PSYCH101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Comparative Psychology, Forensic Psychology, Classical Conditioning

• School: University of Waterloo
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYCH101
• Professor: Paul Wehr

Document Summary

Psychology is the scientific study of the human mind and its functions, especially those affecting behaviour in a given context. Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. The word psychology comes from the greek words. Psyche, meaning soul and logos, meaning science or study of a subject. Thus psychology means study of the soul or mind. We use the principles of psychology every day and probably don t even realize it. For instance when we spank our child for doing something wrong, we are utilizing the learning principle of punishment. In the same manner there are instances where we make use of psychological principles knowingly or unknowingly. Psychology is both an applied and academic field that studies the human mind and behavior. Research in psychology seeks to understand and explain thought, emotion and behavior. Application of psychology includes mental health treatment, performance enhancement self-help, and many other areas affecting health and daily life.