Understanding Psychology

My professor in psychology had given us an assignment. He wanted us to write a paragraph on what we have learned about this course. While making it today, I was thinking of pasting it to my journal here since I’ve neglected this site already. It’s been a while since, I’ve posted anything here. I just got so busy in life lately that I don’t have time to update my online stuff often.

Anyway, straight to the point. Here’s what I have to say. I find psychology very interesting. It’s amazing how an individual can alter your state of mind and behavior by following the scientific study. Psychologists do it by observing and recording how people and other animals relate to one another and to the environment. They look for patterns that help them understand and predict behavior, and they use scientific method to test their ideas. Through many studies, psychologist have learned much that can help people fulfill their potential as human beings and increase understanding between individuals, groups, nations and cultures.

It is a broad field that explores varieties of questions about thoughts, feelings, and actions. Psychologist ask such questions as: “How do we see, hear, smell, taste and feel? What enables us to learn, think and remember , and why do we forget? What abilities are we born with, and which must we learn? How much does the mind affect the body and , how does the body affect the mind? For example: What can our dreams tells us about our needs, wishes and desires? Why do we like the people we like? Why are some people so negative when it comes to their thinking and others are positive no matter what situation they are in? Why other people easily get angered? What causes violence? What is mental illness and how it can be cured? “ I mean there are lots of why’s and how’s that we wanna know. Psychologists knows what factors contributes the effects of such things through research findings. Psychologists have greatly increased our understanding of why people behave as they do. Psychology is closely related to the natural science of biology. Like many biologist, psychologist study the abilities, needs and activities of human beings and other animals. But psychologist focus on the workings of the nervous system, especially the brain.

Now, pretty interesting to have some knowledge on this field. It makes me wanna be a psychologists too. I’ve never been good in reading other people but I am a little bit good in altering my own thoughts and emotions. And it does work. I always believe in the power of positive thinking. For example: If I am depressed, I’ll think and do things that inspires me to alter my emotions. Do you think that psychology is just for students, academics and therapists? Then, think again. Because psychology can be utilized in a number of ways. The results of these experiments and studies can have a good impact in the applications of your daily life. Examples of uses for psychology in your daily life are: get motivated, improve your leadership skills, become a better communicator, learn to better understand others, make more accurate decisions, improve your memory, make wiser final decisions, get better grades, become more productive, and be healthier. Psychology provides a framework for understanding human behavior, thoughts and development. By having, a broad base of understanding about the how’s and why’s of human behavior, we can better understand ourselves and others. And it makes life so much easier. By the way, I don’t agree everything that psychology has to say, depends on certain things. Nevertheless, it’s good because it gives us a complete different idea of the things we think we know best.

(originally written: February 5th, 2009)