This research explores the field of psychology

This research is investigating the world of psychology. It looks at the various kinds of areas that we study in psychology and the effect that psychology has on ensuring that human nature is at its finest and that culture works at its best. The report also looks at the various sub-sectors of psychology and their input to ensure that everything about society is working properly (Cromby,2013). It also looks at possible problems that could occur in the practice of psychiatry, mainly in regard to mental health and the impact that mental health has on society. It looks at the general overview of what psychology is, its branches, and the effects of each type on human behavior and the human mind. It will also address the importance of psychology in the day to day lives of people and how psychology actually helps improve mental health and human behavior in society.

Psychology refers to the science of mannerisms and mind. It encompasses aspects of cognizant and unconscious understanding and thinking. In training, psychology is a social science designed to understand people, both individually and groups. Professionals that work under this discipline are called psychologists (Rodriguez,2001). They work to understand mental functions and how they affect behavior in both individuals and society at the same time discovering biological and physiological processes that influence mental behaviors and functions.

Psychology then is a comprehensive field that looks into humanity as a whole. It looks to give one insight into human development, thinking, emotions, drive, character and behavior. Psychology will in essence help one understand how and why they react the way they do and the effect it has on individuals as well as society (Eysenck,2000). While psychology seeks to understand human behavior, psychologists look to understand at all the factors that influence human behavior and thought that range from societal pressures to biological influences. Psychology can be useful in many areas of life that comprise of ergonomics, psychological well-being, self-help, performance boosts and other things that affect health and day to day life.

Psychology is a development of both philosophy and biology, and it dates back to ancient Greek and has inclusion of great minds such as Socrates and Aristotle (Bayne, 2003). The word in itself is derived from a Greek word psyche that means breath or life. The first psychology practice however, came to be in 1879 in Germany and was established when Wilhelm Wundt created the first psychology lab. His main focus was on the structures that make the mind that solely relied on analysis of feelings and sensations through the use of self-examination. With time more ideas and thoughts have been added and with each addition we are able to understand the human mind, and behavior a little bit more.

Psychology is not only an applied discipline that studies human mind and behavior, it is also a theoretical one (Bekerian,2012). This means that through research and education, psychologists can and aim to understand how the human mind works. This also means that individually and professionally humans can be able to understand what drives their thoughts, thought process and actions. As such as a theoretical and applied discipline, psychology aims at mainly at resolving mental health problems that is both diagnosis and treatment (Eysenck,2000). Psychology can not only be applied in mental health, it also focuses on other aspects of life that influence humanity and human life. This include basic health, ergonomics and motivation just to mention a few.

Applied psychology uses emotional means and findings in the scientific psychology to resolve problems in human and animals that are practical (Bayne, 2003). Applied psychology has influenced many issues and disciplines such as law, mental health, business management, education etc. Categories of applied psychology include clinical, counseling, educational, environmental and forensic psychology among others. Some disciplines in general psychology have applied psychology, they include, applied cognitive psychology and social psychology. Most of these applied psychology disciplines and major applied psychology are similar and can be intertwined.

Theoretical psychology on the other hand focuses on the theory and philosophy aspects of psychology. This field focuses on the combination and incorporation of theories that are in existence and those that develop with time in the field of psychology. This theories are reached without any experimentation or confirmation through testing (Rodriguez,2001). This discipline came from philosophy of science which bases its ideas on logic and rationale. This discipline comes from philosophy which focuses on understanding nature and organization of concepts. This kind of psychology incorporates logic and rationale and applies it into rules, ideas and concepts. This type of psychology is grounded scientifically in ideas of what is known through epistemology. It plays an important yet unique role in the field of psychology in that any claim made in regards to human thinking, behavior and actions can be verified as true if these acts are appealing in theory and empirically reinforced by research.

Psychology also utilizes scientific means to predict, understand and explain human behavior (Cromby,2013). By saying that they use scientific measures it means that the studies have a well-organized structure that starts with a hypothesis which is then empirically tested. Modern researchers use a variety of scientific methods in the study of human behavior that include correlational studies, longitudinal studies and experiments. This has been the case since psychologists began to move away from philosophical aspects to determine human behavior.

The specialty areas of psychology help us understand each and every person in society from the leaders to the local mad man (Bekerian,2012). Abnormal psychology for example, looks at anomalous behavior and psychopathology. This are therefore, focuses on the research and treatment of various mental disorders that are linked to clinical psychology and psychotherapy. Biological psychology looks at how biological factors influence human behavior. This section of psychology focuses on neuroscience and uses tests such as MRI_x0092_s and PET scans to explain why the test subject behaves in a certain way (Rodriguez,2001). This means that biological looks beyond philosophy, rather it looks at explaining mental illnesses as could be caused by scientific abnormalities and other biological factors.

Cognitive psychology studies the thought process and perceptions of humans. This branch of psychology looks into aspects such as opinion, attention, memory, language acquirement, problem-solving and decision making processes in the test subject. This means that factors such as attention span, and memory retention have an effect on mental health and human behavior (Eysenck,2000). The thought process in humans is dependent on their ability to understand their situation and surrounding and as such cognitive psychology aims at looking into how these affect human behavior. Comparative psychology is the study of animal behavior. Through the understanding of animal behavior, the medics are able to in a way understand human behavior. This type of psychology leads to a deep and broad understanding of human behavior as it compares human reactions to situations and events to how animals react to the same.

