DO YOU KNOW PSYCHOLOGY

 PSYCHOLOGY

The term psychology is derived from two Greek words psyche meaning soul and logos meaning science or study of a subject. Thus psychology was a study of the soul or mind.But since then it has moved away considerably from  this  focus  and  established  itself  as  a scientific discipline which deals with processes underlying human experience and behaviour. The  range  of  phenomena  it  studies,  some  of which  we  mentioned  above,  are  spread  over several  levels,  viz.  individual,  dyadic  (two person) group, and organization. They also have

  biological  as  well  as  social  bases.

Psychology  is  defined  formally  as  a  science which  studies  mental  processes,  experiences and  behaviour  in  different  contexts.

Let  us  try  to understand  the  three  terms  used  in  the definition,  namely,  mental  processes,experience, and behaviour. When we say experiences are internal to the experiencing person, we refer to states of consciousness  or  awareness  of mental processes.

•  We use our mental processes when we think or try to solve a problem, to know or remember something. One level at which these mental  processes  are  reflected  is  the  brain activity. As we think or solve a mathematical problem, our brain activities can be observed using different techniques of brain imaging.

• However, we cannot say that brain activity and mental processes are the same, although they are interdependent. Mental activities and neural  activities  are  mutually  overlapping processes but they are not identical. Unlike the brain, the mind does not have a physical structure or has a location. Mind emerges and evolves as our interactions and experiences in this world get dynamically organised in the form of a system which is responsible for the occurrence  of  various  mental  processes.

• Brain  activities  provide  important  clues  to how   our   mind   functions.   But   the consciousness  of  our  own  experiences  and mental  processes  are  much  more  than  the neural or brain activities. Even when we're asleep  some  mental  activities  go  on.  We dream, and receive some information such as a knock on the door while we are asleep.Some psychologists have shown that we also learn  and  remember  in  our  sleep.  

• Mental Processes,  such  as  remembering,  learning,knowing, perceiving, feeling are of interest to psychologists.  They  study  these  processes trying to understand how the mind works and to help us improve the uses and application of these mental capacities.

• Psychologists  also  study the experiences  of people. Experiences are subjective in nature. We cannot directly observe or know someone else's experience. Only the experiencing person can  be  aware  or  be  conscious  of  her  or  his experiences. Thus, experiences are embedded in  our  awareness  or  consciousness.

• Psychologists have focused on experiences of pain being undergone by terminally ill patients of psychological pain felt in bereavement, besides  experiences  which  lead  to  positive feelings,  such  as  in  romantic  encounters. 

• There are some esoteric experiences also which attract the attention  of  psychologists,  such  as when a Yogi meditates to enter a different level of consciousness and creates a new kind of experience  or  when  a  drug  addict  takes  a particular  kind  of  drug  to  get  a  high,  even though  such  drugs  are  extremely  harmful. 

•  Experiences are influenced by internal and external conditions of the experiencer.  If you're travelling in a crowded bus during a hot summer  day,  you  may  not  experience  the usual discomfort if you are going for a picnic with some close friends. Thus, the nature of experience  can  only  be  understood  by analysing  a  complex  set  of  internal  and external conditions. 

Behaviours are responses or reactions we make  or  activities  we  engage  in.  When Something is hurled at you, your eyes blink in a  simple  reflex  action.  You  are  taking  an examination and can feel your heart pounding.You decide to go for a particular movie with a friend. Behaviours may be simple or complex,short or enduring.  Some behaviours are overt. They can be outwardly seen or sensed by an observer. Some are internal or covert.  When You are in a difficult situation while playing a game  of  chess  you  almost  feel  your  hand muscles twitching, trying to experiment with a  move.  All  behaviours,  covert  or  overt,  are associated with or triggered by some stimulus in the environment or changes that happen internally. You may see a tiger and run or think that there is a tiger and decide to flee. 

Psychology as a  Behavior

 We have  discussed  psychology,  behaviour,  experience  and  mental processes. It seeks to understand and explain how the mind works and how different mental processes result in different behaviours. 

• When we observe others as lay or common persons,our  own  points  of  view  or  our  ways  of understanding  the  world  influence  our interpretations  of  their  behaviours  and experiences.  Psychologists  try  to  minimise such biases in their explanations of behaviour and experience in various ways. Some do so by  seeking  to  make  their  analysis  scientific and   objective. 

