Психологія: Psycholo ...

Lecture 1. Psychology as a science.

1.History of psychology.

2. The concepts of psychology and psyche.

3.  Branches of psychology (specialties).

Literature:

Hockenbury H. Don, Hockenbury E. Sandra Discovering Psychology. Worth Publishers; 6th edition, 2014. 855 p.

 Sergey Maksymenko. General Psychology. Vinnytsya: Nova Knyha, 2005. 288p.

James V.McConnel. Understanding Human Behavior.-Florida, 1990. 627p.

• How should psychology be defined?

• What is the proper subject matter of psychology?

• Which areas of human experience should be studied?

• What methods should be used to investigate psychological issues?

• Should psychology include the study of nonhuman animal behavior?

• Should psychological findings be used to change or enhance human behavior?

 

1.History of psychology. The concepts of psychology and psyche.

The word psychology derived from two Greek words: 1) “psukhe” – breath, life, soul; 2) “logos” – word, science.

Psychology is the scientific study of behaviour and mental processes.
That is the study of how human beings and animals sense, think, learn and know.

History of psychology. The science of psychology developed from many diverse sources, but its origins as a science may be traced to ancient Greece. Myths attributed most events to the pleasure or displeasure of the gods. As humanity became more sophisticated, myths gave way to philosophy – the rational investigation of the underlying principles of being and knowledge. Plato and Aristotle, as well as other Greek philosophers, took up some of the basic questions of psychology that are still under study. Are people born with certain skills, abilities, and personality or do all these develop as a result of experience? How do people come to know the world? Are certain ideas and feelings innate or are they all learned?

Modern psychology is devoted to collecting facts about behavior and experience and systematically organizing such facts into psychological theories. These theories aid in understanding and explaining people’s behavior and sometimes in predicting and influencing their future behavior.

As a science, psychology uses systematic methods to observe, describe, predict and explain behavior.

Psychology describes the regularities of beginnings, forming, development and display of human’s and animal's psyche.

Psyche is the quality of brain that secures the reflection ability of the influence of objects and phenomenon of real world

Main perspectives of psychology

2. Branches of psychology.

Psychology, historically, has been divided into many branches (fields):

Clinical psychology studies the causes, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of different types of behavioral and emotional disorders, such as anxiety, mood, or eating disorders. Clinical psychologists have extensive training in evaluating and diagnosing psychological disorders, psychotherapy techniques, and psychological testing.

 Cognitive psychology investigates mental processes, including reasoning and thinking, problem solving, memory, perception, mental imagery, and language.

 

Counseling psychology helps people of all ages adjust, adapt, and cope with personal and interpersonal problems in such diverse areas as relationships, work, education, marriage, child rearing, and aging.

Developmental psychology studies the physical, social, and psychological changes that occur at different ages and stages of the lifespan, from conception to old age.

 

Educational psychology studies how people of all ages learn. Educational psychologists help develop the instructional methods and materials used to train people in both educational and work settings.

 

Experimental psychology is the term traditionally used to describe research focused on such basic topics as sensory and perceptual processes, and principles of learning, emotion, and motivation. However, note that experiments can be conducted by psychologists in every area of psychology.

 

Forensic psychology applies psychological principles and techniques to legal issues, such as assessment and treatment of offenders, mental competency to stand trial, child custody, jury selection, and eyewitness testimony.

 

Health psychology focuses on the role of psychological factors in the development, prevention, and treatment of illness. Health psychology includes such areas as stress and coping, the relationship between psychological factors and physical health, and ways of promoting health-enhancing behaviors.

 

Industrial/Organizational psychology is concerned with the relationship between people and work. This specialty includes such topics as job analysis, personnel selection

and training, worker productivity, job satisfaction, leadership, and group behavior within organizations.

 

Personality psychology studies the nature of human personality, including individual differences, the characteristics that make each person unique, and how those characteristics originated and developed.

 

Rehabilitation psychology applies psychological knowledge to helping people with chronic and disabling health conditions, such as accident or stroke victims, adapt to their situation and attain optimal psychological, interpersonal, and physical functioning.

 

Social psychology explores how people are affected by their social environments, including how people think about and influence others. Topics as varied as conformity, obedience, persuasion, interpersonal attraction, helping behavior, prejudice, aggression, and social beliefs are studied by social psychologists.

 

Sports psychology uses psychological theory and knowledge to enhance athletic motivation, performance, and consistency.