Approaches in Psychology

There are about eight approaches in psychology.

1. Developmental Psychology

2. industrial psychology

3. child psychology

4. educational psychology

5. cognitive psychology

6. social psychology

7. abnormal psychology

8. clinical psychology

9. Counseling

10. Psychology Of Individual Difference

1- DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY:

What is Developmental Psychology?Developmental psychology is a field of psychology that examines the impactof maturational processes and experience on behavior.

We can also describe the definition of developmental psychology as “It is thestudy in which behavior develop and change during a life span. Special areasof interest include the development of language, social attachments,emotions, thinking and perception”

More In Developmental Psychology:Developmental psychology is the scientific study of age-related changesthroughout the human life span. A discipline of scientific inquiry,developmental psychology recognizes humans of all societies and cultures asbeings who are “in process,” or constantly growing and changing. Thisdiscipline identifies the biological, psychological, and social aspects thatinteract to influence the growing human life-span process. Beginning with

Sigmund Freud (1856–1939) and Jean Piaget (1896–1980), the early focusof developmental psychology was on child development, or the maturation ofchildren. Within the last 25 years, developmentalists—researchers who studyhuman development—expanded their focus to include the study of thephysical, motor, cognitive, intellectual, emotional, personality, social, andmoral changes that occur throughout all stages of the life span.In it’s special areas of interest language development, emotions, perceptionsand thinking are included. When a baby born, he’s totally unaware about thewords his mom, dad and people attached with him say. The baby needs todevelop his mind to learn the language. He always tries to copy the peopleof his surrounding to learn language. But the question is that why theanimals can’t learn language? There’s a special device or you can say thatthere’re special cells in the brain of a baby and has the specific period bywhich baby learns the language and this type of thing is not available in theminds of animals. The development of emotions and thinking are also basedupon the development of mind and language. When a baby learn thelanguage he also try to act and shows emotions like hunger, pain andsomething like that.

2- Industrial Psychology:

What is Industrial Psychology?

Industrial and Organizational Psychology is a specialistarea that applies psychological knowledge and skills towork, with the aim of improving organizationaleffectiveness and the quality of work life.

More In Industrial Psychology:Psychologists in this field advise businesses and organizations on a variety ofsubjects: the selection and training of workers; how to promote efficientworking conditions and techniques; how to boost employee morale,productivity, and job satisfaction; and the best ways to evaluate employeeperformance and create incentives that motivate workers. I-O psychologyfirst became prominent during World War II (1939-1945), when it becamenecessary to recruit and train the large number of new workers who wereneeded to meet the expanding demands of industry.

The selection of workers for particular jobs is essentially a problem ofdiscovering the special aptitudes and personality characteristics needed forthe job and of devising tests to determine whether candidates have such

aptitudes and characteristics. The development of tests of this kind has longbeen a field of psychological research.

Once the worker is on the job and has been trained, the fundamental aim ofthe I-O psychologist is to find ways in which a particular job can best beaccomplished with a minimum of effort and a maximum of individualsatisfaction. The psychologist's function, therefore, differs from that of theso-called efficiency expert, who places primary emphasis on increasedproduction. Psychological techniques used to lessen the effort involved in agiven job include a detailed study of the motions required to do the job, theequipment used, and the conditions under which the job is performed. Theseconditions include ventilation, heating, lighting, noise, and anything elseaffecting the comfort or morale of the worker. After making such a study,the I-O psychologist often determines that the job in question may beaccomplished with less effort by changing the routine motions of the workitself, changing or moving the tools, improving the working conditions, or acombination of several of these methods.

Industrial-organizational psychologists have also studied the effects offatigue on workers to determine the length of working time that yields thegreatest productivity. In some cases such studies have proven that totalproduction on particular jobs could be increased by reducing the number ofworking hours or by increasing the number of rest periods, or breaks, duringthe day. I-O psychologists may also suggest less direct requirements forgeneral improvement of job performance, such as establishing a better lineof communication between employees and management.3- Child Psychology:

What is Child Psychology?It’s the study in which we study how children grow and issues related withtheir upbringing, physical and psychological health.

More In Child Psychology:Child Development, physical, intellectual, social, and emotional changes thatoccur from birth to adolescence. Although people change throughout theirlives, developmental changes are especially dramatic in childhood. Duringthis period, a dependent, vulnerable newborn grows into a capable youngperson who has mastered language, is self-aware, can think and reason withsophistication, has a distinctive personality, and socializes effortlessly withothers. Many abilities and characteristics developed in childhood last alifetime.

Some developments in behavior and thought are very similar for all children.Around the world, most infants begin to focus their eyes, sit up, and learn towalk at comparable ages, and children begin to acquire language anddevelop logical reasoning skills at approximately the same time. Theseaspects of individual growth are highly predictable. Other aspects ofdevelopment show a much wider range of individual differences. Whether achild becomes outgoing or shy, intellectually advanced or average, orenergetic or subdued depends on many unique influences whose effects aredifficult to predict at the child’s birth.