•  Others  seek  to  explain behaviour  from  the  point  of  view  of  the experiencing persons because they think that subjectivity is a necessary aspect of human experience.

•   In  the  Indian  tradition,  self-reflection  and  analysis  of  our  conscious experiences, is held to be a major source of psychological understanding.

•  Many western psychologists have also begun to emphasize the role of self-reflection and self-knowledge in  understanding  human  behaviour  and experience.

Psychology as a natural science

 It has been mentioned earlier that psychology has its roots in philosophy. 

However, modern psychology  has  developed  because  of  the application of the scientific method to study psychological phenomena. 

• Science places a great  deal  of  emphasis  on  objectivity  which can be obtained if there is consensus on the definition  of  a concept and how it can be measured. Psychology influenced by Descartesand later on by the developments in physics has  grown  by  following  what  is  called  a hypothetico-deductive  model.  

• The  model suggests that scientific advancement can take place  if  you  have  a  theory  to  explain  a phenomenon.  For  example,  physicists  have what  is  called  a  Big-bang  theory  to  explain how the universe came to be formed. 

• Theory is nothing else but a set of statements about how a certain complex phenomenon can be explained with the help of propositions which are interrelated. Based on a theory, scientists deduce or propose a hypothesis that offers a tentative  explanation  of  how  a  certain phenomenon takes place. The hypothesis then is  tested  and  proved  true  or  false  based  on empirical  data  that  one  has  gathered.  The Theory is revised if data gathered point in a different direction than the one suggested by the  hypothesis.  Using  the  above  approach psychologists  have  developed  theories  of learning,  memory,  attention,  perception,motivation and emotion, etc. and have made significant  progress.  Till  date,  most  of  the research in psychology follows this approach. Apart from this,

• Psychologists have also been considerably  influenced  by  the  evolutionary approach  which  is  dominant  in  biological sciences. This approach has also been used to  explain  diverse  kinds  of  psychological phenomena  such  as  attachment  and aggression to mention just a few.

Psychology as a Social Science

We  mentioned  above  that  psychology  is recognised more as a social science because it studies the behaviour of human beings in their socio-cultural contexts. 

• Humans are not only  influenced  by  their  socio-cultural contexts,  they  also  create  them.  Psychology As  a  social  science  discipline  focuses  on humans  as  social  beings. 

EVOLUTION OF PSYCHOLOGY

Psychology as a modern discipline, which is influenced  to  a  large  extent  by  Western developments, has a short history. It grew out of  ancient  philosophy  concerned  with questions  of  psychological  significance. 

•  We Mentioned earlier that the formal beginning of modern psychology is traced back to 1879when  the  first  experimental  laboratory  was established in Leipzig, Germany by Wilhelm Wundt. Wundt was interested in the study of conscious experience and wanted to analyse the constituents or the building blocks of the mind.  Psychologists  during  Wundt’s  time analysed the structure of the mind through introspection  and  therefore  were  called structuralists. Introspection was a procedure in  which  individuals  or  subjects  in psychological  experiments  were  asked  to describe in detail their own mental processes or  experiences. 

 However,  introspection  as  a method  did  not  satisfy  many  other psychologists. It was considered less scientific because  the  introspective  reports  could  not be verified by outside observers. This led to the  development of a new perspective in psychology.

• An American psychologist William James who had set up a psychological laboratory in Cambridge,  Massachusetts  soon  after  the setting up of the Leipzig laboratory, developed what was called a functionalist approach to the study of the human mind. William James believed  that  instead  of  focusing  on  the structure  of  the  mind,  psychology  should instead study what the mind does and how behaviour  functions  in  making  people  deal with  their  environment.  For  example,functionalists  focused  on  how  behaviour enabled  people  to  satisfy  their  needs.According  to  William  James,  consciousness as  an  ongoing stream  of  mental  processes interacting with the environment formed the core  of  psychology.  A  very  influential educational thinker of the time, John Dewey,used  functionalism  to  argue  that  human beings  seek to function effectively by adapting to their environment.

• Another reaction to structuralism came in the form of behaviorism around 1910 John Waston rejected the idea of mind and consciousness  as  subject  matters  of psychology. He was greatly influenced by the work  of  physiologists  like  Ivan  Pavlov  classical conditioning. For Watson, mind is not observable  and  introspection  is  subjective because  it  cannot  be  verified  by  another observer.  According  to  him,  scientific psychology must focus on what is observable and verifiable. He defined psychology as a study of  behaviour  or  responses  (to  stimuli)  which can  be  measured  and  studied  objectively. Behaviourism of Watson was further developed by  many  influential  psychologists  who  are known  as  behaviourists.  

