.

Pokhara university

General Psychology(101)

Second Semester Syllabus

Table of Contents

1. General Psychology syllabus

1.1 Course Objectives
1.2 Course Description
1.3 Course Outcomes
1.4 Course Contents
1.4.1. Unit I: Introduction to Psychology as a Science of Mind and Behaviour (5Hours)
1.4.2. Unit II: Biological basis of Behaviour (5 hours)
1.4.3. Unit III: Sensation and Perception (10 hours)
1.4.4. Unit IV: Learning and Memory (9 hours)
1.4.5. Unit V: Cognition (Thinking and Intelligence) (7hours)

1.5. Basic Texts

1.6 References

Course Objectives

The objectives of this course is to familiarize students with basic psychological concepts and processes to
understand human minds and behaviours in relation to self and others. Specially, it provides a basic
understanding of psychological science of human nature. It familiarizes students on how biology,
cognition and action influence the human behavior and personality of the individual. It helps to acquire
the knowledge of different psychological processes and their effects on human cognition and behaviour.
Finally, it develops an understanding of how human behaviours can be understood, shaped and applied in
individual and group/ social level.

Course Description:

This course surveys the major concepts, processes of basic psychology. It addresses the core
psychological process as well as their importance on individual and social setting.

Course Outcomes

 By the end of this course the students will be able to:

 Know basic concepts of human psychology and core process related to psychology.
 Have an idea of major theories that explain human behaviour and cognitive processes.
 Apply human psychology in understanding and explaining individual and social level of
behaviour.
Course Contents

Unit I: Introduction of Psychology as a science of mind and behaviour (5hours)

[Nature, modern history of psychology, common sense and psychology, similarities and differences with
other social sciences: Perspectives of psychology (=Biological perspectives, cognitive perspectives,
behavioral perspective, psychodynamic and humanistic perspective, socio-cultural perspective and
evolutionary perspective]

Scientific method and psychological research

Unit II: Biological basis of Behaviour (5 hours)

Importance of Biology in psychological understanding of behaviour. Neurons, nervous system, structure

and function of central nervous system, endocrine system and importance.

Unit III: Sensation and Perception (10 hours)

Sensation: Meaning, importance, sensory threshold, habituation and adaption; Types of sensory
experiences, structure and function of visual and auditory sensation.

Perception: Definition and characteristics; perceptual processes (pathways in Brain and top-down and
bottom-up processing), subliminal and extrasensory perception, Theoretical explanation of perception
organization (Gestalt Principles), perceptual ambiguity and distortion. Social cognition and behaviour:
process of social influence, prejudice and discrimination.

Unit IV: Learning and Memory (9 hours)

Learning: Nature of learning (behavioral vs cognitive, instinct, and complex forms of learning), classical
condition learning and operant conditioning learning and behaviour modification and shaping, cognitive
learning (cognitive map, insight and observational learning.

Memory: Memory phenomenon and basic processes (encoding, storage and retrieval), Models of
memory, parallel, distributed processing model and information processing model, retrieval (cues, recall,
recognition, reconstruction and automatic encoding); Forgetting nature and causes of forgetting, memory
and brain, amnesia and false memory.

Unit V: Cognition (Thinking and Intelligence) (7hours)

Thinking: Definition and nature, components of thought (mental images, concepts, prototypes) and
reasoning, thought and brain, problem-solving and decision making (preparation, production and
judgments): obstacles in problem solving thinking and decision making, creativity.

Intelligence: Nature, types and determinants of intelligence, intelligence tests and concepts of IQ
individual differences in intelligence.
Unit VI: Motivation, Emotion and Stress (7 hours)

Motivation: Nature and characteristics of motivation, instinct, drive reduction approach, arousal
approach, incentive approach of motivation, cognitive approach to motivation; physiological need and
motivations (Hunger and sex ), socio-psychological motivation( need for achievement and power)

Emotion: Nature, types and functions of emotion; James-Lange; Cannon-Bard, and Schachter-singer
theories of emotion, Emotion and Health.

Stress: Stressor and the cost of stress, general adaption syndrome model, psychoneuroimmunology of
stress; coping stress, style and learned helplessness, social support.

Unit VII: Personality(5hours)

Nature and determinants of personality, theories of personality; Freud's theory: trait theory (Allport and
Cattel theory); Big five personality traits evaluation: Bandar's social cognitive theory, evaluation:
Humanistic approach; Measurement of personality; self-report, projective tests, Behavioral assessment.

Basic Texts

1. Feldman, R.S. (Understanding Psychology). New Delhi: Tata MacGraHill.

2. Ciccarelli, S.K., & Meyer C.E. Psychology. New Delhi. Peason Education.

References

1. Zimbardo, P.G. Johnson R.L. &McCann V. Psychology: Core Concepts. USA. Pearson
Education.
2. Lahey, B. Psychology. New Delhi.
3. Passer, M.W., & Smith R.E. Psychology: The Science of Mind and behavior. New York;
McGrawHill.

Unit I: Introduction of Psychology as a science of mind and behavior

The term ‘psychology’ was coined in 1590 by Rudolf Goecklel (Gockel).

The word psychology was actually derived from the two Greek words 'Psyche' and 'Logos'. Psyche means
soul and Logos means science and study. Therefore, etymologically, psychology means science of soul.
Psychology in its history of evolution, psychology was known as the study of soul. Considering the
popular thoughts of Greek world Rudolf Goeckle might have linked two words and named it psychology.

Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychologists are actively involved in studying
and understanding mental process, brain functions and behaviors.

Before arriving to the modern definition, psychology had undergone several stages and meaning that are
as follows:

Psychology as a study of soul:

The earliest meaning of psychology was the science of the soul. During that period psychology was the
major branch of philosophy. Greek philosophers believed that soul is responsible for the mental activities
like: thinking' feeling etc. They also believed that soul also controls each and every action of individuals.
Plato, Socrates and Aristotle were the famous philosophers who tried to explain the nature of soul and
unconscious activities. But soul has been neither measured nor observed clearly. So, this meaning of
psychology was rejected. Science does not accept the existence of soul; where is the soul? What is soul?
How does it operate? It is always abstract and unobservable. These have been the subject of search till
date. So, psychology can't be defined as a science of soul.

Psychology as science of mind:

Philosophers, Kant, Hobbes, Locke, Descartes, Titcher, Leibniz, etc considered psychology as a science
of mind. But they could not locate the mind. Mind is abstract and cannot be measured clearly. So it is not
complete definition of psychology.

Psychology as the science of consciousness:

In the 19th century, some psychologists like William James, Wilhelm Wundt and others considered
psychology as a science of consciousness. By consciousness the psychologists meant awareness or
wakefulness. A great psychologist Freud objected to this meaning of psychology. He said that man is only
10 percent conscious of his activities. Mostly he is unconscious. So psychology cannot be defined as a
science of consciousness. As a result this meaning of psychology was also rejected. Moreover,
consciousness cannot be measured and observed directly and scientifically.

Wilhelm Wundt established the first psychological Laboratory in 1879. Thus, the concept of modern
psychology begin. Wundt is regarded as the father of modern psychology. This new concept in
psychology regarded that the concept ‘soul’ and ‘mind’ is vague and outside the interest of science.
Definitions of ’soul and ‘mind in psychology were completely rejected in this period. Wundt put
forwarded the idea that psychology is the description and explanation of “states of consciousness".