A variety of factors influence child development. Heredity guides everyaspect of physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and personalitydevelopment. Family members, peer groups, the school environment, andthe community influence how children think, socialize, and become self-aware. Biological factors such as nutrition, medical care, and environmentalhazards in the air and water affect the growth of the body and mind.Economic and political institutions, the media, and cultural values all guidehow children live their lives. Critical life events, such as a family crisis or anational emergency, can alter the growth of personality and identity. Mostimportant of all, children contribute significantly to their own development.This occurs as they strive to understand their experiences, respond inindividual ways to the people around them, and choose activities, friends,and interests. Thus, the factors that guide development arise from bothoutside and within the person.

Why is the study of child development important? One reason is that itprovides practical guidance for parents, teachers, child-care providers, andothers who care for children. A second reason is that it enables society tosupport healthy growth. Understanding early brain development, forexample, means that parents can provide better opportunities for intellectualstimulation, and society can reduce or eliminate obstacles to healthy braingrowth. Third, the study of child development helps therapists and educatorsbetter assist children with special needs, such as those with emotional orlearning difficulties. Finally, understanding child development contributes toself-understanding. We know ourselves better by recognizing the influencesthat have made us into the people we are today.

4- Educational Psychology:

What is Educational Psychology?

Educational Psychology, application ofscientific method to the study of the behaviorof people in instructional settings. Althoughthe behavior of teachers and students is ofgreatest interest, educational psychologistsalso study the behavior of other groups, suchas teacher aides, infants, migrants, and theaged. The areas covered by educationalpsychologists inevitably overlap with otherareas of psychology, including child andadolescent development, social psychology,psychological testing, and educationalcounseling.

There are different theories of child psychology which are as follow:• Learning (Different theories of learning help educational psychologists

understand, predict, and control human behavior. For example, educational

psychologists have worked out mathematical models of learning that predict the

probability of a person's making a correct response; these mathematical theories

are used to design computerized instruction in reading, mathematics, and second-

language learning. Different psychologist have their contribution in this field. Ivan

Pavlov and B.F Skinner are prominent)• Motivation (Attribution theory describes the role of motivation in a person's

success or failure in school situations. Success on a test, for instance, could be

attributed to luck or hard work; the theory predicts the behavior of students

depending on their responses.)• Development (The theory of the Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget that intellectual

ability is qualitatively different at different ages and that children need interaction

with the environment to gain intellectual competency has influenced all of education

and psychology. This new concept of intelligence affected the design of learning

environments for young children and the development of mathematics and science

programs)• Theory of teaching (The variables that educational psychologists have found

to be important in classroom teaching include the time teachers allocate to

instruction, the amount of content they cover, the percent of time that students are

engaged in learning, the congruence between what is taught and what is tested,

and the ability of the teacher to give clear directions, provide feedback, hold

students accountable for their behavior, and create a warm, democratic atmosphere

for learning.)• Instructional theory (The American educator Robert Gagné developed a

hierarchical theory that some types of learning are prerequisites to other kinds of

learning. His research has been fruitfully used in determining the sequence of

instruction.)5- Cognitive Psychology:

What is Cognitive Psychology?

It is the scientific study of cognition.Cognition refers to the process ofknowing, and cognitive psychology is thestudy of all mental activities related toacquiring, storing, and using knowledge.Other topics that fascinate cognitivepsychologists include creativity,intelligence, and how people learn,understand, and use language.

It can also be said like “it is the study of internal processes which includethinking, memory, concept formation and processing of information.”Behavior is composed of mental events, internal representations, desire,beliefs and thoughts.

Cognitive approach is the study of mental process. Cognitive psychologistbelieve that if we want to understand why people act as they do , we needto understand how they think, remember and reason. They are interested inhow we interpret and make sense of the world around us.

More In Cognitive Psychology:cognitive psychologists have discovered that mental activities that seemsimple and natural are, in fact, extraordinarily complex. For example, mostchildren have no trouble learning language from their parents. But how doyoung children decode the meanings of sounds and grasp the basic rules ofgrammar? Why do children learn language more easily and rapidly thanadults? Explaining these puzzles has proven very difficult, and attempts toduplicate true language ability in machines have failed. Even the mostadvanced computers have trouble understanding the meaning of a simplestory or conversation. Cognitive psychologists have found similar complexityin other mental processes.Cognitive psychology is one field within cognitive science, an interdisciplinaryapproach to the study of the human mind. Other fields in cognitive scienceinclude anthropology, linguistics, neuroscience (the study of the brain andnervous system), and artificial intelligence. Cognitive neuroscience, orneurocognition, combines cognitive psychology and neuroscience.

