1: PsychologyIn simple words psychology is a systematic and scientific study of mental processes, experiences and behaviors - both overt and covert. The word psychology has its origin in two Greek words psyche and logos. The word psyche in Greek language refers to spirit or soul and the word logos refers to discourse or study. It is an academic discipline and an applied science which seeks to understand individuals and groups by establishing general principles and researching specific cases. Psychologists attempt to understand the role of mental functions in individual and social behavior, while also exploring the physiological and biological processes that underlie cognitive functions and behaviors. All the components which collectively define psychology.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. The study of such experiences helps the psychologist to understand the personal world of the individual.Study of mental processes:Psychology as the study of mental processes tries to investigate the activities happening in the brain 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, we can say that somebody is thinking if he or she displays certain activities related to finding solution to a mathematical problem assigned to him or her.Study of behaviour:The range of behaviours 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 handling computers, playing piano and addressing a crowd. These behaviors are either observed directly through naked eyes or are measured through instruments. 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.

1.1 Basic Psychological Processes:While studying behaviour it is one of the most important tasks for psychologists to understand the processes which collectively influence a particular behaviour. These psychological processes are: Sensation:It refers to our awareness about various stimuli which we encounter in different modalities such as vision, hearing, touch and taste. Attention:During attention we selectively focus on a particular stimulus among many stimuli available to us. For instance while listening to a lecture in the classroom we attend to the words pronounced by the teacher and, try to ignore the other stimuli present in the classroom, such as noise made by the fan. Perception:In the case of perception we process information and make out the meaning of the stimuli available to us. For example, we look at a pan and recognize it as an object used for writing. Learning:It helps us acquiring new knowledge and skills through experience and practice. The acquired knowledge and skills further bring a relative change in our behavior and facilitate our adjustment in varied settings. For example, we learn language, riding a bicycle and applying mathematical skills to solve various problems. Memory:The information we process and learn is registered and stored in the memory system. Memory also helps us to easily retrieve the stored information when it is required for use. For example, writing the answers in the examination after studying for the paper. Thinking:In the case of thinking we use our stored knowledge to solve various tasks. We logically establish the relationships among various objects in our mind and take rational decision for a given problem. We also evaluate different events of the environment and accordingly form an opinion.2: Scope of PsychologyFrom the definition of psychology now it might be clear to you that psychology addresses a variety of issues related to mental and behavioural functioning of an individual. Such a study helps us to develop a basic understanding about human nature and facilitates us to deal with a number of personal and social problems.The study of human beings starts with the functioning of biological systems especially the nervous system. Under central nervous system psychology studies the functions of various parts of brain which regulate our feelings, emotions and thinking. Within autonomic nervous system the role of hormones and neurotransmitters in determining our behavior is important. In addition psychology studies as to how a given sociocultural environment interacts with innate biological, intellectual and social attributes of the child and facilitates healthy development of the child.As a living organism you encounter a lot of sensory input every moment. Your task is not only to process that information but to store and retrieve it when it is required to be used. Attention and perception help to process information. Memory helps us to register, retain and retrieve information, and thinking provides us the ability to manipulate and improve the stored information. Within psychology, all these are studied under the domain of higher mental processes or cognition.In your life you must have come across many persons who have reached highest level of accomplishment. But such an accomplishment is not attained at once; it is the result of continuous learning in which the individual acquires the necessary skills and competencies through regular practice. Psychology helps us to understand the processes involved in reaching this high level of accomplishment.In order to understand the purpose behind any kind of behaviour psychologists use the concept of motivation. It primarily focuses on the investment of mental energy and consistency of effort towards achieving the set goals. The various shades of feelings such as anger, fear, love, joy, and sadness which we experience during the course of our life are studied within the realm of emotion.You will certainly agree that no two individuals are the same in terms