Psychology

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Psychology (Greek: Ψυχολογία, lit. "study of the mind", from ψυχή psukhē "breath, spirit, soul"; and -λογία, -logia "study of") is an academic and applied discipline involving the systematic, and often scientific, study of human/animal mental functions and behavior. Occasionally, in addition or opposition to employing the scientific method, it also relies on symbolic interpretation and critical analysis, although it often does so less prominently than other social sciences such as sociology. Psychologists study such phenomena as perception, cognition, attention, emotion, motivation, personality, behavior and interpersonal relationships. Some, especially depth psychologists, also study the unconscious mind.

Psychological knowledge is applied to various spheres of human activity, including issues related to everyday life—such as family, education and employment—and to the treatment of mental health problems. Psychologists attempt to understand the role of mental functions in individual and social behavior, while also exploring the underlying physiological and neurological processes. Psychology includes many sub-fields of study and applications concerned with such areas as human development, sports, health, industry, media and law. Psychology incorporates research from the natural sciences, social sciences and humanities. A professional theorist or practitioner of psychology is called a psychologist.

For more information about Psychology, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.


News tagged with psychological science

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Psychologists suggest parents should wait to teach toddlers self-control

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Dec 01, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 4

Toddlers are distractible. Their minds flit constantly here and there, and they have a terrible time concentrating on even the most stimulating project. They might be fascinated by a colorful new toy, but only until the next ...


Parents gone wild? Study suggests link between working memory and reactive parenting

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Dec 03, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (2) | comments 1

We've all been in situations before where we get so frustrated or angry about something, we will lash out at someone without thinking. This lashing out — reactive negativity — happens when we can't control our emotions. Luckily, ...


Shape perception in brain develops by itself

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Nov 13, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Despite minimal exposure to the regular geometric objects found in developed countries, African tribal people perceive shapes as well as westerners, according to a new study.


Mad genius: Study suggests link between psychosis and creativity

Medicine & Health / Genetics

created Sep 28, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (26) | comments 10

Vincent van Gogh cut off his ear. Sylvia Plath stuck her head in the oven. History teems with examples of great artists acting in very peculiar ways. Were these artists simply mad or brilliant? According to new research reported ...


Out of darkness, sight: How the brain learns to see

Out of darkness, sight: How the brain learns to see

Medicine & Health / Neuroscience

created Sep 17, 2009 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (17) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Cases of restored vision after a lifetime of blindness, though exceedingly rare, provide a unique opportunity to address several fundamental questions regarding brain function. After being ...


Angry faces: Research suggests link between facial structure and aggression

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Oct 30, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (9) | comments 14

Angry words and gestures are not the only way to get a sense of how temperamental a person is. According to new findings in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, a quick glance at som ...


Cleanliness is next to godliness: New research shows clean smells promote moral behavior

Cleanliness is next to godliness: New research shows clean smells promote moral behavior

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Oct 24, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (10) | comments 11

People are unconsciously fairer and more generous when they are in clean-smelling environments, according to a soon-to-be published study led by a Brigham Young University professor.


Why Saints Sin and Sinners Get Saintly

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Jun 26, 2009 | popularity 4.2 / 5 (10) | comments 6

(PhysOrg.com) -- To many, New York Gov. Eliott Spitzer's fall from grace seemed to make no sense at all. But a new Northwestern University study offers provocative insights that possibly could relate to why the storm trooper ...


The straight dope: Studies link parental monitoring with decreased teen marijuana usage

Medicine & Health / Health

created Nov 16, 2009 | popularity 1.7 / 5 (3) | comments 2

Marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug by adolescents, with almost 42% of high school seniors admitting to having experimented with it. Continued marijuana use may result in a number of serious consequences including ...


The Link Between Weight and Importance

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Aug 27, 2009 | popularity 2.3 / 5 (3) | comments 2

(PhysOrg.com) -- A new study has demonstrated what we must have known all along at some level: that there is a link between the physical act of carrying heavy objects and the abstract concept of importance.


Invisible ink? What Rorschach tests really tell us

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Jul 30, 2009 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (3) | comments 7

One of the most well-known psychological tools is the Rorschach Inkblot Test. A viewer looks at ten inkblots, one at a time, and describes what they see. The rationale behind this test is the idea that certain aspects of ...


What I was doing vs. what I did: How verb aspect influences memory and behavior

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Mar 10, 2009 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (5) | comments 0

If you want to perform at your peak, you should carefully consider how you discuss your past actions. In a new study in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, psychologists William Hart o ...


Under Pressure: The Impact of Stress on Decision Making

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Nov 12, 2009 | popularity 2 / 5 (2) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- We are faced with making decisions all the time. Often, we will carefully deliberate the pros and cons of each item, taking into consideration past experiences with similar situations before making our ultimate ...


Rich people don't need friends

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Sep 16, 2009 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (6) | comments 2

In a paper evaluated by f1000 Medicine, six studies tested relationships between reminders of money, social exclusion and physical pain.


Edward Ester, University of Oregon

Decoding short-term memory with fMRI

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Feb 21, 2009 | popularity 4.2 / 5 (5) | comments 0

People voluntarily pick what information they store in short-term memory. Now, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), researchers can see just what information people are holding in memory based ...