GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. PSYCHOLOGY DEFINED:

1. Etymology of “Psychology”.

1. The word “Psychology” is derived from two Greek words: 

1. Psuche which means either mind or soul.
2. Logos, meaning, science or study.
3. Therefore, psychology, in the literal sense, is the study of the mind or soul.

2. However, psychologists have never been satisfied with this definition because the mind or the soul is a vague term that defies objective (knowable) definition and quantification. 

2. Definition of Psychology.

1. Psychology is the science of human behavior. It is concerned with what people do, how they do it, and why they do it.

1. This is so because, with the method of science, you can only study what you can observe, and behavior is the only aspect of a person that is observable. Scientists can only study and record what a person say, do, and write. Thus, it is only human behavior that we can study.
2. We make trustworthy inferences upon human’s mental activities, that is feelings, or thoughts, but we also make them from the way a person behaves.
3. A person who cannot talk, write, move a muscle, or behave in some way might very well have a mind, or thoughts, and feelings, but we have no access to them since these inner processes are brought to light only through a person’s behavior.

2. In addition to the above statement, Psychology is the science that seeks to measure, explain, and sometimes change the behavior of human and even animals.

1. Psychology has also investigated some aspects in the behavior of animals for a good number of reasons like its practicality, and it is ethical as well. For instance, in much medical research, animals make fit subjects for such experiments, whereas human beings obviously do not.
2. However, great care is needed in interpreting human behavior in the light of findings from animal experiments. Nevertheless, animal psychology shed much light upon our study of human behavior.

2. PSYCHOLOGY AND THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD.

1. Psychology as a science.

1. Scientific psychology is a knowledge obtained through scientific methods which involves observation, collection, and classification of data, testing hypothesis through experiments, and establishing general laws or conclusions; while “popular psychology” is a set of beliefs based only upon uncontrolled experiences, guesses, and superstitions.
2. Psychology is a science, that is, a body of knowledge held together and made meaningful through principles and laws.
3. Psychology is a science because:

1. It makes use of appropriate methods by analyzing behavior according to the rules and procedures of the scientific method:

• Raising a question and selecting a problem.
• Putting forth an hypothesis as a tentative answer to the problem.
• Making a series of systematic observations in order to obtain the necessary facts or data.
• Organizing and interpreting the data in order to solve the problem, answer the questions, and eventually bring up new problems.

2. It makes use of these methods in an appropriate attitude.

• A scientist must be impersonal and objective in his search for the truth by approaching the facts as they are, not according to his own desires and preconceptions.

2. Methods of Psychology.

1. Unlike any other science, Psychological investigation and study can be approached both by way of the observations made by the psychologist, that is objective approach, and also by the observations made by the person on himself, that is introspective approach.

3. Methods of Psychology under Objective Approach.

1. The Experimental Method

1. This method consists in a systematic observation of a situation wherein a set of conditions (independent variable) are manipulated in order to determine their effect on a particular behavior (dependent variable). Other factors which may have an effect on the dependent variable are kept under strict control (controlled variable). 
2. A variable is any factor or attribute of organisms or objects or events, that occur in different forms or amount, example height, weight, learning ability, age, etc.

• Independent variables (experimental) are the treatments that the experimenter exposes to the participant.
• Dependent variables are the reactions of the participant to the treatment.
• Controlled variables are those held constant in some way by the experimenter so that their effects do not bias the results or lead to erroneous conclusion.

3. Furthermore, experimental method is a research strategy in which the investigator introduces some changes in an individual’s environment and then measures the effect of those changes on his behavior.
4. Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920) is commonly called the founder of the modern experimental psychology, for it was he who opened the first psychological laboratory in Leipzig Germany in 1879.

2. The Differential Method

1. For many reasons (ethical, situational, etc.), it may happen that the psychologist is not able to change and manipulate the experimental variable (independent). In this case, he has to make use of the existing differences by putting up a control group and an experimental group.

• The control group is a group of subjects who are not exposed to the experimental variable whereas the other factors are kept as equal as possible.
• The experimental group is a group of different subjects, who, in addition to the factors present in the control group, are exposed to the experimental variable and whose performance will therefore reflect the influence, if any, of that variable.

2. Example: we want to know if cancer causes higher rate of irritability.

• The rate of irritability is measured in a group of cancer patients (experimental group). Afterwards, the same procedure is applied on a group who are very similar to the first group in as far as sex, education, profession, etc. are concerned, with the outstanding difference that the subjects of this control group are not affected with cancer.

3. Note, the experimental method is far more accurate in its result, since a better control of conditions can be realized, than the differential method.

3. The Naturalistic Method or Field Observation

1. This refers to the study of human beings and animals in their natural environments. Thus, the experimenter does not manipulate the settings. 
2. The limitations of this method is seen in that, first, one has to wait for what one is interested in to happen; second, one may not be prepared to observe and record it when it happens; and third, one cannot control the conditions under which the event happens.