of their physical attributes such as height, weight, skin colour or facial features as well as psychological attributes such as intelligence, personality, temperament and interest. An understanding of these and other aspects of individual differences facilitates the psychologist to select right person for the right job and to provide guidance and counseling for various matters of personal as well as professional concern. The understanding of individual differences also helps the psychologist to differentiate between normative (customary, accepted) and abnormal (deviant, unusual) behaviors.Thus psychology as a discipline has a vast scope. It not only studies human beings across the life span but also tries to explore mental processes and potentials in order to facilitate achieving a better quality of life.2.1 Types of Psychology on bases of scope: Basic psychology Applied psychologyBasic Psychology:Psychological research refers to research that psychologists conduct to research and analyses the experiences' and behaviours of individuals or groups. Their research can have educational, occupational, and clinical applications.Types of Basic Psychology: Abnormal psychology Biological psychology Cognitive psychology Comparative psychology Developmental psychology Personality psychology Quantitative psychology Social psychologyApplied Psychology:Applied social psychology, in turn, may be defined as the systematic application of social psychological constructs, principles, theories, intervention techniques, research methods and research findings to understand or ameliorate social problems.Types of Applied Psychology: Clinical psychology Counseling psychology Educational psychology Environmental psychology Evolutionary psychology Forensic psychology Legal psychology Health psychology Industrial and organizational psychology Neuropsychology Social change psychology School psychology Sport psychology Traffic psychology

Description: 3: Basic Psychology3.1 Abnormal Psychology:Abnormal psychology is the branch of psychology that studies unusual patterns of behavior, emotion and thought, which may or may not be understood as precipitating a mental disorder. The field of abnormal psychology identifies multiple causes for different conditions, employing diverse theories from the general field of psychology and elsewhere, and much still hinges on what exactly is meant by "abnormal". There has traditionally been a divide between psychological and biological explanations, reflecting a philosophical dualism in regard to the mind body problem. There have also been different approaches in trying to classify mental disorders. Abnormal includes three different categories, they are subnormal, supernormal and paranormal.The science of abnormal psychology studies two types of behaviors: adaptive and maladaptive behaviors. Behaviors that are maladaptive suggest that some problems exist, and can also imply that the individual is vulnerable and cannot cope with environmental stress, which is leading them to have problems functioning in daily life.3.2 Biological Psychology:Biology is defined as the study of life (from the Greek bios meaning life and logos meaning study). A biological perspective is relevant to the study of psychology in three ways:1. Comparative method: different species of animal can be studied and compared. This can help in the search to understand human behavior.2. Physiology: how the nervous system and hormones work, how the brain functions, how changes in structure and/or function can affect behavior. For example, we could ask how prescribed drugs to treat depression affect behavior through their interaction with the nervous system.3. Investigation of inheritance: what an animal inherits from its parents, mechanisms of inheritance (genetics). For example, we might want to know whether high intelligence is inherited from one generation to the next.The current scope of biological psychology includes the following themes: Evolution of brain and behavior; development of the nervous system and behavior over the life span; psychopharmacology; sensory and perceptual processes; control and coordination of movement and actions; control of behavioral states (motivation), including sex and reproductive behavior, and regulation of internal states; biological rhythms and sleep; emotions and mental disorders; neural mechanisms of learning and memory, language and cognition; and recovery of function after damage to the nervous system. Developing from biological psychology and overlapping with parts of it are such fields as behavior genetics as well as hormones and behavior. Through all these methods, biological psychology is a hopeful domain, one that has much to offer in terms of improving the quality of life of the healthy as well as those suffering from disorders.3.3 Cognitive Psychology:Cognitive psychology is the study of mental processes such as "attention, language use, memory, perception, problem solving, creativity, and thinking. Much of the work derived from cognitive psychology has been integrated into various other modern disciplines of psychological study, including educational psychology, social psychology, personality psychology, abnormal psychology, developmental psychology, and economics.Cognitive psychology research has produced an extensive body of principles, representations, and algorithms. Successful applications range from custom-built expert systems to mass-produced software and consumer electronics: 1. Development of computer interfaces that collaborate with users to meet their information