Psychology is defined formally as a science that studies mental processes, experiences and behaviours in

different contexts. We will further understand the meaning of mental processes, behaviours and
experiences in detail

Mental Processes are usually used when we think or to solve a problem, to know or remember
something. One level at which these mental processes are reflected in brain activity. Unlike the brain,
our mind does not have a physical structure or a definite location.

Experiences are subjective in nature which are studied by psychologists. One important thing about
experiences is that we cannot directly observe or know someone else’s experience, only the
experiencing person can be aware or conscious of her or his experiences.

Behaviours are responses or reactions we make or activities we engage in. Behaviours may be simple or
complex, short or enduring. Some behaviours are overt which means they can be outwardly seen or
sensed by an observer whereas some behaviours are covert which means that they cannot be easily
spotted and seen by other people

Psychology as a Discipline

Psychology is a discipline that studies about human behaviour, mental processes, experiences in
different contexts:

It makes us understand how our mind works and how certain mental processes result in a specific type
of behaviour.

Psychology as a Discipline today has two parallel streams namely-

Natural Science

Social Science

Psychology as a Natural Science

Psychology as a Natural Science largely focuses on biological principles to explain human behaviour.

It assumes that all behavioural phenomena have causes which can be discovered if we can collect data
systematically under controlled conditions.

The main aim of the researcher is to understand the cause and effect relationship so that an accurate
prediction of the behavioural phenomena can be made.

Psychologists use hypothetical deductive model to prove their hypothesis

By the application of this model,many psychologists gave theories on topics like Motivation, Memory
etc.
Psychology as a Social Science

Psychology as a Social Science focuses on how behavioural phenomena can be explained in terms of
interaction that takes place between the person and the socio-cultural context of which he/she is a part

Studies human behavior in social context

Humans are not only impacted by their socio-cultural contexts,they also create them as well.

Focuses on humans and communities as social beings in relation to their social culture and physical
environment.

Understanding Mind and Behaviour

It is true that the mind cannot exist without the brain but the mind is a separate entity:

Earlier it was believed that there is no relationship between mind and body but now as per various
researches in neuroscience prove that there is indeed a relationship between mind and Behaviour

A new discipline called Psychoneuroimmunology has emerged in recent times which primarily explains
the significant role of the mind in strengthening our immune system.

Popular Notions About Psychology

Common sense does not always equate with Psychological studies

Common sense is based on hindsight. Psychology as a science looks for patterns of behaviour which can
be predicted and not explained after the behaviour occurs.

Common Sense tells us that an individual is not able to perform the best in front audience but
Psychological studies have shown that if you have practiced well,you may actually perform better than
expected because the presence of others helps in enhancing performance.

Evolution of Psychology

The evolution of Psychology can be traced way back to 1879 when the first experimental laboratory was
established in Leipzig, Germany by Wilhelm Wundt and he was interested in the study of conscious
experience and wanted to analyse building blocks of the mind. Due to the fact that Psychologists during
Wundt’s time started analysing the structure of the mind through introspection, they were also called
structuralists. Later on, this approach was taken over by a functionalist approach. Introduced by an
American psychologist, William James, the functionalist approach utilised the study of the human mind
instead of focusing on the structure of the mind.

Structuralism

It was proposed by Wilhelm Wundt and structuralism is considered the oldest school of psychology.
Structuralists were interested in the analysis of the human mind and its structure

They were interested in conscious experience and wanted to study the building blocks of the mind

They used the introspection method to study mental processes and experiences

Functionalism

Functionalism school of psychology was proposed by William James

They focused on what the mind does and the function of consciousness in adjustment to the
environment

According to functionalists, Consciousness is an ongoing mental process that cannot be broken down
into parts.

Behaviourism

This school of psychology was proposed by John B.Watson who viewed Psychology as a science of
behaviour in terms of stimuli and responses.