Psychology as the science of Behavior:

It is the latest meaning of psychology. From the beginning of 20 th century, psychology was defined as a
science of behavior. We defined psychology as the science of behavior and mental processes. 
Psychologists rely on the scientific method when seeking to answer questions.  They collect data through
careful, systematic observation; attempt to explain what they have observed by developing theories; make
new predictions based on those theories; and then systematically test those predictions through additional
observations and experiments to determine whether they are correct.  Thus, like all scientists,
psychologists use the scientific method to describe, understand, predict, and eventually, achieve some
measure of control over what they study.

Behaviour includes all the activities that man does. It includes internal (internally caused behavior) and
external (situational outside causes) behavior, conscious sub-conscious and unconscious behavior,
overt(clearly seen) and covert(hidden ) behavior, cognitive(thinking creativity problem-solving abilities),
psychomotor(cognitive function and physical movement) affective(influencing feelings and emotions)
behavior.

Psychology as a modern discipline aims at understanding the complexities of mental process, experience
and behavior of individual. The central task of psychology is to describe, understand, predict and control
behaviours in diverse situations.

The psychology is defined as the scientific study of mental processes, experiences and behaviours.

Modern history of psychology

The early age of pre-scientific psychology (Philosophical Age):

 Science of soul/mind
 Before, 19th century
 Aristotle, Plato, Socrates etc

The modern age (Structural age):

 Beginning from the middle of the 19th century, the era of modern science and technology adopted
scientific method for the study/Science of consciousness.
 Wilhelm Wundt, Edward Titchner, William James etc.
 Structuralism, Functionalism and Behaviorism etc.

New trend of psychology:

 The present world of psychology is dominated by a mixed trend involving so many schools of
thought.
 The psychology is defined as the scientific study of mental processes, experiences and
behaviours.
 Humanist psychology
 Cognitive psychology
 Maslow, Jean Piaget etc.

Definition of Psychology

According to William Mc Dogall , “Psychology is a science which aims to give us better understanding
and control of the behavior of organism as a whole”

According to American Proffesor Walter Bowers, “Psychology may be must defined as the science of
human behavior or scientific study of the behavioral activities and experience.”
According to NL Munna, ” Psychology is concerned with the Scientific investigation of behaviour”.

Crow and Crow, ” Psychology is the study of human behaviour and human relationship”.

Edwin Boring,1939 “what is man? To this question Psychologist seeks an answer”

Recently, David G. Myers (1997) defined psychology as ‘the science of behavior and mental processes’.

Robert S. Feldman in 2000 defined psychology as the ‘scientific study of human behavior and mental
processes.‘

Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental process where behavior includes all our outward
or overt action and reaction such as talking, facial expression and movement.

The term mental process refers to all the internal or covert activities of our mind such as thinking, feeling
and remembering.

Meaning of Behaviour

Behavior is the sum total activity of a person that reflect directly or indirectly. Behaviour includes
anything of a person or animal does which can be observed in some way. The term behaviour includes all
the motor , cognitive and affective activities:

Motor Activities – (Walking, Swimming, Dancing, etc)

Cognitive Activities – (Thinking, Reasoning ,Imagining etc)

Affective Activities – (Feeling Happy, Sad ,Angry etc).

It Includes The activities of Subconscious and unconscious mind .similarly, Overt and Covert Behaviour.

Overt – behavior that can be observed directly.

Covert – Internal Subjective Experiences. or measured through special instruments or techniques.

Some of the common key points which can be deducted from the above definitions by different
author are:

 The science of the mind or of mental states and processes. 

 The science of human and animal behavior. 
 The sum or characteristics of the mental states and processes of a person or a class of persons, or
of the mental states and processes involved in a field or activity. 
 General mental plays or strategy. 
 The mental makeup or structure of an individual that causes him or her to think or act in the way
he or she does. 
 Psychology studies the behavior of not only humans but also animals.
Nature of psychology(vital functions/ essential characterstics)C
As a science, psychology seeks a general understanding of how human beings functions. Psychologists
want to know why people think, feel and behave as they do. What makes each person different from
other? Yet why do they often behave so alike in some situations? In order to answer and understand
human nature psychologists study human behavior.
Psychology is the scientific study and practical application of observable behavior and mental processes
of organisms. The affect for psychology is the actual mental processes that make up: moods, feeling, and
emotional state. Behavior includes the actual actions and responses of organisms. Behavior can include
the way we act in any given situation. Cognition is the actual mental events and the processes that result
from them. Memories of an event are a great example of an organism’s cognition.
The psychology is defined as the scientific study of mental processes, experiences and behaviours

1. Study of experience
Psychologists study a variety of human experiences which are mainly personal or private in nature. They
may range from experiences of dream, conscious experiences at different stages of life and experiences
when the consciousness is altered through meditation or use of psychedelic drugs.

2. Study of mental processes

Psychology as the study of mental processes tries to investigate the activities which are primarily non
physiological in nature. These mental processes include perception, learning, remembering and thinking.
These are internal mental activities which are not directly observed but inferred from the behavioral
activities of the person. For example, thinking to find solution to a mathematical problem.

3. Study of behavior
The range of behaviors studied in psychology is very broad. It includes simple reflexes (e.g. eye
blinking), common response patterns such as talking to friends, verbal reports about feelings and internal
states and complex behaviors such as addressing a crowd. They are generally exhibited verbally or
nonverbally (e.g. facial expression) when an individual reacts to a stimulus in a given situation.
Thus in psychology the main unit of investigation is the individual human being and his or her
experiences, mental processes and behaviours.

Mental processes
Other nature are helps in prediction the future development, emphasizes on search of truth, beliefs in
cause and effect relationships.

In short we can conclude nature of psychology in the following points:

  It is scientific and systematic.
 Emphasis on search for truth.
 Believe in cause and effort relationship.
 Stand for the generalization of the observed result.
 Help in predicting the future development.

It is scientific and systematic in the sense that it studies behavior systematically by employing scientific
method. The scientific method is essentially a step-by-step process. Researchers of psychology use the
scientific method to study behaviours in an objective and systematic way. The Steps of the Scientific
Method (basic steps) that psychologists and scientists use when investigating human behavior. Steps to
follow:Make an Observation, Ask a Question, Test Your Hypothesis and Collect Data, Examine the
Results and Draw Conclusions, Report the Result.

As a Science psychology has some basic Character

Investigation is possible: psychology conducts many experiments directly and employs scientific

methods.

Observation and Experiment is possible- Psychology has its own lab.

Accurate measurement is possible- Psychology includes measurement it has many (clear) tests and

measurements to assign (personality, Disorders, IQ etc..)

Objectivity is possible- judgment based on observable phenomena and uninfluencing by emotions and

personal prejudges.

Prediction is possible- It makes prediction about human behaviours.

Generalization is possible-The data is recertified as various statical tools available for facts measurement.

It studies cause effect relationship

Psychology is systematic and use scientific method- psychologists collect information of events by

careful observation in controlled experiments.

The tests done by one psychologists is no matter how many times the test repeated, the answer must
always be same.

