essay on human psychology

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

Chapter 1. Introducing Psychology

Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior . The word “psychology” comes from the Greek words “psyche,” meaning life , and “logos,” meaning explanation . Psychology is a popular major for students, a popular topic in the public media, and a part of our everyday lives. Television shows such as Dr. Phil feature psychologists who provide personal advice to those with personal or family difficulties. Crime dramas such as CSI , Lie to Me , and others feature the work of forensic psychologists who use psychological principles to help solve crimes. And many people have direct knowledge about psychology because they have visited psychologists, for instance, school counselors, family therapists, and religious, marriage, or bereavement counselors.

Because we are frequently exposed to the work of psychologists in our everyday lives, we all have an idea about what psychology is and what psychologists do. In many ways I am sure that your conceptions are correct. Psychologists do work in forensic fields, and they do provide counseling and therapy for people in distress. But there are hundreds of thousands of psychologists in the world, and most of them work in other places, doing work that you are probably not aware of.

Most psychologists work in research laboratories, hospitals, and other field settings where they study the behavior of humans and animals. For instance, my colleagues in the Psychology Department at the University of Maryland study such diverse topics as anxiety in children, the interpretation of dreams, the effects of caffeine on thinking, how birds recognize each other, how praying mantises hear, how people from different cultures react differently in negotiation, and the factors that lead people to engage in terrorism. Other psychologists study such topics as alcohol and drug addiction, memory, emotion, hypnosis, love, what makes people aggressive or helpful, and the psychologies of politics, prejudice, culture, and religion. Psychologists also work in schools and businesses, and they use a variety of methods, including observation, questionnaires, interviews, and laboratory studies, to help them understand behavior.

This chapter provides an introduction to the broad field of psychology and the many approaches that psychologists take to understanding human behavior. We will consider how psychologists conduct scientific research, with an overview of some of the most important approaches used and topics studied by psychologists, and also consider the variety of fields in which psychologists work and the careers that are available to people with psychology degrees. I expect that you may find that at least some of your preconceptions about psychology will be challenged and changed, and you will learn that psychology is a field that will provide you with new ways of thinking about your own thoughts, feelings, and actions.

Psychology is in part the study of behavior. Why do you think these people are behaving the way they are?

• Dominic Alves - Café Smokers - CC BY 2.0; Daniela Vladimirova - Reservoir Dogs debate, 3 in the morning - CC BY 2.0; Kim Scarborough - Old Ladies - CC BY-SA 2.0; Pedro Ribeiro Simões - Playing Chess - CC BY 2.0; epSos .de - Young Teenagers Playing Guitar Band of Youth - CC BY 2.0; Marco Zanferrari - 1... - CC BY-SA 2.0; CC BY 2.0 Pedro Ribeiro Simões - Relaxing - CC BY 2.0. ↵

Introduction to Psychology Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

• Random article
• Teaching guide
• Privacy & cookies

What are the different kinds of psychology?

Photo: A huge part of your brain is devoted to processing information gathered by your eyes.

Photo: Mirror neurons? Sometimes we mimic one another's behavioral unconsciously, such as when two friends stand next to one another and, quite unawares, adopt exactly the same posture. Psychologists think our brains contain "mirror neurons," which are activated both when we do things and when we see other people doing those things. That encourages us to copy other people's behavior, and possibly explains how we feel empathy with others. [3] Photo by Kasey Close courtesy of US Navy and Wikimedia Commons .

Cognitive psychology

Artwork: Ulric Neisser's famous caricature of cognitive psychology from his 1976 book Cognition and Reality .

Photo: The psychology of typography: Thanks to things you've read and seen previously, you read words printed in different fonts (typefaces) with a slightly different meaning and emotion: elegant, relaxed, friendly, imperative, hostile, or whatever it might be. You can emphasize a message you want to get across by choosing the most appropriate font. That's one of the key principles of graphic design—and it happens in your mind, not on the page.

Intelligence

Neuropsychology.

Photo: Brain scanners have revolutionized psychology. By showing up the activity inside our brains when we think certain thoughts or do certain things, they can help to reveal which areas of the brain do what. Photo by courtesy of Warren Grant Magnuson Clinical Center (CC) and US National Institutes of Health (NIH) Image Gallery .

Abnormal psychology

Photo: Psychologists are helping computer scientists to develop emotional robots like this one, pictured at Think Tank, the science museum in Birmingham, England.

How will psychology develop in future?

A brief history of psychology.

If you liked this article...

Find out more, on this website.

• The science of chocolate
• Neural networks
• Science of happiness
• 10 great psychology experiments

Other websites

Introductions, more detailed introductions.

• A History of Psychiatry by Edward Shorter. John Wiley & Sons, 1997. A very readable account of how psychiatry developed into a scientific branch of medicine. Quite an opionated book, but none the worse for that.
• Psychology: The Science of Mental Life by George Miller. Penguin, 1991. This classic introduction (originally published in 1962) interweaves key psychology topics with short biographies of key figures. It's quite dated now, but still worth reading.

Online courses

References ↑    this split between "experimental psychology" and "social psychology" dates back to wilhelm wundt, one of the founding fathers of the science. according to wundt, at least in the words of george miller, writing in psychology: the science of mental life (p.38), experimental psychology dealt with "the simpler mental functions—sensation, perception, memory, simple feelings— [and] can be studied by laboratory experiments," while "the higher mental processes involved in human thinking... can be explored only by the nonexperimental methods of anthropology, sociology, and social psychology." of course, today, we can see a lot wrong with this, but the experimental-social split influenced academic psychology for much of the 20th century. for example, until quite recently, at cambridge university in england, where i studied, the main psychology department referred to itself as the "department of experimental psychology" and kept a wary distance from the entirely separate "department of social and political sciences," where all the social psychology happened. thankfully, cambridge now has a unified "department of psychology." (miller's quote about the defensiveness of social psychology can be found on p.95 of the same book.) ↑    if you search around, online and in books, you'll find wildly varying estimates saying that vision accounts for anything from 20–90 percent of our brain's activity. why such different answers they don't all refer to exactly the same thing. some are referring to the size of the visual cortex, some count any part of the brain involved in vision, others refer to numbers of neurons, and so on. and what, in any case, do we mean by "vision" ↑    mirror neurons are reviewed at length in what we know currently about mirror neurons by j.m. kilner and r.n. lemon, current biology, december 2, 2013. ↑    a milestone in the recognition that phrenology wasn't all bad was the publication of jerry fodor's 1983 book the modularity of mind . ↑     there is no left brain/right brain divide by stephen m. kosslyn and g. wayne miller, time, november 29, 2013. ↑     the man who mistook his wife for a hat by oliver sacks. simon & schuster, 1998, is a wonderful, very accessible introduction to the idea that highly specific kinds of brain damage produce equally specific behavioral abnormalities. ↑     causes—parkinson's disease , nhs uk, 30 april 2019. ↑     schizophrenia , mind uk, november 2020. please do not copy our articles onto blogs and other websites articles from this website are registered at the us copyright office. copying or otherwise using registered works without permission, removing this or other copyright notices, and/or infringing related rights could make you liable to severe civil or criminal penalties. text copyright © chris woodford 2012, 2023. all rights reserved. full copyright notice and terms of use . follow us, rate this page, tell your friends, cite this page, more to explore on our website....

• Get the book
• Send feedback

How to Write a Psychology Essay

Saul Mcleod, PhD

Editor-in-Chief for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester

Saul Mcleod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

Learn about our Editorial Process

Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc

Associate Editor for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education

Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.

On This Page:

Before you write your essay, it’s important to analyse the task and understand exactly what the essay question is asking. Your lecturer may give you some advice – pay attention to this as it will help you plan your answer.

Next conduct preliminary reading based on your lecture notes. At this stage, it’s not crucial to have a robust understanding of key theories or studies, but you should at least have a general “gist” of the literature.

After reading, plan a response to the task. This plan could be in the form of a mind map, a summary table, or by writing a core statement (which encompasses the entire argument of your essay in just a few sentences).

After writing your plan, conduct supplementary reading, refine your plan, and make it more detailed.

It is tempting to skip these preliminary steps and write the first draft while reading at the same time. However, reading and planning will make the essay writing process easier, quicker, and ensure a higher quality essay is produced.

Components of a Good Essay

Now, let us look at what constitutes a good essay in psychology. There are a number of important features.

• Global Structure – structure the material to allow for a logical sequence of ideas. Each paragraph / statement should follow sensibly from its predecessor. The essay should “flow”. The introduction, main body and conclusion should all be linked.
• Each paragraph should comprise a main theme, which is illustrated and developed through a number of points (supported by evidence).
• Knowledge and Understanding – recognize, recall, and show understanding of a range of scientific material that accurately reflects the main theoretical perspectives.
• Critical Evaluation – arguments should be supported by appropriate evidence and/or theory from the literature. Evidence of independent thinking, insight, and evaluation of the evidence.
• Quality of Written Communication – writing clearly and succinctly with appropriate use of paragraphs, spelling, and grammar. All sources are referenced accurately and in line with APA guidelines.

In the main body of the essay, every paragraph should demonstrate both knowledge and critical evaluation.

There should also be an appropriate balance between these two essay components. Try to aim for about a 60/40 split if possible.

Most students make the mistake of writing too much knowledge and not enough evaluation (which is the difficult bit).

It is best to structure your essay according to key themes. Themes are illustrated and developed through a number of points (supported by evidence).

Choose relevant points only, ones that most reveal the theme or help to make a convincing and interesting argument.

Knowledge and Understanding

Remember that an essay is simply a discussion / argument on paper. Don’t make the mistake of writing all the information you know regarding a particular topic.

You need to be concise, and clearly articulate your argument. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences.

Each paragraph should have a purpose / theme, and make a number of points – which need to be support by high quality evidence. Be clear why each point is is relevant to the argument. It would be useful at the beginning of each paragraph if you explicitly outlined the theme being discussed (.e.g. cognitive development, social development etc.).

Try not to overuse quotations in your essays. It is more appropriate to use original content to demonstrate your understanding.

Psychology is a science so you must support your ideas with evidence (not your own personal opinion). If you are discussing a theory or research study make sure you cite the source of the information.

Note this is not the author of a textbook you have read – but the original source / author(s) of the theory or research study.

For example:

Bowlby (1951) claimed that mothering is almost useless if delayed until after two and a half to three years and, for most children, if delayed till after 12 months, i.e. there is a critical period.

Maslow (1943) stated that people are motivated to achieve certain needs. When one need is fulfilled a person seeks to fullfil the next one, and so on.

As a general rule, make sure there is at least one citation (i.e. name of psychologist and date of publication) in each paragraph.

Remember to answer the essay question. Underline the keywords in the essay title. Don’t make the mistake of simply writing everything you know of a particular topic, be selective. Each paragraph in your essay should contribute to answering the essay question.

Critical Evaluation

In simple terms, this means outlining the strengths and limitations of a theory or research study.

There are many ways you can critically evaluate:

Methodological evaluation of research

Is the study valid / reliable ? Is the sample biased, or can we generalize the findings to other populations? What are the strengths and limitations of the method used and data obtained?

Be careful to ensure that any methodological criticisms are justified and not trite.

Rather than hunting for weaknesses in every study; only highlight limitations that make you doubt the conclusions that the authors have drawn – e.g., where an alternative explanation might be equally likely because something hasn’t been adequately controlled.

Compare or contrast different theories

Outline how the theories are similar and how they differ. This could be two (or more) theories of personality / memory / child development etc. Also try to communicate the value of the theory / study.

Debates or perspectives

Refer to debates such as nature or nurture, reductionism vs. holism, or the perspectives in psychology . For example, would they agree or disagree with a theory or the findings of the study?

What are the ethical issues of the research?

Does a study involve ethical issues such as deception, privacy, psychological or physical harm?

Gender bias

If research is biased towards men or women it does not provide a clear view of the behavior that has been studied. A dominantly male perspective is known as an androcentric bias.

Cultural bias

Is the theory / study ethnocentric? Psychology is predominantly a white, Euro-American enterprise. In some texts, over 90% of studies have US participants, who are predominantly white and middle class.

Does the theory or study being discussed judge other cultures by Western standards?

Animal Research

This raises the issue of whether it’s morally and/or scientifically right to use animals. The main criterion is that benefits must outweigh costs. But benefits are almost always to humans and costs to animals.

Animal research also raises the issue of extrapolation. Can we generalize from studies on animals to humans as their anatomy & physiology is different from humans?

The PEC System

It is very important to elaborate on your evaluation. Don’t just write a shopping list of brief (one or two sentence) evaluation points.

Instead, make sure you expand on your points, remember, quality of evaluation is most important than quantity.

When you are writing an evaluation paragraph, use the PEC system.

• Make your P oint.
• E xplain how and why the point is relevant.
• Discuss the C onsequences / implications of the theory or study. Are they positive or negative?

For Example

• Point: It is argued that psychoanalytic therapy is only of benefit to an articulate, intelligent, affluent minority.
• Explain: Because psychoanalytic therapy involves talking and gaining insight, and is costly and time-consuming, it is argued that it is only of benefit to an articulate, intelligent, affluent minority. Evidence suggests psychoanalytic therapy works best if the client is motivated and has a positive attitude.
• Consequences: A depressed client’s apathy, flat emotional state, and lack of motivation limit the appropriateness of psychoanalytic therapy for depression.

Furthermore, the levels of dependency of depressed clients mean that transference is more likely to develop.

Using Research Studies in your Essays

Research studies can either be knowledge or evaluation.

• If you refer to the procedures and findings of a study, this shows knowledge and understanding.
• If you comment on what the studies shows, and what it supports and challenges about the theory in question, this shows evaluation.

Writing an Introduction

It is often best to write your introduction when you have finished the main body of the essay, so that you have a good understanding of the topic area.

If there is a word count for your essay try to devote 10% of this to your introduction.

Ideally, the introduction should;

Identify the subject of the essay and define the key terms. Highlight the major issues which “lie behind” the question. Let the reader know how you will focus your essay by identifying the main themes to be discussed. “Signpost” the essay’s key argument, (and, if possible, how this argument is structured).

Introductions are very important as first impressions count and they can create a h alo effect in the mind of the lecturer grading your essay. If you start off well then you are more likely to be forgiven for the odd mistake later one.

Writing a Conclusion

So many students either forget to write a conclusion or fail to give it the attention it deserves.

If there is a word count for your essay try to devote 10% of this to your conclusion.

Ideally the conclusion should summarize the key themes / arguments of your essay. State the take home message – don’t sit on the fence, instead weigh up the evidence presented in the essay and make a decision which side of the argument has more support.

Also, you might like to suggest what future research may need to be conducted and why (read the discussion section of journal articles for this).

Don”t include new information / arguments (only information discussed in the main body of the essay).

If you are unsure of what to write read the essay question and answer it in one paragraph.

Points that unite or embrace several themes can be used to great effect as part of your conclusion.

The Importance of Flow

Obviously, what you write is important, but how you communicate your ideas / arguments has a significant influence on your overall grade. Most students may have similar information / content in their essays, but the better students communicate this information concisely and articulately.

When you have finished the first draft of your essay you must check if it “flows”. This is an important feature of quality of communication (along with spelling and grammar).

This means that the paragraphs follow a logical order (like the chapters in a novel). Have a global structure with themes arranged in a way that allows for a logical sequence of ideas. You might want to rearrange (cut and paste) paragraphs to a different position in your essay if they don”t appear to fit in with the essay structure.

To improve the flow of your essay make sure the last sentence of one paragraph links to first sentence of the next paragraph. This will help the essay flow and make it easier to read.

Finally, only repeat citations when it is unclear which study / theory you are discussing. Repeating citations unnecessarily disrupts the flow of an essay.

Referencing

The reference section is the list of all the sources cited in the essay (in alphabetical order). It is not a bibliography (a list of the books you used).

In simple terms every time you cite/refer to a name (and date) of a psychologist you need to reference the original source of the information.

If you have been using textbooks this is easy as the references are usually at the back of the book and you can just copy them down. If you have been using websites, then you may have a problem as they might not provide a reference section for you to copy.

References need to be set out APA style :

Author, A. A. (year). Title of work . Location: Publisher.

Journal Articles

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (year). Article title. Journal Title, volume number (issue number), page numbers

A simple way to write your reference section is use Google scholar . Just type the name and date of the psychologist in the search box and click on the “cite” link.

Next, copy and paste the APA reference into the reference section of your essay.

Once again, remember that references need to be in alphabetical order according to surname.

Related Articles

Student Resources

How To Cite A YouTube Video In APA Style – With Examples

How to Write an Abstract APA Format

APA References Page Formatting and Example

APA Title Page (Cover Page) Format, Example, & Templates

How do I Cite a Source with Multiple Authors in APA Style?

Lab Report Format: Step-by-Step Guide & Examples

629 Psychology Essay Topics & Examples

Struggle with essay writing on mental health, disorders, or overall well-being? Our team has prepared this list of psychology essay topics for high school and college students.

📃 Aspects to Cover in a Psychology Essay

🏆 best psychology essay examples & topics, 👍 good psychological essay topics, 🎓 simple & easy psychology essay topics, 📌 writing prompts about psychology, 🥇 most interesting psychological essay topics, ✍️ exciting psychology topics to write about, ❓ psychology essay questions.

At the core of every excellent psychology essay are the writer’s comprehensive knowledge and ability to structure it into bite-sized clusters of information.

While it is evident that your topic is your guiding line, you should not limit yourself to focusing only on the information you are including. Instead, you should try to cover all aspects of essay writing in your paper, from facts and their sources to writing strategies.

Psychology Essay Topics

From self-analysis and obedience to nonverbal communication and various mental disorders, most subjects may seem interrelated and reflective of each other.

Your search for an issue that is yours should begin with analyzing psychology essay prompts, such as:

• What branch of psychology interests you most?
• Which theorists have contributed to this branch?
• Which issues and mechanisms have they outlined?
• Is there adequate supplementary research on these problems?
• What is the opinion of contemporary academia on these subjects?
• Do you want to build upon existing arguments or attempt to critique?

After this, you can analyze what resonates with you, for example, a particular theory or a specific personality, and you can begin writing a thesis statement for your paper.

Pre-writing

Doing your research beforehand helps you get an understanding of how to develop your central theme. Your bibliography and your used titles demonstrate not only your credibility but also the approach you have regarding your subject.

A well-versed reader may even draw a correct conclusion regarding which theorists have influenced your work, even if you did not explicitly state them in your paper, judging by your used sources.

Therefore, be selective in choosing what books and journals to use for your essay and include only those that help advance your pre-written thesis statement.

Referencing information from books and journals is an essential aspect of writing an essay, as this demonstrates the soundness of your ideas per the academic viewpoint on your subject.

Psychology Essay Structure

Your essay may only be as good as the outline you create for it. When you divide your work into thematic blocks, you can begin to see which topics are lacking in development and may need extra attention.

Furthermore, when you split your work up, it becomes easier to write and create interconnected paragraphs. Who takes on the role of the appraiser, the used mechanism, and the personal and social implications of it are all examples of dissecting social evaluation into smaller problems.

Addressing each of these blocks in separate paragraphs helps maintain a coherent yet exciting narrative.

• Your introduction should give your audience a brief overview of the issue that you will develop throughout the next pages;
• Your conclusion should summarize your findings, effectively outlining the outcome of your work per your thesis statement;
• The body paragraphs between your introduction and conclusion, as per you outline, should each address a single theme, creating a unique, interflowing narrative.

If you are not sure how to do this, then read an available psychology essay example to gain a better understanding of how to develop your theme.

Sample papers are an excellent way to jump-start your writing, as you can see for yourself, which approaches to essay wiring work and do not, respectively implementing or removing them from your essay.

Need more help before you can get started? Use IvyPanda for all your essay-writing needs!