Forensic and legal psychology is a branch of applied psychology that uses psychology and psychological processes and principles in the determination of legal issues and answering legal questions. This does not only focus on criminal nature in people, but also non-criminal aspects. This type of psychology is used in cases that are both criminal and those that are not such as child custody. This helps determine the patients reasoning and reason for a particular reaction. Personality psychology studies individual development and characteristics that make every person different from the other and unique. Through personality psychology one is able to look at individual thought patterns, behavior and reaction to issues around them and determine what kind of person they are. Through this branch then we are able to determine personalities and define people_x0092_s character (Cromby,2013). Personality psychology helps determine whether one is an introvert or an extrovert. This helps understand why people are the way they are.

Ergonomics and human factors is a branch of psychology that helps us understand how through psychosomatic and mental processes humans interacts with machinery, tools and objects in environment. This branch uses data from experiments in psychology in the design and adaptation of processes that compliment human life (Cromby,2013). Social psychology is a branch of psychology that looks into understanding societal behavior and social influences and how they influence social and individual behavior. Social psychology looks at approaches, anger, prejudices, and conformity that influence individual behavior in social settings. This discipline focuses on the input of individual attributes of mind and behavior to the actions of a society. Counseling psychology on the other hand, is a branch of applied psychology that uses both research and practice psychology to determine the type of mental health issue an individual has and the best possible treatment. Counselling psychology mostly relies on talking to and listening to people as well as analyzing how the react and address issues they face and giving counsel and medication based on the medics findings from this process (Rodriguez,2001).

Clinical psychology seeks to study and apply psychology in understanding, preventing and treating mental health problems and also promote healthy well-being of individuals and foster proper personal growth (Eysenck,2000). Clinical psychology focuses on psychological assessment and psychotherapy. This means that this form of psychology looks at factors that influence human behavior by looking at an individual_x0092_s life and their surroundings.

In clinical psychology, the medics use two distinct methods to determine the type of mental health issue and to make sure that it is well treated. This are psychological assessments and clinical tests (Bayne, 2003). Tests are a set of standardized questions that medics use as a preliminary determinant of the level and type of mental health disorder that one has. Psychological tests on the other hand does an in depth research into the individual. It looks into ones surroundings and life and how these factors play into the type of mental health problem. This looks at how one_x0092_s medical history and family history determine mental health. It also looks at traumas experienced, environmental factors surrounding the person or people, social setting and basic life of the patient or test subject (Bekerian,2012). Psychological assessments incorporate both the standard tests that are set for the practice but also goes further to question and look into the life of the test subject by getting involved in their personal life and looking into places they would naturally not want to be looked into.

Each branch of psychology is important to humanity in that each plays a role that makes society a better place for each and every one in its own little way (Cromby,2013). Clinical psychology for example will help in ensuring that people with any mental health disorders are treated in the right way. In society we have military personnel who go off to war. Effects of war are a sure way of getting a mental health disorder such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD is very rampant on war veterans and military personnel. Such people require specialized attention to ensure that they are not only a danger to themselves but that they are not a danger to society (Rodriguez,2001). In this case, clinical and counselling psychology would play a very big part in ensuring that all goes well and that such people get the best treatment.

There are many mental health problems, some are neurological such as Autism and Tourette_x0092_s syndrome. While some do not have a cure, through biological psychology they can be identified and through counseling psychology the patients and their family can be shown how to deal with their disorder and how to act around the person with the disorder. Some mental disorders such as anxiety disorders have a huge effect on the patient affecting their body, mind and spirit. This affects their productivity and also their spirit, some may even become suicidal. Such mental issues include depression, specific phobias, selective mutism and social and separation anxiety disorder (Eysenck,2000). Each of this disorder is different but they all keep the patient in constant fear of objects and situations that are often out of their control or some that the mind creates for itself. This issues act as a hindrance and as such need to be addressed which can be done through psychological testing.

The truth is, without psychology, large a discipline as it is, understanding humans would be quite a challenge. A study of psychology helps bring a balance to society. It is the glue that holds everything in society together (Bekerian,2012). It helps us understand each other, our reasoning, our reactions, and our way of thinking which in turn determines how well we function. Psychology therefore plays a major role in ensuring that people in society perform at their best and also ensures that in case of any mental health problem, there is a way to look into its causes and also have the ability to treat it. It is through this field that we can explain what drives criminals, leaders and everyone in society. We can explain how and why we come up with certain legal and political decisions as well as personal ones, it helps determine business decisions and also helps everyone solve problems that they face in a way that has minimal effect on society that is it causes no harm to society.

In summary, psychology is a very important discipline to human life and mental health. Without this discipline, understanding what happens around us and the reason behind it would be rather difficult. It is a discipline with its own challenges which range from redundancy in testing and determination of mental illnesses to expensive equipment especially in neuropsychology, but one that keeps evolving with technology and the world as it evolves. Therefore, psychology is basically the most important aspect in the driving of society (Bayne, 2003).

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WORKS CITED

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John Cromby, D. H. (2013). Psychology, Mental Health and Distress. New York: Palgrave

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