Goals of Psychology:

Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behavior. While you might understand what
psychology is, many people are not quite so sure about what psychology does. What purpose does
psychology serve? What are its goals? The major goals of psychology, what psychologists strive to
accomplish, and how psychology is used to solve real-world problems.
1. Description (What is happening?):

Description involves observing a behavior and noting everything about it, what is happening, where it
happens, to whom it happens.                         

2. Explanation (why is it happening?):

A theory is a general explanation of a set of observation.

3. Prediction (when will it happens again?):

Determining what will happen in the future is a prediction.

4. Control (How can it be changed?):

The modification of some behavior is to change a behavior from an undesirable one to desirable one.  

Describe
One of the first goals of psychology is simply to describe behavior. Through describing the behavior of
humans and other animals, we are better able to understand it and gain a better perspective on what is
considered normal and abnormal.

Researchers might start by observing human behavior and then describing a problem. By understanding
what is happening, psychologists can then work on learning more about why the behavior happens and
even how to change it.

Imagine that researchers want to learn more about consumer behavior. They might use market research
surveys, direct observation, and other data collection methods to gather information on what people are
doing when they shop.
Explain
As you might imagine, in addition to merely describing it, psychologists are also interested in explaining
behavior. Why do people do the things they do? What factors contribute to development, personality,
social behavior, and mental health problems

In the previous example, researchers collected data to understand what consumers are purchasing.
Psychologists would then conduct research to understand/ask questions about why people purchase
certain items or what factors motivate them to make certain purchases.
Predict

Not surprisingly, another primary goal of psychology is to make predictions about how we think and act.
Once we understand more about what happens and why it happens, we can use that information to make
predictions about when, why, and how it might happen again in the future.
In the previous example looking at consumer behavior, psychologists would use the information they
collected to try to predict what consumers will purchase next. Businesses and marketers often employ
consumer psychologists to make such predictions so that they can create products that will appeal to
buyers.

 Change

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, psychology strives to change, influence, or control behavior to
make constructive and lasting changes in people's lives.

Marketers and businesses often use the understanding gained from psychological research to try to
influence and persuade buyers to behave in certain ways. For example, they might design advertising
campaigns designed to make a message appeal to a target audience. By tailoring their messaging to
specifically appeal to a certain type of buyer, those individuals are often more likely to respond.

So as you have learned, the four primary goals of psychology are to describe, explain, predict, and change
behavior. In many ways, these objectives are similar to the kinds of things you probably do every day as
you interact with others.

When dealing with children, for example, you might ask questions like:

 "What are they doing?" (describing)

 "Why are they doing that?" (explaining)
 "What would happen if I responded in this way?" (predicting)
 "What can I do to get them to stop doing that?" (changing)

Psychologists ask many of the same types of questions, but they utilize the scientific method to rigorously
test and systematically understand both human and animal behavior.

    

Scope of Psychology:

 The limits of operation and application.

 The branches, topics and subject matter with which it deals.

The limits of operation and application.

 The field of operation and application of the subject psychology is too vast.
 It studies, describes and explain the behaviors of living organism.
  Behavior is to be used to include all types of life activities and experience and cognitive explicit,
conscious, unconscious, of a living organism. On the other hand, the term living organism is to be
employed to all the living species such as caste, color, age, gender, sex, mental/physical state.
 Finally, Psychology may be needed for the study of the activities and experience of this living
organism.

The branches, topics and subject matter with which it deals.

a. Pure psychology/ Basic psychology/theoretical.

b. Applied psychology /practical psychology.

Pure psychology:

Pure psychology provides the framework and theory. Its contents deal with the formulation of
psychological principals and theories. It suggests various methods and techniques for the analysis,
modification and improvement of behaviors.

 Branches of pure psychology

1. General Psychology: the study of the basic principles, problems and methods that
underlie the science of psychology. Includes human development, emotions, motivation,
learning, senses, perception, thinking, memory, intelligence and processing.
2. Abnormal psychology: a branch of psychology concerned with mental and emotional
disorders (such as anxiety disorders, phobias, depression, and developmental disorders)
and with certain incompletely understood normal phenomena (such as dreams and
hypnosis)
3. Social psychology: the branch of psychology that deals with social interactions, including
their origins and their effects on the individual.

4. Experimental psychology: the branch of psychology concerned with the scientific

investigation of the responses of individuals to stimuli in controlled situations.
5. Physiological psychology: the study of the human neurological functions as they
relate to behavior and perception.
6. Developmental psychology:  a scientific approach which aims to explain growth,
change and consistency though the lifespan. 

Applied/ Practical psychology:

In applied psychology, the theory generated or discussed through pure psychology finds its practical
shape.

Branches of Applied/ Practical psychology:

1. Educational Psychology: Educational psychology is the study of how people learn, including
teaching methods, instructional processes, and individual differences in learning. 
2. Clinical psychology: the branch of psychology concerned with the assessment and treatment of
mental illness and behavioural problems.
 3. Industrial psychology: Industrial psychology refers to the applied organizational psychology used
to study, analyze and understand human behavior in the workplace, mainly how business works
and how employees function. 
4. Legal psychology: The main difference between legal psychology and forensic psychology is that
legal psychology is the study of the thought processes, and behaviors of jurors, the court system,
legal processes, etc., while forensic psychology mostly focuses on criminal cases (i.e. suspects,
defendants, and convicted criminal/felons), ...
5. Military psychology: the application of methods and principles of psychology to problems of
military training, discipline, combat behavior.
6. Political psychology: an interdisciplinary academic field, dedicated to
understanding politics, politicians and political behavior from a psychological perspective, and
psychological processes using socio-political perspectives.

Common Sense and Psychology

Common Sense of Psychology can be studied into three sub-fields: misconceptions about psychology,
psychology in common sense and difference between common sense and psychology on the basis of
perception and their field of study.

Psychology refers to the scientific and systematic study of the mental process and behavior of the human
being. One of the key characteristics of psychology is that it focuses on the individual rather than on the
group.

Common Sense knowledge is the locally developed knowledge acquired through the experiences of the
people in their daily life. 

Some common misconceptions people hold about psychology are:

 Psychologists are face readers.

 Some others perceive that psychologists can even read mind. Psychologists are mind readers
 Similarly, some people consider psychologists as the ones who deal with mentally ill people only.
 A person feels that Psychologists are fortune teller like astrologers. Can estimate character at
glance.
 Authority of mental telepathy or fortune telling.
 When I tell people I’m studying Psychology, their first response is generally “so can you tell
what I’m thinking?”
 Some people also think that a psychologist is the same as a psychiatrist, the type of people that lie
you down on a sofa and talk to you about your feelings.
 Criminal profiling
 Reinforcement (change in behavior)
 Lie detector(heart rate/breathing)
 Opposite attractive
 Women talks more than men
 It is better to vent your anger than to hold it.
‘Due to such misconceptions, people often feel uncomfortable to talk with the persons from
psychology. But, psychology is the one of the most important field that has arisen in this world. The study
of psychology should help us to get an insight into the glories of human nature, through the careful
observation of human behaviour.

Psychology is the science of behavior and mental or cognitive processes.

It uses systematized methods to study behaviors of both human and animals.

It studies why individuals behave in the particular way.

It also focuses on the internal mental processes of an individual that are supposed to play role in the
behavior of the individual.

Psychologists are not mind readers. However, they can make inferences about the mental processes
accurately by carefully studying behavior or through use of certain standardized psychological tests.