needs and operate as intelligent agents,2. Development of a flexible information infrastructure based on knowledge representation and reasoning methods,3. Development of smart tools in the financial industry, 4. Development of mobile, intelligent robots that can perform tasks usually reserved for humans, 5. Development of bionic components of the perceptual and cognitive neural system such as cochlear and retinal implants.3.4 Comparative Psychology:Comparative psychology generally refers to the study of the mental behavior and life of animals other than human beings. But many psychologists and scientists do not always have the same opinion on this definition. Comparative psychology has also been expresses as branch of psychology in which cross-species comparisons are laid stress on, which can also include human-to-animal comparisons. The study of Comparative psychology often uses the comparative process to study animal behavior, which comprises of comparing the similarities and differences among species, so as to gain better understanding of evolutionary relationships. This comparative method is also used to evaluate modern species of animals when compared to ancient species.Comparative psychology, it has often been suggested to discard the term itself, as it fails to be descriptive of the field. But no suitable replacement has been found. As a precise definition of comparative psychology, it can be defined as a psychology concerned with the evolution the phylogenetic history and adaptive significance and development that is the ontogenetic history and mechanism of behavior.A large variety of animal species have been used and studied by comparative psychologists. For example, dogs have been the focus of occasional studies in comparative psychology as well as most kinds of domestic animals like cats and the rats too.3.5 Developmental Psychology:Developmental psychology, also referred to as human development, is the scientific and methodical study of systematic psychological changes that take place in human beings over the course of their life span. At first, the study of developmental psychology was only concerned with infants and children. But today, the field has grown to comprise of adolescence, adult development, aging, and the entire life span of an individual.The study of developmental psychology covers several applied fields like: child psychopathology, educational psychology, forensic developmental psychology. It also complements other basic research fields in psychology like social psychology, ecological psychology, cognitive psychology and comparative psychology.3.6 Personality Psychology:Personality psychology is a branch of psychology that studies personality and its variation among individuals. Its areas of focus include:1. Construction of a coherent picture of the individual and their major psychological processes2. Investigation of individual psychological differences3. Investigation of human nature and psychological similarities between individualsThe scope of Personality psychology is broad with a varied history, with plenty of theoretical traditions. The major theories comprise of psychodynamic, dispositional perspective, humanistic, behaviorist, biological, and social learning perspective. Although there is no agreement on the definition of "personality" in psychology, most researchers and Personality psychologists do not clearly classify themselves with a certain perspective, often taking a diverse approach. The five main ideas which constitute the substance of personality psychology are as follows Motivation, Unconscious, Self, Development and Maturity. In a nutshell, Personality psychology is speaking about the nature of human motivation which include our conscious and unconscious tendencies, the nature and function of the self, how we grow and become accustomed to the larger social environment, and what high-level effectiveness and its psychological observe look like.3.7 Quantitative Psychology:Quantitative psychology is the study of methods and techniques for the measurement of human attributes, the statistical and mathematical modeling of psychological processes, the design of research studies, and the analysis of psychological data. Read on to know all about Quantitative psychology. Quantitative psychology involves the study and research in a number of extensive areas like measurement, research design, and statistical analysis. It also looks into the development in mathematical and statistical modeling of psychological processes. Within the scope of each these areas, quantitative psychologists develop new tactics to evaluate the existing methodologies and as well as to inspect their behavior under conditions existing in psychological data.Quantitative psychologists emphasize on methods and techniques for designing experiments and to analyze psychological data. Some are successful in developing new methods to perform analyses; while others create research strategies to evaluate the effect of social and educational programs and psychological treatment. Besides developing and evaluating mathematical models for psychological tests, they also suggest methods for reviewing the quality and fairness of the tests.To support the relevance of Quantitative Psychology in the 21st century and beyond, it is necessary to provide empirical confirmation of the continuation of psychological quantities and then establishing the units by which they can be calculated. It would be premature to conclude that quantification and measurement are, in principle, not probable in psychology.

