Psychological Research Areas

Social and Personality Social psychology – involves the study of social interactions, stereotypes, prejudices, attitudes, conformity, group behaviours, and aggression Personality psychology – involves the study of personality development, personality change, assessment, and abnormal behaviours

Developmental Psychology Examines moral, social, emotional, and cognitive development throughout a person’s entire life Some Dev. Psychologists focus on changes in infancy, some through adolescence, some adulthood, and some old age

Experimental Psychology Includes areas of sensation, perception, learning, human performance, motivation and emotion Conduct much of their work in controlled laboratory conditions with both animal and human subjects

Biological psychology Involves research on the physical and chemical changes that occur during stress, learning, and emotions, as well as how our genetic makeup, brain, and nervous system interact with our environments and influence our behaviours Work in academic settings, hospitals, and private research labs

Cognitive psychology Involves how we process, store, and retrieve information and how cognitive processes influence our behaviours Includes; memory, thinking, language, creativity, and decision making New area – artificial intelligence

Psychometrics Focuses on the measurement of people’s abilities, skills, intelligence, personality, and abnormal behaviours. Tests must be continually updated Some test people’s skills and abilities, as well as predict future performance