Though some psychologists work to treat mentally ill people not all the psychologists are concerned about
treating mentally ill people only. There are more than 100 branches of psychology in which
psychologists work.

Some of the common definitions by different author are:

 The science of the mind or of mental states and processes. 

 The science of human and animal behavior. 
 The sum or characteristics of the mental states and processes of a person or a class of persons, or
of the mental states and processes involved in a field or activity. 
 The mental makeup or structure of an individual that causes him or her to think or act in the way
he or she does. 
 Psychology studies the behavior of not only humans but also animals.

Common Sense and Psychology

Common Sense Psychology

 As a set of fundamental assumptions.  Psychology backed by

 As a set of Maximums or shared belief.
 As a shared way of thinking.
 Naturally like instinct/critical thinking.
 First hand Observation(direct
observation)
evidence/experimental proof.
 Psychology is logical process.
 It helps in predicting the future
development.
 Able to support universal laws and
principles.
Similarities and differences with other social sciences:

Social science is a general term which includes a variety of people-related areas such as psychology,
sociology, anthropology, and other ways of looking at human activity. We discuss some similarities and
differences of psychology with other social sciences on the basis of their main/specialized focus on study
matters. Psychology is applied to all other social sciences and other various fields because it is the study
of human behaviour, which also affects all other sciences and so on.

Wikipedia: "The social sciences are academic disciplines concerned with the study of the social life of
human groups and individuals including anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science,
psychology, social studies, and sociology."
Psychology is a social science that is concerned with the behavior of individuals. Social science is a
general term which includes a variety of people-related areas such as psychology, sociology,
anthropology, and other ways of looking at human activity.

The short answer is that psychology is concerned with human behavior and uses the examination of
mental processes to understand it .Other social sciences, such as anthropology and sociology, study
human behavior from different perspectives related to these social sciences.

Psychology focuses more on individuals and the others focus more on groups, cultures, and societies.
Also, psychology focuses more on human behavior, cognitive processes, and experience. The other social
sciences focus more on economics, religion, interactions, hierarchies, religion, culture, warfare, etc..

Social sciences deal with social universe or social phenomenon in general. They deal with forms and
contents of man’s interaction. They study human groups, society, culture etc. Different discipline studies
a specific part of the society.

1. Psychology and Sociology

Sociology studies some of the same topics as psychology. Sociology by its name is interested to study
group/social behavior. Sociology focuses on large group of persons or society as a whole, whereas
psychology focuses on individuals.

Without understanding the psychological aspects of an individual it is difficult to analyze social issues.
Karl Pearson, “The relationship between sociology and Social Psychology is to close, the two are not
separate Science”.

Psychology also greatly value social and cultural influences on human beings which is the major subject
matter of sociology. Both the science study the issues/activities like: Co-operation and conflict, support
and boycott, intimacy and detest , Group behavior , attitudes, values etc. Thus, what sort of People do
what specific type of activities is the subject matter of the both sciences. For example, both sociology and
psychology study drug addiction and crime. Sociology focus on financial aspect and group structure of
that society leading to drug and crime whereas psychology gives emphasis on cause and impacts of drug
on individual suggest treatment to relieve from drug.

Differences:

Both the subject emerge as the separate discipline.

Sociology is a science of society. Psychology is the science of behavior.

2. Philosophy and psychology.

If we trace the history of psychology it was the branch of philosophy. (Aristotle, Plato and Socrates tried
to explain psychology in a philosophical way as the science of soul and mind. Their contribution as
philosophers cannot be denied in the field of psychology.

There are many therapies in psychology, based on philosophical background. The philosophical

psychotherapeutic approach assumes that ones beliefs, attitude and outlook on life has long lasting impact
on one's behavior and feelings ways of dealing with reality.

Rogers client centered therapy (Carl Rogers: be non-directive, unconditional positive regard epathy
Accept negative emotion, active listening) and Viktor Frankl's are logotherapy(primary motivational force
of an individual is to find a meaning in life; depression treatment) are the components of philosophical
psychology. Thus, philosophy and psychology are internally related discipline.

Difference between Philosophy and psychology

Philosophy focus on the creation of theories such as nature of existence, knowledge and thought or about
people should live. But, Psychology studies how people behave in particular situation.

3. Political science and psychology

Psychology as a Behavioral Science regards politics as one of the important aspect of study, it studies the
political interest, level of participation in politics, political behaviour and relationship. Psychology
Studies the Specific motivation of individual towards politic or political Agenda. To understand the
political Complications, it is necessary to understand psychological aspect of individual. Psychological
knowledge is needed to understand the subject matter of political science and vice versa. The foundation
of each and every political phenomenon is individual’s thought and inspiration(persons psychology).
Political science concerns with political institutions, principles and governing methods. The
characteristics of a leader as a corrupt, dominating, autocratic, democratic, emotionally stable etc are all
psychological subject matters. Political science thus cannot be completed without the psychological
studies of human beings as an individual. Talking about research methods, both political science and
psychology focus on questionnaire, case study, observation, interview, social survey etc.

Difference

Psychology is regarded as the science of individual behaviour where political science as the science of
state. Political science is only related with political issue whereas psychology covers broader issues.

4. Anthropology and psychology

Anthropology is the scientific study of man, especially his origin, development, races, customs and
beliefs and psychology studies the human behavior. Study area of both the science is individual/
human beings. To some extent, the techniques and method of study is similar. Both make scientific study
of the society by employing observation, questionnaires, interview, fieldwork study etc. Anthropology
studies the direct and indirect impact of social organization and institutions in the behavior of an
individual, which is also included in the study of psychology.

Differences

Psychology and anthropology emerged as separate disciplines as they had distinct nature and

characteristics. Regarding the subject matter, various facts of an individual is focused in anthropology
but, behaviour of an individual is focused in psychology. Anthropology studies primitive society where as
psychology focus more on present by making the base of past.

5. Economics and Psychology:

Economics has been defined as the study of mankind in the ordinary business of life, but more properly, it
is taken as the science of wealth in its three phases of production, distribution, and consumption. Life is
very much dependent upon financial aspect: Both psychology and economics have the common platform
of study. For example, lack of proper facility, level of occupation, types of Luxurious goods,
unemployment etc may lead to conflicts frustration and stress, which are important focus area
of psychology. The impact of Economy is the issue to study psychology. Most of the time the problems
on society arise due to the economic factors, we need to acknowledge and explore the actual nature of
social problem by the help of psychological study.

Differences between economic and psychology

Both the discipline emerged as a separate discipline. Psychology studies human behaviour where
economics studies economic relationship with human beings.

Similarities:

Both the science are the social Science.

Both the science can share the subject matter of their study.

Both the science has similar methods or techniques of Study .Such as: Survey, Case study, Scientific
Method.

Differences:

Both the science emerges as the separate discipline.

Write the definition of both the science.

Perspectives of Psychology:

How psychologists view behavior?