3.8 Social Psychology:In psychology, social psychology is the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. The goal of social psychology is to understand cognition and behavior as they naturally occur in a social context, but the very act of observing people can influence and alter their behavior. For this reason, many social psychology experiments utilize deception to conceal or distort certain aspects of the study. Deception may include false cover stories, false participants (known as confederates or stooges), and false feedback given to the participants. Social psychology has to show how, given the native propensities and capacities of the individual human mind, all the complex mental life of societies is shaped by them and in turn reacts upon the course of their development and operation in the individual. 4: Applied Psychology4.1 Clinical Psychology:The study of Clinical Psychology incorporates science, theory, and the ability to understand, foresee, and lessen maladjustment. The purpose is to promote human adaptation, adjustment, and personal development, while easing out any disability and discomfort. Read on to find the answer to what is clinical psychology on this page, along with complete info on clinical psychology.The study of clinical psychology chiefly centers on the intellectual, biological, emotional, social, psychological aspects, along with the behavioral characteristics of human beings across their life span. The study can cut across various cultures, and at all socioeconomic levels. Clinical psychologists study and apply psychology for the reason to understand, prevent, and relieve psychologically based suffering, in order to promote well-being and personal development. Psychological assessment and psychotherapy form the main central focus of their practice. The clinical psychologists may also focus on research, forensic testimony, teaching, consultation, program development and administration.4.2 Counseling Psychology:Counseling psychology is one of the leading and major specialty areas within psychology. The main purpose is to offer therapeutic treatments to clients facing a wide range of symptoms. The study of counseling psychology involves focus on emotional, educational, social, health-related, vocational, developmental, and organizational concerns of an individual, helping him in his personal and interpersonal functioning.Getting on with info on counseling psychology, it is a psychological specialty that covers research and applied work in several wide fields like the counseling process and outcome, supervision and training. Other domains include career development and counseling plus prevention and health. The counseling psychologists lay emphasis on assets and strengths, educational and career development, person-environment interactions, brief interactions, and a focus on intact personalitiesThe Counseling Psychologist focuses on diverse topics such as multiculturalism and cross-cultural competency, research methods, vocational psychology, assessment, international counseling and research, prevention and intervention, health, social justice, assessment, and training and supervision. The journal aims to increase the knowledge base of counseling psychology through debate and comprehensive coverage of new and developing areas of research and practice.4.3 Educational Psychology:Educational psychology is a branch of psychology focusing on the development of efficient and successful teaching techniques. It also assesses the learners' aptitudes and progress. We may be aware that various theories existing in the field of educational psychology, not many are aware of the differences between the theories. Here on this article, you will get all details about educational psychologyEducational psychology is the study of how human beings study and learn in educational settings. The study of educational psychology also deals with the efficiency of educational interventions, the psychology of teaching, and the social psychology of schools as organizations. It is involved with how students study and develop, while studying at schools and institutions. Special focus is laid on children subjected to specific disabilities as well as gifted children.Educational psychology is the study of how human beings study and learn in educational settings. The study of educational psychology also deals with the efficiency of educational interventions, the psychology of teaching, and the social psychology of schools as organizations. It is involved with how students study and develop, while studying at schools and institutions. Special focus is laid on children subjected to specific disabilities as well as gifted children.

4.4 Environmental Psychology:Environmental psychology is the psychological study of humans and their interactions with their environments. The types of environments studied are limitless, ranging from homes, offices, classrooms, factories, nature, and so on. However, across these different environments, there are several common themes of study that emerge within each one. Noise level and ambient temperature are clearly present in all environments and often subjects of discussion for environmental psychologists. Crowding and stressors are a few other aspects of environments studied by this sub-discipline of psychology. When examining a particular environment, environmental psychology looks at the goals and purposes of the people in the using the environment, and tries to determine how well the environment is suiting the needs of the people using it. For example, a quiet environment is necessary for a classroom of students taking a test, but would not be needed or expected on a farm full of animals. The concepts and trends learned through environmental psychology can be used when setting up or rearranging spaces so that the space will best perform its intended function. The top common, more well-known areas of psychology that drive this applied field include: cognitive, perception, learning, and social psychology.4.5 Evolutionary