Modern Psychology PDF

1.2 Modern Psychology What is psychology? Psychology is defined as the scientific investigation of mental processes (i.e. thinking, remembering and feeling), behaviour and the interaction between them. As outlined in the following table, biology and culture are two factors that provide possibilitie...

1.2 Modern Psychology What is psychology? Psychology is defined as the scientific investigation of mental processes (i.e. thinking, remembering and feeling), behaviour and the interaction between them. As outlined in the following table, biology and culture are two factors that provide possibilities and constraints with regard to how people think, feel, and act: Bio-psyc hology Culture Bio-psycho Culture refers to the influence of membership in a larger group, such logy seeks as a tribe or nation. to understan d the mind through understan ding the biological activity of the brain. Psychological definitions The evolution of psychology Psychology evolved from philosophical questions such as: ● ● ● ● ● free will versus determinism nature versus nurture reason versus emotion conscious versus unconscious mental versus physical. Two early psychological viewpoints were: ● ● structuralism—attempting to determine the structure of consciousness functionalism—attempting to explain psychological processes in terms of the role or function they play. Current psychological thinking is guided by a number of different perspectives. Please see the following table to better understand these different perspectives: Psychodyna mic perspective Behaviouri Humanisti Cognitive Evolutionar st c perspecti y perspective perspectiv ve perspective e The psychodynamic The behaviourist The humanistic The cognitive The evolutionary perspective perspective perspective perspective perspective suggests that most focuses on the emphasises focuses on suggests that psychological relationship the uniqueness how people human processes that between of the store, process, behaviours guide behaviour are environmental individual and and retrieve evolved because unconscious. events (stimuli) focuses on the information. they helped our and responses person's ancestors survive to them. immediate and reproduce. experience. Different perspectives within current psychological thinking Different perspectives within current psychological thinking (2022) courtesy of Swinburne Online Psychology as a profession In Australia, becoming a registered psychologist requires a minimum of six years' training accredited by the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council. To learn more about the registration requirements, read Study pathways Links to an external site. (Australian Psychological Society, 2022). Psychologists may be employed within a number of sub-disciplines across a broad range of industries, including: ● ● ● ● health and community services government, administration and defence property and business services education.