Psychology is the study of mind with a view to understand human behavior, perceptions, memory, emotions, motives and attitudes. Qualified psychologists work as counselors and use their skill, which largely involves patient and attentive listening, in helping people to decide how to best handle specific situations. Counselors by listening and discussing a clients’ problem, help him to discover the reasons for his particular type of behavior or feeling and guide him to find ways to overcome the problem by putting things in the right perspective.
Psychologists mainly work as Counselors in different settings like schools, colleges, counseling centers, government social welfare departments as well as in private practice. Other than working as Counselors, Psychologists conduct training programs, do market research take up teaching as a vocation and so on.
Psychologists study the human mind and human behavior. Research psychologists investigate the physical, cognitive, emotional, or social aspects of human behavior. Psychologists in applied fields provide mental health care in hospitals, clinics, schools, or private settings.
Like other social scientists, psychologists formulate hypotheses and collect data to test their validity. Research methods may vary depending on the topic under study. Psychologists sometimes gather information through controlled laboratory experiments or by administering personality, performance, aptitude, and intelligence tests. Other methods include observation, interviews, questionnaires, clinical studies, and surveys.
Educational Qualification:
The study of psychology may begin at 10+2 stage or at graduation. Specializations in branches, like those mentioned above, can be pursued at the postgraduate level or through professional training after post graduation. Postgraduate courses in Psychology are offered only to students with Psychology at the graduation level.
It is important to note that no formal training is required to become a councilor, but since psychology provides an insight into human behavior one would do well to specialize in the subject before taking up counseling as a profession. In addition, a large number of institutions provide postgraduate diploma in guidance and counseling. The duration of these courses vary between a year and two.
