation.

28. • Why Nursing Students Study Psychology
• Assists students to understand their own behaviors and the
behaviors of others.
• Assists students to understand the reason of their behaviors.
• Develop insight on how the psychological knowledge and
procedures can be applied in the problem solving of personal and
social problems.
• Assists students to deal with different types of patients & people
in their future work.
• Helps gaining more insight in evaluating psychological
information that students read or hear about.

29. • METHODS OF PSYCHOLOGY
• Psychology is termed as the scientific study of human behavior.
• Special tools and procedures help us in gathering and
organizing its subject matter or the essential facts about
behavior.
• These procedures are termed as methods, which are used to
study human behavior

30. • Introspection or Self-observation Method
• This is one of the oldest methods of psychology. Introspection
means ‘to look within’. This is also known as self-observation
method.
• It is not possible to understand the inner feelings and
experiences of other persons.
• For example, a patient after an operation may be asked to report
how he feels. The patient will try to look within and recall what
happened and how he is presently feeling.
• This information will help for better treatment.

31. • Merits
• Observation and experimentation are based upon introspection.
• It gives us direct, immediate and exact knowledge of our own
mental processes.
• It enables us to fully understand the behavior of an individual.
• This method is inexpensive, easy and does not require any
apparatus or laboratory.

32. • Demerits
• This method is not applicable for children or animals or
mentally retarded people, because they cannot introspect.
• It is a purely private affair and cannot be verified by other
observers.
• In many cases, the patients may not have the insight to know
about their conditions or language to describe them accurately.
• Introspection sometimes involves attention to a mental process.

33. • Observational Method
• Observation is the objective method of studying the behavior of
individuals.
• It consists of, perception of an individual’s behavior under natural
conditions.
• Merits
• It is economical, natural, as well as flexible.
• The data, which is studied through observation can be analyzed,
measured, classified and interpreted.
• The results can be verified and relied.
• Observation method is quite suitable for observing developmental
characteristics like children’s habits and interests.

34. • Demerits
• There are chances of subjective report and also prejudices of
observer may creep in.
• Sometimes to observe the natural behavior the observer may
have to spend more time, energy and money.
• It lacks repeatability, as each natural situation can occur only
once.
• Not being able to establish a proper cause and effect
relationship.

35. • Experimental Method
• Experimental method is considered as the most scientific and
objective method of studying behavior.
• In psychology, experimental study is used to study the cause
and effect relationship regarding the nature of human behavior,
i.e. the effect of anxiety on the human behavior.
• To study the cause and effect relationship the psychologists
use objective observations under controlled conditions to
observe actions or behaviors of individuals.
• From these observations certain conclusions are drawn and
theories or principles established.

36. • Merits
• Scientific method.
• Finds out cause and effect relationship.
• Maximum control of phenomena.
• Repetition is possible.
• Demerits
• All problems of psychology cannot be studied by this method, as
we cannot perform experiments for all the problems.
• Experimental method is a costly and time consuming method.
• Handling of this method demands specialized knowledge and skill.
• Experimental method fails to study behavior in naturalistic
conditions.

37. • Clinical or Case History Method
• This method is used by clinical psychologists, psychiatrists,
psychiatric social workers in child guidance clinics or mental
hygiene clinics and the allied institutions.
• It aims at studying the cause and basis of people’s anxieties, fears
and personal maladjustments.
• A great deal of relevant data is collected by using case histories,
interviews, home visits and psychological tests to draw valid
inferences about the nature of the individual’s difficulties and
problems, the probable origin and course of development.

38. • Merits
• Case histories will give the clinician an insight into the causes
of the problem and suggest possible solutions.
• Case studies can be productive sources of ideas for further
investigation by other methods.
• Demerits
• The case history method depends largely on memory of
incidents, which may have been observed inaccurately or over
interpreted.

39. • Survey Method
• All problems in psychology cannot be studied by the
experimental and other methods. Some problems like study of
opinions, attitudes, health care needs, etc. can be studied by
means of survey method.
• It involves collection or gathering of information from a large
number of people by using questionnaires, inventories,
checklists, rating scales and interviews.
• Merit
• A large amount of data can be collected in a shorter time.
• Demerit
• The behavior is not observed directly.

