Psychology
Psychology is a relatively new disciplines; one that most people have heard of and have general idea about. However, most people believe that psychology is only for college students, but contrary to this believe people whether student or not use psychology unknowingly in their daily lives. Activities such as exercising, listening to a friend’s problems, setting goals and making plans are some of the daily activities that have psychological effects on an individual (Cherry & Cherry, 2015). Some of these activities happen even without the conscience of a person and some such as advertising happen when the individual is aware or conscious. While it is true that many aspects of psychology involve an intensive study to understand, there are some that are easy to understand. This essay describes various aspects related to psychology including the definition of the term psychology, superego, the difference between counselling and psychoanalysis and the benefits of diversity. The essay will also discuss the drawbacks of judging others as well as outlining the differences between a psychologist and a psychiatrist.
The definition of the term psychology is a subject of much confusion because different scholars and researchers have different views regarding its definition. Some have even gone to the extent of comparing psychologists to superhuman with great capability to solve great problems such as crime. Others view psychology as about old men seated in an office listening to peoples’ problems all day long. So what exactly is psychology? Psychology is an applied and academic field of study that deals with human mind and behavior (Cherry & Cherry, 2015). It seeks to understand and shed light on how we think, act and feel. It is a multifaceted subject that consists of various sub-fields including human development, health, cognitive processes and social behavior. It is also a science that tries to investigate the causes of behavior using or through observations, theoretical interpretations, predictions, measuring and testing to arrive at a concrete conclusion.
Superego is one of the components of personality after id and ego. It is the component that provides the moral standards that one acquires from the ego; that is externally both from parents and the community (Tato & Cua, 2008). These moral standards represent our sense of right and wrong that allows one to make judgments. Superego consists of two parts including the ego ideal that is the part that sets the standards for good behaviors most of which are approved by the parents. When these standards are observed, they lead to feelings of value and at other times pride and accomplishment. The other part of the superego is the conscience that includes the knowledge of the things that are viewed immoral by parents and society and which are punishable should they happen. Superego is a way to enhancing the civilization of behavior. It aims at suppressing unacceptable demands of the id and makes the ego act on ideal rules and standards instead of realistic principles.
Counselling and psychoanalysis are forms of therapies that overlap in many ways and are sometimes considered to be interchangeable. However, there several differences between the two including meeting of the expectations of the client. Psychoanalysis allows one to examine emotions, actions and thoughts for evaluation and adjustment where possible. Counselling, however, allows one to explore personal growth and development and create adjustments to one’s life. Counselling is a short term process whose objective is to change the behavior of a person while psychoanalysis is a long term process whose objective is the identification of emotional issues and background to problems. Counselling assists people identify problems and encourages them to resolve these problems positively. Psychoanalysis, on the other hand, helps people psychological problems that have been in existence for a long period (Thecounsellorsguide.co.uk, 2015).
Diversity in psychology refers to the mixture of people with different backgrounds, people of different races and ethnicity, gender, people with different sex orientation among other differences. Initially psychology was a field occupied by the white but as the field is growing more and more people from different other races are getting into the practice. Diversity enhances creativity (Phillips, 2014). It is through diversity that new information for better decision making can be acquired. People with different backgrounds through interactions bring new information through opinions and perspectives that may be used to brainstorm problems and reach a consensus. For example, it is becoming more evident that firms with more women in management have better average growth – this is also the case for psychology firms.
Judging others makes one ignore the diversity of people. It allows one to think about people in a way that might not be true. Judging others is a form of a stereotype where one tends to make generalizations about a certain group of individuals and becomes blind to the beneficial differences of others (Phillips, 2014). Judging others also makes one prejudice toward some individuals. Because of stereotyping there’s social categorization that is one of the reasons that cause prejudice that at the extreme can lead to discrimination. Judging others develops a division and lack of acceptance of other’s believe. When people can’t appreciate the beliefs of one another, then it’s a threat to diversity.
Psychologists differ from psychiatrists in different ways including the study duration, medication, and counselling/therapy (Depressionet.com.au, 2015). A psychologist in Australia for instance studies for four years and an additional two years training in their area of specialization such as Clinical Psychology. A psychiatrist in the same country studies medicine first and then undergoes a five-year study of the mind. A psychiatrist can give medication while a psychologist has to request the assistance of the relevant authority if his patients require medication. Psychologists have special training in therapy and can, therefore, deal with problems such as depressed clients. The psychiatrists, on the other hand, are medical doctors first, and many but not all have the skills in counselling as psychologists.
In conclusion, psychology is gaining roots through numerous courses offered in colleges and public civic education. It is part of daily life of an individual. All of the above-discussed issues are essential elements of the broad psychology discipline. Psychology dictates even the friendly conversations that people hold with each other. It is a major determinant of one attitude and response. Through psychology, the burden of emotions and accrued hardships are eliminated from people since the discipline offers a listening ear to the problems of people through psychologists and psychiatrist.
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Depressionet.com.au,. (2015). depressioNet.com.au – your comprehensive one-stop depression resource – Resources. Retrieved 10 October 2015, from http://depressionet.com.au/resources/psychs/psychdiff.html
Phillips, K. (2014). How Diversity Works. Sci Am, 311(4), 42-47. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/scientificamerican1014-42
Tato, C., & Cua, D. (2008). Reconciling id, ego, and superego within interleukin-23. Immunological Reviews, 226(1), 103-111. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-065x.2008.00715.x
Thecounsellorsguide.co.uk. (2015). The Difference Between Counselling and Psychotherapy. Retrieved 10 October 2015, from http://www.thecounsellorsguide.co.uk/difference-between-counselling-psychotherapy.html