• Psychological Profile of John Wayne Gacy Gacy was born into a family of a homemaker mother and a father veteran of the First World War and a car repair person. In the course of charging, trialing, and convicting he never admitted […]
• The Silence of the Lambs Psychological Analysis In the movie The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal Lecter portrays several traits and behavioral patterns that show he is suffering from a psychological condition.
• The Tell-Tale Heart Psychological Analysis & Critique The outstanding character in the tale, who is also the narrator, attracts a lot of attention from the readers. The narrator forms the basis of the tale.
• Six Major Psychological Theories: Strengths and Weaknesses Behavioral psychology is considered a descendant of the animal psychology, which argues that the environment has a lot of influence in the changes that take place in human beings.
• Psychological Disorders in “American Psycho” Movie The main character, who will be the basis of this paper’s analysis, is Patrick Bateman, who is a young and successful individual.
• Psychological Science: Counseling Essay (Theory of Counseling) Another important aspect is the counseling process; this depends on the individual counselor and client and the urgency of the issue in question.
• The Perception Process Stages – Psychology Perception refers to the process of organizing, identifying, and interpreting sensory information in an effort to understand and make sense of the environment.
• Comparing Freud, Adler and Jung Psychology Freud did develop the original theories of the conscious and unconscious and subconscious; the ego, id and superego; the libidinal and aggressive drives; the Oedipus and Electra complexes; the defense mechanisms of the mind being, […]
• Aileen Wuornos: Biological, Psychological, and Social Control Theories The name of Aileen Wuornos and the story of her life have been popular topics of discussion in mass media and professional literature.
• Language in Cognitive Psychology Adult people can preserve 50,000 words of their first language and thousands of words of the second language in the form of lexicons.
• Forensic Psychology: Zodiac Killer Case Analysis By looking at the subject matter of the Zodiac Killer, the present paper aims to identify important characteristics related to serial killers and how the domain of forensic psychology could be applied to solve cases […]
• “Inside Out”: Riley’s Psychological Analysis This genre of cinematography is mainly aimed at the children’s audience, which means that the task of the screenwriters is to create such material that would be able to tell the severe emotional problems of […]
• Psychology: Change Blindness Experiment The independent variable was the type of change, and the dependent variable was the response to detecting the changes. Broadly, it was established that change blindness varied with the type of change introduced because incongruent […]
• The Psychology of Serial Killers These are just a fraction of questions that require answers in order to have a complete understanding of the psychology of serial killers.
• Psychology and Christianity: “Abnormality” From a Biblical Perspective The Bible as God’s word is right in all religious teachings within the context of Christian setup. How can the Bible’s guidance inform an individual’s notion of abnormality?
• Psychological Testing: Ethical and Legal Issues Two of the cases that have had a major impact on the institution of psychological testing are ‘Larry P.v Riles and Crawford v.
• Norms in Psychological Testing Research Paper One of the inherent problems associated with norms and their interpretation in psychological tests is that as time goes on the characteristics by which a particular population/group is defined tends to change and as such […]
• Psychological Theories of Sophocles’ Oedipus the King One of the greatest tragedies of Sophocles, Oedipus the King touches upon a deep psychological theme of the parents-son relations which lately was called the Oedipus complex and the theme of faith as a main […]
• Biological Psychology: Development and Theories Therefore, biological psychology is used to examine the behavior of the humans and animals in order to facilitate in the treatment of the brain.
• Criminal Psychology Although the above discussed theories indicate that anyone can be a criminal since the development of the behaviour is determined greatly by the environmental factors,Eysenck’s theory of crime indicate that there are heredity factors that […]
• The Significance of Lifespan Development in the Practice of Counseling Psychology The physical aspect of lifespan development is one of the important ones: it is related to the growth and development of the body and changes in the body and the brain.
• Rain Man and Psychological Concepts The concepts of autism, conformity, and trust are described in the movie; and the peculiarity of this story is that one concept is closely connected to another concept, and the consequences of one concept influence […]
• Memory Chart Stages in Psychology For instance, the brain uses the procedural memory to encode procedural skills and tasks that an individual is involved in. The stages of memory are very complex and often pass unrecognized.
• Girl, Interrupted (1999): Exploring Four Mental Disorders Apart from the dramatic and the entertaining aspect of this movie, it contains a psychological aspect and this is the major purpose of this paper; exploring the psychological disorders in the movie, giving their causes […]
• The Core Characteristics of Social Psychology Further, scientific methods form the integral part of social psychology in that they aid the development of theories and their validation in order to provide the scientific understanding of human behavior.
• Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” Psychological View As a fact, based on the way the author strategically presents various characters, psychological critics have suggested that some characters in the A Midsummer Night’s Dream can be seen as representations of the ego, the […]
• Positive Psychology in “The Pursuit of Happyness” Film Gardner demonstrates perseverance, hope, and social intelligence and illustrates the importance of effectance motivation and the power of social networks, even though the protagonist’s relationship with his wife could be improved.
• The Movie “Blue Velvet”: Psychological Criticism The gist of this paper, therefore, is to offer psychological criticism of the Movie as regards its screenplay, plot, direction, and general presentation, and this is done by applying the Freudian Theory of Psychological Analysis […]
• Common Criticisms of Psychology It is the application of knowledge in the study of human activity such as the day to day lives and mental illness. Psychology is the study of human mind and behavior.
• Indian Sex Workers and Psychological Effects of Job The article “Serving The Goddess”: The dangerous life of a sacred sex worker” is a brief account of the life of two devadasis, particularly their experiences as sex workers.
• Physiological and Psychological Needs Differences Both physiological and psychological needs are necessary for the proper development of an individual. However, it is impossible for an individual to survive without satisfying their physiological needs.
• Psychological Concept of Learning This article explores the concept of learning by focusing on learning, the role of behavior in relation to learning, types of learning, and the relationship between learning and cognition.
• Attention Regarding Cognitive Psychology That a person only pays attention to the stimulus they are interested in and ignore the rest of the stimuli. The study of attention in cognitive psychology is not a new phenomenon.
• The Psychology of Happiness The psychology of happiness is closely related to philosophy, as the science of happiness is based on three major theories, namely “the emotional state theory, the life satisfaction theory, and hedonism”. As far as happiness […]
• Ethical Issues Associated With Psychological Testing The second case along the line of psychological testing includes the case of Brown V. Reason The above case was used to examine the validity of psychological testing.
• Cognitive Processes – Psychology As a result, memory is seen to be the storage of, and process of recalling what individuals have learned or experienced in the environment.
• Psychological vs. Physical Continuity Theory In the analysis of psychological continuity theory, there is a variety of views on the roles of the soul and body in a person’s development.
• Definition and Theories of Environmental Psychology The human mind is divided into small sections that can be studied to identify the role played by the brain in the interaction between human beings and the environment.
• Effective Psychological Counselling Dissemination of new information to the client should be the main focus of any counseling session. Reviews are essential and should be done at agreed dates so as to ensure that the trend of the […]
• Comparison of Codes of Ethics: The American Counseling Association and the American Psychological Association Both the Psychologist and the counselor abide to the same codes of conduct with regard to terminating their services to a client.
• Serial Murders Explained by Psychological Theory A serial killer may recognize the law as a deterrent to his or her activities, but not internalize the significance of the ban due to incomplete moral development.
• The Role of Hypotheses in Psychological Research A hypothesis is a specified concept about a certain concept which can be tested about the anticipation of the outcome in the study.
• Consumer Behaviour and Psychological Motives In this case, it is assumed that the satisfaction of the consumer is dependent on the performance of the product or the perceptions of the consumer in relation to the product, and the motivations that […]
• Psychological Impact on Education Therefore, this research examines the impacts of psychology on education, professionals, and relationship success in the education setting. The educational psychology in accordance to the academic description may mean the study of teaching, learning, and […]
• Humanistic and Sociocultural Psychological Approaches From a sociocultural perspective in psychology, the lack of external influence and the specificity of ethnicity can cause the child’s behavior. In the sociocultural approach, the psychologist has to work with him as a teacher, […]
• Integrating Psychology and Christianity The author introduces the topics of the worldview and outlines the four elements of the Christian worldview beliefs, viz.creation, fall, redemption, and the consummation.
• Social Psychological Concepts in “The Hangover” When Alan wins the money, Phil acknowledges Alan’s skills, as he realizes that it is a form of support to the person in search for a friendship.
• Psychological Assessment Tools for Christian Professionals This enables the specialist gathering the data to have a bigger picture of the assessee and thus employ the most effective methods in therapy or other help.
• Freud’s Anxiety Neurosis – Psychology The objective of this study is to expose Freud’s anxiety neurosis and to provide a comprehensive approach as to the causes, treatments, and symptoms of the anxiety neurosis.
• Educational Psychology Theories for Nurses The major educational psychology and learning theories are behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism. Educational and learning theories help nursing educators to enhance their students’ learning outcomes through the use of the most effective strategies that improve […]
• Forensic Psychology: Death Notifications Importance It is very important to surround the surviving relatives with compassion and understanding during the initial shock that follows the dreadful news. The purpose of delivering death notifications in person is to provide compassion.
• Examples of Special Populations in Psychology In professional psychology, particular population defines both children and adults with the following special needs; education, where the majority of the individuals are unable to comprehend and derive full benefits from the curriculum. The special […]
• The Theories of Social Psychology Furthermore, a person can bask in the accomplishment of group members and feel very good about it due to their similarity.
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder – Psychology This paper mainly addresses some of the characteristics of OCD, what contribute it, the kind of people who are likely to attract the disease, types of treatment of the disorder, and how it affects a […]
• Psychology of Adolescence Development The strategy allows the examination of the significance of adolescence as a standard stage of development. However, she admits that she experienced a period of anxiety and distress upon the death of her mother when […]
• Contribution Ancient Great Thinkers to the Growth and Development of Psychology Then, the relationship between the mind and the body perplexed ancient philosophers and this led to the development of psychology as an independent field of knowledge that considers both philosophy of the mind and physiology […]
• Critical Thinking Role in the Clinical Psychology These activities and conducts may lead a psychologist to identify the mental activities in the brain of the individual. Clinical psychologists specialization is founded on the framework the individual takes in training to become a […]
• Bipolar Disorder Psychological Assessment She is from a nuclear family, both her parents are alive, and she also has two brothers and three sisters. She is the second child in the family.
• Psychological Cognitive Analysis on Movie “Memento” In this case, amnesia is seen as a loss of verbal memory-images and a loss of visual memory-images. In the case of Leonard, memory loss or reduction of memory is a main phenomenon, independent of […]
• Psychology of Happiness in the World Psychology of happiness touches on various fields of social and cultural life and seeks to interfere with the lives of individuals for improving their talents and endowing their normal existence with greater meaning.
• Definitions of Intelligence in Psychology In this case, there are various items that can be used to test the emotional and physical aspects of an individual.
• Social Psychology in Clinics In this regard, there are many theories that have been advanced to further explain the concept, practical and the validity of the social psychology in clinics.
• Psychology: Factors of Success in Life and Career One of the most researched elements about success is the factors that drive people to pursue it. Success is often associated with a positive mental attitude, which triggers the desire to be successful in whatever […]
• Roles and Functions of School Psychologists In addition, school psychologists play a critical role in promoting the personal and social strengths of the students in the institutions they work to enable them to attain a healthier mindset and well-being.
• Conformity as a Social Psychology Concept In that regard, it can be described as the scientific study of people’s feelings, thoughts, and behaviors in the company of others or the context of society.
• Mahler’s and Winnicott’s Contributions to Psychology Their theories are merely concentrated on the methods of disturbed children treatment through the involvement of psychoanalysis; the theorists are focused on the aspect of mother-infant interrelation and stages of infant’s development through the mother’s […]
• Research Methodologies in Industrial Psychology Also, the matrix clearly illustrates that the choice of a particular methodology is shaped by the type of the research to be undertaken.
• Role and Importance of Personal Ethics in Psychology The role of personal ethics in psychology in relation to the American psychological association is intended to guide psychologists and standard professionals to guide them in their decision making and conduct at work.
• Economic Crisis and Its Social and Psychological Constraint The failure of large businesses, decrease in consumers’ wealth and demand, and a considerable decline of economic activities also led to the social, cultural, and moral crisis due to the rise of unemployment.
• Psychologists’ Role in Criminal Justice In addition to research, the accumulation, and application of knowledge, psychologists can also participate in assessing the effectiveness of legislation. In this setting, basic scientists conduct theoretical research on the effectiveness of police and court […]
• Combatants: Psychology and Christianity Disciplines Moreover, I can learn from the Secular combatants how to defend the opinion I hold, and this can extend to values as well.
• Posttraumatic Stress Disorders: Psychological Assessment PTSD was adopted by experts in the third revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders to replace terms like “shell shock, nervous shock, and combat fatigue” that described the response to traumatic […]
• Children’s Psychological Apperception Test The test was designed to determine children’s personality qualities and psychological issues together with the social or intimate problems that bother them on the stages of their lives and developments when the test is conducted.
• Adler’s Individual Psychology The paper highlights the most frequent criticisms of Adler’s theory and concludes by reasserting the significance of Adler’s Individual Psychology. This paper will engage in an in-depth review of Alfred Adler and his contributions to […]
• Definition of Positive Psychology in Psychology Positive psychology is the systematic analysis of the strengths and qualities that permit individuals to thrive. From the above analysis, it is advisable that scholars should engage in extensive research to establish the truth as […]
• “The Black Balloon” From a Psychological Perspective It goes without saying that the health of each individual, in particular, depends not only on them but also on the attitude of the surroundings and the action of the governments in corresponding existing situations.
• Mind-Body Debate: Monism and Dualism in Psychology As a result, it is almost impossible to find the answer that can address the views of all philosophers and psychologists who are interested in determining the nature of the mind and body interaction.
• Psychological Tests, Their Types and Users The projective test on the other hand is ambiguous and the respondent has to answer unstructured questions. The use of psychological tests in research is divided into three.
• Psychologists and Assessments Related to Death Sentence The paper aims to explore human rights related to the controversy and the ethical implications associated with the dispute. On the contrary, these psychologists may be ordered to give an evaluation of the psychological retardation […]
• Theory of Multiple Intelligences – Psychology Binet and Simon later revised their work in 1916 to incorporate the concept of mental age and concluded that intelligence varies depending on mental age.
• Human Psychology as a One of the Main Objects of Public and Professional Interest The fact that “psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes” sets the stage for understanding the meaning and significance of other concepts, including the relationship between biology and psychology in Chapter 2 […]
• The Phases of a Crime and Their Importance in Psychological Profiling Attempt and accomplishment, the third and fourth phases of a crime respectively, differ in the sense that an attempt is a failed crime.
• The Relationship Between Religion and Abnormal Psychology But whose judgment will we use to separate the two contrasting elements of the psychology of normal and abnormal behaviors? Some religious beliefs permit the use of alcohol and it’s considered normal, yet others find […]
• Psychological Test Selection Factors and Tools Therefore, this essay explores the concept of psychological testing and assessment in a bid to find out how counselors select the kind of psychological tests to administer, the factors they consider when doing so, and […]
• Paraphilias in Men and Women From Psychological Perspective The psychoanalytic theory clearly indicates that paraphilic disorder is a function of psychological abuse and other factors that are yet to be established.
• Industrial-Organizational Psychology The vastness of the field requires a practitioner to have a wider knowledge on industrial psychology itself, and also basic knowledge of the company’s operations as well as the cultural background of its employees.
• Mary Whiton Calkins and Her Impact on Modern Psychology In order to expand her knowledge of psychology, Mary had to take a year’s studies in psychology prior to her teaching in the same field.
• The History Development of Psychology: The Understanding of Human Behavior The aim of the paper is to identify the reasons that have shaped and led to the development of the history of psychology.
• Psychology: Diana Baumrind’s Obedience Study The intensity of the electric shocks varied from the mild to the severe and it was Milgrams intention to understand the level of obedience that the experimenters would exhibit in carrying out the shocks, when […]
• Atychiphobia, or the Fear of Failure in Psychology Putting it simply, the fear of failure is the incapability to suppress the anxious and irrational feeling of fear that, as a result, affects one’s life.
• Crimes in Biological, Psychological, Sociological Theories With the course of time, people also started paying attention not to the very commitment of crimes but to the triggers that made a person act in a particular way.
• Psychology in Everyday life While some individuals may think of psychology as a course that is only important to students, therapists or everyone else that is interested in the field of psychology, knowledge in psychology is actually helpful to […]
• “Turns of the Screw”: The Psychology of the Story The author presents the story as a sequence of events that really existed, however, in this paper we will provide the argument that the reliability of the narrator can be argued and that ghost was […]
• The Psychology of Verbal and Nonverbal Communication On the other hand, one is to keep in mind that the main purpose of the kind of communication is to aid in the formulation of thoughts or ideas, which are expressed through speech.
• Psychology in Movies: Stephen Chbosky’s Wonder Therefore, this film is a perfect example of how psychology can be integrated into a movie to raise the audience’s awareness and morale.
• Psychologist William Sheldon: Theories and Methods Sheldon did not belong to the so-called pseudo-scientists, as he put the ancient points of view of the affiliation between the type of body and temperament on sheltered basics. The last type of body and […]
• Women in Psychology: Karen Horney Many traditionalists were incensed and the principle to instruct boys and girls on the same level, with the same method, with the hope of reaching the same goal, is generally viewed as a psychological and […]
• Psychology in the “50/50” Hollywood Film The terror management theory is a psychological concept to describe the instinct of self-preservation present in all humans which drives motivation and behavior under the threat of mortality. A threatening stimulus in the form of […]
• Counseling Psychology in Dealing With Divorce One of the end results of divorce is the change of the emotional and mental state of an individual. Counseling was introduced in the country in the 1950s owing to the recognition of the vitality […]
• Personalistic and Naturalistic Approach in the History of Psychology Therefore, changes and progress occur due to the goals and charisma of individuals who changed the course of history. In contrast, naturalistic theory implies that social, intellectual, and cultural development depends on the Zeitgeist, the […]
• New Psychological Knowledge and Existing Theories To understand the issue more specifically, an example of research that led to the prevalence of claims in the media regarding the danger of exposing children to video games should be examined.
• Forensic Psychology, Its Tasks and Importance Forensic psychology is the subspecialty in professional psychology that studies various aspects of the legal system and law in terms of psychological practice.
• Saddam Hussein Psychological Analysis The following paper provides a summary of some of the relevant points in Post’s political profile of the leader during three periods of crisis in Hussein’s life and in the history of Iraq.
• Treatment of Psychological Disorders It upsets the balance of the body, and the restoration of it requires the calming down of the chemical reaction in the body, as well as the change in a person’s thinking.
• Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian Counseling The author adds that the counselor needs spiritual maturity in a bid to get the client to the same level of maturity.
• Modern Cognitive Psychology Renaissance philosophers of the seventeenth century attempted to use graphical representations to demonstrate the structure and operations of the human brain.
• Positive Examples of Conformity and Obedience Psychology Social influence refers to the ability of an individual to influence another person or a group of people in according to one’s own will.
• Personality Tests in the Field of Psychology In addition to that, the test’s questions touch on various aspects of a person’s life thus analyzing their personality from different angles.
• Psychological Perspectives: Jason’s Life Case However, the real self Jason was a man who tended to isolate himself from family and have inferiority complex along with unrecognized homosexual tendencies. Moreover, Jason did not feel parental support because of the conditions […]
• Serial Killer Psychology: Eileen Wuornos Eileen was a woman without remorse as she was not bothered by the death of her victims. It is said that her intention was to capture the attention of the man she was dating.
• Leadership and Organizational Psychology of Vince Lombardi The Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator is one of the most renowned personality tests an individual can use to assess one’s leadership journey.
• A Clinical Psychologist – Dr. Na’im Akbar As a faculty member, he also agitated for the introduction of courses in Black psychology that would also serve the interests of the black minority race.
• Personality Psychology: Cinderella’s Personality A lot of Cinderella time is spent working in the house, and she exhibits a high degree of submission. Cinderella behaviour is not linked to her personality but the immediate environment that she lives in.
• Love and Memory From a Psychological Point of View The commonly known love types include affection, passionate love, friendship, infatuation, puppy love, sexual love, platonic love, romantic love and many other terms that could be coined out to basically describe love.
• Psychological Test Design Process There are six steps in total to design a psychological test and the most important aspect is the clarity of thought while framing the question paper.
• Psychological Testing in Employee Screening The HRI is designed to examine relationships between the supervisor and the employees he/she is in charge of supervising. The instrument is designed to cover the philosophy, principles, and approaches related to the effective performance […]
• Psychological Issues in “Fight Club” by Palahniuk The story focuses upon an unnamed narrator who struggles to find a sense of fulfillment in a world in which personal fulfillment is supposed to be accomplished through making the right purchases and having access […]
• Bowen Family Systems Theory – Psychology In this context, the theory is relevant in demonstrating that the level of stress prevalent in the family due to alcoholism and irresponsible behavior of the family head is directly responsible for the development of […]
• Expectancy Theory in Motivation Psychology According to the theory suggested by Vroom, which would later on be called the Expectancy Theory, the behavior of a person is largely predetermined by the consequences that their behavior is going to have.
• Psychological Trauma: Treatment Planning Their mother, Tanya is the sole breadwinner in the family who works in one of the Information Technologies firm while their father is a local driver with one of the truck companies in the city.
• Violations of Psychological Code of Conduct 8 A psychologist used chimpanzees in his study and paid the staff who cared for the animals. However, the psychologist went on a business trip and forgot to pay his workers.
• Psychological and Sociological Theories in Life People tend to behave in a way that is beneficial for the development of the system. This theoretical paradigm explains people’s choice to obtain the higher education as this enables them to contribute to the […]
• Introduction to Psychological Testing Achievement and Aptitude Tests Is commonly practiced in educational as well as employment set ups, since they tend to measure the scope of understanding of a given knowledge.
• Google Inc.’s Organizational Psychology Organizational psychology plays a critical role in the effectiveness of a firm to find candidates which are able to demonstrate high performance on the job while fitting into the workplace culture, thus a complex talent […]
• Psychology and Enduring Relationships In line with this view and drawing on the link between the length and benefits of coupling, it is important to understand the psychology of enduring relationships to predict the extent that people stay together.
• History of Psychological Assessment: People’s Behavior in Terms of Their Skills This paper discusses the history, advance and the main events of psychological testing applied in China to select the officials in the civil service.
• The Psychology of Addictive Behavior This is because of the debilitating effect the activity has on society and the individual. This report will concentrate on the factors of addictions that cause serious harm to society.
• Cognitive Psychology: Clarkston Industries Company’ Case This is one of the arguments that she can put forward to justify her decision about Jack’s status in the company.
• Psychology in Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” The reading of Gilman story’s few initial lines suggests that the reason why the narrator and her husband John decided to spend the summer in a secluded mansion is that this was supposed to help […]
• Inevitable Prejudice in Social Psychology Adorno supposes that the authoritarian personality is hostile to those of an inferior rank and servile to those of a higher rank.
• Research in Industrial and Organizational Psychology Basic research in I/O psychology can be described as a study or research conducted in an organization with the aim of adding more scientific knowledge.
• Social Psychological Concepts of Bullying and Its Types Some of the factors that contribute to bullying include poor parenting, economic challenges, lack of mentorship, and jealousy among others. One of the main concepts used to explain bullying is that of parenting roles and […]
• Human Emotions Psychology: Rooting in Biology or Culture To my mind, both biology and culture play a certain role in human emotions, and it is crucially important to analyze in what way biology turns out to be a root of human emotions and […]
