Psychology

(Assignment no.1)

Jannel M. Tobongbanua
BSME 1-2

I. Psychology
Psychology is the study of mind and behavior. It is an academic
discipline and an applied science which seeks to understand
individuals and groups by establishing general principles and
researching specific cases.
The scientific study of the human mind and its functions, especially
those affecting behavior in a given context.

II. Different Branches of Psychology

Abnormal Psychology - is the area that looks at psychopathology and abnormal
behavior. The term covers a broad range of disorders, from depression to obsessioncompulsion to sexual deviation and many more. Counselors, clinical psychologists and
psychotherapists often work directly in this field.

General Psychology - explains the principles of behavior; how and why

people behave.
Behavioral Psychology - also known as behaviorism, is a theory of
learning based upon the idea that all behaviors are acquired through
conditioning.
Biopsychology - focused on the study of how the brain influences
behavior is often known as biopsychology
Comparative Psychology - concerned with the study of animal
behavior.
Cross-Cultural Psychology - looks at how cultural factors influence
human behavior.
Educational Psychology - concerned with schools, teaching psychology,
educational issues and student concerns.
Experimental Psychology - that utilizes scientific methods to research
the brain and behavior
Personality Psychology - is focused on the patterns of thoughts,
feelings, and behavior that make a person unique.

 Clinical psychology - integrates science, theory, and practice in order

to understand, predict and relieve maladjustment, disability, and
discomfort.
Cognitive psychology - investigates internal mental processes, such as
problem solving, memory, learning, and language (how people think,
perceive, communicate, remember and learn).
Developmental psychology - is the scientific study of systematic
psychological changes that a person experiences over the course of
his/her life span. Developmental psychology is often referred to as
human development.
Evolutionary psychology - looks at how human behavior has been
affected by psychological adjustments during evolution.
Forensic psychology - involves applying psychology to criminal
investigation and the law.
Health psychology - also called behavioral medicine or medical
psychology.
Neuropsychology - Studies the structure and function of the brain in
relation to clear behaviors and psychological processes.
Occupational psychology - also known as industrial-organizational
psychology.
Social psychology - uses scientific methods to understand and explain
how feeling, behavior and thoughts of people are influenced by the
actual, imagined or implied presence of other people.

III. School of thoughts regarding to Psychology

Functionalism - Functionalism has the most influence of any theory in
contemporary psychology.
Gestalt Psychology - According to Gestalt psychologists, the human
mind works by interpreting data through various laws, rules or
organizing principles, turning partial information into a whole.
Psychoanalysis - Psychoanalytic theory, which originated with Sigmund
Freud, explains human behavior by looking at the subconscious mind.
Behaviorism - In the 1950s, B.F. Skinner carried out experiments with
animals, such as rats and pigeons, demonstrating that they repeated
certain behaviors if they associated them with rewards in the form of
food.
Humanistic Psychology - Humanist psychologists teach that to
understand psychology, we must look at individuals and their
motivations.
Cognitivism - Cognitive psychology follows behaviorism by
understanding the mind through scientific experimentation, but it

differs from it by accepting that psychologists can study and

understand the internal workings of the mind and mental processes.

IV. Different Perspective in Psychology

Psychodynamic Perspective
Behavioral Perspective
Biopsychological Perspective

Cognitive Perspective
Sociocultural Perspective
Evolutionary Perspective

Humanistic/Existential
Perspective

Feminist-post structural
Perspective