Psychology:Evolutionary psychology (EP) is an approach in the social and natural sciences that examines psychological structure from a modern evolutionary perspective. It seeks to identify which human psychological traits are evolved adaptations that is, the functional products of natural selection or sexual selection. Adaptations thinking about physiological mechanisms, such as the heart, lungs, and immune system, is common in evolutionary biology. Some evolutionary psychologists apply the same thinking to psychology, arguing that the mind has a modular structure similar to that of the body, with different modular adaptations serving different functions. Evolutionary psychologists argue that much of human behavior is the output of psychological adaptations that evolved to solve recurrent problems in human ancestral environmentsEvolutionary psychology is one of many biologically informed approaches to the study of human behavior. Along with cognitive psychologists, evolutionary psychologists propose that much, if not all, of our behavior can be explained by appeal to internal psychological mechanisms. What distinguishes evolutionary psychologists from many cognitive psychologists is the proposal that the relevant internal mechanisms are adaptations products of natural selectionthat helped our ancestors get around the world, survive and reproduce. To understand the central claims of evolutionary psychology we require an understanding of some key concepts in evolutionary biology, cognitive psychology, philosophy of science and philosophy of mind. 4.6 Forensic Psychology:Forensic psychology and legal psychology are the area concerned with the application of psychological methods and principles to legal questions and issues. Most typically, forensic psychology involves a clinical analysis of a particular individual and an assessment of some specific psycho-legal question. The psycho-legal question does not have to be criminal in nature. In fact, the forensic psychologist rarely gets involved in the actual criminal investigations. Custody cases are a great example of non-criminal evaluations by forensic psychologists. The validity and upholding of eyewitness testimony is an area of forensic psychology that does veer closer to criminal investigations, though does not directly involve the psychologist in the investigation process. Psychologists are often called to testify as expert witnesses on issues such as the accuracy of memory, the reliability of police interrogation, and the appropriate course of action in child custody cases4.7 Legal Psychology:Legal psychology refers to any application of psychological principles, methods or understanding to legal questions or issues. In addition to the applied practices, legal psychology also includes academic or empirical research on topics involving the relationship of law to human mental processes and behavior. It is interesting to note the inherent differences that arise when placing psychology in the legal context. Psychology rarely makes absolute statements. Instead, psychologists traffic in the terms like level of confidence, percentages, and significance. Legal matters, on the other hand, look for absolutes: guilty or not guilty. This makes for a sticky union between psychology and the legal system4.8 Health Psychology:Health psychology concerns itself with understanding how biology, behavior, and social context influence health and illness. Health psychologists generally work alongside other medical professionals in clinical settings, although many also teach and conduct research. Although its early beginnings can be traced to the kindred field of clinical psychology, four different approaches to health psychology have been defined: clinical, public health, community and critical health psychology.Health psychologists aim to change health behaviors for the dual purpose of helping people stay healthy and helping patients adhere to disease treatment regimens. The focus of health psychologists tend to center around the health crisis facing the western world particularly in the US. Cognitive behavioral therapy and behavior modification are techniques often employed by health psychologists. Psychologists also study patients' compliance with their doctors orders.By understanding psychological factors that influence health, and constructively applying that knowledge, health psychologists can improve health by working directly with individual patients or indirectly in large-scale public health programs. In addition, health psychologists can help train other healthcare professionals (e.g., physicians and nurses) to take advantage of the knowledge the discipline has generated, when treating patients. Health psychologists work in a variety of settings: alongside other medical professionals in hospitals and clinics, in public health departments working on large-scale behavior change and health promotion programs, and in universities and medical schools where they teach and conduct research.4.9 Industrial and Organizational Psychology:Industrial and organizational psychology, or I/O psychology, focuses on the psychology of the workforce, customer, and consumer, including issues such as the psychology of recruitment, selecting employees from an applicant pool, training, performance appraisal, job satisfaction, work motivation. Work behavior, stress at work and management. In short, I/O psychology is the application of psychology to the workplace. A core aspect of this field is job analysis, the detailed study of which behaviors a given job entails.Though the name of the title "Industrial Organizational Psychology" implies 2 split disciplines being chained together, it is near impossible to have one half without the other. If asked to generally define the differences, Industrial psychology focuses more on the Human Resources aspects of the field, and Organizational psychology focuses more on the personal interactions of the employees. When applying these principles however, they are not easily broken apart. For