BRANCH OF PSYCHOLOGY

Various fields of specialisation in psychology have emerged over the years. Some of these are discussed below.

Cognitive  Psychology :- investigates  mental processes  involved  in  acquisition,  storage,manipulation,  and  transformation  of information  received  from  the  environment along with its use and communication.

The Major  cognitive  processes  are  attention,perception,  memory,  reasoning,  problem solving, decision-making and language.   In  order  to  study  these  cognitive processes, psychologists conduct experiments in laboratory settings. Some of them also follow an ecological approach, i.e. an approach which focuses on the environmental factors, to study cognitive  processes  in  a  natural  setting. Cognitive psychologists often collaborate with neuroscientists and computer scientists.

Biological  Psychology:- focuses  on  the relationship  between  behaviour  and  the physical system, including the brain and the rest  of  the  nervous  system,  the  immune system, and genetics.

 Biological psychologists often  collaborate  with  neuroscientists,zoologists,  and       anthropologists. Neuropsychology has emerged as a field of research    where    psychologists    and neuroscientists  are  working  together. Researchers  are  studying  the  role  of neurotransmitters  or  chemical  substances which    are    responsible    for    neural communication in different areas of the brain and therefore in associated mental functions.They do their research on people with normal functioning  brain  as  well  as  on  people  with damaged  brain  by  following  advanced technologies  like  EEG,  PET  and  fMRI,  etc.about which you will study later.

Developmental  Psychology:-  studies  the physical,  social  and  psychological  changes that occur at different ages and stages over alife-span,  from  conception  to  old  age.  The Primary concern of developmental  Psychology is how we become what we are. For many years the major emphasis was on child and adolescent development. However Today an increasing number of developmental psychologists  show  strong  interest  in  adult development  and  aging.  They  focus  on  the biological, socio-cultural and environmental factors   that   influence   psychologicalcharacteristics such as intelligence, cognition,emotion, temperament, morality, and social relationship.  Developmental  psychologists collaborate      with      anthropologists,educationists,  neurologists,  social  workers,counsellors  and  almost  every  branch  of knowledge where there is a concern for growth and development of a human being.Social Psychology explores how people are affected  by  their  social  environments,  how people  think  about  and  influence  others.Social  psychologists  are  interested  in  such topics as attitudes, conformity and obedience to authority, interpersonal attraction, helpful behaviour,  prejudice,  aggression,  social motivation, inter-group relations and so on.

Cross-cultural  and  Cultural  Psychology:-  Examines the role of culture in understanding behaviour, thought, and emotion. It assumes that human behaviour is not only a reflection of  human-biological  potential  but  also  a product of culture. Therefore behaviour should be studied in its socio-cultural context. As you will be studying in different chapters of this book, culture influences human behaviour in many ways and in varying degrees.

Environmental  Psychology :- studies  the interaction  of  physical  factors  such  as temperature, humidity, pollution, and natural disasters on human behaviour. The influence of physical arrangement of the workplace on health, the emotional state, and interpersonal relations are also investigated. Current topics of research in this field are the extent to which,disposal  of  waste,  population  explosion,conservation  of  energy,  efficient  use  of community resources are associated with andare functions of human behaviour.

 Health psychology:-  focuses  on  the  role  of psychological  factors  (for  example,  stress,anxiety) in the development, prevention and treatment  of  illness.  Areas  of  interest  for  a health psychologist are stress and coping, the relationship between psychological factors and health, patient-doctor relationship and ways of promoting health enhancing factors.

 

Clinical and Counselling Psychology :- deals with  causes,  treatment  and  prevention  of different types of psychological disorders such as anxiety, depression, eating disorders and chronic  substance  abuse.  A  related  area  is counselling, which aims to improve everyday functioning by helping people solve problems in daily living and cope more effectively with challenging  situations.  The  work  of  clinical psychologists  does  not  differ  from  that  of counselling  psychologists  although  a counselling psychologist sometimes deals with people  who  have  less  serious  problems.  In Many  instances,  counselling  psychologists work  with  students,  advising  them  about personal problems and career planning. Like Clinical psychologists, psychiatrists also study the  causes,  treatment,  and  prevention  of psychological  disorders.  

