FIELD AND BRANCHES OF PSYCHOLOGY MAJOR FIELDS OF

FIELD AND BRANCHES OF PSYCHOLOGY • MAJOR FIELDS OF PSYCHOLOGY • BRANCHES OF PSYCHOLOGY

FIELDS OF PSYCHOLOGY Broad areas of orientation in psychology which underlies particular perspective. These are: Cognitive psychology: A field that deals with the way human being processes, combines and organizes information in the mind which help to solve problems, memorize, understand, interpret and create information. Psychodynamic: studies the causes of behavior within the workings of personality. It emphasizes the role of unconscious past processes and unresolved conflicts from the past.

Humanistic psychology: It emphasizes: free will, freedom and choice; innate tendencies toward growth; the role of internal personality processes; the importance of conscious motives. Behaviorism: It focuses on the role of external environment (events, people’s actions, objects) in shaping and governing human actions.

BRANCHES/SUB-FIELDS OF PSYCHOLOGY Psychology is divided in to many branches. Divisions are caused by differences of: ü Methods üAspects of behavior to be studied üObjectives üInterest, training and background of psychologist.

Branches of Psychology Some of the important branches of psychology for our course are: Developmental psychology Personality psychology Social psychology Industrial /organizational psychology Clinical and counseling psychology Experimental and physiological psychology Educational psychology

Developmental psychology It studies: how human being grows and changes through the life span. domains of development; physical and motor, intellectual, personal, emotional, moral and social. sequences and rate of maturation, size and ability in relation to age.

Personality The definition suggests that personality is thoughts, feelings and made up of: behaviors that distinguishes combination of one person from another characteristics and that persists over time behavior. and situations’. uniqueness of characteristics consistency Farres & Chaplin; 1997: 9), a ‘pattern of characteristic

Personality psychology Examples of these traits: thinking, feeling, acting, believing, self control, individual organization of behavior, interpersonal relationship skills and others. Personality psychology studies human differences, factors that make the differences and development. Understanding of personality is based on many perspectives; psychoanalytic, social learning, behavioral, humanistic, cognitive.

Social psychology It studies: How the behavior of a person or a group influences the behavior of another person or group. how people learn attitude and emotions, skills, actions, new perceptions, new ways of speaking and of living with others. These behaviors are learnt through interaction, communication and interpersonal relationships.

Social psychology In school setting children learn new behavior, perceptions, beliefs, thoughts, actions and attitude as a result of interaction and communication with teachers and other children.

Industrial/Organizational psychology It studies: behavior of workers at working places; industries, companies, institutions or at any working situation. various aspects of behavior in relation to work interest, efficiency, satisfaction, diligence and commitment leading to maximum production and profit. causes of low production as related to human behavior.

Industrial/Organizational psychology Social, personal and counseling needs of workers, supervision and training needs workers’ level of motivation, morale, working schedules, working routines as related to their attitudes and values. how conflicts affect commitment and diligence of workers and how to resolve them.

Clinical and Counseling psychology Clinical psychology It deals with behavior problems, emotional disorders and behavior that indicate that the person is abnormal. Specialists in this area are medical doctors but they use psychotherapy in treating abnormal behavior. Psychotherapy: a procedure of treating abnormal behavior using interview techniques.

Clinical psychology Examples of abnormal behavior Phobic disorder: irrational fear of objects or situations, fear of water, animals, insects, darkness or rain. Mood disorders: depression; sadness, discouragement, loss of joy, loneliness, loss of appetite, dizziness. If this situation persists for a long time it leads to inability to function in life.

Counseling psychology It deals with helping people to make decision about life; work, education or marriage. This is applied in institutions, schools or in society. Clinical and counseling psychology are interrelated. They tackled almost the same problems and use the same methods but differ in degree of severity.

Experimental and Physiological psychology Experimental: • Experimental method is used in understanding behavior, for example perception, sensations, memory, learning. • studies basic causes of behavior, biological and social, that cut across different species. • formulate theories that can be applied in other situations. • Examples; closeness & attachment, pain and avoidance

Physiological psychology It studies biological basis of behavior, the function of the body and behavior. Example the causes of anger, brain and memory, secretion of hormones and emotional arousal, genes and behavior patterns.

Educational psychology Educational Psychology is an applied branch of psychology because it applies knowledge of general psychology in teaching and learning. Every branch of psychology contributes something in Educational psychology. Understanding the scope of other branches of psychology is important for the teacher.

Linkage between Educational psychology and other branches of psychology Personality psychology Social psychology Organizational psychology Educational psychology Experimental and Physiological psychology Developmental psychology Clinical and Counseling psychology

Bibliography Coon, D 91988); Essentials of Psychology: Exploration and Application. West Publishing. St. Paul. Durojaiye, M. O. (1976); An Introduction to Educational Psychology; Evans Brothers, London. Elliott, S et al (2000); Educational Psychology: Effective Teaching, Effective Learning; Mc. Graw Hill, Boston. Gutkin, T & Reynolds, C (1990): The Handbook of School Psychology (2 nd Edition). Wiley: New York Kegan J &Segal, J (1995): Psychology: An Introduction, Harcout, New. Yok

Malim, T & Birch, A (1998); Introductory Psychology; Palgrave, New York. Papalia, D et al (2001); Human Development (eighth edition); Mc. Graw Hill, Boston. Passer, M & Smith, R (2001); Psychology: Frontiers and Applications, Mc. Graw Hill Boston. Phares, E. J and Chaplin, W. F (1997): Introduction to Personality (4 th Edition). Longman: New York. Vander Zanden, J. W (1997); Psychology (6 th Edition) Boston Mc. Graw Hill.

Testing Questions 1. The school head teacher has been able to resolve conflicts among teachers, the action that has made the school to have a maximum learning environment. Which one of the following branches of psychology has been applied? A. Developmental psychology Industrial/organizational psychology C. Social psychology D. Clinical psychology B. 2. Educational Psychology is concerned with: A. Studying growth and development of children Finding ways of facilitating teaching and learning C. Classifying children according to their behaviour D. Treating people suffering with emotional disorders B.

3. Explain how you can apply psychology in choosing and using: a) Learning materials b) Managing classroom during teaching