example, when developing requirements for a new job position, the recruiters are looking for an applicant with strong communication skills in multiple areas. The developing of the position requirements falls under the industrial psychology, human resource type work. And the requirement of communication skills is related to how the employee with interacts with co-workers. As seen here, it is hard to separate task of developing a qualifications list from the types of qualifications on the list. This is parallel to how the I and O are nearly inseparable in practice. Therefore, I/O psychologists are generally rounded in both industrial and organizational psychology though they will have some specialization. Other topics of interest for I/O psychologists include performance evaluation, training, and much more.4.10 Neuropsychology:Neuropsychology studies the structure and function of the brain as they relate to specific psychological processes and behaviors. It is seen as a clinical and experimental field of psychology that aims to study, assess, understand and treat behaviors directly related to brain functioning. The term neuropsychology has been applied to lesion studies in humans and animals. It has also been applied to efforts to record electrical activity from individual cells (or groups of cells) in higher primates (including some studies of human patients). It is scientific in its approach, making use of neuroscience, and shares an information processing view of the mind with cognitive psychology and cognitive science.4.11 Social Change Psychology:Psychologists have been employed to promote "green" behavior, i.e. sustainable development. In this case, their goal is behavior modification, through strategies such as social marketing. Tactics include education, disseminating information, organizing social movements, passing laws, and altering taxes to influence decisions.Psychology has been applied on a world scale with the aim of population control. For example, one strategy towards television programming combines social models in a soap opera with informational messages during advertising time. This strategy successfully increased womens' enrollment at family planning clinics in Mexico. The programming which has been deployed around the world by Population Communications International and the Population Media Center combines family planning messages with representations of female education and literacy.4.12 School Psychology:School psychology is a branch of psychology dealing with the principles of clinical psychology and educational psychology, used for analyzing children's behavioral and learning problems and carrying out an appropriate treatment. The main objective of this article is to offer precise info about school psychology.School psychologists are educated in psychology, child and adolescent development. Having knowledge related to effective instruction and effective schools, they are professionally trained to carry out psychological and psycho educational assessment, counseling, and consultation. Interested in childhood behaviors, learning processes and disorders, School psychologists want to understand the causes of the behaviors and their effects on learning.Today, School psychologists tackle with the educational, social, emotional and behavioral challenges faced by many children and young adults. Applying their knowledge of human development, psychopathology, the impact of culture, learning theory, the school psychologists well understand the importance of schools in the lives of young people.4.13 Sport Psychology:Sport psychology is a specialization within psychology that seeks to understand psychological/mental factors that affect performance in sports, physical activity and exercise and apply these to enhance individual and team performance. The sport psychology approach differs from the coaches and players perspective. Coaches tend to narrow their focus and energy towards the end-goal. They are concerned with the actions that lead to the win, as opposed to the sport psychologist who tries to focus the players thoughts on just achieving the win. Sport psychology trains players mentally to prepare them, whereas coaches tend to focus mostly on physical training. Sport psychology deals with increasing performance by managing emotions and minimizing the psychological effects of injury and poor performance. Some of the most important skills taught are goal setting, relaxation, visualization, self-talk awareness and control, concentration, using rituals, attribution training, and periodization. The principles and theories may be applied to any human movement or performance tasks (e.g., playing a musical instrument, acting in a play, public speaking, motor skills). Usually, experts recommend that students be trained in both kinesiology (i.e., sport and exercise sciences, physical education) and counseling.

4.14 Traffic Psychology:Traffic psychology is a discipline of psychology that studies the relationship between psychological processes and the behavior of road users. In general, traffic psychology aims to apply theoretical aspects of psychology in order to improve traffic mobility by helping to develop and apply accident countermeasures, as well as by guiding desired behaviors through education and the motivation of road users.Broad theories of cognition, sensory-motor and neurological aspects psychology are also applied to the field of traffic psychology. Studies of factors such as attention, memory, spatial cognition, inexperience, stress, inebriation, distracting/ambiguous stimuli, fatigue, and secondary tasks such as phone conversations are used to understand and investigate the experience and actions of road users.5: ConclusionThus from all the study we concluded that psychology as a discipline has a vast scope. It not only studies human beings across the life span but also tries to explore mental processes and potentials in order to facilitate achieving a better quality of life.

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