4. The Survey Method

1. This method studies behavior through the use of questionnaires (written) and interviews (oral).
2. The advantage of the method is that the investigator can select questions pertinent to the genuine problems, the replies can be obtained from the persons affected by the problems, and he can accumulate a large.number of observation in a short period of time.
3. However, some subjects are not honest simply because they do want to please the investigator, or they do not like to think or recall certain facts. The trick is to overcome all the factors that is preventing the method to work well.

5. The Clinical Method

1. This method is the most frequently used by the psychologists working with people having psychological difficulties (Anamnesis).
2. Through this method, psychologists study the person as a unique whole by means of systematic observations through interviews, psychological testing, etc. Psychologist tries to reconstruct the personal and family history prior and relevant to the onset of the psychological difficulties. 
3. Understanding the past (history) of a person is vital in understanding the present behavior of an individual.

6. The Longitudinal Method

1. In this method an individual is followed over a long period of time, with observations and measurements made at periodic intervals.
2. The advantage of the method consists in the multiple observations of the same people, giving a more reliable and consistent picture.
3. The disadvantage of the method lies in the fact that it takes a long period of time, often spread over years.

7. The Statistical Method

1. This method gathers and coordinates numerous facts within a determinate field, treating these with mathematical formulas, so that the numerical relations between these facts may be displayed clearly and be freed from errors, due to chance factors.
2. The average or norm is the simplest statistical application. How old should a child be when he starts to talk? The average or norm will tell us.

3. FIELDS OF PSYCHOLOGY

1. SUBHUMAN

1. COMPARATIVE PSYCHOLOGY

1. The branch of psychology concerned with the behavior of animals.

2. HUMAN (Applied)

1. EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. A branch of psychology concerned with the aspects of the educational process like learning, motivation, problem-solving, and social participation.

2. CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. This deals with the diagnosis and treatment of mental deficiency and mental disorders.

3. INDUSTRIAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. It deals with job training programs, recruiting and selecting people most suitable for a particular job, participating in management and decisions that involve the morales, and welfare of the employees, and counseling of employees.

4. GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING

1. Psychological service for normal people, whose problems are typically of those minor difficulties in social adjustments or a need for vocational and educational guidance.

5. FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY

1. Psychologists in this field work within the legal, judicial, and correctional systems in a variety of ways like working with inmates and their families, participating in decisions about whether an accused person is mentally competent to stand trial, etc.

6. ENGINEERING PSYCHOLOGY

1. This seeks to make relationship between people and machines as satisfactory as possible; to design machines so that human errors are minimized.
2. The objective is to design machines which will be best adapted to human requirements.

7. PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY

1. This deals with the study of drugs that affect the mind.

8. ENVIRONMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. The aim of this psychology is to discover how various aspects of environment affect our feelings thoughts and behavior.
2. Environmental psychology is concerned with the environment as a background to other activities: how perception, learning, social interaction, or any other behavior differ from one environment to another.

9. EXPERIMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. The goal of this psychology is the understanding of the fundamental causes of behavior. Hence, experimental psychologists are devoted to research in the principles of psychology as they apply to man or to organisms in general
2. In the strict sense, experimental psychology is a laboratory science using precision instruments and seeking refinements of control and measurement.

10. PHYSIOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. This deals with the biological factors that help shape human nature. It studies the relation between behavior and the sense organs, nervous system, muscles, and glands.

11. PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY

1. This deals in understanding human traits, especially the nondeviant, or normal, individual case.

12. PSYCHOMETRIC PSYCHOLOGY

1. Tests and other devices for measuring human abilities are the concerns of this psychology.
2. Psychometricians develop new tests, evaluate existing tests, and work to develop and improve statistical techniques used in measuring human abilities. 
3. Psychometricians supply some of the tools used by psychologists in the applied field of school, counseling, industrial, and clinical psychology.

13. ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. This concentrates on the study of behavior disorders. 
2. The study includes abnormalities of perception, emotion, memory, neurotic behavior, and psychoses.

14. DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. This psychology studies how individuals and classes of individual organisms develop psychologically.
2. It deals with the characteristic behaviors found at various ages or stages of development, and with the general principles that describe the course of development, including the interaction of various developmental functions.
3. It includes the ( 1) psychology of the infancy, (2) psychology of the childhood, (3) psychology of the adolescence, (4) psychology of the adulthood, and (5) psychology of the old age.

15. SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. This field of psychology deals with the effects of group memberships upon individual behavior. In addition, it deals with the ways that interaction with other people influences attitudes and behavior.

16. HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY

1. A field of multidimensional approach to health that dwells on psychological factors, lifestyle, and the nature of the healthcare delivery system.

17. BUSINESS PSYCHOLOGY

1. This field of psychology deals specifically with the behavior of consumers.

18. SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY

1. It applies psychological principles on how to improve sports performance as well as how to enjoy sport participation.

References: General Psychology Textbook, SLU, 1986; Abelos, A.V. , Basaen, C.M., and Payawal J.E.; General Psychology, 1st ed. Baguio City: Valencia Educational Supply, 2005