Psychology was defined and looked with different interests and explanation about human behavior.
Starting from Aristotle to modern definition no single point of view has emerged as the correct way of
viewing behavior and mental process. The major perspectives emerged in contemporary psychology in
explaining behavior is cognitive, Behavioral, Psychodynamic, Humanistic, Biological, Socio-cultural and
Evolutionary. A brief summary of these perspectives about behavior are presented below:

 Biological Perspective
 Cognitive Perspective
 Behavioral Perspective
 Psychodynamic Perspective
 Humanistic Perspective
 Social –cultural Perspective
 Evolutionary Perspective

1. Biological or Physiological Perspective:

The biological perspective is a broad scientific perspective that assumes that human behavior and
thought processes have a biological basis. Biology includes investigations into biochemistry of
behavior associated with neurotransmitters and hormones, genetics and heritability, and the
psychophysics of sensation and perception. Every human behavior is related to physiological
changes within the body. The working relationship between the body, behavior and mental
processes is the focus of biological perspective (kalat, 2001). The physiological perspective
describes the role of nerve cells in different aspects of an individual's behavior in emotion,
reasoning, problem solving, intelligence, speaking etc. Physiological psychologists also study
neurotransmitters, which is a chemical substance that influences normal and abnormal behaviors.
Most drugs influence our emotions and behaviors by altering levels of these neurotransmitters in
the body.
During recent years, physiological psychologists are focusing on the influence of heredity on
personality characteristics and abilities. They are also concentrating on behavior genetics to
determine how much genes and environment influence individual differences. Karl Lashley
especially focused on the continuous activity of the brain and its interaction with the environment
and a dynamic composite of interacting system. Lashley emphasizes fatigue, lower motivation and
poorer recall as the three factors that are especially important in forgetting.

2. Cognitive Perspective:

Cognitive perspective is the newly developed area explaining human behavior. Gestalt psychologist
working in the field of perception advocated the study of cognitive processes. Psychologists George
Miller and Jerome Bruner established the Center for Cognitive Studies at Harvard University in 1960, and
Ulrich Neisser published the book 'Cognitive psychology' in 1967 which supports the study of cognitive
processes. The word cognition covers the higher intellectual processes as perceiving, believing, thinking,
remembering, knowing, deciding, problem solving and so on.

The cognitive perspective develops explanations for human behavior that suggest human behavior is
thoughtful and can be controlled by thought processes. Indeed, the cognitive perspective suggests that
much of human behavior is mediated by thought processes like memory and attention, belief systems,
attitudes and language. Cognition is a mental process in which the information is obtained, processed,
transformed, stored, retrieved and used. From this perspective, cognition plays a vital role in guiding
behavior. The complicated nature of cognitive can be analyzed in different ways:
Cognition processes information: Information is the raw material for cognition. The information is
obtained from the physical environment through sense organs. The receptors receive it, and then the
neutral connections transmit the information to the particular part of the nervous system which is then
conveyed to the effectors (muscles) giving sense to the information.
Cognition is active: Information is obtained from the sensory organs. It is transmitted and interpreted,
which allows the perceptual and thinking process of memory. Stored and retrieved through the process of
memory, Later it can be used in the process of problem solving, thinking and language.
Cognition is useful: Cognition is useful mentally and physically. Cognition helps us in judgement (to
decide right and wrong), and survival processes (while solving different problems).

3. Behavioral Perspective:

From the beginning of 20th century, psychology was defined as a science of behavior. American
psychologist, J.B.Watson(1879-1958), Russian psychologist Ivan p. Pavlov(1927), British philosopher
and naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882), Francis Galton contributed for defining psychology as a
science of observable behavior. Watson opened that human behavior can be measured through
observable behavior and not by the study of mind of conscious. Watson developed and applied these
principles to animals which were later expanded for human beings.
Behaviorist definition propagated behavior as:

 Objective which can be felt and seen.

 Can be observed and verified.
 Studying overt behavior of both animal and human beings including children, old,
normal/abnormal.

Critics claimed that behaviorism was dehumanizing. Later on this behavioral tradition started by
Pavlov and continued by Watson gained many string proponents, among them was
B.F.Skinner(1904-1990). Skinner used behavior in a very simple way. He thought behavior changes
as a result of its environmental consequences. Many of his principles were used to cure diseases and
change behavior of animals and human beings in a variety of settings. It was used successfully to
make mute schizophrenics speak after several years, and teach basic skills to mentally retarded
persons. Skinner's principles are also used to train dolphins, seals and other animals found in the
circus or at home.

4. Psychodynamic Perspective:
Psychodynamic perspective in psychology is developed by Sigmund Freud that provides
knowledge and understanding about the unconscious mind. Freud felt the roots of
psychological problems are motives of sexual and aggressive nature which stay at the
unconscious level of mind. The term psychodynamic is used because these unconscious
motives and conflicts influence our behavior even though we do not know they exist.
They are revealed in disguised, symbolic ways such as in dreams, in slips of tongue and
sometimes in psychological problems. Freud also focused on early childhood and
emphasized that early experiences have major influences on personality development.

Psychodynamic Perspective considers behavior to be motivated by inner forces and

conflict about which we have little awareness and over which we have little control.
 Sigmund Freud, who was medically trained in neurology, developed a theory of
personality that made the assumption that human motivation was propelled (drive
forward-to cause to move) by conflicts between instinctual, mostly unconscious,
psychological forces. He called these intra psychic elements the id, ego and superego.
According to Freud's psychoanalytic theory, the id is the primitive(original) and
instinctual part of the mind that contains sexual and aggressive drives and hidden
memories, the super-ego operates as a moral conscience, and the ego is the realistic part
that mediates between the desires of the id and the super-ego.

Freud's first developmental theory of human personality suggests that human development
progresses through psychosexual stages. Each stage is characterized by specific behavioral and
psychodynamic developments and challenges. Different phases of child psycho sexual development
are a) the oral stage, b) the anal stage, c) Genital Stage, d) the Latency stage, e) the phallic Stage.
Other psychodynamic theories arose, like those of Carl Jung and Alfred Adler, Margaret Mahler,
and famous development lists like Jean Piaget and Erik Erikson, but all made the same basic
assumption: There is a dynamic mind, conscious and unconscious, that influences the behavior of
humans. Elements of the unconscious psyche interact to produce motives(incentives) for behavior
and thought processes.
Sigmund Freud (1856 -1939) – He describes different ideas about a) the world of unconscious, b)
psychoanalytic method, c) Structure of Psyche, d) Psycho Sexual Development.
Oedipus and Electra phases Freud says that they are the results of the sexual attraction or pleasure
the children receive in the company of the opposite sex parent.

5. Humanistic/Existential Perspective:
Humanistic perspective of psychology was developed by Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers
and Viktor Frankl during 1950s and 1960s.The humanistic perspective arose in reaction
to the deterministic and pessimistic psychoanalytic view and the mechanistic behavioral
perspective, to support more optimistic views that humans are motivated by their
potential to be creative and productive in response to their social and environmental
conditions..
Humanistic perspective has a very different view on human beings compared to
psychoanalysis or behaviorism. Psychoanalyst Freud emphasized on unconscious motives
and Behaviorist Watson on learning experience in shaping human behavior. The
 humanist perspective focuses on freedom in controlling human behavior. According to
them, each person is a unique individual and experiences the differently. One of the most
important humanistic principles is that all human beings have a basic powerful inborn
tendency to grow and improve to their fullest potential and a desire to take control of
their own life. Humanistic psychologists are the least scientific of all psychological
perspectives. The principles they focus on is very difficult to investigate in a scientific
way because it characterizes philosophical aspects of human life. The major contribution
of humanistic perspective to psychology is the development of a variety of
psychotherapeutic techniques(Barton 1992). Carl Rogers was particularly interested in
methods of psychotherapy and conducted a great deal of research to develop a
nondirective therapy.
The humanist philosophy respects diversity and confronts reality as it is, both the painful
and pleasurable, the good and the bad. The humanist perspective differs from the
biological perspective in that the assumptions about causes for behavior lie in human
self-efficacy, (the ability to produce a desired or intended result) choice and free will as
opposed to the determinism of biological causes. Humanist and existential philosophies
are combined because they both emphasize free will and responsibility as central to the
nature of being.