40. • Genetic or Developmental Method
• Psychologists study not only the behavior of an individual at a
particular time, but also his development from birth to death, the
influence of heredity and environment in the development of the
person and conditions favorable and unfavorable for normal and
abnormal behavior.
• For example, to understand the learning behavior of an adult, the
study will start from the childhood and adolescence.
• This can be done by two ways:
• Cross-sectional study in which, the children of different age groups
will be studied simultaneously.
• Longitudinal study in which, the same child will be studied in
different stages of life.

41. • Merits
• This is a more useful method to understand the behavior from point
of view of hereditary and environmental influences.
• Demerit
• This method requires more time and energy.

42. • Applied Psychology to Solve Everyday Issues
• Psychology is not just limited to mental disorders,
counselling and therapy sessions; it is much more than
that.
• The role of psychology comes into play right from the
moment you wake up in the morning till you sleep at
night.
• From just community communicating with other to taking
lif’s toughest decisions psychology finds its applications in
almost all aspects of our early life.

43.  Motivation
Health
Advertisement
 Sports
 Relationships
 Healthy eating
 Leadership Skills
 Politics
 Decision Making and Problem Solving
 Communication
 Personal Growth
Finance Management
Workplace
Academics

44. • Relationship with other subjects
• The relationship between Psychology and Other Sciences;
• I) Psychology and Physical Sciences:
• Psychology is a science of experience of an individual. But
experience presupposes the duality of subject and object,
both of which are real.
• Psychology deals with mental processes such as knowing,
feeling and willing, and in order to account for them
adequately it must study the nature of physical stimuli in
relation to knowing and willing
• But there is a difference between psychology and physical
sciences in the treatment of physical objects. Physical
sciences investigate the nature of physical stimuli apart from
their relation to an individual.

45. • But psychology studies the nature of the interaction between
an individual with physical stimuli.
• Psycho-logical science is not concerned with the nature of
physical stimuli in themselves apart from their relation to an
individual.
• It is primarily concerned with behaviour of an individual,
and indirectly concerned with external stimuli.
• Physical sciences investigate the nature of physical
phenomena, and so they help psychology to explain the
experience and behaviour of the individual, which are
reactions to the physical and social stimuli

46. • II) Psychology and Biology:
• Psychology is a science of the experience and behaviour.
However experience cannot be adequately explained without
the concomitant physiological processes.
• The environment acts on the mind through the sense-organs;
and the mind reacts to the environment through the muscles.
The sense-organs and muscles are organs of the body. So
mental processes are closely related to bodily processes.
• In fact, mental processes are regarded by many psychologists
as functions of life. They are devices for better adaptation of
the psycho-physical organism to the environment.

47. • Experience and behaviour of an individual can be explained
in terms of some of the basic concepts of biological science.
• E. R. Hess has shown that there are close correlations
between psychic and neuronal processes in human
personality.
• In his view, it is quite probable that there are connections
between "psychic performances and the organization of the
brain."
• The subjective experience of an individual is closely related
to the cerebral structure and the properties of its structural
elements.
• There is a close correlation between the organization of the
brain and arrangements of the contents of consciousness.

48. • III) Psychology and Physiology: Psychology is a science of
experience. Experiences of an individual are intimately
connected with physiological processes, especially of the
nervous system. Hence, psychology studies these
physiological processes in order to adequately account for
mental processes.
• It does not study those physiological processes which are not
related to mental processes, because it is primarily concerned
with mental processes and behaviour.
• Psychology also deals with behaviour which is an expression
of experience.
•

49. • Behaviour is bodily reaction of an individual to the physical
and social environment.
• The Behaviourists seek to reduce psychology to physiology
which is a biological science. They do away with the concept
of mind or consciousness.
• Psychology deals with behaviour which is a reaction of the
whole organism to the stimulus, and not of a part of it. But
physiology studies the reactions of the different parts or
organs of the body.

50. • IV) Psychology and Logic:
• Psychology is wider in scope than Logic, because it deals with all
kinds of mental processes, viz., knowing, feeling and willing. But
Logic deals with thinking only, which is a kind of knowing. It does
not deal with feeling and willing.
• But Logic is not identical with the psychology of thinking, because
• psychology is a positive science, while Logic is a normative science.
Psychology tells us how we actually think while Logic- tells us how
we ought to think in order to arrive at truth.
• There are some differences between
• Psychology deals with the process of reasoning or mental
exploration of data whereas Logic deals with the result of mental
exploration or finding a new relationship among the data.