Our response to stimulus in the environment are the basic building blocks of our personality

Watson emphasized on observable and verifiable response to stimuli and he was profoundly interested
in the study of learning

Gestalt Psychology

This school of psychology was in contrast to structuralism and it was founded in Germany by
Wertheimer, Kohler and Koffka.

It primarily focused on perceptual Organization (Organization of what we see)

As per Gestalt Psychology, we look at the world, our Perceptual experience is more than its components.

For example, when we look at a chair. We do not see four wooden legs but we recognise it completely
as a table

Psychoanalysis

It was proposed by Dr Sigmund Freud

As per this school of psychology, human behaviour is viewed as a dynamic manifestation of unconscious
desires and conflicts about which we are not completely aware at present.

Practical implementation of this school of psychology helps us to understand and cure psychological
disorders.

Humanistic Perspective
Humanistic Perspective was proposed by Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow

It laid emphasis on the free will of human beings and their actions are not predetermined by any force.

As per this school of psychology, human beings strive to grow and unleash their true potential which lies
within them.

All human beings have an innate tendency to attain a state of self-actualization and the nature of human
activities is that they are goal-oriented.

Cognitive Perspective

It was proposed by Jean Piaget and Vygotsky.

This approach is considered as a fusion of the Gestalt Approach and Structuralism

Lays emphasis on cognition which means thinking, understanding, perceiving, memorising etc

They view the human mind as an information processing system just like a computer and mind receives,
processes, transforms, stores and retrieves information.

Branches of Psychology

Various fields of specialization in psychology have emerged over the years which have been
comprehensively elucidated below

Cognitive Psychology

It investigates mental processes involved in the acquisition, storage, manipulation and transformation of
information received from the environment along with its use and communication

Major cognitive processes are attention, perception, memory, problem solving and decision-making etc.

Biological Psychology

Focuses on the relationship between the behavior and physical system, including the brain and the rest
of the nervous system, immune system and genetics

Neuropsychology

Psychologists and Neuroscientists are working together and studying the role of neurotransmitters
which are responsible for neural communication in different areas of the brain and associated mental
functions.

Comprehensive research is carried out on people with the normal functioning of the brain and as well as
on people with damaged brains by use of advanced and recent technologies like EEG, PET etc.

Developmental Psychology
It studies the physical, social and psychological changes that occur at different stages and ages over life-
span, from conception to old age.

Social Psychology

This branch of Psychology explores how people are affected by their social environments, how people
think about the world around them and how they try to impact people around them.

Topics such as Prosocial behaviour, Attitude Formation, Prejudice are of keen interest to social
Psychologists

Cultural Psychology

Lays emphasis on the role of culture in attaining a deep understanding of human behaviour, thought and
emotion.

The main assumption of Cultural Psychology is that human behaviour is not only a reflection of human-
biological potential but also a product of culture.

Environmental Psychology

It studies the interaction of physical factors such as temperature, humidity, pollution and natural
disasters on human behaviour.

The influence of the physical arrangement of the workplace on health, the emotional state is
understood in environmental Psychology

Health Psychology

It lays emphasis on the role of psychological factors such as anxiety, stress, fear in the development,
prevention and treatment of illness

Areas of keen interest for a health Psychologist are coping with stress, promotion of health-enhancing
factors etc.

Clinical Psychology

Clinical Psychology deals with the causes, treatment and prevention of some of the major psychological
disorders like anxiety, depression, eating disorders and chronic substance abuse.

Counselling Psychology

Counselling Psychology aims to improve everyday functioning by helping people solve problems of their
daily life and effectively cope up with challenging situations.

Industrial/Organisational Psychology
This branch of Psychology mainly deals with both the employees and the organization which have
employed them. They are focused on training employees, improving work conditions and developing
selection criteria for employees.

Educational Psychology

It lays emphasis on understanding how people of all ages understand and learn things. Educational
Psychologists mainly develop instructional methods and materials used to train people both in
Educational and work settings.

Sports Psychology

Sports Psychology focuses on the application of Psychological principles to improve the performance of
athletes.

