Psychology: Definition, Behavior, Cognitive Processes, and Emotions

Introduction to Psychology

• Definition of Psychology
      - Psychology is the study of behavior and cognitive processes.
      - It aims to understand why we act, think, and feel the way we do.
      - Psychologists study both human and animal behaviors.

Behavior in Psychology

• Behavior
      - Defined as any action that can be observed or measured.
      - Examples of observable behaviors:
          - A baby sleeping.
          - Lucas walking over to his computer and playing games.
          - Lucas cheering after beating a game he's been playing for weeks.
      - Automatic body functions (e.g., heartbeat, blood pressure, digestion) are also considered behaviors and can be measured with lab equipment.

Cognitive Processes

• Cognitive Processes
      - Defined as private, unobservable mental processes.
      - Examples include:
          - Thoughts
          - Dreams
          - Memories
          - Perceptions
      - Example scenario: A woman sitting down in thought; her thought processes are unobservable unless disclosed.

Emotions and Their Influence

• Role of Emotions
      - Emotions significantly affect both behavior and cognitive processes.
      - Example involving Lucas:
          - He feels anxious about a chemistry test because he stayed up all night gaming instead of studying.
          - While his anxiety causes an observable behavior (increased heart rate), the underlying thoughts are unknown unless he communicates them.
      - Other examples of emotions:
          - Happiness
          - Sadness
          - Frustration
          - Fear
          - Anger

Psychological Constructs

• Definition of Psychological Constructs
      - These are complex theoretical concepts used to understand aspects of human behavior that cannot be directly observed or measured.
      - Examples of psychological constructs include:
          - Love
          - Creativity
          - Intelligence
          - Self-esteem
          - Motivation
      - Application in psychology: These constructs help in discussing and analyzing human behaviors occurring in various situations.

Applying Psychological Concepts

• Connection to Real-Life Behaviors
      - Example of Lucas:
          - His ongoing video game use despite negative life impacts could be attributed to emotional reasons, stress relief, or private mental processes.
      - This leads to further investigation on the why behind such behavior, analyzing emotional states and cognitive influences.