• Psychology And Society In conflict resolution, the one heading the exercise has to have an understanding of the psychology of the conflicting parties. This is why a psychology scholar cannot afford to ignore the works of his/her predecessors.
• Kohut and Self Psychology and the Freudian Classical Model Kohut’s theory of self psychology by contrast returned human agency to the theory of personality and promoted a more dynamic interplay between the individual and his or her environment.
• Culturally Informed Psychological Assessment They do not posit a single culture, requiring the assessor to discern these cultures and their influence on a person’s psychological behavior.
• Industrial and Organizational Psychology Theory Industrial/organizational psychology is a field that applies psychology principles to the workplace.It can be used to solve issues that occur in the organizational context.
• Physiological Psychology Definition The nervous system affects behavior through the brain; it is the signals that are sent via its tendons to the brain that will affect the behavior of an individual.
• Biology and Psychology in Behavior Explanation Nonetheless, the primary goal of this essay is to provide examples of the biological functioning of the body and explain their importance in psychology while understanding the motives for the particular behavior.
• Gestalt Theory as a Psychological Perspective The strengths of Gestalt in counseling include its provision of flexible and phenomenological diagnoses that are focused on the identification of patterns and themes that are specific and unique to an individual client.
• Technology in Psychological Assessment The speed in conducting tests with the help of technology and the improved data analysis based on the effective use of statistical procedures make the technology play the important role in the sphere of emotional […]
• The Mind-Body Problem in the History of Psychology The crux of the problem is evident from its name: what is the relationship between the mind and the body? A prominent medieval philosopher Thomas Aquinas ties the issue of the body and the soul […]
• Introduction to Clinical Psychology This means that clinical psychology plays a vital role in promoting the development of mental and behavioral health of patients with mental disabilities.
• Educational Psychology in Learning and Teaching Thus, this course has significantly helped me as a teacher in studying and applying modern research methodologies and suppositions, practices and plans which emphasize on the use of both quantitative and qualitative methods in improving […]
• Socio-Cultural Approach to Psychology This is influenced by a transmission of resources from the care givers to the dependencies. The kind of attention and language the child gets is from the surrounding.
• Sensation and Perception Studies in Psychology Senses such as hearing and taste help in the study of sensation and perception in psychology and how people practice them in their environment.
• “On Psychological Oppression” by Sandra Bartky Psychological oppression is to have a harsh dominion exercised over your self-esteem and make the victims their own oppressors.
• Personal Development: Psychological Difficulties, Sexuality In my opinion the period of adolescence is the most difficult in human life and I think that it would be interesting to discuss the attitude to sexuality with the help of personal development theories.
• Psychological Traps in the Human Decision Making They include the anchoring trap, the status-quo trap, the sunk cost trap, the confirming evidence trap, the framing trap, the overconfidence trap, the prudence trap, and the recall-ability trap.
• Positive Living Skills by Terry Orlick He nurtures people, regardless of their age or culture, to be part of the transformation of the world to be a better place to live in.
• Correctional Psychology and Its Procedures This paper gives a detailed discussion on correctional psychology covering aspects like the personality inventories used in selection of correction psychologist, duties and activities of a correctional psychologist and the challenges faced, the career opportunities […]
• Justine’s Psychological State in “Melancholia” The planet is representation of the anger. The planet is representation of Justine’s anger and the Earth is Justine’s ego.
• Abraham Maslow, the Father of Humanistic Psychology From the above pyramid, Maslow contributed immensely to the field of psychology because he impacted people’s perception of psychology by introducing the concept of humanistic psychology.
• Structuralism, Functionalism and Cognitive Theory in Psychology This was done by Ferdinand de Saussure, the French psychologists firmly believed that the theory of Structuralism was not restricted to linguistics alone and later this theory was also applied to various other subjects. Structuralism […]
• Psychological and Psychosocial Support in Disaster Nursing The paper reviews the presently available literature on the topic, covering the aspects of the significance of psychological and psychosocial support and related education, as well as the perceptions of nursing, existing problems in the […]
• Social Psychology: Definition, Aspects and Theories In contrast, social psychology is the study of the causes of behavior and mental attitudes. Social psychology deals with the study of how different contexts influence human behavior, feelings, thoughts, and other mental states.
• Forensic Psychology: Television v. Reality The qualification of a psychologist in the forensic field to qualify as an expert witness is dependent on the reputation as well as the experience that a psychologist has in this field.
• Psychology in the Episode of Dr. Phil’s Show Based on the various theories and interpretations of human behavior and mental health, each psychological perspective would handle the symptoms and issues of the main character in a different way.
• Psychological Concepts in “A Child Called “It” by Pelzer For example, in one of the episodes of his memories, Dave recalls being instructed by his mother to repeat the phrase “I am a bad boy” while looking at the mirror.
• Psychological Interventions: Becoming a Helper I encountered first-order intervention as means of urgent support during a critical situation when I had to refer a person to a crisis prevention hotline. In conclusion, first and second-order interventions aim to help a […]
• Astrology as Pseudo-Psychology
• Stroke Analysis: Psychology and Causes
• What Is Environmental Psychology?
• Environmental Design Psychology Theory
• Psychology of Choice and Decision-Making
• Educational Psychology: Strong Points and Weaknesses
• Albert Bandura: An Eminent Psychologist
• Egoism: Ethical and Psychological Egoism
• Anorexia Nervosa in Psychological Point of View
• Current Trends in Psychological Research
• Psychological Theories and Methods Behind Training of Service Animals
• Introduction to Psychology: Motivation and Emotion
• Psychology in Childcare: Theory and Practice
• ANOVA Test on the Level of Psychological Aggression
• Behaviorism in Development of Psychology
• Noam Chomsky’s Contribution to Cognitive Psychology
• Forensic Psychology in the Criminal Justice System
• Psychological Perspectives and Schools of Thought
• The Psychology of Personality: Counselling Process
• Humanist Psychology, Cognitive Psychology and Positive Psychology
• Human Interaction With the Surrounding Environment
• Introduction to Psychology: Rating Attractiveness: Consensus among Men, not Women, Study Finds
• Cross-Cultural Psychology Study
• Written and Psychological Contracts of Employment
• Psychology Aspects in Spearman’s, Stenberg’s and Gardner’s Models of Intelligence
• Obesity: Psychological/ Sociological Issue
• Psychological Effects of Relocation
• Forensic Psychology: Validating Eyewitness Testimony
• Psychological Trauma, Development and Spirituality
• Social Anxiety Disorder Causes and Symptoms
• Aviation Psychology
• “Integrative Approaches to Psychology and Christianity” by David N. Entwistle
• Definition of Cognitive Psychology
• Concept of the Theory of Behaviorism in Psychology
• Multicultural Psychology as a Subspecialty of Psychology
• Behaviorism and Its Impact on Psychology
• Sports Can Improve the Psychological Well-Being of People with Disability
• Relationship Between Psychology and Christian Faith
• Cognitive Psychology – A Concept of Attention
• Interview Research Profile: Psychological Profile
• Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness
• Chaim Potok: Psychological Transformation in “The Chosen”
• Zeitgeist Influences on the Birth of Gestalt Psychology
• Psychology of Anakin and Padme From “Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith”
• Community Psychology: Social Change and Justice
• Foolishness: Psychological Perspective
• Forensic Psychology’s Risk Assessment
• Individualism Versus Group Cognition in Psychology
• Positive Psychology and Academic Stress
• Psychological First Aid for Disaster Victims
• Humans Behavior: Physical and Psychological Needs
• Infants’ Psychology and Development
• Cognitive Psychology Development Important Milestones
• Psychological Testing Tools: Intelligence Tests
• African American Culture: Psychological Processes
• Child Psychology Development
• Influence of Heavy Metal Music on Adolescence (Behavior, Identity, Mood, Regulation, Psychology)
• Role of Research and Statistics in the Field of Psychology
• Historical Perspective of Abnormal Psychology
• Freud and Jung Psychology
• The Philosophy of Psychology
• Moral Development and Its Relation to Psychology
• Psychological Impacts of Sexual Abuse on Ryan
• Culture, Emotions, and Psychology Relationships
• Psychological Foundations of Criminal Behavior
• Renee Baillargeon Biography and Her Contribution to the Developmental Psychology
• Theories of Psychology: Behavioral, Cognitive, Developmental
• Functionalism School of Psychology
• Adolescent Consumer Psychology and Feedback Loop
• Martin Seligman’s “Flourish” and Modern Psychology
• Forensic Psychology: Media and Crime Relationship
• Childhood, Adolescence, Young Adulthood Psychology
• Industrial Psychology in Employee Selection and Training
• Burrhus Frederic Skinner and his Influence on Psychology
• Influence Physical Environment on Human Psychology
• Positive Psychology and Chinese Culture
• Application of Clinical Psychology
• Psychological Egoism vs Ethical Egoism
• The Psychological Explanation of Terrorism
• Psychological Profile: Charles Manson
• Emerging Issues in Multicultural Psychology
• Psychological Approaches: Applying to Personal Life
• Psychological Factors Affecting Sex Workers
• Psychological Imbalance: Mental Health Issues
• Character’s Psychology in “Jazz” by Toni Morrison
• Abnormal Psychology Case Study: General Anxiety Disorder
• Psychology of Conflict Communication
• Socialization of Adolescents in Modern Psychology
• Goal Setting in Sport Psychology: Enhancing Athletes’ Performance and Building New Skills
• Understanding the Psychological Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Society
• William James and His Contributions to Psychology
• Fetishism: Psychological Sexual Disorder
• Application of Psychology in Workplace Environment
• Psychological and Sociological Issues in Australian Tourism
• Psychology of Sexual Response Cycle
• Health Psychology: Going Through a Breast Cancer Diagnosis
• Cognitive Psychology: Culture and Cognition
• Cognitive Psychology: Intelligence and Wisdom
• Decision-Making in Cognitive Psychology
• Psychological Theories Explaining Violent Crime
• Social Psychology of Attraction
• Definition of Five Perspectives in Psychology
• Depression as a Psychological Disorder
• Analytical Psychology of Carl Jung
• Psychology: Drug Impact and Use Prevention
• Psychology Forces in Wilber’s “Spectrum of Consciousness”
• Learning Journal in the Social Psychology Study
• Psychology: Chewing Gum’ Negative Effects
• Psychological Safety in a Team Environment
• Obesity: Physical and Psychological Consequences
• Forensic Psychology: Eyewitness Testimonies’ Unreliability
• Psychologist’s Roles in Criminal Justice System
• Academic Dishonesty in Psychologist’s Ethics
• Death in Psychological and Personal Understanding
• Christine Ladd-Franklin’s Contribution to the Psychology
• Psychological Definition of Persuasion
• The Psychology of Personality: Maya Angelou’s Case
• Jury Selection Process Psychology
• Developmental Psychology: Designing Educational Toys
• Adolescence and Adulthood Developmental Stages – Psychology
• “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg – Psychology
• Involvement of Psychologists in Military Interrogations
• Cognitive Psychology Definition and Concept
• Psychological Issues: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
• Ethical Reflection of Psychological Experiments
• Psychology Issues in Mark Twain’s “The Lowest Animal”
• Psychology Issues: Group Survival in Extreme Situations
• Psychology Research and Its Methods
• The Effect of HRM Practices on Psychological Contract in Organisation
• Is Homosexuality a Psychological Condition?
• How Has the Jungian Theory Contributed to the History and Systems of Psychology?
• The Concept of Ego Depletion in Psychology
• Industrial/Organizational Psychology Project
• Research Methods in Psychology
• Childhood Friendship and Psychology
• Historical Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology
• Forensic Psychology Role in the Investigation of Crime
• Bernard Williams The Self and the Future and Psychological Continuity Theory of Personal Identity
• Analysis of the History of Biological Psychology and Its Relationship With Other Psychology Branches
• Developmental Theories in Psychology
• Psychological Testing in the Workplace
• Psychology of Sleep: Article Study
• Contemporary Issues in Cultural & Cross-Cultural Psychology
• Organizational Psychology: Productive and Counterproductive Behaviors
• Sex Addiction as a Psychological Disorder
• The Real Father of Psychology
• Stuttering Management: Psychological Therapy Effectiveness
• Ecstasy Unveiled: The Journey from Therapeutic Compound to Street Drug
• Dual Relationships in Psychology: A Personal and Professional Journey
• Retrieval Learning in Cognitive Psychology
• The Use of Creativity in Psychology
• Cross-Cultural Psychology in Contemporary Psychiatry
• Benefits of Learning Psychosomatics as Branches of Clinical Psychology
• Modern Psychological Counseling
• Evolutionary Psychology and Christian Worldview
• Psychological Concept of Processing Stimuli
• Psychological Analysis of Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper
• Introducing the World of Psychology
• The Organizational Project: Psychological Needs Application Development
• Amundson on Hedonic Psychology, Disability, and Life Quality
• Psychology of Personality: Role Models
• Biological Psychology: Lesion Studies and Depression Detection
• “Researching and Practicing Positive Psychology…” by Wang
• Drug Abuse and Its Psychological Effects
• Psychology: Areas of Application
• Social Psychology and Personality: Lessons Learnt
• Positive Psychology Intervention for Ageing Population
• Effects of Different Music on Psychological State
• Psychological Conditions in Addition to Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory
• Post-Fordism: Industrial and Organizational Psychology
• Cognitive Psychology: The Effects of Memory Conformity
• Correctional Psychology’s Impact on the Penitentiary System
• Psychological Concepts: Nature vs. Nurture
• Human Psychology: Fulfilling Internal Needs
• Developmental Psychology of an Immigrant Family
• Psychological Traits in Consumer Spending Habits
• Social Justice in Counseling Psychology
• Adulthood and Puberty Psychology
• Vignette: Psychological Child Maltreatment
• Psychology: Proposed Implementation and Evaluation Plan
• Forensic Psychologist’s Role in Homicide Investigation
• Clinical and Counseling Psychology
• Psychology: The Aftermath of a Death
• Psychological Testing and Assessment
• Ethics: Informational and Psychological Security of the Individuals
• Test (Gender) Bias in Psychology
• The Via Classification Test as a Psychological Tool
• The Role of Technology in the Psychology Profession
• Psychological Counseling and Psychotherapy
• Some Basic Propositions of a Growth and Self-Actualization Psychology
• Anorexia as Social and Psychological Disease
• The Impact of Technology Development on the Adolescence Psychology
• Psychological Determinants of Adolescent Predisposition to Deviant Behavior
• SOAP Case-Notes: Psychological Rehabilitation
• Testing and Evaluation in Psychological Research
• Psychological Theories of Grandfather’s Development
• Application of Cognitive Psychology
• Screening Survey in Psychological Science
• Causes of Premature Termination of Psychological Treatment
• Celebrities’ Psychological States: Diagnoses Are Not Cut and Dry
• Bipolar Disorder: A Major Psychological Issue in America
• The Psychological and Physiological Effects of Cannabis
• Socio-Psychological Trust Issues in Youth
• Researching of Abnormal Psychology
• Developmental Psychology as Scientific Study
• Exam Anxiety as Psychological Disorder
• Child Psychology Research and Ethics
• Historical Impact of Psychology on Human Resource Management
• Psychological and Psychiatric Diagnoses in a Patient with Multiple Symptoms
• Developmental Psychology Analysis
• Psychology Powered HRM Practice: Meteor Cargo Limited
• Sexting and Its Psychological Consequences
• Psychological Health Issues Among Veterans
• The Psychological Well-Being of Nurses During COVID-19
• The Role of Psychological Support in Teaching
• The Origin of Psychological Disorders: Freud and Adler’s Perspectives
• Psychology and the Nature of Human Conduct
• Biological and Psychological Factors Influencing Drug Experiences
• Adolescent Development: Adolescent Psychology
• Childhood Trauma Long-Term Psychological Outcomes
• Psychology of Type A and Type B Personalities
• Controversial Experiment in Psychology History
• Psychology Development in Mexico
• Applications of Positive Psychology in Healthcare
• Developing a Psychology-Related Career Plan
• Stress as an Important Psychological Issue
• The Eye-to-Eye Project’s Importance for Psychology
• Psychological Health Disparities in Children
• Psychologists and Interrogations
• Psychology: The Little Albert Experiment
• The Consciousness of the Psychological and Physical Effects of Nursing
• Stigma and Psychological Distress in HIV Caregivers
• Rising Interest in Psychology and Psychology Degree
• Urie Bronfenbrenner, a Psychological Researcher
• Psychology in Human Resource Management
• Environmental Psychology: The Impact of Interior Spaces on Childhood Development
• Socio-Psychological Factors of Abortion in Women of Different Age Groups
• Expectations From Psychological-Sociological Course
• Psychological Experiments on Videogames and Theater
• Psychological Disorders Analysis
• Psychology and Personality: The Main Theories
• Misconducts and Self-Care in Psychology Professionals’ Activities
• Device Use and Psychological Disorders: Regression Model
• The Midlife Crisis in Developmental Psychology
• Human Consciousness in Philosophy of Psychology
• Jury Psychology and Decision Criticism
• Psychological Issues of Independent Living
• Future Ways for Helping People With Psychology
• The Relevance of Relational Self-Psychology
• The Psychological Impacts of Rape and Potential Interventions
• Evolutionary Psychology and Psychological Anthropology
• The Psychology of Evil Analysis
• Self-Assessment Test in Psychology
• The Psychological Nature of Memory
• The Discrepancy Between an Original Psychological Article and Its Representation
• Environmental Issues, Psychology, and Economics
• Racial Profiling in Cultural Psychology
• Humanistic Psychology and Its Main Ideas
• Japanese Psychology as World-Renowned School of Thought
• Group Influence as a Social Psychology Issue
• Using Psychological Tests in the Employer’s Decision-Making Process
• Psychology in Sports: Tradition of Stoicism in Sports
• Researching of Criminal Psychology
• Ethical and Psychological Egoism
• Abortion and Its Physical and Psychological Effects
• Psychological Practice in Health Centers
• Sports Psychologists and Chaplains
• Mental Disorders: Biological-Psychological Perspectives and Psychotropic Medications
• Christian Spirituality: Integration Into Sports Psychological Practices
• Emotional and Psychological Impact on Illness Outcomes
• Sports Chaplaincy and Psychology Collaboration
• Physical Health Problems and Psychological State
• Criminology and Psychological Profiling Approaches
• Sex Offence: The Role of Psychological Disorder
• Discussion of Psychological Imbalance
• Consequences of Pandemic COVID-19: The Psychological Climate in the Family
• Psychological Wellness and Mental Health
• My Lot in Life: Psychological Aspects of Education
• Vincent van Gogh: A Brilliant Psychologist and Poet of Art
• Community Psychologists as Agents of a Social Change
• Changing Racial Identity: A Psychological Aspect
• Architectural Development Design: Environmental Psychological Implications
• “The Social Psychology of Compassion” by Radey and Figley
• Psychological Therapy: Borderline Personality Disorder
• “Mindset: The New Psychology of Success” by C. Dweck
• Adolescence and Young Adulthood in Educational Psychology
• Positive Psychology’s Influence on the Self
• Psychological Disorders: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment
• How Psychological Science Aligns With Biblical Truth About Self-Handicapping?
• Hewlett-Packard: Application of Cross-Cultural Psychology
• A Career in Counseling Psychology
• Understanding Human Psychology: Brain Stimulation
• Career Field in Psychology: Counselor
• The Influence of Positive Psychology
• Sensation and Perception: Psychological Science
• God of the Bible From a Psychological Perspective
• Psychological Considerations and Sociological Effects of Drones
• The Elderly Abuse: Physical and Psychological Aspects
• Is “Candide” Positively Influenced by Psychological Factors
• Psychology: Emotional Regulation
• The Dying Person: Physical, Psychological, and Social Care
• The Field of Psychology: Practice Standards
• Implications of Theological and Psychological Reflections on Human Behavior
• Psychological Lens Narrative: Personal Experience
• Influence of Psychological and Behavioral Aspects of the Individual on Exposure to Herd Investing
• Writing Proposal in Psychology
• Investigation: Psychology of Sport Fans
• Professional Psychology: Importance of Confidentiality and Code of Conduct
• Personality Psychology Overview
• Psychological Profile of Vladimir Putin
• Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: Psychological Problems
• Deprogramming Cult Members: Religious and Psychological Analysis
• Analysis of Plays: Psychological Critical Perspectives
• Child Development: Psychological Factors and Theories
• Forensic Psychology and Behavioral Analysis
• Psychological Disorders: Classification
• History of Ethical Principles in Psychology
• Research Design in Psychology
• A Child’s Psychological Development
• Childhood and Adolescence Psychology
• Changes in Life and Psychological Stress Assessment
• Psychology: Health Behavior Change & Reflection
• Psychology Integration: Healthcare Industry
• A Psychological Perspective on Death and Mourning
• Psychological Factors After Officer-Involved Shootings: Officer Needs and Agency Responsibilities
• Cyber-Bullying vs. Traditional Bullying: Its Psychological Effects
• Careers in Industrial-Organizational Psychology
• Child Pornography: Legal and Psychological Implications
• Data Analysis in Psychological Wellbeing Research
• Relationship Satisfaction and Psychological Well-Being Among Greek People With Physical Disabilities
• Generosity and Psychological Well-Being
• Sports Psychology: Zen in the Martial Arts
• Aspects of Sport Psychology Overview
• Nature of Health and Illness: Biological Psychology
• Psychological Aspects of Weightlifting
• The Concepts of Nature and Nurture in Modern Psychologist to Explain Juvenile Delinquency
• Biological Psychology: Memory
• The Impact of Culture on Aging: Psychological and Sociological Analysis
• The Psychological Aspect of Logical Fallacies of Technology
• The Psychology of Interpersonal Relationships
• Development of Structuralism as a Systemic Movement in Psychology
• Psychological Health and Social Environment Correlation
• Psychology: Social Media and Bullying
• Psychological Aftermath of Illnesses and Injuries
• Impact of the Internet on Psychological Wellbeing
• Violence and Aggression Between People as Psychological Phenomena
• The American Psychological Association: Referencing Style
• Neuropsychological and Psychological Disorders
• Apple’s Popularity: Consumers’ Psychology
• Psychological Theories and Tests of Motivation
• Doctoral Program Educational Psychology
• Physical and Psychological Trauma in Women
• Ethical Practices in Psychological Assessment
• Traumatic Brain Injury: Psychological Manifestations
• Research Methods in Psychology: Pros & Cons
• The Horrific Consequences That Result From Inaccurate Psychological Diagnosis
• Management of HR Talent and Teams: Psychological-Contract Perspective
• Motivation Theories in Fulfillment of Psychological Needs
• Psychological Processes Which Affect Various Techniques and Approaches
• Environmental Psychology: Contemporary Educational Institutions
• Teenage Depression: Psychology-Based Treatment
• Industrial Psychology in Explaining Corporate Behaviors
• The Psychological Perceptions of Pain
• The Psychology Concepts Review
• The Evolutionary Psychology Key Points
• History and Evolving Nature of Clinical Psychology
• Evaluating Psychological Information on the Web
• The Psychological Contract and Motivation
• The Hand – The Psychological Personality
• Victims of Disasters: Psychological Traumas
• Psychological First Aid: Connection With Social Support
• Sigmund Freud: Theories and Contribution to Psychology
• Comparing the Psychological Challenges Facing Tom and Laura Wingfield
• Health and Health Policy of HIV and AIDS: Physical and Psychological Wellbeing
• The Psychological Wellbeing of People in a Working Environment
• Job-Oriented Analysis in HR Management
• Features of Psychological Research Methods: Application in Practice
• Consultative Psychology Skills: Applying Skills to Identify the Problem
• The Shifting Gender Composition of Psychology: The Discipline
• Feminist Psychology in Canada
• Contributors in Psychology as a Science
• Personality and Psychology of the Motivation
• Psychology Article Analysis: The Shared Reality
• Social Psychology and Social Neuroscience Connection
• Social Psychology Concepts in News Coverage
• Sleep Deprivation: Biopsychology and Health Psychology
• The American Counseling Association and the American Psychological Association Websites
• Self Concept: Developmental Psychology
• Psychological Issues: Self-Identity and Sexual Meaning Issues, and Memory Processing
• Practitioner-Scholar Model in Psychology
• Psychological Strategies to Understand Literature
• Psychology. Brain Structure and Behavior
• American Psychological Association Style Manual
• Genograms in Family Assessment
• Cognitive Psychology and Its Implications
• Psychology of Aggression and Violence
• Freud’s Impact on Modern-Day Psychology
• Free Will and Choice in Islamic Psychology
• Ethics in the Field of Psychology
• Personal and Social Psychology in Modern Community
• Lifespan Variable: Psychological Aspects
• Freud’s Impact on Modern Psychology
• Psychology of Communication Technology
• Psychological Theoretical Positions of Sigmund Freud
• Philosophical Origins of Approaches to Clinical Psychology
• The Impact of Psychological Problems on a Person
• Psychological Concepts in the Streisand’s Movie “Prince of Tides”
• Clinical Counseling Psychology: Research and Statistics
• Profile Interview: Psychological Assessment
• The Concept of Personality in Psychology
• Clinical Psychology, Its Issues and Purposes
• Media Attention to Psychology
• Developmental Psychology: The Impact of Family-Of-Origin on Adulthood
• Psychological Testing Article Analysis
• Imagery in Sports Psychology and Its Effects
• Child Development and Evolutionary Psychology
• Child Psychology. “Music Lessons Enhance IQ” by Schellenberg
• Child Psychology in a Multicultural Environment
• Psychology. “Self-Esteem” Book by Dr. Matthew McKay
• Parenting Training Classes: A Psychology Experiment
• Ethics in Groups of Psychologists and Counsellors
• Positive Psychology Concerns
• Schizophrenia: An Abnormal Human Behavior
• Psychology Achievement Test
• Music and Text Messaging Influence on Social Psychology and Psychosocial Development
• Folk Psychology. The Role of Folk Psychology
• Environmental Psychology: The Problem of Protection
• Observation Paper Psychologist Theories
• Clinical Psychology Matrix Structure
• Reflection of Personal Learning Style in Psychology
• “Careers in Environmental Psychology” by Conaway
• Discipline of Environmental Psychology
• Criminal Psychological Profiling
• “Psychological Response to Athletic Injuries: Gender Differences”: Article Analysis
• The Theory of Personality Psychology During Depression
• Hebb’s Psychology Theoretical Concepts
• Psychological Concepts in My Life
• Industrial Psychology. Corporate Social Relations
• Group and Individual Thinking: Mob Psychology
• What Can Psychology Teach Us About Human Development?
• How Many Years Will It Take To Be a Psychologist?
• Who Founded the First Laboratory of Scientific Psychology?
• What Does Recent Social Psychology Research Tell Us About?
• How Abraham Maslow and His Humanistic Psychology Shaped the Modern Self?
• Can Positive Psychology Make Us Happier?
• What Way Did Philosophy of Plato Influence Psychology?
• What Are the Different Perspectives of Psychology?
• Are Psychology Journals Anti-replication?
• Does Human Psychology Drive Financial Markets?
• Why Are Men More Depressed Than Women in Psychology?
• How Can Social Psychology Explain the Behavior of Suicide Bombers?
• How and Why Did Psychology Develop as an Academic Discipline?
• Can Evolutionary Psychology Explain Individual Differences in Personality?
• What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Quantitative and Qualitative Methods in Psychology?
• How Both Sociology and Social Psychology Can Help Us to Understand Anti-social Behavior?
• What Are the Main Perspectives in the Study of Psychology?
• Can Psychology Explain Sexual Violence?
• What Have Psychologists Found Out About the Psychology of Testimony?
• Why Can’t One Approach to Psychology Describe All Human Behaviour?
• Why Do Psychologists Consider Psychology to Be a Science?
• Who Benefits From Humor-Based Positive Psychology Interventions?
• Does Positive Psychology Ease Symptoms of Depression?
• How Art and Psychology Are Related?
• How Can Applied Psychology Help Make Societies More Peaceful?
• How Behavioral Economics Relates to Psychology?
• Do Psychology and Education Have a Link?
• What Can Evolutionary Psychology Tell Us About Who We Find Attractive?
• What Are the Effects of Bipolar Disorder Psychology?
• Does Psychology Place Too Little Emphasis on the Study of Communication?
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2024, March 1). 629 Psychology Essay Topics & Examples. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/psychology-essay-examples/

