About Psychology

Psychology is the study of the human mind and human behavior. Because the mind itself is such an elusive entity, psychology is often considered one of those "fuzzy" sciences that lacks the means to prove itself. Psychologists have made continuous efforts to remove this label since its inception.

The Facts

During its beginnings, psychology was often studied in conjunction with philosophy. The earliest studies date back as far as the ancient civilizations of China, Egypt, India and Greece. Proponents at the time were curious about the origins of thoughts, emotions and consciousness.
Today, psychology's reach extends into the fields of neurology and physiology. Modern day psychological theories have found practical applications within the areas of business, personal development, computers, health and sports.

Invented

History identifies the birth date of psychology as 1879 when a professor named Wilhelm Wundt built a laboratory specifically for psychological research at Leipzig University in Germany. Wundt, known as the "father of psychology," approached psychology from an experimentalist's point of view, and so was the founder of experimental psychology.
The experimental method gave birth to other areas of study in the field, such as classical conditioning and the learning process. Though philosophy still played a role in the study of psychology at this time, its roots as a scientific discipline had begun.

History of

Three primary rules of thought emerged as the study of psychology evolved. It is said that each one is reflective of the time in which it was conceived; nonetheless, psychology became an increasingly accepted field of study.
The three schools of thought are:
· Psychoanalysis--founded by Sigmund Freud in the 1890s, it focused primarily on the unconscious mind and psychopathology. This area of thought was heavily criticized for its lack of empirical evidence and factual support.
· Behaviorism--founded by John B. Watson in the early 1900s, it's approach was more observational in method, relying on cause and effect models of analysis. Behaviorism took its lead from the original experimental field of study, while completely negating all main tenets of the psychoanalytical model.
· Existentialism/Humanistic--founded in the 1950s, this school of thought combined the tenets of psychoanalysis and behaviorism in the study of the human experience as a whole process. Humanistic psychology's primary focus was on mental growth and development, as opposed to psychopathology. Early proponents in the field were Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers and Fritz Perls.

Function

Since its inception, the primary purpose of psychology is in the understanding of human behavior and how it develops. Practical applications address difficult life issues, motivation and learning, and the daily effects of conditioning, or "programming."
A more recent application of this study of the mind has been applied in the area of artificial intelligence. Research on how the mind and the brain work together is providing a model for the creation of artificial neural networks in the field of computing.

Type

There are many different approaches to the study of psychology, each of which approaches the study of the mind from a different viewpoint. Some of these approaches include:
· Forensic psychology
· Cognitive psychology
· Abnormal psychology
· Developmental psychology
· Quantitative psychology
· Computational psychology
There are a number of other sub-fields, all of which can be classified as either research-oriented, of application-oriented.
As of yet, there is no established core theory within the study of psychology, unlike other scientific disciplines (math, physics, chemistry). Nonetheless, psychology has found its place as an applied discipline and field of study.

Resources

• Association for Psychological Sciences
• Psych Central