Cognitive psychology is sometimes confused with cognitive therapy, a typeof psychotherapy used to treat depression and other mental disorders.Cognitive therapy falls within the realm of clinical psychology, the branch ofpsychology devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders.

Jene Piaget Theory:

Piaget strongly influenced by Kant's constructivist theory of knowledge.Formulated his theory as alternative to and rejection of behaviorist(empiricist) theories of development, which account for development interms of learning.In this experiment, Child shown two identical beakers with the same amountof liquid in each. The liquid from one beaker is poured into a wider (ornarrower) beaker. Child now says that there is less (or more) liquid in thesecond beaker. This is how cognitive psychology based on. Now the child hasset his mind that the longer one has the more amount of water and thewider one has less. After pouring all the water he’ll still say that the longerone had more water.

6- Social Psychology:

What is Social Psychology?It is the scientific study of how people think, feel, and behave in socialsituations. This area of specialization draws on two disciplines: sociology,which focuses on groups; and psychology, which centers on the individual.

We can also define it like “We use scientific techniques to examine theeffects that people have on one another. They are interested in topics suchas altruism, cooperation, aggression, affection and group pressure.”

More In Social Psychology?Social psychologists seek to answer a wide variety of questions, amongthem: Why do we help or ignore others in need? Why are peopleromantically attracted to each other? How do people form stereotypes aboutracial and ethnic groups, and how can they overcome them? Whattechniques of persuasion do advertisers use to sell their products? Why dopeople usually conform in group situations? What makes someone aneffective leader?

As in other branches of psychology, social psychologists use a wide varietyof research methods, including laboratory experiments, observations in thereal world, case studies, and public opinion surveys. Some socialpsychologists conduct basic research to test general theories about humansocial behavior, while others seek to apply that research to solve real-worldsocial problems.

Social psychology and sociology are often confused, because both fieldsstudy groups and group behavior. However, their perspectives differ.Whereas sociologists strive to understand group behavior in terms of societyand social institutions, social psychologists focus on individuals and how theyperceive, interact with, and influence each other. They study how individuals

exert influence on groups and how group situations affect the behavior ofindividuals.

Aggression:Most social psychologists who study aggression emphasize the roles offamily, culture, peers, and other environmental factors. In particular, theseresearchers have found that aggression can be triggered by frustration,noise, hot weather, physical pain, and other unpleasant states. Othersituational factors that may trigger aggression include the sight of weapons,feelings of anonymity in a large faceless crowd, and the consumption ofalcohol and other drugs. Over the years, hundreds of studies have alsoshown that viewing large amounts of television violence can increaseaggressive behavior, particularly in children.

Altruism:Social behavior and value orientation in which individuals give primaryconsideration to the interests and welfare of other individuals, members ofgroups or the community as a whole. The term was used by Emile Durkheim(1858-1917) to describe a suicide committed for the benefit of others or forthe community: this would include self-sacrifice for military objectives inwartime. Sociobiology’s argue that altruistic behavior has its roots in self-interest, the unconscious desire to protect one's genetic heritage. Critics ofsociobiology respond that altruism is evident between individuals and insocial situations where people are completely unrelated genetically and claimthat human conduct and motivations cannot be explained without referenceto the values and norms of culture.7- Clinical Psychology:

What is Clinical Psychology?

It is the branch of psychology devoted to the study, diagnosis, andtreatment of people with mental illnesses and other psychological disorders.Clinical psychologists assess and treat a wide range of psychologicalproblems. These problems range from short-term emotional crises, such asthose due to family conflicts, to severe and chronic mental illnesses, such asschizophrenia. Some clinical psychologists specialize in treating specificproblems, such as phobias or depression. Others specialize in treatingspecific populations, such as children, the elderly, or members of ethnicminority groups. Clinical psychologists usually seek to treat emotional andbehavioral problems with psychotherapy, a form of intervention that reliesprimarily on verbal communication between therapist and client.The work of clinical psychologists falls into three main categories:

• Testing and diagnosis• Treatment of psychological disorders

Many clinical psychologists combine several of these activities. For example,those who work in academic settings often combine teaching, research, andcounseling.

Testing and diagnosisClinical psychologists most commonly administer psychological tests for thepurposes of assessing a person’s mental health. For example, a clinicalpsychologist may give a child an intelligence test to determine whether thatchild has mental retardation. Personality tests, such as the MinnesotaMultiphase Personality Inventory, may help determine whether someone hasa personality disorder or another psychological problem. Clinicalpsychologists also conduct detailed interviews with patients, askingquestions intended to reveal signs of a psychological problem.