"629 Psychology Essay Topics & Examples." IvyPanda , 1 Mar. 2024, ivypanda.com/essays/topic/psychology-essay-examples/.

IvyPanda . (2024) '629 Psychology Essay Topics & Examples'. 1 March.

IvyPanda . 2024. "629 Psychology Essay Topics & Examples." March 1, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/psychology-essay-examples/.

1. IvyPanda . "629 Psychology Essay Topics & Examples." March 1, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/psychology-essay-examples/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "629 Psychology Essay Topics & Examples." March 1, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/psychology-essay-examples/.

• Cultural Psychology Ideas
• Cognitive Development Essay Ideas
• Psychotherapy Paper Topics
• Emotional Development Questions
• Behaviorism Research Ideas
• Family Therapy Questions
• Cognitive Dissonance Research Topics
• Psychoanalysis Essay Topics

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Writing in Psychology Overview

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Psychology is based on the study of human behaviors. As a social science, experimental psychology uses empirical inquiry to help understand human behavior. According to Thrass and Sanford (2000), psychology writing has three elements: describing, explaining, and understanding concepts from a standpoint of empirical investigation.

Discipline-specific writing, such as writing done in psychology, can be similar to other types of writing you have done in the use of the writing process, writing techniques, and in locating and integrating sources. However, the field of psychology also has its own rules and expectations for writing; not everything that you have learned in about writing in the past works for the field of psychology.

Writing in psychology includes the following principles:

• Using plain language : Psychology writing is formal scientific writing that is plain and straightforward. Literary devices such as metaphors, alliteration, or anecdotes are not appropriate for writing in psychology.
• Conciseness and clarity of language : The field of psychology stresses clear, concise prose. You should be able to make connections between empirical evidence, theories, and conclusions. See our OWL handout on conciseness for more information.
• Evidence-based reasoning: Psychology bases its arguments on empirical evidence. Personal examples, narratives, or opinions are not appropriate for psychology.
• Use of APA format: Psychologists use the American Psychological Association (APA) format for publications. While most student writing follows this format, some instructors may provide you with specific formatting requirements that differ from APA format .

Types of writing

Most major writing assignments in psychology courses consists of one of the following two types.

Experimental reports: Experimental reports detail the results of experimental research projects and are most often written in experimental psychology (lab) courses. Experimental reports are write-ups of your results after you have conducted research with participants. This handout provides a description of how to write an experimental report .

Critical analyses or reviews of research : Often called "term papers," a critical analysis of research narrowly examines and draws conclusions from existing literature on a topic of interest. These are frequently written in upper-division survey courses. Our research paper handouts provide a detailed overview of how to write these types of research papers.

• Bipolar Disorder
• Therapy Center
• When To See a Therapist
• Types of Therapy
• Best Online Therapy
• Best Couples Therapy
• Best Family Therapy
• Managing Stress
• Sleep and Dreaming
• Understanding Emotions
• Self-Improvement
• Healthy Relationships
• Student Resources
• Personality Types
• Guided Meditations
• Verywell Mind Insights
• 2024 Verywell Mind 25
• Mental Health in the Classroom
• Editorial Process
• Meet Our Review Board
• Crisis Support

50+ Research Topics for Psychology Papers

How to Find Psychology Research Topics for Your Student Paper

Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital.

• Specific Branches of Psychology
• Topics Involving a Disorder or Type of Therapy
• Human Cognition
• Human Development
• Critique of Publications
• Famous Experiments
• Historical Figures
• Specific Careers
• Case Studies
• Literature Reviews
• Your Own Study/Experiment

Are you searching for a great topic for your psychology paper ? Sometimes it seems like coming up with topics of psychology research is more challenging than the actual research and writing. Fortunately, there are plenty of great places to find inspiration and the following list contains just a few ideas to help get you started.

Finding a solid topic is one of the most important steps when writing any type of paper. It can be particularly important when you are writing a psychology research paper or essay. Psychology is such a broad topic, so you want to find a topic that allows you to adequately cover the subject without becoming overwhelmed with information.

I can always tell when a student really cares about the topic they chose; it comes through in the writing. My advice is to choose a topic that genuinely interests you, so you’ll be more motivated to do thorough research.

In some cases, such as in a general psychology class, you might have the option to select any topic from within psychology's broad reach. Other instances, such as in an  abnormal psychology  course, might require you to write your paper on a specific subject such as a psychological disorder.

As you begin your search for a topic for your psychology paper, it is first important to consider the guidelines established by your instructor.

Research Topics Within Specific Branches of Psychology

The key to selecting a good topic for your psychology paper is to select something that is narrow enough to allow you to really focus on the subject, but not so narrow that it is difficult to find sources or information to write about.

One approach is to narrow your focus down to a subject within a specific branch of psychology. For example, you might start by deciding that you want to write a paper on some sort of social psychology topic. Next, you might narrow your focus down to how persuasion can be used to influence behavior .

Other social psychology topics you might consider include:

• Prejudice and discrimination (i.e., homophobia, sexism, racism)
• Social cognition
• Person perception
• Social control and cults
• Persuasion, propaganda, and marketing
• Attraction, romance, and love
• Nonverbal communication
• Prosocial behavior

Psychology Research Topics Involving a Disorder or Type of Therapy

Exploring a psychological disorder or a specific treatment modality can also be a good topic for a psychology paper. Some potential abnormal psychology topics include specific psychological disorders or particular treatment modalities, including:

• Eating disorders
• Borderline personality disorder
• Seasonal affective disorder
• Schizophrenia
• Antisocial personality disorder
• Profile a  type of therapy  (i.e., cognitive-behavioral therapy, group therapy, psychoanalytic therapy)

Topics of Psychology Research Related to Human Cognition

Some of the possible topics you might explore in this area include thinking, language, intelligence, and decision-making. Other ideas might include:

• False memories
• Speech disorders
• Problem-solving

Topics of Psychology Research Related to Human Development

In this area, you might opt to focus on issues pertinent to  early childhood  such as language development, social learning, or childhood attachment or you might instead opt to concentrate on issues that affect older adults such as dementia or Alzheimer's disease.

Some other topics you might consider include:

• Language acquisition
• Media violence and children
• Learning disabilities
• Gender roles
• Child abuse
• Prenatal development
• Parenting styles
• Aspects of the aging process

Do a Critique of Publications Involving Psychology Research Topics

One option is to consider writing a critique paper of a published psychology book or academic journal article. For example, you might write a critical analysis of Sigmund Freud's Interpretation of Dreams or you might evaluate a more recent book such as Philip Zimbardo's  The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil .

Professional and academic journals are also great places to find materials for a critique paper. Browse through the collection at your university library to find titles devoted to the subject that you are most interested in, then look through recent articles until you find one that grabs your attention.

Topics of Psychology Research Related to Famous Experiments

There have been many fascinating and groundbreaking experiments throughout the history of psychology, providing ample material for students looking for an interesting term paper topic. In your paper, you might choose to summarize the experiment, analyze the ethics of the research, or evaluate the implications of the study. Possible experiments that you might consider include:

• The Milgram Obedience Experiment
• The Stanford Prison Experiment
• The Little Albert Experiment
• Pavlov's Conditioning Experiments
• The Asch Conformity Experiment
• Harlow's Rhesus Monkey Experiments

Topics of Psychology Research About Historical Figures

One of the simplest ways to find a great topic is to choose an interesting person in the  history of psychology  and write a paper about them. Your paper might focus on many different elements of the individual's life, such as their biography, professional history, theories, or influence on psychology.

While this type of paper may be historical in nature, there is no need for this assignment to be dry or boring. Psychology is full of fascinating figures rife with intriguing stories and anecdotes. Consider such famous individuals as Sigmund Freud, B.F. Skinner, Harry Harlow, or one of the many other  eminent psychologists .

Psychology Research Topics About a Specific Career

​Another possible topic, depending on the course in which you are enrolled, is to write about specific career paths within the  field of psychology . This type of paper is especially appropriate if you are exploring different subtopics or considering which area interests you the most.

In your paper, you might opt to explore the typical duties of a psychologist, how much people working in these fields typically earn, and the different employment options that are available.

Topics of Psychology Research Involving Case Studies

One potentially interesting idea is to write a  psychology case study  of a particular individual or group of people. In this type of paper, you will provide an in-depth analysis of your subject, including a thorough biography.

Generally, you will also assess the person, often using a major psychological theory such as  Piaget's stages of cognitive development  or  Erikson's eight-stage theory of human development . It is also important to note that your paper doesn't necessarily have to be about someone you know personally.

In fact, many professors encourage students to write case studies on historical figures or fictional characters from books, television programs, or films.

Psychology Research Topics Involving Literature Reviews

Another possibility that would work well for a number of psychology courses is to do a literature review of a specific topic within psychology. A literature review involves finding a variety of sources on a particular subject, then summarizing and reporting on what these sources have to say about the topic.

Literature reviews are generally found in the  introduction  of journal articles and other  psychology papers , but this type of analysis also works well for a full-scale psychology term paper.

Topics of Psychology Research Based on Your Own Study or Experiment

Many psychology courses require students to design an actual psychological study or perform some type of experiment. In some cases, students simply devise the study and then imagine the possible results that might occur. In other situations, you may actually have the opportunity to collect data, analyze your findings, and write up your results.

Finding a topic for your study can be difficult, but there are plenty of great ways to come up with intriguing ideas. Start by considering your own interests as well as subjects you have studied in the past.

Online sources, newspaper articles, books , journal articles, and even your own class textbook are all great places to start searching for topics for your experiments and psychology term papers. Before you begin, learn more about  how to conduct a psychology experiment .

What This Means For You

After looking at this brief list of possible topics for psychology papers, it is easy to see that psychology is a very broad and diverse subject. While this variety makes it possible to find a topic that really catches your interest, it can sometimes make it very difficult for some students to select a good topic.

If you are still stumped by your assignment, ask your instructor for suggestions and consider a few from this list for inspiration.

• Hockenbury, SE & Nolan, SA. Psychology. New York: Worth Publishers; 2014.
• Santrock, JW. A Topical Approach to Lifespan Development. New York: McGraw-Hill Education; 2016.

By Kendra Cherry, MSEd Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

The Intriguing World of Psychology: Minds and Behaviors

This essay about psychology introduces the field as a comprehensive study of human thought, emotion, and behavior, linking biological processes to societal influences. It covers various branches of psychology, including cognitive, behavioral, social, developmental, and clinical psychology. Cognitive psychology explores how we think, remember, and perceive, while behavioral psychology examines how our environment influences our actions through learned behaviors. Social psychology looks at how the presence or expectations of others affect our behavior. Developmental psychology focuses on growth and change throughout a person’s life, and clinical psychology addresses the treatment of mental health issues. The essay highlights psychology’s practical applications in therapy and everyday understanding of human interactions, showing it as a dynamic field that utilizes modern technologies to advance our knowledge of the human mind and improve mental health and societal well-being.

How it works

Psychology is one of those fascinating fields that digs deep into what makes us tick—how we think, what we feel, and why we behave the way we do. It’s like having a backstage pass to the theater of the human mind, revealing not just the performances we see but the myriad behind-the-scenes actions that drive those performances.

At its most basic, psychology tries to crack the code of human nature. It looks at everything from the nitty-gritty of brain chemistry to the broader strokes of how society shapes our actions.

Whether you’re navigating personal challenges, trying to improve your relationships, or simply curious about why people do the things they do, understanding psychology can offer some pretty eye-opening insights.