How  are  clinical psychologists  and  psychiatrists  different? 

 A clinical  psychologist  has  a  degree  in psychology, which includes intensive training in treating people with psychological disorders. In contrast, a psychiatrist has a medical degree with  years  of  specialised  training  in  the treatment  of  psychological  disorders.  One important distinction is that psychiatrists can prescribe medications and give electroshock treatments  whereas  clinical  psychologists cannot.

                                         

Industrial/Organisational Psychology :- Deals with workplace behaviour, focusing on both the workers  and  the  organisations  that  employ them. Industrial/organisational psychologists are  concerned  with  training  employees,improving  work  conditions,  and  developing criteria for selecting employees. For example,an  organisational  psychologist  might recommend that a company adopt a new management  structure  that  would  increase communication between manager and staff.The   background   of   industrial   and organisational  psychologists  often  include training in cognitive and social psychology.

Educational psychology:- Educational psychology how people of  all  ages  learn.  Educational  psychologists primarily help develop instructional methods and  materials  used  to  train  people  in  both educational and work settings. They are also concerned with research on issues of relevance for  education,  counselling  and  learning problems. A related field, school psychology,focuses  on  designing  programmes  that promote  intellectual,  social,  and  emotional development of children, including those with special needs. They try to apply knowledge of psychology in a school setting.

Sports  Psychology  applies  psychological principles to improve sports performance enhancing their motivation. 

Sports psychology is  a  relatively  new  field  but  is  gaining acceptance world wide.

Other Emerging Branches of Psychology :The interdisciplinary focus on research and application  of  psychology  has  led  to  the emergence  of  varied areas like aviation psychology, space psychology, military psychology,forensic  psychology,  rural psychology,   engineering   psychology,managerial    psychology,    community psychology,  psychology  of  women,  and political psychology, to name a few. 

PSYCHOLOGIST AT WORK

Psychologists  today  work  in  a  variety  of settings where they can apply psychological principles for teaching and training people to cope effectively with the problems of their lives.Often referred to as “human service areas' ' they include  clinical  counselling,  community,school and organisational psychology.

 Clinical  psychologists  specialise  in helping clients with behavioural problems by providing  therapy  for  various  mental disorders and in cases of anxiety or fear, orwith stresses at home or at work. They work either as private practitioners or at hospitals,mental institutions, or with social agencies.They  may  be  involved  in  conducting interviews and administering psychological tests to diagnose the client’s problems, and use psychological methods for their treatment and  rehabilitation.  Job  opportunities  in clinical psychology attract quite a few to this field of psychology.

Counselling  psychologists  work  with persons  who  suffer  from  motivational  and emotional  problems.  The  problems  of  their clients  are  less  serious  than  those  of  the clinical  psychologists.  A  counselling psychologist  may  be  involved  in  vocational rehabilitation programmes, or helping persons in making professional choices or in adjusting to  new  and  difficult  situations  of  life. Counselling  psychologists  work  for  public agencies  such  as  mental  health  centres,hospitals, schools, colleges and universities.

Community  psychologists  generally focus  on  problems  related  to  community mental health. They work for mental health agencies,  private  organisations  and  state governments. They help the community and its  institutions  in  addressing  physical  and mental health problems. In rural areas they may work to establish a mental health centre.In  urban  areas  they  may  design  a  drug rehabilitation programme. Many community psychologists  also  work  with  special populations  such  as  the  elderly  or  the physically or mentally challenged. Besides theredirection  and  evaluation  of  various 19 programmes  and  plans,  community  based rehabilitation  (CBR)  is  of  major  interest  to community psychologists.

School    psychologists    work    in educational  systems,  and  their  roles  vary according to the levels of their training. For Example,  some  school  psychologists  only administer  tests,  whereas  others  also interpret test results to help students with their  problems.  They  also  help  in  the formulation of school policies. They facilitate communication  between  parents,  teachers and administrators, and also provide teachers and  parents  with  information  about  the academic progress of a student.

Organisational  psychologists  render valuable help in dealing with problems that the  executives  and  employees  of  an organization tend to face in their respective roles.  They  provide  organisations  with consultancy  services  and  organise  skill training programmes in order to enhance their efficiency    and    effectiveness. Some organisational psychology specialise in Human Resource Development(HRD) While others in organizational development and change management programs.

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