Other Emerging Fields of Psychology

Psychology has always been of multidisciplinary nature and because of this nature of Psychology,
various other fields of Psychology have emerged which are described as follows-

Political Psychology

Aviation Psychology

Space Psychology

Forensic Psychology

Military Psychology

Community Psychology

Managerial Psychology

Development of Psychology in India

Indian philosophical tradition was already known to practice various mental processes and reflections on
human consciousness, self, mind-body relations, and a variety of mental functions. But when it comes to
the modern study of the human mind, such evolutionary study was highly influenced by the Western
school of thought only.

The first offical experiment with Modern Psychology in India happened in 1916 at the Calcutta University
where Dr. N.N. Sengupta initiated the first modern experiments on Psychological fields.

Departments of Psychology in the Universities of Mysore and Patna were other early centres of teaching
and research in psychology.
Durganand Sinha in his book ‘Psychology in a Third World Country: The Indian Experience’ categorises
the evolution of Indian Psychology as the pre-independence phase, and the 1960s phase.

Themes Of Research and Application

Themes that provide Direction to research and application of Psychology are mentioned as follows-

Psychology, like other sciences, attempts to develop principles of behaviour and mental processes.

Human Behaviour is a function of both the attributes of persons and environment

Human Behaviour is caused

Understanding of human behaviour is culturally constructed

Human Behaviour can be controlled and modified through the application of psychological principles.

Basic V/s Applied Psychology

Basic Psychology provides us with theories and principles that form the basis of application of
Psychology

Applied Psychology provides us with different contexts in which the theories and principles derived from
research can be meaningfully applied.

Psychology And Other Disciplines

Psychology shares its knowledge with literature, art, science, commerce, music etc. Some of the Major
disciplines linked to the field of psychology are discussed below-

Music And Fine Art

Music and Psychology are complementary in nature which means that they go hand in hand as they help
in uplifting mood and productivity at work as well.

Architecture And Engineering

Psychology and Architecture go hand in hand as well. One of the important jobs of an architect is to
provide a physical space that satisfies their client mentally and aesthetically.

Mass Communication

Mass Communication is related to Psychology as well as the impact of media on the formation of
attitudes on children and their behaviour is a domain where both of these disciplines come together.

Other fields which are related to Psychology are mentioned below-

Medicine

Computer Science

Philosophy

Education

Economics

Psychologists At work

Psychologists work at various human service areas and these are described below-

Clinical Psychologists mainly deal with patients who suffer from severe psychological disorders such as
Depression, Schizophrenia, Anxiety, Eating Disorders etc.

Counselling Psychologists help clients deal with everyday challenges and interpersonal issues such as
career problems, self-esteem issues, Relationship and family problems etc.

Organizational Psychologist Helps employees improve upon their overall well-being along with their
productivity and also they focus on making such a kind of workplace environment which is very
enriching for the employees.

Psychology In Everyday life

There is no denial about the fact that Psychology plays a crucial role in our everyday life.

Helps in solving our day to day problems in very effective and efficient manner

Principles and methods of Psychology help us in analysing and understanding our relationship with
others

Helps us in attaining self-awareness and thus,that helps in improving our decision-making

Various methods and techniques of Psychology helps us in improving our learning and memorising
abilities

Thus, Psychology indeed plays a crucial role in our lives.

A Psychological research is conducted for the purpose of description, prediction, explanation, control of
behaviour and application of knowledge generated in an objective manner.

• Scientific research involves the following steps: conceptualising a problem, collection of data,
analysing data, drawing and revising research conclusions.

• The Psychological research is also conducted to explain and understand subjective meaning of events
as they occur in a particular context and also manifest ones own behaviour and experiences.

• Psychological researches use different types of data including demographic, environmental, physical,
physiological and psychological informations are gathered. In Psychological study the data is located in a
context and linked to the theory and method used for its collection.
• Psychologists use three general methods. One is natural observation, which is made as systematic as
possible by the development of psychological tests. Another is the experimental method in which
independent variables are manipulated and dependent variables are measured. The third is statistical
methods to test the significance of differences obtained and to compute correlations between variables.