For starters, there’s cognitive psychology, which peels back the layers on how we think and learn. It’s all about the mental processes that help us absorb and process new information, solve problems, and make decisions. Cognitive psychologists ask questions like: How do we remember? Why do we forget? How does our perception of the world shape our reality?

Then there’s behavioral psychology, which focuses on our actions. It’s tied to the work of early researchers like Pavlov and Skinner, who showed how our environments can shape our actions through rewards and punishments. Nowadays, this knowledge isn’t just academic—it’s practical too, helping therapists guide clients to swap out harmful behaviors for healthier ones.

Don’t forget about social psychology—the study of how society impacts our behaviors and attitudes. It looks at how the presence of others can change the way we act, often in surprising ways. It’s the reason you might clam up at a party or go the extra mile when you know you’re being watched. Social psychology explains phenomena like peer pressure, group dynamics, and much more, showing just how interconnected we are.

Developmental psychology offers another rich area of study, charting how we grow and evolve from infancy through to old age. It looks at how we develop physically, emotionally, and mentally over time. This branch of psychology is crucial for anyone who works with kids, from educators to pediatricians, helping them understand what’s normal at different stages of growth.

And of course, there’s clinical psychology, which many people think of when they hear the term “psychology.” Clinical psychologists work on the front lines of mental health, diagnosing and treating mental illness. They use a blend of science and therapeutic techniques to help people manage and overcome mental health challenges.

As we forge ahead, psychology isn’t standing still. It’s a dynamic field that continually adapts and evolves as new technology and methods emerge. Today’s psychologists use everything from neuroimaging to virtual reality to better understand and treat the complexities of the human mind.

In essence, psychology is about understanding people. It helps us make sense of our thoughts, feelings, and actions, providing tools to better manage our personal and professional lives. Whether you’re studying psychology formally or just have a passing interest, the insights it offers can be a game changer in how you view yourself and interact with others. It’s not just a subject studied in classrooms; it’s a day-to-day guide to living well and understanding the world around us.

Cite this page

The Intriguing World of Psychology: Minds and Behaviors. (2024, May 12). Retrieved from https://papersowl.com/examples/the-intriguing-world-of-psychology-minds-and-behaviors/

"The Intriguing World of Psychology: Minds and Behaviors." PapersOwl.com , 12 May 2024, https://papersowl.com/examples/the-intriguing-world-of-psychology-minds-and-behaviors/

PapersOwl.com. (2024). The Intriguing World of Psychology: Minds and Behaviors . [Online]. Available at: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-intriguing-world-of-psychology-minds-and-behaviors/ [Accessed: 16 May. 2024]

"The Intriguing World of Psychology: Minds and Behaviors." PapersOwl.com, May 12, 2024. Accessed May 16, 2024. https://papersowl.com/examples/the-intriguing-world-of-psychology-minds-and-behaviors/

"The Intriguing World of Psychology: Minds and Behaviors," PapersOwl.com , 12-May-2024. [Online]. Available: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-intriguing-world-of-psychology-minds-and-behaviors/. [Accessed: 16-May-2024]

PapersOwl.com. (2024). The Intriguing World of Psychology: Minds and Behaviors . [Online]. Available at: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-intriguing-world-of-psychology-minds-and-behaviors/ [Accessed: 16-May-2024]

Don't let plagiarism ruin your grade

Hire a writer to get a unique paper crafted to your needs.

Our writers will help you fix any mistakes and get an A+!

Please check your inbox.

You can order an original essay written according to your instructions.

Trusted by over 1 million students worldwide

1. Tell Us Your Requirements

2. Pick your perfect writer

3. Get Your Paper and Pay

Hi! I'm Amy, your personal assistant!

Don't know where to start? Give me your paper requirements and I connect you to an academic expert.

short deadlines

100% Plagiarism-Free

Certified writers

Psychology Discussion

Essay on human behaviour: top 5 essays | psychology.

ADVERTISEMENTS:

Here is an essay on ‘Human Behaviour’ for class 11 and 12. Find paragraphs, long and short essays on ‘Human Behaviour’ especially written for school and college students.

Essay on Human Behaviour

Essay Contents:

• Essay on the Controversies in the Study of Human Behaviour

1. Essay on the Introduction to Human Behaviour:

After all, Homo sapiens has a science all its own, namely anthropology, and the other “social sciences” are almost exclusively concerned with this one species too. Nevertheless, many animal behaviour researchers, undaunted by all these specialists, have made Homo sapiens one of their study species, a choice justified by the fact that theories and methods developed by students of nonhuman animals can often illuminate human affairs in ways that escape scientists whose training and focus is exclusively anthropocentric.

The continuity of anatomy, physiology, brain, and human behaviour between people and other animals clearly implies that nonhuman research can shed light on human nature. Medical researchers rely on this continuity, using “animal models” whenever human research would be premature, too intrusive, or too risky. The same is true in basic behavioural research.

Consider, for example, the study of hormonal influences on human behaviour. The “activating” effects of circulating steroid hormones on sexual motivation aggression, persistence, and other behavioural phenomena were first established in other species and only then investigated in human beings.

Similarly, non-human research on the “organizing” (developmental) effects of these same gonadal hormones has motivated and guided human research on the behavioural consequences of endocrine disorders. In a more recent example, discoveries concerning the role of androgens in mediating tradeoffs between mating effort and male parental effort in animals with biparental care have inspired studies of the same phenomena in human fathers.

The situation is similar, but much more richly developed, in behavioural neuroscience, where virtually everything now known about the human brain was discovered with crucial inspiration and support from experimental research on homologous structures and processes that serve similar perceptual and cognitive functions in other species.

The fact that Homo sapiens is a member of the animal kingdom also means that it is both possible and enlightening to include our species in comparative analysis. A famous example is the association between testis size and mating systems. If a female mates polyandrously, i.e., with more than one male, and if she does so within a sufficiently short interval, then the different males ejaculates must “compete” for the paternity of her offspring.

Thus, although human testes are smaller than those of the most promiscuous primates, they are nevertheless larger than would be expected under monogamy; this observation has substantially bolstered the notion that ancestral women were not strictly monogamous in their sexual behaviour and hence that selection may have equipped the human female with facultative inclinations to cuckold their primary partners by clandestine adultery, or maintain multiple simultaneous sexual relationships, or both.

These ideas, which run contrary to the previous notion that only males would be expected to possess adaptive tendencies to mate polygamously, have had substantial impact on recent research into women’s sexuality.

2. Essay on the Research of Human Behaviour:

Getting involved in human research appears to be an occupational hazard for animal behaviour researchers. In his 1973 Nobel Prize autobiography, Niko Tinbergen revealed that he had long harbored a “dormant desire to make ethology apply its methods to human behaviour,” a desire that he acted upon, late in his research career, by studying autistic children.

Others made the move earlier in their careers, with greater impact. The British ethologist Nicholas Blurton Jones, one of the founders of “human ethology” and now a major figure in hunter-gatherer studies, did his PhD work on threat displays in the great tit (Parus major) but then began almost immediately to study human children.

He writes: “I studied at Oxford with Niko Tinbergen [who] shared the Nobel Prize with Konrad Lorenz for their demonstration that human behaviour should be studied in the same way as any other feature of an animal – as a product of evolution by natural selection.”

Just as they had done in their studies of other animals, Blurton Jones, Eibl-Eibesfeldt, and others who had begun to call their field of research human ethology initially concentrated on categorizing overt motor patterns and counting how often each behavioural act was executed.

Indeed, other scientists without animal behaviour training were coming to similar views about the need for a more objective observational approach at about this time, and a few even turned to Darwin for inspiration. An interesting example is the work of Paul Ekman, an American psychologist who traveled to highland New Guinea and other remote places to prove that facial expressions of emotion and their interpretations by observers is cross- culturally universal rather than exhibiting arbitrary cultural variation from place to place, as many anthropologists had supposed.

This research program was akin to that of Eibl- Eibesfeldt in its questions, its theoretical foundations, and its results, but perhaps because Ekman was trained in psychology, he was less reluctant than the ethologist to use elicited verbal data as his test of universality.

Of course, one might say that the classical ethological approach has withered in nonhuman research too, with the ascendancy of behavioural ecology, but the hallmark of classical ethology, namely observational study of human behaviour in its natural context, has not been forsaken.

3. Essay on the Uniqueness of Human Behaviour:

Another reason why treating human beings as “just another animal” can be problematic is that in many ways we are very exceptional animals indeed. Although other creatures can learn from conspecifics and may even have local traditions, human cultural transmission and the diversity of practices that it has engendered are unique, and how we should approach the study of human behaviour from an evolutionary adaptationist perspective is therefore controversial.

One approach to the issue of cultural diversity is to attempt to make sense of the distinct practices of people in different parts of the world as representing facultative adaptation to the diversity in local ecological circumstances.

A nice example is provided by demonstrations that cross- cultural variation in the use of spices is partly to be understood as response to variation in local and foodstuff- specific rates at which unrefrigerated foods spoil and in the antimicrobial effectiveness of particular spices.

Presumably, such cultural adaptations are usually the product of an “evolutionary” process that does not entail cumulative change in gene pools but only in socially transmitted information and practices, although there are certainly some cases in which there has been gene-culture coevolution. The best-known example of the coevolution of human genes and human culture concerns the variable prevalence of genes that permit people to digest milk and milk products beyond early childhood.

In populations that lack dairying traditions, most adults are lactose-intolerant and suffer indigestion if they drink milk, because they no longer produce lactase, the enzyme that permits us to metabolize lactose. But in populations with a long history of dairying, genotypes that engender persistent lactase production into adulthood predominate, apparently as a result of natural selection favouring those able to derive nutrition from their herds.

Enlightening as such approaches may be, however, they can never make functional sense of every particular cultural phenomenon, for it is certain that a great deal of cultural variability is functionally arbitrary in its details, and at least a few culturally prescribed practices have disastrous fitness consequences.

A famous example, of such a disastrous cultural practice is the transmission of kuru, a fatal prion- induced brain disease akin to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, among the Fore people of highland New Guinea. Like other prion-induced diseases, kuru is not easily transmitted under most circumstances, but as a result of funerary practices that included intimate handling of corpses and ritual cannibalism of parts of deceased kinsmen, the Fore suffered an epidemic resulting in high levels of mortality.

4. Essay on the Measurement of Human Behaviour

It is true that over the decades psychology has moved towards becoming a quantitative science which tries to introduce measurements with precision and accuracy comparable to measurements in exact sciences such as physics, chemistry, etc. There is no doubt that the acceptance of model of the exact sciences has contributed very much to the growth and development of scientific psychology.

It must be stated that modern psychologists have gone far ahead of other social and behavioural sciences. In fact other social sciences such as sociology and political science have tried to adopt the tools and techniques of psychology for their own research and study.

However, the particular problem of quantifying and measuring behaviour still has its own peculiarities. While we may accept the standards and norms of accuracy and prediction set by the exact sciences, nevertheless, psychologists have had and will have to develop their own approaches to measurement and quantification of behaviour because of the very nature and characteristics of human behaviour.

Some of the peculiarities of human behaviour are given below:

Firstly all types of human behaviour are not explicit or visible. Only some aspects of behaviour are capable of being measured with instruments and gadgets directly. Thus, the inner needs and motives are difficult to measure directly.

Secondly, the individuals themselves would not be willing or ready to reveal certain aspects of human behaviour such as inner conflicts, problems of adjustments etc.

Thirdly the psycho-analytic school demonstrated the importance of unconscious processes which are not open to the awareness of the behaving individuals themselves. Such aspects have to be mostly inferred or measured through indirect methods. Thus, we may broadly categories measurements in psychology into indirect and direct measures.

Early attempts at measurement in psychology were simple and direct and were concerned with those aspects of human behaviour that could be directly measured. Later, with the enthusiasm of psychologists to measure other aspects of human behaviour, indirect approaches were developed.

By and large, sensations, learning, remembering, perception and similar variables are measured through direct means whereas indirect measures are largely used in studying motivational, personality and attitudinal variables.

Most intelligence tests are direct measures of intelligence while all the projective tests are indirect measures. Direct measures have the advantage in that they are simpler or more objective and are easy to handle, whereas indirect measures, to a large extent, depend on the interpretation of the individual’s behaviour and inference based on certain guidelines.

Yet another point that may be borne in mind is that direct measures are largely independent of specific theories of behaviour or personality. In fact, psychologists with different theoretical approaches and biases employed the same direct measures.

Indirect measures are largely associated with specific theories. Thus, projective tests such as the Rorschach test and TAT rest on certain basic assumptions about human behaviour and personality. Therefore, it can be said that direct measures give us measures of behaviour as they occur, while indirect measures give us scores which are arrived at on the basis of inferences and interpretations based on particular theories. Indirect measures are based on particular rationales.

It is also possible to consider psychological measures as empirical measures and rational measures. Empirical measures are based on the occurrence of certain behavioural patterns and are statistically arrived at. They are not based on any theory. Logical measures are based on certain theories. The best instance of convergence of the two traditions is found in the construction of attitude scales.

Errors in Measurement of Human Behaviour:

It is apparent that there are many instances where behavioural measures can be contaminated by errors. The requisites of accuracy, validity and reliability were explained. Naturally, when a number of errors creep in, the characteristics are affected adversely.

Errors in psychological measures are of two types; systematic errors and random errors. Systematic errors are those which occur repeatedly and are constant. For example, if while measuring the intelligence of a person, we employ a test which is too easy, then the individual’s intelligence is overestimated. Such an error is called a systematic error.

On the other hand, even if we employ a proper test and measure the individual’s intelligence on different occasions it is possible that the measured IQ on these different occasions will not be the same. Such variations are occasional examples of random errors which result from factors such as the subject’s mood, motivation, skills of the tests, etc.

Whenever we measure human behaviour we should be aware of the presence of such errors. Systematic errors are avoided by a very careful choice and usage of the test.

Random errors are taken care of by making repeated measurements and taking the average of all these scores. Errors in measurement, therefore, result from the defects in the measuring tools, defects in the measuring conditions and also certain factors in the subject as well as the experimenter.

5. Essay on the Controversies in the Study of Human Behaviour:

There are a number of current controversies in the study of human behaviour from an evolutionary perspective, and most of them closely parallel ongoing controversies in animal behaviour more generally.

One perennial point of discussion is whether measures of reproductive success are essential for testing adaptationist hypotheses. Evolutionary anthropologists who reported that wealth and/or status is positively related to reproductive success in certain societies presented these correlations as testimony to the relevance of Darwinism for the human sciences, and this invited the rejoinder that a failure to find such a correlation in modern industrialized societies must then constitute evidence of Darwinism’s irrelevance.

Anthropologist Donald Symons then entered the fray with a forceful counterargument to the effect that measures of reproductive attainment are virtually useless for testing adaptationist hypotheses, which should instead be tested on the basis of “design” criteria.

These arguments are sometimes read as if the issue applies only to the cultural animal Homo sapiens but, as Thornhill has pointed out, the same debate can be found in the nonhuman literature, with writers like Wade and Reeve and Sherman arguing that fitness consequences provide the best test of adaptationist hypotheses, whereas Thornhill and Williams defend the opposing view.

A related point of contention concerns the characterization of the human behaviour “environment of evolutionary adaptedness” (EEA). This concept is often invoked in attempts to understand the prevalence of some unhealthy or otherwise unfit practice in the modern world, such as damaging levels of consumption of refined sugar or psychoactive drugs.

The point is simply that these substances did not exist in the selective environment that shaped the human adaptations they now exploit, and that this is why we lack defenses against their harmful effects.

Essentially the same point can be made about more benign modern novelties, such as effective contraceptive devices, telephones, and erotica- there is little reason to expect that we will use these inventions in ways that promote our fitness, since they have, in a sense, been designed to “parasitize” our adaptations, and there has not been sufficient time for natural selection to have crafted countermeasures to their effects.

The EEA concept has become controversial because several writers believe that it entails untestable assumptions about the past; presupposes that human evolution stopped in the Pleistocene; and is invoked in a pseudo-explanatory post-hoc fashion to dispose of puzzling failures of adaptation.

Yet it is surely not controversial that a world with novel chemical pollutants, televised violence, internet pornography, and exogenous opiates is very different from that in which the characteristic features of human psychophysiology evolved.

Once again, these debates about the utility of the EEA concept are read as if the issue were peculiar to the human case. But in fact, any adaptation in any species has its “environment of evolutionary adaptedness,” and the notion that some adaptations are tuned to aspects of past environments which no longer exist is as relevant to the behaviour of other animals as it is to our own.

Byers, for example, has argued that various aspects of the human behaviour of the pronghorn, a social ungulate of North American grasslands, can only be understood as adaptations to predators that are now extinct.

Similarly, Coss et al. have demonstrated that California ground squirrels from different populations, none of which presently live in sympatry with rattlesnakes, may or may not exhibit adaptive anti-predator responses to introduced snakes and that the difference reflects how many millennia have passed since the squirrel populations lost contact with the rattlesnakes.

Yet another issue of current controversy concerns the reasons why there is so much genetic diversity affecting behavioural diversity within human populations. Personality dimensions in which there are stable individual differences consistently prove to have heritabilities of around 0.5, which means that about half the variability among individuals in things like extroversion, shyness, and willingness to take risks can be attributed to differences in genotype.

The puzzle is why selection “tolerates” this variability- if selection works by weeding out suboptimal variants and thereby optimizing quantitative traits, how can all this heritable diversity persist? One possibility is that the diversity is a functionless byproduct of the fact that selection on many traits is weak relative to mutation pressure; in finite populations, not all attributes can be optimized by selection simultaneously.

Another possibility is that heritable diversity in personality represents the expression of formerly neutral, variants in evolutionary novel environments. Still another view, argued by Tooby and Cosmides, is that heritable personality diversity is indeed functionless “noise” but is nevertheless maintained by frequency-dependent selection favouring rare genotypes in a never-ending “arms race” with polymorphic rapidly evolving pathogen strains.

Finally, Wilson has defended the possibility that there is a substantial prevalence of adaptive behavioural polymorphisms maintained by selection on the behavioural phenotypes themselves.

The “evolutionarily stable” state in game-theory models of social behaviour is often a mix of different types. If most individuals are honest reciprocators, for example, this creates a niche for exploitative “cheaters” whose success is maximal when they are extremely rare and declines as they become more prevalent.

Once again, this is obviously an issue of relevance in other species as well as human beings, and it is not an easy issue to resolve. However, the right answer will influence how we should look at matters ranging from sexual selection to psychopathology. Gangestad has argued that there is an evolutionarily stable mix of women with distinct sexualities such that some are inclined to long-term monogamy and others are not.

Lalumière et al. present evidence that “psychopaths,” socially exploitative people who are lacking in empathy for others, are not suffering from pathology but are instead a discrete type of person that is maintained at low frequencies by selection. How such ideas will fare in the light of future theorizing and research is an open question.

Related Articles:

• Essay on Stress: Top 7 Essays | Human Behaviour | Psychology
• Essay on Motivation: Top 9 Essays | Human Behaviour | Psychology
• Essay on Attitude: Top 8 Essays | Human Behaviour | Psychology
• Essay on Parenting: Top 5 Essays | Human Behaviour | Psychology

Essay , Psychology , Human Behaviour , Essay on Human Behaviour

• Entertainment
• Environment
• Information Science and Technology
• Social Issues

Home Essay Samples

Essay Samples on Psychology

The majority of college students who have to deal with essays about Psychology are not necessarily future specialists in Psychology or Healthcare. Just think about modern business studies or marketing where leadership qualities must be studied. The same relates to Criminology or Forensic Research assignments where the use of psychology becomes essential. It provides modern learners with a plethora of ideas that can be explored. If you are stuck and need inspiration, focus on the free psychology essay examples that we provide for you. The list of subjects that are presented ranges from the theorists to case study samples to help you understand the difference between various essay types. Remember that your introduction part will always depend on your target audience and the level of knowledge they have. It means that you should provide statistical data or study reports only to an extent that will be sufficient for your methodology or academic objectives. See how it has been done in the free samples that we offer by reading actual writing. These are only provided as templates that you should use for inspirational and educational purposes. As you compose your own Psychology essay, keep things unique and always provide relevant references.

Why Psychology Major: Understanding the Human Mind

Why psychology major? This question lies at the heart of my academic journey, drawing me toward a field that offers a profound exploration of the intricacies of human behavior, cognition, and emotions. The decision to major in psychology is driven by a deep curiosity about...

• Social Psychology

Why Psychology: Exploring the Fascinating Depths of the Human Mind

Why psychology? This simple yet profound question has intrigued many curious minds over the years, including mine. The allure of psychology lies in its ability to delve into the intricate complexities of human behavior, cognition, and emotions. As a field that bridges science and humanity,...

