Psychology Applied PDF

How Is Psychology Applied? During the first half of the 20th century, most psychologists earned a degree that enabled them to teach and conduct basic research at universities. These academic psychologists focused their research on building the field's scientific knowledge base. Then World War II beg...

How Is Psychology Applied? During the first half of the 20th century, most psychologists earned a degree that enabled them to teach and conduct basic research at universities. These academic psychologists focused their research on building the field's scientific knowledge base. Then World War II began in 1939 and forced many psychologists out of the labs and into military service. Academic psychologists became clinicians who screened new recruits and cared for soldiers who experienced trauma. Much to their surprise, clinicians found the work to be rewarding and decided to continue in this line of work after the war ended. This shift introduced a new branch of psychology called applied psychology. Today, most psychologists work outside of universities, applying psychological knowledge to solve real-world problems and improve peoples' lives. View the slideshow below to examine examples of applied psychology: © Health psychology focuses on how biological, social, and psychological factors influence health and illness. Health psychologists seek to understand the effects of behavior on health and how a person's health can impact their behavior and emotions. Their goals are to prevent illness, help treat illness, and promote good health. For example, health psychologists could produce a community program that teaches people at risk for heart disease how to eat healthier, which lowers their risk of a heart attack. Educational psychology uses research to develop theories about teaching and learning. They are used to train teachers in psychological concepts, with the goal of improving teaching strategies to maximize student learning. Positive psychology is a relatively new form of applied psychology developed by Martin E. Seligman in 1998. He wanted to remind today's psychologists of the goals academic psychologists had before World War II. He felt that instead of focusing on trauma and illness, psychologists needed to focus on strength, success, and happiness. Positive psychology examines positive people in an attempt to help others achieve the same happiness. Subfields of Psychology War. Racism. Pollution. Obesity. Many of the challenges we face in the world today can be tied directly to human behavior. The study of psychology is unique, as it includes more diverse areas of research than any other science. Within the broad field, a common goal ties the different interests together: to examine behavior and the reasons behind it. Over time, a number of specialized subfields have developed to study the varied behaviors of humans and non-humans. The subfields of psychology are each informed by psychological theories and perspectives. Examine each card below to determine the focus of the subfields of psychology: Biopsychology Biopsychologists study the relationships between biology and psychology. They attempt to explain how those relationships influence behavior and understanding. For example, a biopsychologist might study how your brain and eyes communicate to interpret the words you are reading on the screen. The biopsychologist likely approaches research from the biological perspective. Clinical Psychology Clinical psychologists are what most people think of when they hear the word "psychologist." They evaluate and treat people with psychological disorders. Some clinical psychologists also conduct research focused on developing new treatments for disorders. A clinical psychologist may use an eclectic approach, using a variety of perspectives. Developmental Psychology Developmental psychologists study how people grow and change physically, mentally, and emotionally over the course of a lifetime. For example, a developmental psychologist might study how the relationship between parents and children influences children’s relationships later in life, as teenagers or adults. Developmental psychologists may approach their work from the biological, behavioral, or cognitive approach. Forensic Psychology Forensic psychologists apply psychological principles to legal issues. Despite what you may have seen on television and in movies, forensic psychologists typically don’t spend their careers tracking down criminals. They use their knowledge of psychology and criminal justice to advise legal experts. For example, forensic psychologists are often called upon to help lawyers choose members of a jury that will decide the outcome of a case. Forensic psychologists base their advice on knowledge from a variety of perspectives. Industrial-Organizational Psychology Industrial-organizational (I/O) psychology applies psychological principles and research to benefit businesses and organizations. For example, an industrial-organizational psychologist or consultant might conduct personality tests on employees. They may use those results to advise a business or organization on which individuals are best suited to fill an open job position. Like other psychologists, I/O psychologists embrace information from a variety of perspectives Personality Psychology Personality psychology examines personality, which is the set of characteristics that influence a person’s thoughts, motivations, and behaviors. It is based on the idea that all people are similar in some ways and different in others. For example, a personality psychologist might study why some people tend to procrastinate and save work until the last minute and why others prefer to start work long before a due date. This work reflects a variety of perspectives including biological, social-cultural, cognitive, and behavioral. Social Psychology Social psychologists focus on the study of social behaviors and how people act in groups. They examine how people’s behaviors are impacted by the social environment. For example, social psychologists have studied who is more likely to help someone in an emergency – someone who is alone, or a person who is part of a group. This research adds to what we already know according to the social-cultural perspective. School Psychology School psychologists apply psychology principles to diagnose and treat behavior and learning problems in children and teenagers. They primarily work directly with educators and families to address behavioral and academic concerns at school. For example, if a student is regularly experiencing academic challenges in the classroom, a school psychologist may administer assessments to determine if the student has a learning disability. The work of school psychologists largely reflects the biological and cognitive perspectives, but may also include elements of the social-cultural perspective Psychologists seek answers to questions about why we think, feel, and act the way we do. They conduct studies that follow the scientific method—the same method that other researchers and scientists use. At the heart of this method is a reliance on operational definitions. An operational definition is a statement of the procedures or ways in which a researcher is going to measure behaviors or qualities. Descriptive Methods After developing operational definitions, psychologists decide which research method to use. Descriptive methods such as naturalistic observations, case studies, or surveys describe the behaviors they see. These methods cannot prove that one event caused another, but they can provide interesting insight. These methods are often a good first step. Naturalistic observation is the process of observing a subject in his or her natural environment without any manipulation by the researcher. Many people and animals will behave differently when they know others are watching them or in unfamiliar settings like labs or offices. Naturalistic observation eliminates that effect. Case studies allow in depth research of an individual or group. Case studies only provide information about each individual case. The results cannot be generalized to other people. These in-depth explorations inspire new theories that may lead to more widely applicable breakthroughs Surveys are a fast and inexpensive way to ask people's opinions and gather data. If correctly done, we can also generalize the results of a survey to a larger population. A correlation is a statistical measure that reflects the relationship between two variables. When one variable changes, the other changes with it. Psychologists use correlations to predict how variables are going to influence each other. However, a correlation does not mean that one variable caused a change in the second variable. To prove causation, psychologists must go beyond descriptive methods and conduct an experiment.