To what extent is the layperson's view of psychology an accurate view?

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To what extent is the layperson's view of psychology an

accurate view?

        When the layperson hears the term "psychology", they often associate it with

psychologists- who they typically sees as individuals who give advice, analyse personality, and

help those who are troubled or mentally ill. But psychology can be considered far more than the

treatment of personal problems. Psychology tries to explain the mysteries of human nature- why

people think, feel, and act as they do. Psychology also studies animal behaviour, using the

findings to determine laws of behaviour and to create theories about how humans behave and

think.

Definition

        The modern understanding of the word "psychology" is "mind" (psycho-) and "science"

(-logy). Therefore, psychology translates into "the science of the mind". However, because the

mind is an abstract assumption, psychology tends to study behaviour instead, as it is more viable

to observe. (Carson, p.4, 2000)

Nowadays, psychology has branched off into many different areas, which could explain why the

layperson would find it hard to give a brief but complete description of what it entails.

        However, the layperson often sees themselves as detached from the practice of

psychology, and assumes that only specialists deal with psychology. They can unwittingly be

unaware that they themselves are frequently part of a psychological process themselves

everyday through the influence of advertising, media and other means. Social psychology and

mass psychology are two areas in which this case could be argued.

Social Psychology

        Social psychology deals with the way in which the individual interacts and behaves with

society. It studies human behaviour taking into account people's attitudes, values, and social

influence. (Hogg, p. 12, Social Psychology)

Conformity and obedience

        The fact that our behaviour, feelings and thoughts are strongly influenced by the

characteristics of others is easily noticeable. There are many experiments that have been carried

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out to prove this, one of the most well known experiments being Solomon Asch's studies into

group pressure. His studies found that individuals, when faced with a consenting majority, would

often agree with the rest of the group's answers to the test, even when they were obviously

wrong to start with. When tested individually, without the group, the subjects would always

answer correctly (Baron, p. 79, 1999). Therefore it is apparent that individuals are often

influenced by people around them. Their reasons for succumbing to "group pressure" are less

obvious. It could have been that they were just "following the ...

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