6. Socio-cultural Perspective:

The socio-cultural psychology explains how our personality, believe, attitudes, skills and values are
shaped by our culture, ethnicity, gender, religion, and other important socio-cultural factors. The
social/cultural perspective in psychology suggests that human behavior is influenced by social
context, environmental cues, social pressures and cultural influences. The way human beings
socialize and develop socialization from their early life to old age is explained through socio-
cultural perspective psychology. Socio-cultural perspective is concerned with how people interact,
are interdependent, and inter-coordinate with each other to influence and to be influenced by each
other in society. The language, moral beliefs, ethical values, social norms and practices, traditions,
superstitions, prejudices, eating behavior etc all describe then culture in which we belong to. So
culture shapes our behavior.
In multi-cultural and multi-lingual society people may develop and common behavior. The socio-
cultural perspective not only encourages cultural and social factors but also promotes the
understanding of cultural relativity. Cultural relativity is the view that different cultures, ethnic
groups, genders and sexual orientations are simply different rather than inferior to one another.
Ethnic group, ethnic identity and gender identity are studied in socio-cultural perspective of
 psychology. A group of people who are descendants from a common group of ancestors are
identified as an ethnic group. Ethnic identity refers to each person's sense of belonging to a
particular ethnic group in which s/he shares the group's beliefs, values, attitudes, prejudices, skilss,
festivals etc. Gender identity is concerned about how the individual views oneself as male female.
Interactions with parents, teachers, siblings and friends play an important role in teaching gender
identity.
Anyone who has attended a football game will recognize that human behavior is susceptible to
influence of the crowd mentality. We are all shaped by the context of our environment and
influenced by the perception of authority in our social order. Social psychologists suggest that these
forces are very powerful and explain a great deal about the causes of human behavior and thought
processes.

7. Evolutionary Perspective:

The evolutionary perspective is based on the work developed by Charles Darwin (1859) who
popularized the theory of evolution almost 150 years ago. Evolutionary perspective focuses on the
role of the physical structure and behavior play in the adaptation process of an organism to the
environment. Darwin in this theory of evolution, popularized three basic components: variation,
inheritance and selection.

Variation refers to the fact that organism belonging to a given species vary in different ways. Every
human individual differences, differing in shape, size, intelligence, personality, health and so on.
Inheritance refers to the fact that some of these variations can be passed from generation to
generation. Darwin could not explain these genetic phenomena which is now an extensive area of
knowledge. Selection refers to the particular behavior the organism have adapted to best suit their
environment. The strong or most fit organisms are more likely to survive and pass on their
characteristics (genes) to future generations. Those who cannot are less likely to survive.
Researchers who work from an evolutionary perspective always ask what role a physiological
structure or behavior plays in helping the organism survive and adapt to its environment. They have
successfully applied the evolutionary explanation to numerous areas, such as mate selection,
aggression, care of offspring, and parenting. For example a possible answer as to why male and
female display aggression differently can be predicted. It is thought that men will display more
direct aggression (hitting, kicking) whereas women will display more indirect aggression
(gossiping, scolding). In addition to behaviors, evolutionary psychologists are also interested in
why certain physical structures developed and how they contribute to adaptation.

Summary
Biological
 Cause of behavior is your brain.
 To change behaviors, you have to change the way the brain functions

Behaviorism
 How does the environment impact the way you behave?
 Environmental conditions like rewards/punishments

Cognitive
 Based on mental process (Speaking, Thinking etc.)
 People act because they think; People thin because they are human

Humanistic
 People are innately good and capable of choice.
 Main task of humans is to grow and develop

Psychodynamic
 Behavior is result of unconscious dynamics, inner forces.
 Not based on observation

Socio-cultural
 Behavior results from social and cultural influences.
 Ex: Kissing

Evolutionary
 Mental abilities evolve over millions of years
 Ex: Vision

Goals of Psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behavior. While you might understand what
psychology is, many people are not quite so sure about what psychology does. What purpose does
psychology serve? What are its goals? The major goals of psychology, what psychologists strive to
accomplish, and how psychology is used to solve real-world problems.

1. Description (What is happening?):

Description involves observing a behavior and noting everything about it, what is happening, where it
happens, to whom it happens.                         

2. Explanation (why is it happening?):

A theory is a general explanation of a set of observation.

3. Prediction (when will it happens again?):

Determining what will happen in the future is a prediction.

4. Control (How can it be changed?):

The modification of some behavior is to change a behavior from an undesirable one to desirable one.  

Describe

• One of the first goals of psychology is simply to describe behavior. Through describing the
behavior of humans and other animals, we are better able to understand it and gain a better
perspective on what is considered normal and abnormal.

• Researchers might start by observing human behavior and then describing a problem. By
understanding what is happening, psychologists can then work on learning more about why the
behavior happens and even how to change it.

• Imagine that researchers want to learn more about consumer behavior. They might use market
research surveys, direct observation, and other data collection methods to gather information
on what people are doing when they shop.

Explain

• As you might imagine, in addition to merely describing it, psychologists are also interested in
explaining behavior. Why do people do the things they do? What factors contribute to
development, personality, social behavior, and mental health problems

• In the previous example, researchers collected data to understand what consumers are purchasing.
Psychologists would then conduct research to understand/ask questions about why people
purchase certain items or what factors motivate them to make certain purchases.

Predict
 • Not surprisingly, another primary goal of psychology is to make predictions about how we think
and act. Once we understand more about what happens and why it happens, we can use that
information to make predictions about when, why, and how it might happen again in the future.

• In the previous example looking at consumer behavior, psychologists would use the information
they collected to try to predict what consumers will purchase next. Businesses and marketers
often employ consumer psychologists to make such predictions so that they can create products
that will appeal to buyers.

Change

• Finally, and perhaps most importantly, psychology strives to change, influence, or control
behavior to make constructive and lasting changes in people's lives.

• Marketers and businesses often use the understanding gained from psychological research to try
to influence and persuade buyers to behave in certain ways. For example, they might design
advertising campaigns designed to make a message appeal to a target audience. By tailoring their
messaging to specifically appeal to a certain type of buyer, those individuals are often more likely
to respond.

• So as you have learned, the four primary goals of psychology are to describe, explain, predict,
and change behavior. In many ways, these objectives are similar to the kinds of things you
probably do every day as you interact with others.

When dealing with children, for example, you might ask questions like:

• "What are they doing?" (describing)

• "Why are they doing that?" (explaining)

• "What would happen if I responded in this way?" (predicting)

• "What can I do to get them to stop doing that?" (changing)

• Psychologists ask many of the same types of questions, but they utilize the scientific method to
rigorously test and systematically understand both human and animal behavior.