• The general scientific method involves careful observation, forming hypotheses, and testing
hypotheses against empirical facts.

• Psychologists use three major scientific methods: descriptive methods, correlational methods, and
formal experiments.

1. Descriptive methods include the use of surveys, naturalistic observation, and clinical methods to
describe behaviour and mental processes; these help us to reach the goal of description.

2. Correlational methods are used to study the relationships between variables; these help us to reach
the goal of prediction.

3. Formal experiments can be used to reach conclusions about cause-and-effect relationships between
variables; these help us to reach the goals of understanding and influencing behaviour.

• Different methods are used for the collection of information, e.g., observation, experiment,
correlational research, survey research, case study etc.

• Observation method refers to employing systematic, organised and objective procedures to record
behavioural phenomena occuring naturally in real time. It may be naturalistic vs controlled and
participant vas non-participant.

• The experimental method helps in establishing cause-effect relationship. Experiment refers to a series
of observations conducted under controlled conditions to investigate the causal relationship between
selected variables. It involves the manipulation of an independent variable in order to see its effect on a
dependent variable. There are three types of experiments: the laboratory experiment, the field
experiment and the natural experiment/quasi experiment.

• In most of the Psychological measurement the individual differences in one ability are often related to
individual differences in other abilities. Correlational research indicates a relationship between two
variables. The correlation between two variables may range from +1.00 through 0.0 to -1.00. The
coefficient of correlation is of three types: positive, negative and zero. Correlation simply provide a
numerical value of relationship, it never explains the cause of relationship.

• The focus of survey research and interviews is to inform about the existing reality. The investigator
make use of questionnaire, interviews and ratings to obtain information about a particular area.

• Surveys are generally remote, in that respondants do not have an interviewer present, whereas
interviews involve face to face interaction. The questionnaire is very common, simple, versatile and low
cost self report method of collecting data. Surveys are also conducted through telephonic survey.
• Psychological tests have been devised and are primarily used for the determination and analysis of
individual differences in general intelligence, differential aptitudes, educational achievement, vocational
fitness, personality, social attitudes and non intellectual characteristics.

• A Psychological test is a standardised and objective tool which is used to assess an individual’s abilities
and personality characteristics in relation to others. A good psychological test should have high
reliability, high validity and representative norms. Psychological tests can be categorised on language
basis as Verbal, Non Verbal and Performance tests. On the basis of administration Psychological tests
are divided into individual and group tests. These tests can also be classified as speed or power tests.

• Case study is another important technique to understand human behaviour. It is an attempt to

• In Psychological researches the data may be analysed through qualitative as well as quantitative
methods.

• Lack of absolute zero, relative nature of Psychological tools and subjective interpretation of qualitative
data are some of the limitations of Psychological inquiry.

• Ethical principles of voluntary participation of the subjects, their informed consent, and sharing of
results with the participants must be followed by a researcher.

• , Experiments usually involve at least one experimental group (which receives the

independent variable) and a control group.

• Differences between the groups in the dependent variable can be said to be caused by the
independent variable.

• Ethical research carefully protects the rights of participants. Research using humans is considered to
be ethical when the following conditions are met.

1. Individuals are asked to participate without coercion (force).

2. Individuals are informed about the nature of the experiment before giving consent to participate.

3. Unnecessary deception of participants is avoided and carefully regulated when required.

4. The nature of the study is fully explained to the participant after the study is over.

5. All information learned about the participant is kept confidential.

• Statistics is that branch of mathematics which deals with numerical data. It deals with description,
summarising and representation of data. The inferential statistics helps to draw conclusions from data.
Psychologists use four levels of scales: Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, and Ratio. Nominal scale is at the
lowest level and ratio the highest.

• The bar diagram represents distribution of categorical data, qualitative categories on a nominal or
ordinal scale of measurement. If the data are on a nominal scale the categories to be representted by
the bars on x-axis could be in any meaningful order.

