Major Specializations in Psychology

Study Notes

Biopsychologist: Focuses on the relationship between brain and behavior.
Clinical Psychologist: Studies emotional difficulties.
Cognitive Psychologist: Research and practice in memory, thinking, and organizational/social structures.
Community Psychologist: Works with organizations and social structures to improve people's decisions.
Counseling Psychologist: Focuses on helping people make important decisions.
Developmental Psychologist: Examines changes in behavior across all ages.
Educational Psychologist: Studies learning improvements in schools.
Environmental Psychologist: Explores how environmental factors like noise, heat, and crowding affect behavior.
Evolutionary Psychologist: Investigates the evolutionary history of behavior and communication between people/machines.
Human Factors Specialist: Studies how people interact with machines in the workplace, and designing safe systems for complex equipment.
Industrial/Organizational Psychologist: Learning and motivation in the workplace; job design, simple & safe systems.
Learning and Motivation Specialist: Learning in humans and other species.
Personality Psychologist: Studies personality differences between individuals.
Psychometrician: Focuses on measuring intelligence, personality, and interests to develop assessments.
School Psychologist: Deals with issues affecting schoolchildren.
Social Psychologist: Studies group behavior and social influences.

Biopsychologist: What body signals indicate hunger and satiety?
Clinical Psychologist: How can people overcome severe anxiety?
Cognitive Psychologist: Do people have multiple memory types? Would improved job opportunities reduce psychological distress?
Community Psychologist: Would improved job opportunities reduce psychological distress? Should people consider changing careers?
Counseling Psychologist: Should this person consider changing careers?
Developmental Psychologist: At what age can a child distinguish appearance and reality?
Educational Psychologist: What's the best way to assess a student's knowledge?
Environmental Psychologist: How can building design maximize productivity?
Evolutionary Psychologist: How did facial expressions of emotions evolve?
Human Factors Specialist: How to design safer airplane cockpits?
Industrial/Organizational Psychologist: Should jobs be simple/safe or interesting/challenging?
Learning and Motivation Specialist: What are the effects of reinforcement/punishment?
Personality Psychologist: Why are some people shy and others gregarious?
Psychometrician: How fair are current IQ tests? Can they be improved?
School Psychologist: How should schools handle disrupting students?
Social Psychologist: What persuasion methods are most effective for changing attitudes?