HPS111 - Week 1

Question 1

How would you best define “Psychology”

Answer 1

The Scientific Study of Behaviour.

Question 2

Define “Behaviour” and provide some examples.

Answer 2

Organism’s observable actions and response to the environment.

Question 3

Define “Science” and the “Scientific Method”.

Answer 3

Science - An incremental process for knowledge acquisition base on measurement and testing. A process of by which we get a better understanding of the world and how it works by making predictions and putting them to the test.

Question 4

What is the difference between a Behavioural Psychologist and a Cognitive Psychologist?

Answer 4

Behaviourist - approaches are focussed on observable behaviours and their relationship with the environment factors. Cognitive - is interested in mental processes like thinking, attention, memory information processing and so on.

Question 5

What kinds of questions might a social psychologist attempt to answer?

Answer 5

A social psychologist - is concerned how we influence each other and operate in societies, things like norms, culture, persuasion and conflict etc.

Question 6

How can psychological principles be applied in the context of Health?

Answer 6

Health Psychology - is the application of psychological principles to healthcare settings, so that means things like helping people comply with their medication regimes but also motivating people to engage in health behaviours like exercise more, eat better and so on.

Question 7

Explain what an Educational Psychologist tries to achieve?

Answer 7

Education Psychologist - is concerned with factors that might influence student learning, how to help students achieve the most out of education experiences.

Question 8

What is the domain of psychology that is concerned with differences between individuals?

Answer 8

Personality Psychology - is concerned with the ways that we are different from each other, and the stability in these differences, and how that influences our behaviour.

Question 9

What are the terms for psychologists who specialise in workplace functioning?

Answer 9

Organisational and Industrial - interested in understanding how psychological factors influence things like your performance and satisfaction in the workforce, and therefore job fit and recruitment.

Question 10

What does a Forensic Psychologist do?

Answer 10

Forensic Psychology - is concerned with the relationship between our discipline and the justice system, and therefore relates to things like witness credibility, rehabilitation of offenders, competence to stand trial, and risk assessment.

Question 11

Extra Study

“Behaviour” is not exclusively human.

Answer 11

Extra Study

“Science” is a process.

Question 12

Extra Study

Psychology aims to help us understand the way we operate and respond to the environment so we can make informed choices about how to improve the world; through better therapy, better risk assessment, better health programs, better functioning judicial systems and so on.

Answer 12

Extra Study

Foundations of human behaviour are fundamentally biological.

It’s important that we consider psychology as a science first, that is concerned with behaviour.

Question 13

Extra Study

Psychology:

• Biological
• Behavioural
• Cognitiveor
• Social emphasis.

Answer 13

Extra Study

Biological Psychology - underpins all other approaches.

Behavioural Psychology - are focused on observable behaviours and their relationship with environmental factors.

Cognitive Psychology - interested in mental processing like thinking, attention, memory information processing and so on.

Social Psychology - concerned with how we influence each other and operate in societies, things like norms, culture persuasion conflict etc.