Scientific Method and Psychological research:

What Is the Scientific Method?

Scientific practice helps psychologists to know that they have obtained the most accurate and
useful knowledge of mental processes and human behavior.
What is the scientific method and how is it used in psychology? The scientific
method is essentially a step-by-step process that researchers can follow to
determine if there is some type of relationship between two or more variables.

Psychologists and other social scientists regularly propose explanations for human
behavior. On a more informal level, people make judgments about the
intentions, motivations, and actions of others on a daily basis.
While the everyday judgments we make about human behavior are subjective and
anecdotal (An account which supports an argument, but which is not supported by
scientific or statistical analysis), researchers use the scientific method to study
psychology in an objective and systematic way.

In order to truly understand how psychologists and other researchers reach these

conclusions, you need to know more about the research process that is used to
study psychology and the basic steps that are utilized when conducting any type of
psychological research. By knowing the steps of the scientific method, you can
better understand the process researchers go through to arrive at conclusions
about human behavior.

Reasons to Use the Steps of the Scientific Method

The goals of psychological studies are to describe, explain, predict and perhaps
influence mental processes or behaviors. In order to do this, psychologists utilize
the scientific method to conduct psychological research. The scientific method is a
set of principles and procedures that are used by researchers to develop questions,
collect data, and reach conclusions.
What are the goals of scientific research in psychology? Researchers seek not only
to describe behaviors and explain why these behaviors occur; they also strive to
create research that can be used to predict and even change human behavior.

The Steps of the Scientific Method (What are the 6 steps of the scientific
methods in order?)
While research studies can vary, these are the basic steps that psychologists and scientists use when
investigating human behavior.

Formulation of problem/Identification of problem: Problem may be simple or complex it should be

defined properly in order to investigate the various fact causing it, otherwise result may mis the
direction effort may be waste.

Formulation of Hypothesis- After the identification of problem we must have some idea that are likely
to discovered. Hypothesis is possible outcome which has not yet been proved to be correct.

Observation /Experimentation and collection of Data- The formulated hypothesis has to be tested. It

requires the observation and collection of facts. Different measurement scales and test are used for
identification of problem.(e.g.- personality test, aptitude test ,IQ test scales)
Analysis of collected information/detail/data- After the data have been collected in order to draw the
conclusion, data has to analyze properly by arranging the data in different groups.

Conclusion/testing hypothesis- After the data have been collected, proceed and analyzed we have to
conclude(findings).(Then the result is tested to the hypothesis, if the result is same then it is considered
as elaborated hypothesis)

Generalization- The findings are considered to be true for other similar situation.(in some cases it may
not be 100% true). E.g- There is 90% of chances for relapse.

Formulation of theory and law –When the fact has been tested and accepted by the majority people, it
is considered as a law or theory. Results should be shared, so other researcher can make new
hypotheses.

Methods of studying Psychology:

Psychology is termed as the scientific study of behavior. How do researchers investigate

psychological phenomena? They utilize a process known as the scientific method to study
different aspects of how people think and behave. This process not only allows scientists to
investigate and understand different psychological phenomena, but it also provides researchers
and others a way to share and discuss the results of their studies. In order to carry out
psychological research the following methods of studying Psychology are employed

Observation Method

Experimental Method

Survey Method

Case History

Clinical Method

Statistical Method

1. Observation Method:

Observation method is also called objective observation, systematic observation or naturalistic

observation. It is widely used in ethnology(study of human culture), social psychology, child psychology,
abnormal psychology, developmental psychology, sociology and other areas. Observation method came
as a criticism against introspection method which is a subjective observation or self-observation. It
describes behavior as what people do, how they differ in their behavior and why. It may use cameras,
recordings, questionnaires, while observing the behavior. It provides valuable information about human
behaviour.
It can be divided into two categories as participant observation and non- participant observation.
The psychologists actively take part and simultaneously observes the behavior of human beings or animals. In non-
participant observation the psychologists tries to observe the behavior from an observable distance or through one
way vision screen so that the observer can see the subject without being seen themselves.
There are certain important steps involved in carrying out the observation method which are as following:
a) Observation of behavior: means examination or perception of some behavior directly
b) Noting of behavior: The second step needs the perceived behavior to be carefully noted down to analyse them
carefully.

c) Interpretation and analysis of behavior: The noted behavior needs to be interpreted and analysed carefully so that
the underlying causes of the behavior can be clarified.
d) generalization: Observation method is a scientific method, findings based on the scientific method should be
generalized

The weakness/limitations of this method is –

• Some errors in judgment may occur in observation or interpretation. Biases ad prejudice may
influence.
• This method is slow and expensive process, requiring human observers / or costly surveillance equipment.
• Only overt behavior of the organism is studied.

2. Experimental Method: 

Experimental method studies behavior on the basis of cause and effect relationship. This
method is the most scientific method of all to study human behavior. In 1879, Wilhelm
Wundt established first psychology laboratory at Leipzing University in Germany and
since then it has gained good standing in its ability to provide reliable statistics in
experimental way. "It is the most highly developed, formalized and accurate of all
scientific methods" (Ruch, 1970)
The experiments or research takes place in special laboratories under artificially
controlled conditions. Experimental method requires a well planned and facilitated
laboratory, apparatus and equipments, subject nand experimenter, problems, objectives,
hypothesis, design to process and proceed toward the scientific exploration.
Special equipments and apparatus are properly set up in a fixed place which can be easily
used by different scientists to study behavior. The following steps are employed to study
behavior through a well planned experimental design:
Rising a problem: Experiment starts with a problem that raises question.
Formulation of hypothesis: Hypothesis may be formulated positively or negatively on
the basis of available literatures in the area. Hypothesis are the assumptions made to test
the problem.
To distinguish between dependent and independent variable: A variable is an event
or condition which can have different values and that can be measured. The independent
variable is a cause and the dependent variable is the response.
 Controlling the environment or the situation: The variables which influence the result
are controlled in experimental method. While experimenting, the experimenter needs to
control the extraneous variables which negatively influence the experiment.
Analysis of the result: The scientific enquiry requires result to be analyzed properly.
Verificationn of the hypothesis by the result of the experiment: After analyzing the
results the next important step is to verify the assumptions.

Advantages:

Accuracy/ Replication of result(same result again and again)

Useful in generalizing by demonstrating the finding.

Limitations:

The environment of the laboratory condition are artificially made and designed which may not provide
the same result

It is difficult to keep the person controlled fully.

It is very difficult to study unconscious mind of individual .

Sometime a person shows irregular behaviour in a controlled environment. So reliability may decrease.

It is very expensive method.

3. Survey Method:

Survey research is the most popular mean of data collection in almost every branch of social
sciences. The survey research methods help the researchers understand the actual ground reality
of the event by analyzing the social views, attitudes, behavior, and opinions of the people.

To understand Human behaviour, survey method is more important because large number of
information can gather quickly in low cost. This method uses questionnaires, interviews, rating
scales etc. to collect information. Information usually collects on mass. Such as election,
Consumers interest, thoughts of family planning, women’s right etc. The survey method must be
conducted by a trained and experienced person.

The researchers use various techniques of survey research methods, which are briefly discussed
below.