• Frequency Polygon is a line figure which is used to represent data from a frequency distribution. It is a
series of connected points above the midpoint of each class interval.

• Histogram is a bar graph that presents data from frequency distribution. Histogram as well as polygon
are made when data are either on interval or ratio scale.

• A measure of central tendency helps to simplify comparison of two or more groups. There are three
commonly used measures of central tendency: Arithmetic Mean, Median and Mode.

• The arithmetic mean is the sum of all the scores in a distribution divided by the total number of scores.

• The median is the score value that divides the distribution into halves. It is such a value that half of the
scores in the distribution fall below it and half of them fall above it.

• The mode is the score value with the highest frequency. In an ungrouped data the mode is that single
score which occurs in a distribution of scores most frequently.

Words That Matter

1. Case study: A technique in which one person, event or organisation is studied in depth.

2. Confidentiality: Researchers are responsible for keeping all of the data they collect completely
anonymous.

3. Control group: Subjects in a study who do not receive the special treatment given to the experimental
group.

4. Correlational research: Research with the goal of describing the strength of the relationship between
two or more events or characteristics or variables.

5. Data: Qualitative and quantitative information related to mental processes and behaviour, gathered
from individuals.

6. Debriefing: The procedure for informing a participant of the actual intent of an experiment after its
successful completion. It is specially required if the participant was seriously misled during the conduct
of experiment.

7. Dependent variable: The factor that is measured in an experiment; it changes because of the
manipulation of the independent variable.
8. Experimental group: The subjects in study who receive some special treatment in regard to the
independent variable.

9. Experiment: A series of observations conducted under controlled conditions to investigate the causal
relationship between selected variable.

10. Group test: A test administered to several people at one time by a single tester.

11. Hypothesis: A tentative statement of the relationship between variables as answer to the research
questions.

12. Enculturation: All learning that takes place without direct, deliberate teaching.

13. Independent variable: The event or situation manipulated by an experimenter to see if it will have a
predicted effect on some other event or situation.

14. Individual test: A test which Can be administered to only one person at a time. The Standford-Binet
and the Wechsler intelligence tests are examples of individual tests.

15. Interview: A face-to face dialogue for the purpose of obtaining information, establishing a diagnosis,
assessing interpersonal behaviour and personality characteristics, or counseling the individual.

16. Negative correlation: Relationship between two variables in which as one variable goes up, the other
goes down.

17. Norm: Standard or “value or criteria, based on measurements of a large group of people used in
interpreting scores on psychological tests; in social psychology, the group standard for approved
behaviour.

18. Objectivity: If two or more persons independently study a particular event, both of

them, to a great extent, should arrive at the same conclusion. .

19. Observation: The intentional examination and recording of an object or process as it occurs.

20. Performance tests: Tests that do not involve language.

21. Psychological test: A standardised and objective tool to assess psychology attributes of a Sample of a
person’s behaviour.

22. Positive correlation: Two or more than two variables have some common features.

23. Qualitative method: Psychologists use method in which data is interpreted in terms of narrative
analysis generally in descriptive forms like field notes, photographs, etc. Information is not available in
form of scores.

24. Quantitative method: Responses and analysis of the data is based on statistical calculations in terms
of scores or in scaled form. Scores are expressed in the strength and magnitude of the response.
25. Questionnaire: Set of questions. Most common, simple, versatile and low-cost self-report method of
collecting information.

26. Reliability: A statement about the degree of consistency of a measurement technique. Reliable
techniques yield similar measure upon repeated measurement under similar conditions.

27. Speed Test: A test which evaluates the individual on the basis of time taken to answer the items
accurately.

28. Power Test: Test which assess the underlying ability of the individuals by allowing them sufficient
time.

29. Survey: A research method utilising written questionnaires or personal interviews to obtain data of a
given population.

30. Validity: The ability of a test to measure what it was designed to measure.

31. Variable: Any measurable conditions, events, characteristics, or behaviours that are controlled or
observed in a study.