Why I Chose Psychology: Path to Understanding the Human Mind

Why I chose psychology as my field of study is a question rooted in my profound curiosity about the complexities of the human mind and behavior. From a young age, I found myself intrigued by the intricate web of thoughts, emotions, and motivations that shape...

Sports Psychology: Unleashing the Mental Edge in Athletic Performance

Sports psychology is a dynamic field that delves into the intricate relationship between the mind and athletic performance. It offers a comprehensive understanding of how psychological factors influence athletes' behaviors, attitudes, and outcomes in sports. By exploring the psychological aspects of sports, athletes and coaches...

The Social Learning Theory in Psychology

Social Learning Theory, a prominent psychological concept developed by Albert Bandura, offers valuable insights into how individuals acquire new behaviors and adapt their actions based on the observations of others. This theory emphasizes the significant role of social interactions, modeling, and reinforcement in shaping human...

Stressed out with your paper?

Consider using writing assistance:

• 100% unique papers
• 3 hrs deadline option

The Profound Contributions of Sigmund Freud to Psychology

Sigmund Freud, often referred to as the "father of psychoanalysis," has left an indelible mark on the field of psychology through his groundbreaking theories and revolutionary insights into the human mind. His contributions have reshaped the way we understand human behavior, unconscious processes, and the...

Psychological Depths of "Shutter Island"

Shutter Island is a psychological thriller that delves into the intricate workings of the human mind, presenting a captivating narrative interwoven with themes of identity, memory, and the blurred lines between reality and illusion. Directed by Martin Scorsese and based on Dennis Lehane's novel, the...

Exploring the Diverse Schools of Psychology

Schools of psychology represent distinct approaches and perspectives in understanding human behavior, cognition, and emotion. Each school offers a unique lens through which psychologists analyze and interpret psychological phenomena. This essay delves into the fascinating world of psychology by exploring some of the prominent schools...

Exploring the Depths of Psychology Research

Psychology research is an intricate journey into the complexities of the human mind and behavior. It is a realm of inquiry that spans from unraveling the mysteries of cognitive processes to understanding the intricacies of social interactions. This essay delves into the realm of psychology...

Psychology: Illuminating Perspectives in an Argumentative Discourse

Psychology is an ever-evolving realm that delves into the intricacies of the human mind, behavior, and emotions. As a discipline rooted in empirical investigation, it has sparked a myriad of debates and discussions that continue to shape our understanding of human nature. This essay embarks...

Exploring Personality Psychology: Unveiling the Complexities Within

Personality psychology delves into the intricate and multifaceted aspects that make each individual unique. It peels back the layers of behavior, cognition, and emotion to reveal the underlying traits, patterns, and characteristics that shape human identity. This essay embarks on a journey to uncover the...

A Passion for Psychology: Nurturing the Flames Within

Passion for psychology ignites a fervent curiosity about the complexities of the human mind and behavior. It is a driving force that propels individuals to unravel the mysteries of cognition, emotion, and the intricate dynamics that shape our thoughts and actions. This essay delves into...

The History of Abnormal Psychology: Unveiling the Layers of Time

History of abnormal psychology takes us on a journey through time, tracing the evolution of our understanding of psychological disorders and the diverse ways in which societies have interpreted and responded to them. This essay delves into the intricate tapestry of the past, uncovering the...

Health Psychology: Exploring the Nexus of Mind and Body

Health psychology stands as a vital branch of psychology that delves into the intricate relationship between psychological factors and physical well-being. This essay unravels the depths of health psychology, shedding light on its significance, applications, and the transformative power it holds in shaping our understanding...

Free Will vs. Determinism in Psychology: Navigating the Paradox

Free will vs. determinism in psychology encapsulates a profound debate that has intrigued philosophers, psychologists, and thinkers for centuries. This essay delves into the intricate interplay between these two contrasting concepts, exploring their implications, relevance, and the ways they shape our understanding of human behavior,...

Psychology in Everyday Life: Unveiling the Intricacies

About psychology in everyday life encompasses the fascinating study of human behavior, thoughts, and emotions that shape our interactions, decisions, and experiences. This essay dives into the depths of psychology's presence in our daily lives, shedding light on its significance, applications, and the transformative power...

Exploring the Essence of Counselling Psychology

Counselling psychology is a profound and transformative field that embodies the art of guiding individuals towards self-discovery, healing, and growth. This essay delves into the heart of counselling psychology, shedding light on its core principles, therapeutic techniques, and the profound impact it has on the...

A Reflective on Clinical Psychology

Clinical psychology is a realm that delves into the intricate landscapes of the human mind, offering both challenges and revelations. This reflective essay on clinical psychology invites a contemplative exploration of my personal journey, growth, and insights as I navigated the complexities of this field....

What Motivates Me as a Student

What motivates you as a student? This question delves into the driving forces that ignite my passion for learning and shape my academic journey. From the pursuit of knowledge to personal growth and future aspirations, my motivations are diverse and ever-evolving. This essay will explore...

What Does Resilience Mean to Me: a Lifelong Companion

What does resilience mean to you? Resilience, a quality often admired and aspired to, is a trait that holds significant meaning in my life. In this essay, I will delve into my personal understanding and interpretation of resilience, exploring its essence, its impact on my...

Unraveling Learning Processes: Exploring the Difference Between Classical and Operant Conditioning

Learning is a complex process that underlies our behaviors and responses to the environment. Classical conditioning and operant conditioning are two prominent theories that provide insights into how learning occurs. This essay delves into the fundamental difference between classical and operant conditioning, shedding light on...

• Classical Conditioning
• Operant Conditioning

Evolution of Childhood: Comparing Childhood Today to the Past

The concept of childhood has undergone significant transformation over time. Childhood today is vastly different from what it was in the past, shaped by changes in culture, technology, education, and societal norms. This essay explores the key differences and similarities of childhood today compared to...

Compare and Contrast Ananysis of Piaget and Vygotsky in Terms of Cognitive Development

Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky are two influential figures in the field of developmental psychology who have offered distinct theories on cognitive development. While their approaches share commonalities, they also diverge in fundamental ways. This compare and contrast essay delves into the key similarities and...

• Jean Piaget
• Lev Vygotsky Theory

Childhood and Adulthood: Compare And Contrast the Main Phases of Life

The transition from childhood to adulthood is a profound journey marked by significant physical, emotional, and psychological changes. Childhood and adulthood represent distinct phases of life, each with its own set of experiences, responsibilities, and perspectives. This compare and contrast essay explores the similarities and...

Analysis of Social Media Effects on Body Image

In today's digitally connected world, social media has become an integral part of our lives, influencing the way we communicate, share, and perceive ourselves. One of the prominent and concerning aspects of social media is its effects on body image. The relentless exposure to carefully...

• Effects of Social Media

Religion and Morality in Arthur Miller's "The Crucible"

Introduction Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” is a compelling critique of the dark and tangled web of society, politics, and morality. Set in 1692 during the Salem Witch Trials, this play serves as a vivid reflection of the oppressive nature of McCarthyism in the 1950s in...

• The Crucible

How to Overcome Procrastination by Making It Your Friend

How to overcome procrastination? Usually, human beings have a tendency to see procrastination as some component bad. They invent dozens of techniques how to give up procrastinating and extend their efficiency, forgetting about the reality that like many extraordinary psychological mechanisms, procrastination serves its own...

• Procrastination

How to Deal With Procrastination: My Experience

Procrastination is something I am almost certain that everyone experiences at some point in their university lives (or life in general), and for some of us, it happens on the daily. This can cause a bit of a tricky situation, where the inability to force...

• Personal Experience

Different Perspectives in Modern Psychology: an Overview

Psychology encompasses the scientific study of the mind and brain, exploring the intricacies of human cognition, emotion, and behavior. This essay provides an overview of the different perspectives in modern psychology, each offering unique insights into the functioning of the mind and its manifestations in...

• Cognitive Psychology
• Human Behavior
• Perspective

Cause and Effect of Procrastination Among College Students

Introduction Procrastination is an activity that most college students have gone through throughout their high school career. The meaning of procrastination is, as stated by Ferrari et al., 'derived from Latin verbs. 'Pro' refers to forward motion, and 'crastinus' refers to belonging to tomorrow' (qtd....

• College Students

Rising Above Negativity: A Journey in Music and Self-Belief

My Early Music Career Let me inform you about a time when I realized a life lesson. A couple of weeks ago, I started out producing music; I was once just starting as a producer, and I had no prior expertise in song theory. I...

• Life Lesson

Exploring Child Development: Observations and Developmental Theories

Introduction “Social psychology often looks at basic human need to fit in and calls this the normative social influence” (AtheneWins, 2011). There are many developmental theories and there is a relative overlapping among them. The knowledge of this theories is important in the nursing field...

• Child Behavior
• Childhood Development
• First Day of School

The Power Dynamics of Adolescent Marginality & Intergenerational Conflict

Abstract Adolescents are often seen as lazy and/or entitled by older generations. Typically, we can see this today in the baby boomer generation. In this paper I will be applying Sociological Theories to this stereotype, Intergenerational Conflict to be exact. Throughout the years older generations...

• Adolescence
• Critical Theory
• Sociological Theory

Common Childhood Illness: Treatments and Exclusion Periods

When working with young children, practitioners need to be aware of common childhood illnesses, the signs and symptoms and how to treat children when they become unwell. Common childhood illness includes a common cold, asthma, chickenpox, hand foot and mouth, meningitis, whopping cough, conjunctivitis, and...

The Existence of Genuine Altruism From Social Psychology Perspective

There are several social behaviours that humans exhibit some are negative and some are positive. Altruism is one of such social behaviours. What is altruism and is there anything like genuine altruism? This essay attempts to answer the question whether there is genuine altruism from...

The Psychological State of Ressentiment in the Genealogy of Morals

The psychological state Friedrich Nietzsche terms as ressentiment in the Genealogy of Morals, is a human condition attributed to a feeling produced when placed within a hostile environment. One which man is found powerless to alter through physical action. Those inflicted to this deprived orientation...

• Friedrich Nietzsche
• Philosophical Works

Nurturing Students for Life: The Power of Teachers as Role Models and the Integration of Learning Theories

​The most valuable thing that teachers can provide for a student is not only the pure knowledge but also ability to preparation for life. All teachers should be aware of their power on children and be a good role model for them even though it...

Assessing Adolescent Knowledge and Attitudes towards Reproductive Health

Reproductive health is the important component in the adolescent age, as the one which is in highly risk group to get different sexual and reproductive health problem. Reproductive health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being in all matters relating to the...

• Reproductive Health
• Sexual Health

Exploration of Psychodynamic and the Behavioural Learning Approaches

Psychology is the scientific study of the mind that influences our behaviour using professional practice. The word psychology comes from the Greek 'psyche' meaning mind, soul and spirit. Wilhelm Wundt opened the first psychological laboratory in Germany to investigate the mind through inspection and observation...

• Psychologists
• Sigmund Freud

Prosocial Intergroup Behavior in Norway: Study Review

Prosocial behavior is a universal concept observed on a world-wide basis through acts of donations, protests, petitions and other voluntary behaviors. Various factors may serve as motivations for why individuals choose to engage in prosocial behavior. The world in the 21st century is in a...

• Prosocial Behavior
• Volunteering

The Role of a Clinical Psychologist in Treating Problem Drinking: Examining Effective Therapeutic Approaches

Problem drinking is not necessarily alcoholism; alcoholism is, however, a form of problem drinking. For a problem drinker when they drink it can cause problems for them and those around them, but they are not necessarily physically dependent on alcohol. They may be able to...

• Job Description

The Relationship Between Prosocial Behaviour and Mimicry

People are naturally inclined to mimic. Mimicry has been observed across all cultures and ages in peculiar phenomena like contagious yawning or laughter. Chartrand and Bargh noted that people frequently imitate others’ posture and facial expressions unintentionally, and Bandura demonstrated the essential role of mimicry...

Reflective Learning: the Power of Self-Analysis and Personal Growth

A reflective essay is a unique form of essay writing where you examine an experience and reflect on your own self. Use strong evidence and explain the real or imaginary scene in an interesting manner. A reflective essay is a type of writing in which...

• Critical Reflection
• Self Reflection

Albert Bandura: Pioneering Contributions to Social Learning Theory

'Learning would be exceedingly laborious, not to mention hazardous, if people had to rely solely on the effects of their own actions to inform them what to do'. Albert Bandura was a Canadian born psychologist who identified The Social Learning theory in the 1960's. Psychology...

• Famous Person

Discussion on the Relationship Between Intelligence and Creativity

The relationship between intelligence and creativity has been subjected to research for many years. Unfortunately, there is yet no consensus on how these constructs are related. The connection between intelligence and creativity is that they are functions of the brain that handle data to determine...

• Intelligence

Cognitive Explanation of Schizophrenia: Implications of the Theory

Schizophrenia is a severe mental illness that affects how a person thinks, feels, and behaves. It is a complex disorder that involves a wide range of symptoms, including hallucinations, delusions, and disordered thinking. The cognitive explanation of schizophrenia is revealed in this essay as one...

• Schizophrenia

What Is Emotional Intelligence: the Significance of Human Beings

Ever since I was a child I developed a great passion regarding human beings and their behaviour in all sorts of situations, no matter the context. I have always paid attention to the importance of emotions in day to day life, and I noticed in...

• Emotional Intelligence

Creative and Critical Thinking: Combining the Achievements of Thought

Creative, one word that can be interpreted in many ways whether in thoughts which is include ways of thinking and actions and also in verbal form. Critical, on the other side refers to the ability to analyse information objectively and make a reasoned judgment. It...

• Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking Skills and Their Importance Today

As rapid urbanization continues to dominate the world, humans are being exposed to brand new ideas that feeds their mind logistically as well as holistically. This phenomenon in turn opens an opportunity for us to gain knowledge in various subjects that equips us with an...

How Unrealistic Beauty Standards on Social Media Affect Girls

Teenagers are affected by social media everyday by posting pictures and worrying about what other people are thinking. According to Mahita Gajanan from 'The Guardian' did a study and asked girls about their self-esteem and experiences with social media. Most of the girls that were...

• Media Influence

How to Cope With Stress: Personality Types and Bible Verses

Since stress is an important contributing factor towards all kinds of diseases, knowing how to cope with it is a major key to good health. Therefore, it is important to learn the different methods that can be used in order to reduce stress or even...

• Stress Response

College Stress: How to Manage It and Keep It Under Your Control

Most likely the least refreshing type of stress is college stress. This is generally because of the way that grown-ups essentially observe a great deal of college understudies sitting on their backsides playing computer games and drinking, rather than seeing understudies who are experiencing strain...

• Academic Challenges

The Most Stressful Life Stage: Exploring Adolescence

Adolescence is the transitional period in human development between childhood and adulthood. It is also described as a period of rapid growth, where a person undergoes major changes in the physical, psychological and social domains. It is also important for the development of identity, as...

Nature vs Nurture: Is Identity Innate or Learned

Introduction The idea of being loved whether it be by family, significant other, or even by society, is one that we all strive for in our day-to-day lives, however, is this love we are trying to receive based on things we have lack of control...

• Individual Identity
• Nature Versus Nurture

Resilient and Resilience in Relation to Optimism and Well Being

When I started to learn positive psychology I had absolutly no idea what to expect from it, so I just thought that it will be some hippie practise about how to be happy all the time. Then we had our first lesson. We learned about...

Negative Effects of Technology on Child Development and Mental Health

Technology has rapidly grown throughout the world and has become the most reliable necessity in the world today. Tablets, cameras, laptops, smartphones, etc. devices have overtaken the human population. The world is surrounded by technology all around- at home, at school, at work, everywhere. On...

• Negative Impact of Technology

Being Resilient: The Features That Foster Resilience

Before this course, I had very little and superficial knowledge about resilience but now after studying this course in detail, I understand this concept much better. For me, resilience is the ability bounce back after adverse situations. In the video, Michael Chandler defines resilient individuals...

Negative Effects of Technology on Child Development

In our modern society, technology is everywhere, specifically digital technology, and nearly everyone has some form of device whether it is a smartphone, smartwatch, tablet, laptop, computer, television, or even smart tv. Our world is loaded with technology because in theory it is all supposed...

Procrastination and the Harmful Effects of It on Job Performance

Procrastination is when someone has a job or task to do, and they say “I will do it later.” If they put it off until later, in some cases, they can lose your job. If someone is a chef and they reply to your boss...

• Performance

Childhood Trauma and Its Negative Effects on the Child's Development

Complex childhood trauma is currently suffered by numerous students in Primary schools around the world. It usually commences in the early years of a child’s life, when they are exposed to pervasive and traumatic events causing severe impacts that will continue to disrupt a number...

Body Image and Mental Health: Impact of Social Media

Technology is quickly rising and upgrading every day and social media has become one of the most-used forms of technology. Social media such as Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat are digital platforms which allow users to upload and share their content with others and also make...

Body Image Pressure Among Young Adults and Adolescence

Body image and its notion of impressing other people through it has become like a general trend amongst the youth. They try to change their body figures, and their characters while trying to impress others. The majority of youths do matters to enhance how they...

Effects Of Growing Up With a Single Parent and How It Can Affect Your Life

Growing up in a single parent household can affect your life in many ways, a few examples includes how you view your relationships, how you carry yourself, and especially your future. Half of my existence I grew up in a single parent household and I...

• Single Parenting

Why Juveniles Should Not Be Tried As Adults

Furthermore, children that commit crimes are products of their environment in which they live. For example, when children constantly get sexually abused, it causes immense amounts of trauma and a false sense of love. Often a traumatic experience for all is an offense punishable by...

• Criminal Behavior

What Was The Environment In Which You Were Raised

I remember myself since I was three years old. I was a lively and inquisitive child. I had many friends and we spent a lot of time together. My parents were very busy at that moment, they were working and building our house. I spent...

Benefits and Importance Of Early Childhood Education

“If school is about learning, and learning starts at birth, then the idea that we expect Kindergarteners to meet their first teachers at age five is all wrong. There is increasing research being facilitated on early education with specific emphasis on the overall benefits it...

• Early Childhood Education
• Importance of Education

The Transition From Childhood To Adulthood

 As human beings, we start off as just a fetus in a mother's womb. However, as time passes, we evolve. Every human being goes through many different phases in life. We go from being babies and eventually we become adults. Each phase is unique and...

Causes and Treatment of Childhood Obesity

'He is just a kid, give him what he wants'. This is the phase that is mostly used by the parents in order to encourage their children from eating what they want as long as it will make them happy. However, the statistic has shown...

• Childhood Obesity
• Eating Disorders

Human Nature in the Lost TV Show: Are Humans Inherently Good or Evil

Throughout humanity, the nature of humankind has been questioned by philosophers, leading them to conclude whether humans are inherently good or evil. Thomas Hobbes, a British philosopher that lived in the 1600s, believes that humans are born selfish and greedy, which leads to violence and...

• Good and Evil
• Human Nature

The Benefits of Video Games Both for Children and Adults

Ever since the 1970s the video game industry has grown quite a lot in popularity and has become the largest market in the world. There have been a lot of changes to how video games are made not only in the different genres for people...

• Development
• Human Development
• Video Games

Why is Early Childhood Education Important

In this essay, I will discuss how strong value operates within the perspective of education and what are main concepts, design of theories from conforming perspective of education. This essay will show some theories which are pedagogy. My explanation will be reflected by nature and...

Problem Solving: Use of Math in Our Everyday Life

What I say about math is that I really don’t like it, but at the end of the day through high school math I have learned how to solve problems and not give up when I don’t fully understand something. I dislike math, but I do need it. The reason why I dislike math is that...

• Mathematics in Everyday Life
• Problem Solving

Why You Should Let Your Kid Play Football

It’s Friday night. Many parents and friends gather around to watch us in our first game of the year. The lights slowly begin to light up the field as we approach the 50-yard line, we toss the coin and the game begins. Down by 7...

• Child Development

Growing A Grit And Growth Mindset

In today's society, there is a belief that intelligence is tied to GPA. There is a stereotype about intelligence. It is the idea that you are either smart or not smart. You either understand it or you do not. What happens if you are between?...

• Personal Growth and Development

Effects Of Violent Video Gaming On Human Behavior

There are many various kinds of games and consoles within the world and vying worldwide. Video play has become a very common trade all over the world and has been growing exceptionally throughout the past twenty years. Gamers that are obsessed with online play are...

• Impact of Video Games
• Violence in Video Games

Why I Want To Be A Teacher: It Isn’t Just A Career, But It's A Calling

Being a teacher isn’t just a career, having the ability to enable a child to further make sense of the world around them and become a honourable and respectful member of society, gives me such a profound sense of pride and happiness. I want to...

• Teaching Philosophy

Bilingual Education In Childhood For Effective Social Communication And Development

Today’s society places a heavy emphasis on the importance of being an effective social communicator, whether it be through verbal or non-verbal skills. Presently, more than half of the world’s population is multilingual and an increasingly larger number of people have been exposed to another...