Treatment of psychological disordersMany clinical psychologists work directly with people who have a mentalillness or psychological disorder. By choosing an appropriate treatment,clinical psychologists can help such people overcome their problem or, atminimum, manage their symptoms.Clinical psychologists use psychotherapy as their main method of treatingpsychological disorders. In most types of psychotherapy, a therapist talksone-on-one with a patient or client. The therapist and client meet regularly,typically in weekly sessions, until both agree that the client has substantiallyimproved and does not need further treatment. Although clinicalpsychologists cannot prescribe medication, they often combinepsychotherapy with drug treatment by working in collaboration with theclient’s physician.There are many different approaches to the practice of psychotherapy. Eachis based on different ideas about the sources of personal problems. Mosttherapies can be classified as (1) psychodynamic, (2) humanistic, (3)behavioral, (4) cognitive, or (5) eclectic.

8- Abnormal Psychology:

What is Abnormal Psychology?The definition of the word abnormal is simple enough: deviating from thenorm. However, applying this to psychology poses a complex problem: whatis normal? Whose norm? For what age? For what culture? Some wouldsimply classify what is "good" as normal and what is "bad" as abnormal, butthis is a vague and narrow definition and brings up many of the samequestions for the definition of "good" as does the definition for "normal".There are many more ways of determining a more objective reference point.

Perspective:Though there are many perspectives psychologists use to define humanbehavior as normal or abnormal, we only address three of theseperspectives on this website.The behavioral perspective emphasizes the role of learning, particularlyconditioning experiences on the development of psychological disorders. Thecognitive perspective emphasizes cognitions (expectations, values, beliefs)in determining the responses a person will make in confronting life'ssituations, and the medical perspective relates disorders to biologicalabnormalities. You can find elaborations on each of these perspectives byfollowing their respective links.

Disorders:

The following disorder definitions are taken from Harcourt Brace JovanovichInc.'s Introduction to Psychology

• Anxiety disordersIncludes disorders in which anxiety is the main symptom (generalizedanxiety or panic disorders) or anxiety is experienced unless the individualavoids feared situations (phobic disorders) or tries to resist performingcertain rituals or thinking persistent thoughts (obsessive-compulsivedisorders). Also includes post-truamatic stress disorder.

• Mood disordersDisturbances of normal mood; the person may be extremely depressed,abnormally elated, or may alternate between periods of elation anddepression.

• Personality disordersLong-standing patterns of maladaptive behavior that constitutes immatureand innappropriate ways of coping with stress or solving problems. Antisocialpersonality disorder and narcissistic personality disorder are two examples.

• SchizophreniaA group of disorders characterized by loss of contact with reality, markeddisturbances of thought and perception, and bizarre behavior. At somephase delusions or hallucinations almost always occur.

• Delusional (paranoid) disordersDisorders characterized by excessive suspicions and hostility, accompaniedby feelings of being persecuted; reality contact in other areas satisfactory.

9- Counseling:

What is counseling?It is defined as advice or guidance, especially as provided by a professionalin a given field.It is like help individuals solve problems, academic and vocational problemsthat did not stem from serious mental problems.

More In Counseling:It means that it deals with the problems facing by the people like academic,vocational and some other serious mental problems. Psychologist adviseshim about the problem solving. Like if a student is very weak, the

psychologist will advice the student to do some useful jobs which willproduce interest in his studies. It’s all about the so simple disorder of themind. Some students are sharp in their studies and other activities and somestudents are weak. The difference is only where some mental disorderingtakes place.

10- Psychology of Individual Differences:

What is Psychology of Individual Differences?

Individual difference psychology examines how peopleare similar and how they differ in their thinking,feeling and behavior.

We can also say it like “Focus is more on individualdifferences regarding different psychological behaviorssuch as perception, memory, personality traits etc”

More In Psychology of Individual Differences:Individual differences is a cornerstone subject area in modern psychology. Inmany ways, it is the "classic" psychology that the general public refers to - itrefers the psychology of the person - the psychological differences betweenpeople and their similarities.“No two persons are born exactly alike; but each differs from the other innatural endowments, one being suited for one occupation and the other foranother.”Individual difference psychology examines how people are similar and howthey differ in their thinking, feeling and behaviour. No two people are alike,yet no two people are unlike. So, in the study of individual differences westrive to understand ways in which people are psychologically similar andparticularly what psychological characteristics vary between people.

In the Western psychology approach to individual differences, it is generallyassumed that:

• People vary on a range of psychological attributes• It is possible to measure and study these individual differences• individual differences are useful for explaining and predicting behavior

and performanceWe can classify people psychologically, according to their intelligence andpersonality characteristics, for example, with moderate success, however

people are complex and much is still left unexplained. There are multiple andoften conflicting theories and evidence about individual differencepsychology.

Human beings have been aware of individual differences throughout history,e.g.

• Gender differences -hunters=men, gatherers=women• Intelligence differences - caste, class, education, etc.• Personality differences - job specializations.