. Direct Interviews
An interview process involves direct communication between the interviewer/researcher (who
asks the question) and the interviewee/respondent (who answers the questions). Interviews give
better in-depth results than any other technique of data collection as the researcher gets first-hand
information about the respondent’s mind through communication and observation of his/her
behavior.

2. Telephonic or Digital Surveys

Telephonic surveys involve asking questions about the survey through direct calls or messages.
Digital surveys through ‘Google forms’ are also commonly used these days. Telephone and
digital surveys are easy to conduct, and they do not consume much time.

3. Questionnaires
Questionnaires consist of a well-structured set of questions that are distributed to the people to
mark or write the answers. The questions can be open-ended or close-ended, depending upon the
type of survey.

Survey method facilitates to collect large amounts of data efficiently with little effort, less
expense, and in short time. Even though survey methods are widely used in studying behavior it
has certain limitations.

 People may not response honestly.

 Only surface information can be revealed by this method.
 The sample taken may not represent whole population.
 Sent questionnaires lack observation.

 Respondents may not complete the questionnaire.

Advantages:

 Gather large amount of information easily and quickly.

 Very economic and flexible.(Flexible in the sense we can use other methods too while using this
method).
 Trend personnel are also not required during data collection because questionnaire is fixed in
advance.
4. Case Study:

Case study method is also known as case history, or clinical method. It is one of the oldest research
method used particularly to reveal depths for the diagnosis and treatment of behavior disorders in
psychology. In the case study method, the researcher does qualitative research and in-depth analysis of
a specific case (subject under investigation). The results obtained from this method are highly reliable.
The psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, constructed his theory of personality from case studies. Jean Piaget,
the most influential observer of children formulated many cognitive theories on children from case
studies.

Case study involves detail investigation of a single individual or single organized group. This method
may also be based on longitudinal study. Case study involves making observations for a particular period
of time to find the cause and development of a particular behavior pattern. The case record includes
information on family background, home life neighborhood activities, experiences at school, health, past
life and so on. This method is based on the idea that the more we know about individuals, the better we
will be able to understand and help them. While using case study the investigator uses, tests, checklists,
questionnaires, interviews etc. It can be done at home, school, or work situations.

The researcher does the case studies of the people or events that provide some critical
information about the new or less discovered phenomena of the human mind. The number of
cases can be one or more, or they are of different or same characteristics, for example, a patient
suffering from a mental disorder, a group of people belonging to the same gender, class, or
ethnicity, and effect on the people of various natural or man-made disasters such as flood,
tsunami, terrorism, and industrialization.

Advantages:

It can study particular case in detail.

While conducting case study we can use observation and interview method thus, is considered as flexible.

It is very much useful in clinical setting for diagnosis and treatment of problem.

In-depth study of an issues.“Burgess called this method as Social Microscope”

Disadvantages

Time consuming.

Costly

Generalization is difficult because of in-depth study.

1. Descriptive research:
In this method the research naturally described the organism. In everyday life all of us
observe and describe people, often forming different guesses about why they behave as they
do. Professional psychologists do the same but more objectively and systematically. The
main problem in descriptive method is that the researcher should be a skilled and experienced
person free of bias or prejudice to understand the behavior of the organism.

Descriptive research is typically used when it would be difficult or even impossible to

manipulate the variables in question. Examples of descriptive research include case
studies, naturalistic observation, and correlation studies. Phone surveys that are often used by
marketers are one example of descriptive research.
Why is such a detailed record of a psychological study so important? By clearly explaining the
steps and procedures used throughout the study, other researchers can then replicate the results.
The editorial process employed by academic and professional journals ensures that each article
that is submitted undergoes a thorough peer review, which helps ensure that the study is
scientifically sound.
Once published, the study becomes another piece of the existing puzzle of our knowledge base
on that topic.

Define the contribution of psychology in business world.

Define psychology. Can psychology be applied by managers in a organization for better employer-
employee relation?

Define psychology. Why the study of psychology is considered important in relation to business world.

A person's regular occupation, profession or trade is business. So it is human activities. In the same way,
psychology is the scientific study of experience, mental process and behavior of human. Management is
the coordination and administration of tasks to achieve a goal. Such administration activities include
setting the organization's strategy and coordinating the efforts of staff to accomplish these objectives
through the application of available resources. Role of Psychology in Business & Management is an
extremely important aspect in the world today. Understanding the human psychology, be it either
employees or customers or business partners, helps companies in better management and grow
their business.

Psychology helps managers at all levels of organizations select, support, motivate and train
employees. It also helps businesses design products, build better workspaces and foster healthy
behavior.
Psychology plays an important role in establishing and maintaining a conducive(appropriate)
work environment and optimizing(improve/enhance) human and organizational efficiency. Key
benefits include better workplace cooperation, higher levels of job satisfaction, and increased
productivity.
Business psychologists specialize in the study of the workplace and work to motivate employees,
enhance working conditions, and ensure the smooth and successful running of a business.

The role of psychology in business is considerably great as importance of Business psychology

cannot be ignored in the contemporary field especially when psychology has developed itself as
a science with its various branches to study the human mind and to work accordingly. Different
methods are used by psychologists to calculate data, to get information about a certain subject, to
evaluate and then to use better strategies for a flourishing business.

Psychology in business accommodates itself by managing, supporting and training employees.

Business psychologists assist people to understand others, how they come in contact with
technology, in making different types of advertising campaigns, in designing products which
public demands. They work in a conducive way and adopt an impartial set of mind and suggest
ways to workers to cope with many problems.
Business is multifaceted, what is common across all the areas, however, are people. All the
stakeholders from the shareholders to the managers to the government to the employees are
comprised of people. Since, where people are involved, psychology is involved, psychology has
it effects on all the aspects of a business. It helps us understand the human behavior and
reasoning behind thoughts, processes, actions and goals.
These are the major dimensions of the business which are influenced by psychology. Psychology
also plays a major role across departments from Human Resources to production to finance to
sales. All are influenced by the psychological requirements of the people involved.

 Through the use of scientific research methods, psychologists try to discover new
techniques to increase the rate of productivity.
 Psychology tries to acknowledge the needs of employees.
 It works to create a better workplace where people feel motivated enough to work.
 It makes use of such policies which attract employees.
 Another goal of psychology is to design better products.
 It promotes healthy behavior.
 Psychology helps to solve different issues and affairs by using scientific research
methods. Through these methods, they try to study mind processing of all the individuals
at the workplace.
 Manager uses the knowledge of psychology to motivate employees. Psychology helps
employees to solve disparate problems related to work.
 Psychology not only offers the solution to problems but also suggests the way for
implementation in business world.
 Understanding psychology helps managers lead the team to great success.
 Understanding the psychology of the customers is the key to maximizing profits of the
company.
Assignments:
State the goals of psychology.
Human behavior can be studied in a laboratory condition. Describe with the help of experimental
method.
What are the different research methods in Psychology? Compare and contrast case study and
survey. Explain experimental method in brief.
How do biological factors determine the psychological behavior.
Discuss the relationship of psychology with other social sciences.
What is experimental method? Explain the pros and cons of experimental method.
Discuss the major scope of the psychology. How would you get advantage in the field of
business world?
What is socio-cultural psychology? How does it contribute to the understanding of human
behavior?
Psychology developed through different perspectives; briefly describe their focus area/ What are
the different perspectives to view human behaviors. Explain in brief.