• Bilingualism
• Educational Psychology

Importance of Reflection and Learning From Past Incidents

To practice competently, reflection is important because it allows one to critically think about past or present events, evaluate situations and then use the knowledge obtained to act accordingly in future situations. All of which improves patient care and helps minimise bad practice in the...

Solution-Focused and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy

In this essay I would like to examine three approaches, Gestalt, Solution-focused therapy, and Cognitive Behaviour therapy and how I intend on using them within my practice as an integrative counsellor. In my previous essay I proposed how I would use the person centred, psychodynamic...

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Transition's Impact on a Child’s Mental Health

In this essay I will be discussing and outlining the issues of how the transition can have an impact on a child’s mental health, emotions and their overall academic performance. I will also be discussing how development and puberty can affect a child, as well...

• Child Psychology
• Growth Mindset

Emergency Management and Bystander Behavior Effect

This essay will compare and contrast two approaches to understanding bystander responses to emergencies. The approaches explored in the essay are the experiment approach and discourse analysis, each being explained in further detail later in the essay. Bystander behavior (effect) can be explained as the...

• Emergency Management
• The Bystander Effect

The Impact of Technology on Wealth, Aging, and Lifestyle

Wealth, lifestyle, aging populations, and technological advances are said to be having a major impact on the growth of healthcare demand. This essay considers the impact of each of these factors and discusses how successful the introduction of so called ‘sin-taxes‘ have been in changing...

Individual Differences and Differences in the Functioning of Brain

It is irrefutable that people differ considerably from one another, with this variability arising from a unique combination of hereditary, biological factors and lived environmental experiences. Comprising persistent individual factors differentiating individuals from one another to establish distinctiveness, individual differences (namely those of intelligence and...

• Human Brain

An Essay Concerning Human Understanding byJohn Locke

Psychology was derived from two other disciplines; physiology, the study of how living things work, and philosophy, the theories behind why living things behave the way they do. Philosophy and physiology are intertwined, in that they both have contributed to the study of the other....

The Role of Personal Development Planning Today

The essay deals with the PKSC module experiences that reflect on the academic study. Here, the different lectures are guided regarding the reflection that ensure the personal development. The other skills are mentioned research skills, digital skills, reading skills and MS office skills. Besides, the...

• Personal Development Planning
• Personal Goals

Psychosexual Development Theory and Child’s Personality

In this essay I am going to examine the age group of children 0-5 and how the psychological experience can impact on their transitions, during their life span. To achieve this task, I am going to analyze different theories in relation to all holistic aspects...

• Homosexuality

Influence of Two Key Learning and Development Theories

This essay will discuss the applications and influence of two key learning and development theories to educational practice and policy. The aim is of this essay is to discuss two key development theories to educational practices. The two key theories are 1. Piaget and his...

• Developmental Psychology
• Learning Styles
• Study Skills

Social Phenomena of Individual and External Circumstances in a Society

In todays society scholars all across the world have conflict in the matter which talks about how race and an individual’s identity shapes how we all live our lives. We can all come to a conclusion where we agree that everyone from individuals to a...

Optimism: Perception of Life is a Matter of Perspective

Our perception of life is a matter of perspective. From a young age we are taught to see the glass as half-empty or half-full. This perception is a simple example of optimistic or pessimistic behavior. Optimism is typically viewed as an individual’s ability to see...

• Positive Psychology

The Move “Better Luck Tomorrow” by Justine Lin

The move, illustrates an image hidden behind well-mannered students of Sunny Hills high schools who are trying hard to over achieve. The main characters Ben and Virgil is showed as those over achievers of high schools who are known for their grades and extracurricular activities....

• Social Movement

Swimming as a Hard Skill Necessary for Human Being

Swimming is hard. For non-swimmers swimming is harder than most realise and not easy to take up as a regular sport. All those good swimmers you see have excellent cardio-respiratory fitness and often years of technique training. So don't be discouraged. And... The first step...

The Benefits of Online Dating to Society

“There’s the old saying that you have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince”, and I think that really applies to online dating. The growing popularity of online dating sites is significantly remarkable. The dramatic increase in Internet usage, indeed, has spread...

• Online Dating

How Peer Pressure Push an Adolescent to Be a Part of Peer Group

The theoretical framework which is for the complete dissertation inquiry, serves as the guide on which to build and help the study, consists of the selected concept (or theories) that under-builds researcher’s thinking with regards to how they apprehend and design to lookup the topic....

• Peer Pressure

Puberty as The Major Fascinating Transition Throughout Lifespan

A biological process that marks the transition from childhood to adolescence is Puberty. “Puberty is a period of the life span marked by major psychological, endocrine and physical changes that contribute to the metamorphosis of children into reproductively mature adolescents.” Puberty is when your body...

A Deviant Behavior of the Filipino Using the Merton’s Strain

An American Sociologist named Robert K. Merton was born on July 4, 1910 in Philadelphia. This American sociologist developed the Merton’s Strain Theory of Deviance which explains the rising crime rates expression in the United Stated of America (USA) at that time. This theory states...

• Deviant Behavior

Human Behavior on the Example of the History and Culture of the United States of America

 The United States of America is a unique country indeed. Unique, powerful, modern, advanced in so many arenas. Compared to other countries of similar size and population, America easily overshadows in technological advances, education and legal systems. However, because our great nation is relatively young...

• American History

Adult Education and ITS Philosophies

Before pursuing courses on adult education, it had been a while since I had contemplated on educational philosophies and what my actual style might entailed. When assigned this task, I assumed it would be easy to determine, ‘right?’ not so much, given the fact that...

• Adult Education Program

The Concept of a Passive and Active Bystander Effect

Groups willingness to help others can be affected in many ways one specifically being the bystander effect. The bystander effect is the tendency for people be unresponsive in high pressure situations due to the presence of other people (Darley & Latane, 1968). There are two...

Review the Different Hypnotherapy Techniques for Phobias 

This essay will look at what stress and anxiety are and how that can challenge diagnosis and impact treatment. before going on to other limitations of treatment. I will address phobias; the difference between fears and phobia and how that impacts on choices of treatment...

The Expectations of the Stroop Effect

The Stroop effect is an experimental design that analyzes our automatic responses when observing incongruent stimuli. In this study, a short experimental naming test will be performed with both neutral and interference conditions. A picture of fruit was displayed on a screen with either an...

• Stroop Effect

Best topics on Psychology

1. Why Psychology Major: Understanding the Human Mind

2. Why Psychology: Exploring the Fascinating Depths of the Human Mind

3. Why I Chose Psychology: Path to Understanding the Human Mind

4. Sports Psychology: Unleashing the Mental Edge in Athletic Performance

5. The Social Learning Theory in Psychology

6. The Profound Contributions of Sigmund Freud to Psychology

7. Psychological Depths of “Shutter Island”

8. Exploring the Diverse Schools of Psychology

9. Exploring the Depths of Psychology Research

10. Psychology: Illuminating Perspectives in an Argumentative Discourse

11. Exploring Personality Psychology: Unveiling the Complexities Within

12. A Passion for Psychology: Nurturing the Flames Within

13. The History of Abnormal Psychology: Unveiling the Layers of Time

14. Health Psychology: Exploring the Nexus of Mind and Body

15. Free Will vs. Determinism in Psychology: Navigating the Paradox

• Confirmation Bias

Need writing help?

You can always rely on us no matter what type of paper you need

*No hidden charges

100% Unique Essays

Absolutely Confidential

Money Back Guarantee

By clicking “Send Essay”, you agree to our Terms of service and Privacy statement. We will occasionally send you account related emails

You can also get a UNIQUE essay on this or any other topic

Thank you! We’ll contact you as soon as possible.

• Boredom Makes Us Human

I n a recent article in the Financial Times, Markham Heid shares with us a peculiar life crisis. At 41, he has built what many would regard as the good life: he has a family; he is healthy, productive, and creative; he has time to travel, read, exercise, and see friends. Yet, he feels that “something is off.” He gives this state a variety of names, including mid-life melancholy, ennui, and despair. He also diagnoses it in others all around him. To fight against it, some of his friends have turned to ayahuasca retreats, others to fitness. What renders Heid’s malaise somewhat strange is that it does not seem to arise from anything specific. If Heid had lost his job, had no time for himself, or was struggling in his marriage, some of these feelings would seem less puzzling. 

In the history of philosophy, there have been many attempts to understand such powerful but objectless feelings. Boredom , anxiety , and despair are some of the descriptions these moods have received. In the novel Nausea , the French existentialist philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre describes someone who mysteriously experiences that feeling whenever they are confronted with ordinary objects, like a pebble on the beach. The German philosopher Martin Heidegger describes an uncanny unease we may feel when we are bored and searching desperately for distractions. The Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard speaks of a silent despair in the background of our lives, a sense of discord or dread of an unknown something that can grab us momentarily.

Sadly, the philosophical descriptions of such moods have often been misunderstood as sombre or romantic moments of existential reflection where we recognize our mortality or the meaninglessness of life. Pictured in this way, these moments are bound to stay isolated from the anxiety, despair, and melancholy that we face in our ordinary life and seek help for. But if we look beyond the existentialist clichés, the philosophical ideas on such moods can offer a new way forward. What could Heid have learnt from the philosophers?

Moods of nothing

Despite Heid’s references to Heidegger, we do not read anything about the philosopher’s own ruminations of a very similar experience of flatness: a feeling that all things (and we ourselves) sink into indifference; a sense that things around us slip away or we slip away from ourselves; a malaise related to a vacant stillness. What is remarkable, for Heidegger, is that such intense affects arise despite the fact that nothing may have changed in our lives: one is still surrounded by the same people, events, and activities, but these do not engage us as they used to. It is this feature that makes him describe what he calls “anxiety” as a mood generated by nothing in particular.

This makes such feelings doubly unwelcome. Most of us can tolerate negative emotions if we see them as instrumental to something desirable—we do not run to a therapist to treat a fear if we think that it holds us back from doing something obviously risky. But unlike fear, what Heidegger calls anxiety and what Heid’s article describes do not protect us from anything specific. No wonder why Sigmund Freud called anxiety a “ riddle .”

But this view is too simplistic for Heidegger. It risks concealing both the value and meaning of the feelings he describes. First, the human emotional life is much more complex than a simple battle between positive and negative feelings, or useful and useless emotions. Second, objectless moods can teach us something significant not about specific risks or problems in our lives but about the fact that we have a life to live at all. Learning from them can allow us to find what Heidegger describes as a sense of peace and joy within the malaise.

What’s missing?

Heid says that “some essential aspect of life is missing or not sufficiently represented.” He ends up attributing his melancholy to the lack of new experiences. Kierkegaard calls this the illusion of “crop rotation,” the idea that changing the soil frequently can save us from boredom and despair. 

But what really drives such moods is not the need for new experiences. It is not even the particulars of our individual lives or the culture we belong to, but that we have been given a life to live in the first place, the taste of possibility that comes with being alive. The kinds of questions that arise are not questions like “have I married the right person?” “will parenthood enrich my life?” or “do I have enough hobbies?” It is the more fundamental questions like “what does it mean to be human?” “what am I supposed to do with the fact that I was given a life?” and “what kind of life is possible for me?” that best explain our human tendency for anxiety, despair, or boredom .

This is why such moods are likely to appear as a mid-life crisis. With many of our life goals fulfilled, we start to wonder what life is for, what is possible for human existence, and what we are doing for it. Humans are inherently ambivalent toward possibility, attracted but also repelled by it. On one hand, we can experience it as a radical openness, an appreciation of our life as a gift. On the other, the open-endedness of possibility, the sense that one could always be doing more with their life, can create a great sense of agony about who we are and how we should go on. 

Throwing us out of our everyday lives, such moods make us ponder existence itself. They are cases where who we are and what we are for becomes an issue for each one of us. These questions never assume a final answer. Hovering over our lives, they can always leave us with a sense of unease. Recognizing that these questions are there, and that they matter, can at least allow us to know what may be missing, even when all is good.

More Must-Reads From TIME

• Putin’s Enemies Are Struggling to Unite
• Women Say They Were Pressured Into Long-Term Birth Control
• What Student Photojournalists Saw at the Campus Protests
• Scientists Are Finding Out Just How Toxic Your Stuff Is
• John Mulaney Has What Late Night Needs
• The 100 Most Influential People of 2024
• Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time

Contact us at [email protected]

• Neuroscience

2 Popular Psychology Myths, Debunked

Why these "fun facts" are no more than tall tales..

Posted May 5, 2024 | Reviewed by Abigail Fagan

The human mind holds more wonders than we can imagine—so much so that, for centuries, we’ve dedicated ourselves to trying to understand it. It’s in the very name; “psyche”, meaning mind or soul, and “ology”, meaning study, come together to refer to the field we know, love and take a great deal of interest in: psychology.

Since the time of our psychological forefathers, we’ve come far in our attempts to grasp the essence of the human mind and brain. While there’s still plenty we’re not certain of, there’s perhaps an equal amount of knowledge we’ve been able to gain. However, with this pursuit of knowledge comes the spread of mythological thought—ideas that, despite their prevalence, lack any empirical support and mislead us in our understanding of the mind.

You’ve likely heard these two myths before. Through actual psychological insight, you can learn the truth behind them.

1. People Are Either “Left Brained” Or “Right Brained”

The idea that people are either “left- or right-brained” is an enduring concept. The left side of the brain is personified as being the logical one, and the right side as being the creative one—and the idea suggests our personalities and skills are shaped by the hemisphere we favor. Are you a logical, analytical left-brainer or a free-spirited, creative right-brainer? It’s an alluring dichotomy.

Although they are symmetrically located within the brain, it’s common knowledge that the left and right hemispheres of the brain both develop and function asymmetrically. They both share nearly 100 billion neurons—close to the amount of stars in the Milky Way galaxy—that are located in identifiable regions and tuned to take on specific tasks. These two hemispheres work in tandem, but not in the way our intuition would lead us to think.

Research from the International Journal of Innovation, Creativity and Change underlines the counterintuitive way that the left and right hemispheres operate. For instance, the brain processes incoming visual information from the eyes through the occipital lobes at the back of the brain; however, the left hemisphere processes information from the right visual field, and vice versa. Similarly, the left frontal lobe typically controls the movement of the right side of the body, and also vice versa.

However, despite these asymmetries, the authors explain that there is no evidence to suggest that normal cognitive functioning happens exclusively in one hemisphere or the other. The corpus callosum—the bridge between the hemispheres—allows extensive communication between the hemispheres, making sure that brain activity is coordinated across both sides.

While the idea of “left- versus right-brained thinking” may seem like a convenient framework, it ultimately falls short as a scientific reality. While some people may be more adept in analytical thinking, and while others may thrive in creative pursuits, these strengths can’t be reliably attributed to the dominance of one hemisphere over the other. In reality, most of us have a diverse range of skills that can’t be neatly categorized into left-brained or right-brained categories.

2. Humans Only Use 10% of Their Brain

From the silver screen to casual conversations, the idea that humans only use 10% of their brains has made its way throughout popular culture. You might remember Scarlett Johansson’s portrayal of a woman unlocking superhuman abilities as she surpasses the “10% threshold” in the movie Lucy . This idea, however, begs too many questions.

Humans are often referred to as “cognitive misers” in psychology. According to renowned cognitive scientist Keith Stanovich, animals—including humans—have evolved over time to help their genes survive and reproduce, rather than to always make perfect decisions. This means that being rational, or making decisions that perfectly match reality, isn’t always the most important thing for survival. Sometimes, it’s more beneficial for us to use less energy or resources, even if it means being a bit inaccurate.

Put simply, we often take the path of least resistance when it comes to thinking—and it’s this notion that may have given rise to the idea that we only use 10% of our brains. However, the theory of humans being cognitive misers by no means suggests that we are incapable of using the “full capacity" of our brains. If this were the case, our reality as humans would look a lot different.

To prove this, neuroscientist Barry Beyernstein set out six pieces of evidence to debunk the “10% myth”:

• If we only use 10% of our brains, then traumatic brain injuries to the other 90% would have no effect on our functioning. In reality, however, there’s virtually not a single part of the brain that can be damaged without impairing our functioning.
• No matter what we are doing, every area in a healthy, undamaged brain is always active. While some areas might not participate as much as others, they all play a part—even when we’re sleeping —in ensuring that we can function.
• The brain uses a massive amount of resources to operate. If we didn’t need 90% of our brains, humans likely would have evolved to eliminate these redundant areas to reduce energy consumption and increase survival chances.
• Research shows distinct regions of the brain responsible for different tasks, meaning that the brain operates as a specialized network rather than a homogeneous mass. We haven’t found any parts of the brain that don’t serve a purpose.
• Instruments that monitor the activity of individual brain cells reveal that most cells are always active. At all times, a majority of the brain is engaged in processing information.
• Brain cells that no longer function will degenerate over time. If 90% of our brain cells were useless, our autopsies would persistently show large-scale neurological degeneration.

The reality is that every part of our brain serves a purpose, and in no way does one half dominate the other. So, the next time you chat with a self-proclaimed “left-brainer”, or a person fantasizing about what humans would look like using 100% of their brain’s potential, remember that the truth about our minds is far more detailed and fascinating than these reductive myths suggest.

A version of this post also appears on Forbes.com.

Facebook image: Bricolage/Shutterstock

Mark Travers, Ph.D., is an American psychologist with degrees from Cornell University and the University of Colorado Boulder.

• Find a Therapist
• Find a Treatment Center
• Find a Psychiatrist
• Find a Support Group
• Find Online Therapy
• United States
• Brooklyn, NY
• Chicago, IL
• Houston, TX
• Los Angeles, CA
• New York, NY
• Portland, OR
• San Diego, CA
• San Francisco, CA
• Seattle, WA
• Washington, DC
• Asperger's
• Bipolar Disorder
• Chronic Pain
• Eating Disorders
• Passive Aggression
• Personality
• Goal Setting
• Positive Psychology
• Stopping Smoking
• Low Sexual Desire
• Relationships
• Child Development
• Therapy Center NEW
• Diagnosis Dictionary
• Types of Therapy

At any moment, someone’s aggravating behavior or our own bad luck can set us off on an emotional spiral that threatens to derail our entire day. Here’s how we can face our triggers with less reactivity so that we can get on with our lives.

• Emotional Intelligence
• Gaslighting
• Affective Forecasting

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

• View all journals
• Explore content
• About the journal
• Publish with us
• Sign up for alerts
• Review Article
• Published: 13 May 2024

Toolbox of individual-level interventions against online misinformation

• Anastasia Kozyreva   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-8037-9919 1 ,
• Philipp Lorenz-Spreen   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-6319-4154 1   na1 ,
• Stefan M. Herzog   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2329-6433 1   na1 ,
• Ullrich K. H. Ecker   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4743-313X 2   na1 ,
• Stephan Lewandowsky   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-1655-2013 3 , 4   na1 ,
• Ralph Hertwig   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-9908-9556 1   na1 ,
• Ayesha Ali 5 ,
• Joe Bak-Coleman   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-7590-3824 6 ,
• Sarit Barzilai   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4224-0080 7 ,
• Melisa Basol 8 ,
• Adam J. Berinsky   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-7827-9396 9 ,
• Cornelia Betsch   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-2856-7303 10 , 11 ,
• John Cook 12 ,
• Lisa K. Fazio   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-0415-4862 13 ,
• Michael Geers   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0602-5893 1 , 14 ,
• Andrew M. Guess   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2974-7848 15 ,
• Haifeng Huang   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-1478-0303 16 ,
• Horacio Larreguy   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-8491-6400 17 ,
• Rakoen Maertens   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-8507-5359 18 ,
• Folco Panizza   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-5178-5926 19 ,
• Gordon Pennycook 20 , 21 ,
• David G. Rand   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-8975-2783 22 ,
• Steve Rathje   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-6727-571X 23 ,
• Jason Reifler   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-1116-7346 24 ,
• Philipp Schmid   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2966-0806 10 , 11 , 25 ,
• Mark Smith   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-1048-7786 26 ,
• Briony Swire-Thompson   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-7464-8940 27 ,
• Paula Szewach   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4250-1447 24 , 28 ,
• Sander van der Linden   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-0269-1744 8 &
• Sam Wineburg 26  

Nature Human Behaviour ( 2024 ) Cite this article

253 Accesses

116 Altmetric

Metrics details

• Human behaviour

The spread of misinformation through media and social networks threatens many aspects of society, including public health and the state of democracies. One approach to mitigating the effect of misinformation focuses on individual-level interventions, equipping policymakers and the public with essential tools to curb the spread and influence of falsehoods. Here we introduce a toolbox of individual-level interventions for reducing harm from online misinformation. Comprising an up-to-date account of interventions featured in 81 scientific papers from across the globe, the toolbox provides both a conceptual overview of nine main types of interventions, including their target, scope and examples, and a summary of the empirical evidence supporting the interventions, including the methods and experimental paradigms used to test them. The nine types of interventions covered are accuracy prompts, debunking and rebuttals, friction, inoculation, lateral reading and verification strategies, media-literacy tips, social norms, source-credibility labels, and warning and fact-checking labels.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals

Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription

24,99 € / 30 days

cancel any time

Subscribe to this journal

Receive 12 digital issues and online access to articles

111,21 € per year

only 9,27 € per issue

Buy this article

• Purchase on Springer Link
• Instant access to full article PDF

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

Determinants of behaviour and their efficacy as targets of behavioural change interventions

Loneliness trajectories over three decades are associated with conspiracist worldviews in midlife

Adults who microdose psychedelics report health related motivations and lower levels of anxiety and depression compared to non-microdosers

Data availability.