51. • Psychology deals with concrete mental processes, viz.,
conception, judgement and reasoning as attended with feeling
and willing, while Logic deals with the abstract mental
products, Viz., concepts, Judgements and inferences divorced
from feeling and willing.
• But Logic, is normative science, is based on Psychology
which is a positive science. In order to know how we ought to
reason, we should know how we do reason. We should know
the nature of reasoning before we can investigate the
conditions of its validity.

52. • V)Psychology and Philosophy:
• Philosophy has two parts epistemology (theory of knowledge )
and ontology (nature of being).
• Psycho-logy is related to epistemology. Psychology enquires
into the nature of knowing, feeling, and willing. It deals with
knowing as a fact, and the nature and development of
knowledge of an individual mind.
• It is concerned with the validity of knowledge. Psychology
assumes the possibility of knowledge and merely traces its
growth and development in an individual mind.
• But Epistemology enquires into the conditions under which
knowledge 1s possible, and deals with the validity of
knowledge.

53. • It seeks to answer the following questions:
1) Is knowledge of reality possible?
2) Does knowledge represent reality?
3) What is the source of true knowledge? It experience or
reason or both
4) What are the conditions of valid knowledge?
5) What is the range, extent, or limit of knowledge?
• Thus Psychology is the basis of Epistemology. It enquires into
the nature of knowing as a fact. Epistemology, on the other
hand, enquires into the validity of knowledge.

54. • Psychology is related to Ontology or Metaphysics.
• Psychology deals with knowing as a fact. Epistemology
enquires into the conditions of the validity of knowledge.
• Metaphysics or Ontology enquires into the ultimate nature of
the reality that is known.
• It assumes the reality of the mind and the external world, and
the mind's capacity to know the world.
• Metaphysics proves the reality of the self, the world, and the
knowledge of the world by the self.
• Metaphysics tests the validity of the fundamental assumptions
of psychology.

55. • VI) Psychology and Sociology:
• Psychology deals with the behaviour pattern of an individual in
relation to the environment which is physical as well as social.
• The individual mind grows and develops through interaction with
the society. He develops his personality through social intercourse.
• Sociology deals with the nature, origin, and development of society.
It investigates into manners, customs and institutions of a society
in all its stages of development from the savage to the civilized
state. Hence, psychology is intimately related to sociology.
• Sociology is primarily concerned with the study of the inter-
relationships between human personalities in social groups. Itis
concerned with the study of the bonds which inter-relate
individuals in society. The nature of inter-personal relationships
has become quite intelligible through investigations in the field of
psychology.

56. • Psychology is primarily concerned with the experience and
behaviour of an individual.
• Sociology, on the other hand, is concerned with the role that an
individual plays in society.
• Social psychology deals with the collective behaviour. It
investigates the peculiar characteristics of the individuals
which they acquire as members of groups. It studies the
behaviour of the crowd.
• It studies the psychological principles of social organisation. It
is the meeting ground of psychology and sociology.
• Psychology, sociology and social psychology are the various
branches of social science. Psychology and sociology are
concerned with the study of behaviour of individuals in social
setting. They study behaviour from different points of view.

57. • VII) Psychology and Education:
• Psychology is the science of the behaviour of the individual in
relation to the environment.
• Education is the science of unfolding the powers, of the pupil
and moulding his character and behaviour in such a manner
that he becomes a useful and well-adjusted member of the
community.
• Education is the process of developing the powers of the
individual harmoniously, and adjusting him to the social
environment by modifying his behaviour. Therefore,
educational psychology applies the general principles of
psychology to the practical needs of education. It gives a
psychological foundation to education and makes it sound.

58. • Education implies two agents-viz., the teacher and the pupil.
The teacher should know the mind of the pupil.
• There are special characteristics of the child mind which
differ according to different stages of its development.
• A teacher should utilize the principles of psychology to
develop the child's powers of observation, attention, memory,
imagination, thinking, emotion, volition, and character.
• Psychology helps an educationist by telling him of the innate
endowment of the child, of the laws of his mental
development, of the effect of the environment on his mind.
• It helps an educationist by telling him how one person acts
on another, how the group life influences the individual, and
how the corporate life of a school moulds the personality of a
child.

59. • It helps an educationist by telling him how knowledge
systems are built up, and how new knowledge is received and
assimilated into the system of knowledge already formed.
• It studies mental processes, e.g., motives, emotions, and
sentiments of the child, the adolescent and the adult.
• It studies the behaviour of the individual and the group.
Therefore, it can help the science of education which seeks to
stimulate the intellectual growth of a learner.

60. This is what happens in Psychology laboratory
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