8 Things to Know About Psychology

Introduction

Hi, psych2goers! As you discover the realm of psychology, what kind of impression does this area of study give you? Are you interested to dive deeper into this field? Here are 8 things that you should know about psychology.

1. It is broad

When a lot of people are being asked what psychology is about, the majority of them give feedback such as helping people and dealing with illnesses. However, psychology is not limited to that. There are also researchers in psychology who are interested in studying the human mind and behavior, such as the area of cognitive psychology (Breckler, 2012). Not only that, studying psychology can lead to various jobs like social worker, counsellor or even a professor (Conlee, 2018).

2. It can be overlooked

Usually, most people tend to view doctors, engineers and entrepreneurs as the turbo or the gear of society. They are viewed as the ones who successfully transformed society into a better one. In fact, psychologists contribute a lot to studies and research as well, especially in behavior, mental health and well-being, which are components that make us who we are (Breckler, 2012).

3. It can help to understand your surroundings

Just relying on watching videos or reading articles are not enough to call yourself as a certified psychologist or researcher. However, certain theories, phenomena or terminologies may help you understand the people around you better and become more aware of your environment or even your relationships (National College of Ireland, n.d.).

4. It can help to understand yourself

It is quite similar to the previous point. The more you learn about contents that are related to psychology, you may find some definitions or descriptions that potentially apply to you. What kind of person are you? Do you relate to certain phenomena? These learning experiences allow you to know yourself more (National College of Ireland, n.d.).

5. It avoids you from terms misuse

As Conlee (2018) described, never assume terms that don’t share the same meanings in psychology. For instance, she gave examples of a psychologist vs a psychiatrist. Introverted vs anti-social. Psychopathy vs psychosis. What are the differences between them? Those terms may look similar at first glance, but they actually serve different meanings in the field.

6. It has calculations

Yes. This is true. As you might know, many psychology studies contain statistics and charts. In some classes, you may need to understand the basics of statistics, using software and analyze what you have found so that it gives you practice if you plan to conduct research in the future (Trinder, 2018).

7. It is flexible

By exploring more about the field of psychology, it does not always mean you must become a psychologist or a psychiatrist, although you can pursue further education if that is your goal. Psychology is flexible in many areas as well, such as marketing, teaching or advertising (Trinder, 2018).

8. It requires hard work

Since psychology contains many branches, like social psychology, cognitive psychology, counseling psychology and much more, getting to know the concepts through essays, presentations and exams can be overwhelming. However, if you are determined to study psychology in the future, do your best in every challenge you have to encounter (Trinder, 2018).

Conclusions

What are your thoughts of this topic? Let us know in the comments below!

References

Breckler, S. (2012, March). What everyone needs to know about psychology. APA. https://www.apa.org/science/about/psa/2012/03/about-psychology

Conlee. A. (2018, March 17). What Every Prospective Psychology Student Should Know. Pearson. https://pearsonaccelerated.com/blog/what-psychology-students-should-know

National College of Ireland. (n.d.). Why study psychology? https://www.ncirl.ie/About/Faculties/Psychology-Department/Why-Study-Psychology

Trinder. M. (2018, March 13). 6 Things You Should Know About Studying a Psychology Degree. University of Worcestor. https://worcesterstudentlife.com/2018/03/13/6-things-you-should-know-about-studying-a-psychology-degree/