All data are available at OSF ( https://osf.io/ejyh6 ) and in the online supplement ( https://interventionstoolbox.mpib-berlin.mpg.de ).

Code availability

All code is available at OSF ( https://osf.io/ejyh6 ).

Lazer, D. M. J. et al. The science of fake news. Science 359 , 1094–1096 (2018).

Article   CAS   PubMed   Google Scholar  

Lewandowsky, S. et al. Technology and Democracy: Understanding the Influence of Online Technologies on Political Behaviour and Decision Making JRC Science for Policy Report (Publications Office of the European Union, 2020).

Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on a Single Market for Digital Services (Digital Services Act) and Amending Directive 2000/31/EC (COM/2020/825 Final) , https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-9-2022-0269_EN.html#title2 (European Parliament, 2020).

Lorenz-Spreen, P., Oswald, L., Lewandowsky, S. & Hertwig, R. A systematic review of worldwide causal and correlational evidence on digital media and democracy. Nat. Hum. Behav . https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-022-01460-1 (2022).

Kozyreva, A., Smillie, L. & Lewandowsky, S. Incorporating psychological science into policy making. Eur. Psychol. 28 , 206–224 (2023).

Article   Google Scholar  

Lewandowsky, S. et al. Misinformation and the epistemic integrity of democracy. Curr. Opin. Psychol. 54 , 101711 (2023).

Article   PubMed   PubMed Central   Google Scholar  

Rosen, G. Remove, Reduce, Inform: New Steps to Manage Problematic Content, https://about.fb.com/news/2019/04/remove-reduce-inform-new-steps (Meta, 2019).

Douek, E. Governing online speech: from ‘posts-as-trumps’ to proportionality and probability. Columbia Law Rev. 121 , 759–834 (2021).

Google Scholar  

Kozyreva, A. et al. Resolving content moderation dilemmas between free speech and harmful misinformation. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 120 , 2210666120 (2023).

Lewandowsky, S. et al. The Debunking Handbook 2020. Databrary https://doi.org/10.17910/b7.1182 (2020).

Guess, A. M. et al. A digital media literacy intervention increases discernment between mainstream and false news in the United States and India. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 117 , 15536–15545 (2020).

Basol, M., Roozenbeek, J. & Linden, S. Good news about bad news: gamified inoculation boosts confidence and cognitive immunity against fake news. J. Cogn. https://doi.org/10.5334/joc.91 (2020).

Roozenbeek, J., Linden, S., Goldberg, B., Rathje, S. & Lewandowsky, S. Psychological inoculation improves resilience against misinformation on social media. Sci. Adv. 8 , 6254 (2022).

Fazio, L. Pausing to consider why a headline is true or false can help reduce the sharing of false news. Harv. Kennedy Sch. Misinformation Rev . https://doi.org/10.37016/mr-2020-009 (2020).

Pennycook, G. et al. Shifting attention to accuracy can reduce misinformation online. Nature 592 , 590–595 (2021).

Clayton, K. et al. Real solutions for fake news? Measuring the effectiveness of general warnings and fact-check tags in reducing belief in false stories on social media. Polit. Behav. 42 , 1073–1095 (2020).

Pennycook, G. & Rand, D. G. The psychology of fake news. Trends Cogn. Sci. 25 , 388–402 (2021).

Article   PubMed   Google Scholar  

Brady, W. J., Wills, J. A., Jost, J. T., Tucker, J. A. & Van Bavel, J. J. Emotion shapes the diffusion of moralized content in social networks. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 114 , 7313–7318 (2017).

Article   CAS   PubMed   PubMed Central   Google Scholar  

Van Bavel, J. J. et al. Political psychology in the digital (mis)information age: a model of news belief and sharing. Soc. Issues Policy Rev. 15 , 84–113 (2021).

Wineburg, S., Breakstone, J., McGrew, S., Smith, M. D. & Ortega, T. Lateral reading on the open internet: a district-wide field study in high school government classes. J. Educ. Psychol. 114 , 893–909 (2022).

Osborne, J. et al. Science Education in an Age of Misinformation (Stanford Univ., 2022).

Lorenz-Spreen, P., Lewandowsky, S., Sunstein, C. R. & Hertwig, R. How behavioural sciences can promote truth, autonomy and democratic discourse online. Nat. Hum. Behav. 4 , 1102–1109 (2020).

Kozyreva, A., Lewandowsky, S. & Hertwig, R. Citizens versus the internet: confronting digital challenges with cognitive tools. Psychol. Sci. Public Interest 21 , 103–156 (2020).

Ecker, U. K. H. et al. The psychological drivers of misinformation belief and its resistance to correction. Nat. Rev. Psychol. 1 , 13–29 (2022).

Roozenbeek, J., Culloty, E. & Suiter, J. Countering misinformation: evidence, knowledge gaps, and implications of current interventions. Eur. Psychol. 28 , 189–205 (2023).

Pennycook, G., Binnendyk, J., Newton, C. & Rand, D. G. A practical guide to doing behavioural research on fake news and misinformation. Collabra Psychol. 7 , 25293 (2020).

Wright, C. et al. Effects of brief exposure to misinformation about e-cigarette harms on Twitter: a randomised controlled experiment. BMJ Open 11 , 045445 (2021).

Badrinathan, S. Educative interventions to combat misinformation: evidence from a field experiment in India. Am. Polit. Sci. Rev. 115 , 1325–1341 (2021).

Ziemer, C.-T. & Rothmund, T. Psychological underpinnings of misinformation countermeasures. J. Media Psychol . https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-1105/a000407 (2024).

Geers, M. et al. The online misinformation engagement framework. Curr. Opin. Psychol. 55 , 101739 (2023).

Hornsey, M. J. & Lewandowsky, S. A toolkit for understanding and addressing climate scepticism. Nat. Hum. Behav. 6 , 1454–1464 (2022).

Fasce, A. et al. A taxonomy of anti-vaccination arguments from a systematic literature review and text modelling. Nat. Hum. Behav. 7 , 1462–1480 (2023).

Blair, R. A. et al. Interventions to counter misinformation: lessons from the Global North and applications to the Global South. Curr. Opin. Psychol. 55 , 101732 (2024).

IJzerman, H. et al. Use caution when applying behavioural science to policy. Nat. Hum. Behav. 4 , 1092–1094 (2020).

Twitter Comms. More reading—people open articles 40% more often after seeing the prompt. X , https://web.archive.org/web/20220804154748/ ; https://twitter.com/twittercomms/status/1309178716988354561 (2020).

About Community Notes on X , https://help.twitter.com/en/using-x/community-notes (accessed 16 February 2024).

Thaler, R. H. & Sunstein, C. R. Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness (Yale Univ. Press, 2008).

Thaler, R. H. & Sunstein, C. R. Nudge: The Final Edition (Yale Univ. Press, 2021).

Pennycook, G. & Rand, D. G. Accuracy prompts are a replicable and generalizable approach for reducing the spread of misinformation. Nat. Commun. 13 , 2333 (2022).

X Support. Sharing an article can spark conversation, so you may want to read it before you Tweet it. X , https://twitter.com/twittersupport/status/1270783537667551233 (2020).

Andı, S. & Akesson, J. Nudging away false news: evidence from a social norms experiment. Digit. J. 9 , 106–125 (2020).

Hertwig, R. & Grüne-Yanoff, T. Nudging and boosting: steering or empowering good decisions. Perspect. Psychol. Sci. 12 , 973–986 (2017).

Brodsky, J. E. et al. Improving college students’ fact-checking strategies through lateral reading instruction in a general education civics course. Cogn. Res. Princ. Implic. 6 , 23 (2021).

Panizza, F. et al. Lateral reading and monetary incentives to spot disinformation about science. Sci. Rep. 12 , 5678 (2022).

Barzilai, S. et al. Misinformation is contagious: middle school students learn how to evaluate and share information responsibly through a digital game. Comput. Educ. 202 , 104832 (2023).

Tay, L. Q., Hurlstone, M. J., Kurz, T. & Ecker, U. K. H. A comparison of prebunking and debunking interventions for implied versus explicit misinformation. Br. J. Psychol. 113 , 591–607 (2022).

Lewandowsky, S. & Linden, S. Countering misinformation and fake news through inoculation and prebunking. Eur. Rev. Soc. Psychol. 32 , 348–384 (2021).

Gottfried, J. A., Hardy, B. W., Winneg, K. M. & Jamieson, K. H. Did fact checking matter in the 2012 presidential campaign? Am. Behav. Sci. 57 , 1558–1567 (2013).

Huang, H. A war of (mis)information: the political effects of rumors and rumor rebuttals in an authoritarian country. Br. J. Polit. Sci. 47 , 283–311 (2017).

Porter, E. & Wood, T. J. The global effectiveness of fact-checking: evidence from simultaneous experiments in Argentina, Nigeria, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 118 , 2104235118 (2021).

Porter, E., Velez, Y. & Wood, T. J. Correcting COVID-19 vaccine misinformation in 10 countries. R. Soc. Open Sci. 10 , 221097 (2023).

Badrinathan, S. & Chauchard, S. ‘I don’t think that’s true, bro!’ Social corrections of misinformation in India. Int. J. Press Polit . https://doi.org/10.1177/19401612231158770 (2023).

Arechar, A. A. et al. Understanding and combatting misinformation across 16 countries on six continents. Nat. Hum. Behav. 7 , 1502–1513 (2023).

Offer-Westort, M., Rosenzweig, L. R. & Athey, S. Battling the coronavirus 'infodemic' among social media users in Kenya and Nigeria. Nat. Hum. Behav., https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-023-01810-7 (2024).

Ali, A. & Qazi, I. A. Countering misinformation on social media through educational interventions: evidence from a randomized experiment in Pakistan. J. Dev. Econ. 163 , 103108 (2023).

Maertens, R., Roozenbeek, J., Basol, M. & Linden, S. Long-term effectiveness of inoculation against misinformation: three longitudinal experiments. J. Exp. Psychol. Appl. 27 , 1–16 (2021).

Grady, R. H., Ditto, P. H. & Loftus, E. F. Nevertheless, partisanship persisted: fake news warnings help briefly, but bias returns with time. Cogn. Res. Princ. Implic. 6 , 52 (2021).

Paynter, J. et al. Evaluation of a template for countering misinformation—real-world autism treatment myth debunking. PLoS ONE 14 , 0210746 (2019).

Ecker, U. K. H., Butler, L. H. & Hamby, A. You don’t have to tell a story! A registered report testing the effectiveness of narrative versus non-narrative misinformation corrections. Cogn. Res. Princ. Implic. 5 , 64 (2020).

Schmid, P. & Betsch, C. Effective strategies for rebutting science denialism in public discussions. Nat. Hum. Behav. 3 , 931–939 (2019).

Johnson, H. M. & Seifert, C. M. Sources of the continued influence effect: when misinformation in memory affects later inferences. J. Exp. Psychol. Learn. Mem. Cogn. 20 , 1420–1436 (1994).

Lewandowsky, S., Stritzke, W. G. K., Oberauer, K. & Morales, M. Memory for fact, fiction, and misinformation: the Iraq War 2003. Psychol. Sci. 16 , 190–195 (2005).

Guay, B., Berinsky, A. J., Pennycook, G. & Rand, D. How to think about whether misinformation interventions work. Nat. Hum. Behav. 7 , 1231–1233 (2023).

Mosleh, M., Pennycook, G. & Rand, D. G. Field experiments on social media. Curr. Dir. Psychol. Sci. 31 , 69–75 (2021).

Aslett, K., Guess, A. M., Bonneau, R., Nagler, J. & Tucker, J. A. News credibility labels have limited average effects on news diet quality and fail to reduce misperceptions. Sci. Adv. 8 , eabl3844 (2022).

Carleton Athey, S., Cersosimo, M., Koutout, K. & Li, Z. Emotion- versus Reasoning-Based Drivers of Misinformation Sharing: A Field Experiment Using Text Message Courses in Kenya Stanford University Graduate School of Business Research Paper No. 4489759 (SSRN, 2023).

Almaatouq, A. et al. Beyond playing 20 questions with nature: integrative experiment design in the social and behavioral sciences. Behav. Brain Sci . https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X22002874 (2022).

Cooper, H., Hedges, L. V. & Valentine, J. C. (eds) The Handbook of Research Synthesis and Meta-analysis (Russell Sage Foundation, 2019).

Lakens, D. Calculating and reporting effect sizes to facilitate cumulative science: a practical primer for t -tests and ANOVAs. Front. Psychol. 4 , 62627 (2013).

Pek, J. & Flora, D. B. Reporting effect sizes in original psychological research: a discussion and tutorial. Psychol. Methods 23 , 208–225 (2018).

Sharp, C., Kaplan, R. M. & Strauman, T. J. The use of ontologies to accelerate the behavioral sciences: promises and challenges. Curr. Dir. Psychol. Sci. 32 , 418–426 (2023).

Spadaro, G. et al. The Cooperation Databank: machine-readable science accelerates research synthesis. Perspect. Psychol. Sci. 17 , 1472–1489 (2022).

Cooper, H. & Patall, E. A. The relative benefits of meta-analysis conducted with individual participant data versus aggregated data. Psychol. Methods 14 , 165–176 (2009).

Forscher, P. S. et al. The benefits, barriers, and risks of big-team science. Perspect. Psychol. Sci. 18 , 607–623 (2022).

Duckworth, A. L. & Milkman, K. L. A guide to megastudies. PNAS Nexus 5 , pgac214 (2022).

Hameiri, B. & Moore-Berg, S. L. Intervention tournaments: an overview of concept, design, and implementation. Perspect. Psychol. Sci. 17 , 1525–1540 (2022).

Susmann, M., Fazio, L., Rand, D. G. & Lewandowsky, S. Mercury Project Misinformation Intervention Comparison Study. OSF https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/FE8C4 (2023).

Roozenbeek, J. et al. Susceptibility to misinformation is consistent across question framings and response modes and better explained by myside bias and partisanship than analytical thinking. Judgm. Decis. Mak. 17 , 547–573 (2022).

Reijula, S. & Hertwig, R. Self-nudging and the citizen choice architect. Behav. Public Policy 6 , 119–149 (2022).

Bak-Coleman, J. B. et al. Combining interventions to reduce the spread of viral misinformation. Nat. Hum. Behav. 6 , 1372–1380 (2022).

Bode, L. & Vraga, E. The Swiss cheese model for mitigating online misinformation. Bull. At. Sci. 77 , 129–133 (2021).

Milli, S., Carroll, M., Wang, Y., Pandey, S., Zhao, S. & Dragan, A. Engagement, user satisfaction, and the amplification of divisive content on social media. Knight First Amend. Inst. https://perma.cc/YUB7-4HMY (2024).

Willaert, T. A computational analysis of Telegram’s narrative affordances. PLoS ONE 18 , e0293508 (2023).

Pasquetto, I. V. et al. Tackling misinformation: what researchers could do with social media data. Harv. Kennedy Sch. Misinformation Rev . https://doi.org/10.37016/mr-2020-49 (2020).

Guess, A. M. et al. How do social media feed algorithms affect attitudes and behavior in an election campaign? Science 381 , 398–404 (2023).

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank S. Vrtovec, F. Stock and A. Horsley for research assistance and D. Ain for editing the manuscript and the online appendix. We also thank J. van Bavel, W. Brady, Z. Epstein, M. Leiser, L. Oswald, J. Rozenbeek and A. Simchon for their contributions during the workshop ‘Behavioral interventions for promoting truth and democratic discourse in online environments’. The study was funded by a grant from the Volkswagen Foundation to R.H., S.L. and S.M.H. (project ‘Reclaiming individual autonomy and democratic discourse online: how to rebalance human and algorithmic decision making’). A.K., P.L.-S., R.H., S.L. and S.M.H. also acknowledge funding from the EU Horizon project no. 101094752 ‘Social media for democracy (SoMe4Dem)’. S.L. was supported by a Research Award from the Humboldt Foundation in Germany and by an ERC Advanced Grant (no. 101020961 PRODEMINFO) while this research was conducted. U.K.H.E. was supported by an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (no. FT190100708). H.L. acknowledges funding from the French Agence Nationale de la Recherche under the Investissement d'Avenir program ANR-17-EURE-0010.

Author information

These authors jointly supervised this work: Anastasia Kozyreva, Philipp Lorenz-Spreen, Stefan M. Herzog, Ullrich K. H. Ecker, Stephan Lewandowsky, Ralph Hertwig.

Authors and Affiliations

Center for Adaptive Rationality, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany

Anastasia Kozyreva, Philipp Lorenz-Spreen, Stefan M. Herzog, Ralph Hertwig & Michael Geers

School of Psychological Science & Public Policy Institute, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia

Ullrich K. H. Ecker

School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK

Stephan Lewandowsky

Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany

Department of Economics, Lahore University of Management Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan

Craig Newmark Center, School of Journalism, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

Joe Bak-Coleman

Department of Learning and Instructional Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel

Sarit Barzilai

Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK

Melisa Basol & Sander van der Linden

Department of Political Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA

Adam J. Berinsky

Institute for Planetary Health Behaviour, University of Erfurt, Erfurt, Germany

Cornelia Betsch & Philipp Schmid

Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany

Melbourne Centre for Behaviour Change, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA

Lisa K. Fazio

Department of Psychology, Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany

Michael Geers

Department of Politics and School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA

Andrew M. Guess

Department of Political Science, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA

Haifeng Huang

Departments of Economics and Political Science, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México, Mexico City, Mexico

Horacio Larreguy

Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

Rakoen Maertens

IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca, Lucca, Italy

Folco Panizza

Department of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA

Gordon Pennycook

Department of Psychology, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada

Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA

David G. Rand

Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA

Steve Rathje

Department of Politics, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK

Jason Reifler & Paula Szewach

Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands

Philipp Schmid

Graduate School of Education, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

Mark Smith & Sam Wineburg

Department of Political Science, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA

Briony Swire-Thompson

Barcelona Supercomputing Center, Barcelona, Spain

Paula Szewach

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Contributions

Conceptualization: A.K., P.L.-S., S.M.H., S.L., U.K.H.E. and R.H. Visualization: A.K. and S.M.H. Supervision: P.L.-S., S.M.H., S.L., U.K.H.E. and R.H. Writing—original draft: A.K., P.L.-S., U.K.H.E., M.G. and J.B.-C. Writing—review and editing: A.K., P.L.-S., S.M.H., S.L., U.K.H.E. and R.H. Coordinating authors: A.K., P.L.-S., S.M.H., S.L., U.K.H.E. and R.H. Contributing authors: A.A., J.B.-C., S.B., M.B., A.J.B., C.B., J.C., L.K.F., M.G., A.M.G., H.H., H.L., R.M., F.P., G.P., D.G.R., S.R., J.R., P. Schmid, M.S., B.S.-T., P. Szewach, S.v.d.L. and S.W.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Anastasia Kozyreva .

Ethics declarations

Competing interests.

For studies included in the evidence overview, G.P., D.G.R. and A.J.B. received research funding and research support through gifts from Google and Meta. A.M.G. and A.A. received an unrestricted research grant from Meta. L.K.F. received research funding from Meta. S.v.d.L., S.R. and S.L. received research funding from Google Jigsaw. S.W. and M.S. received research funding from Google.org. All other authors declare no competing interests.

Peer review

Peer review information.

Nature Human Behaviour thanks Madalina Vlasceanu and Kevin Aslett for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

Additional information

Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Supplementary information

Supplementary information.

The supplement includes additional information about co-authors and a note on interventions selection process.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article.

Kozyreva, A., Lorenz-Spreen, P., Herzog, S.M. et al. Toolbox of individual-level interventions against online misinformation. Nat Hum Behav (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-024-01881-0

Download citation

Received : 01 February 2023

Accepted : 05 April 2024

Published : 13 May 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-024-01881-0

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

Quick links

• Explore articles by subject
• Guide to authors
• Editorial policies

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.