Portal:Psychology

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Psychology is an academic and applied discipline that involves the scientific study of mental functions and behaviors. Psychology has the immediate goal of understanding individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases, and by many accounts it ultimately aims to benefit society. In this field, a professional practitioner or researcher is called a psychologist and can be classified as a social, behavioral, or cognitive scientist. 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. Psychologists explore concepts such as perception, cognition, attention, emotion, phenomenology, motivation, brain functioning, personality, behavior, and interpersonal relationships, including psychological resilience, family resilience, and other areas. Psychologists of diverse orientations also consider the unconscious mind. Psychologists employ empirical methods to infer causal and correlational relationships between psychosocial variables. In addition, or in opposition, to employing empirical and deductive methods, some—especially clinical and counseling psychologists—at times rely upon symbolic interpretation and other inductive techniques. Psychology has been described as a "hub science", with psychological findings linking to research and perspectives from the social sciences, natural sciences, medicine, and the humanities, such as philosophy. (Full article...) Template:/box-footer Schizophrenia (/ˌskɪtsoʊˈfrɛniə/ or /ˌskɪtsoʊˈfriːniə/) is a mental disorder often characterized by abnormal social behavior and failure to recognize what is real. Common symptoms include false beliefs, unclear or confused thinking, auditory hallucinations, reduced social engagement and emotional expression, and inactivity. Diagnosis is based on observed behavior and the person's reported experiences. Genetics and early environment, as well as psychological and social processes, appear to be important contributory factors. Some recreational and prescription drugs appear to cause or worsen symptoms. The many possible combinations of symptoms have triggered debate about whether the diagnosis represents a single disorder or a number of separate syndromes. Despite the origin of the term from the Greek roots skhizein ("to split") and phrēn ("mind"), schizophrenia does not imply a "split personality", or "multiple personality disorder"—a condition with which it is often confused in public perception. Rather, the term means a "splitting of mental functions", reflecting the presentation of the illness. The mainstay of treatment is antipsychotic medication, which primarily suppresses dopamine receptor activity. Counseling, job training and social rehabilitation are also important in treatment. In more serious cases—where there is risk to self or others—involuntary hospitalization may be necessary, although hospital stays are now shorter and less frequent than they once were. (Full article...) 600px Social psychologist Carol Tavris image credit: Dave Fayram "A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if he is to be ultimately at peace with himself. What a man can be, he must be." — Abraham Maslow Burrhus Frederic (B. F.) Skinner (March 20, 1904 – August 18, 1990) was an American psychologist, behaviorist, author, inventor, and social philosopher. He was the Edgar Pierce Professor of Psychology at Harvard University from 1958 until his retirement in 1974. Skinner invented the operant conditioning chamber, also known as the Skinner Box. He was a firm believer of the idea that human free will was actually an illusion and any human action was the result of the consequences of that same action. If the consequences were bad, there was a high chance that the action would not be repeated; however if the consequences were good, the actions that led to it would be reinforced. He called this the principle of reinforcement. He innovated his own philosophy of science called radical behaviorism, and founded his own school of experimental research psychology—the experimental analysis of behavior, coining the term operant conditioning. His analysis of human behavior culminated in his work Verbal Behavior, as well as his philosophical manifesto Walden Two. Contemporary academia considers Skinner a pioneer of modern behaviorism along with John B. Watson and Ivan Pavlov. (Full article...) ...that The Wordless Book (pictured) was invented by the London Baptist preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon and employs religious symbolism and color psychology in evangelism? ...that the non-fiction book Cults: Faith, Healing and Coercion is cited in the definition of Cults, by the American Psychological Association's Encyclopedia of Psychology? ...that the DC comic book Batman: The Last Arkham drew on the influences of psychology and biology books such as "Superstition in the Common Pigeon"? ...that the company Leadership Dynamics was cited by psychologists as the first form of Large Group Awareness Training? ▼ Psychology ► Psychology awards ► Behavior ► Branches of psychology ► Cognition ► Psychology experiments ► Human development ► Humor research ► Psychology lists ► Mind ► Psychology organizations ► Personality ► Popular psychology ► Psychiatry ► Psychologists ► Psychological schools ► Sexology ► Psychological testing ► Psychological theories ► Psychology stubs Template:/box-footer Neuroscience Psychiatry Medicine The following WikiProjects work to improve the quality and scope of articles related to psychology. 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