PSYC100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Learning Disability, Behavioral Neuroscience
Document Summary
Goals of psychology: describe behaviour and mental processes, explain behaviour and mental processes, predict behaviour and mental processes, change behaviour and mental processes. Other professions share the same goals ie doctors, prison officer, teacher, sales assistant. We all share the same goals are psychology in everyday life. Psychologist try explain, predict, describe and change people behaviour using scientific methodology. Scientific methodology is the approach to gain knowledge involving: collecting empirical evidence, generating theories. Psychology is the science of behaviour and mental processes. Behaviour = actions we can observe others/self doing. Mental (cognitive) processes = private thoughts, emotions, feelings, and motives. (cannot be observed by others. ) Cant observe some feeling sad, only can determine this by seeing emotions or by being told. Scientific study = approach to gaining information using systematic observations asking questions and looking through the mental process. The fields within psychology 52 different areas in psychology.
