Psychology and its Academic Applications; Creating the Mechanical Mind

The advancement of science and its application in our daily life magnifies the importance of scientific usage of various theories in Psychology applied in different academic faculties.  Today, the academic degree in Psychology is flourishing across the first world countries and across Asia.  As civilization changes, society’s behavioral setup and sociological interaction are also changing. As such, one must consider the importance of Psychology as a science used in public administration.  As I narrate the importance of Psychology in this blog, my examples will point its exemplifications from the text and specific academic disciplines related to business, education, marketing, human resource, public administration et al.

Assumption University of Thailand Graduate School of Psychology (Offered Courses 2016)

 The science of Psychology used in education relates how to manage the fundamentals of classroom administration.  Many instances that educational theories borrowed most of their concepts from Psychology, from Sigmund Freud to Pavlov, theories in Psychology are useful in the actual classroom management knowing that classroom interaction and communication are using the fundamentals of mind interaction and Psychology.  A good example that we can narrate from education using Psychology is the learning process of students.  Learning process is a sequence that varies according to the receptiveness of the student.  As such, activities leading to the learning objective of the given curriculum are executed and innovatively adjusted according to the reaction of the students or student with the main goal of imparting the right or the objective goal of the subject matter.  With these recorded patterns of behavior from the students written maybe in their portfolios, teachers can easily evaluate the student’s EQ or IQ and can further determine the student’s future study objectives.  

Furthermore, essentials of learning is also needed to accurately organize the activities of the learner. First, is the motivation of the learner, this process needs the basis of learning from the indispensable motive of the student towards the subject.  Second, structured situation in learning, it implies to the cues being set by the educational psychologist were situation will lead to the ultimate learning outcome. Third, Purposely activity connotes to the activities being implemented by the teacher in the class that is deem relative and effective in hastening the learning process of the student.  And the fourth, satisfying consequences implies to the activities being executed and programmed to achieve the goal in the learning process.  Indeed, these cues are relative to the psychological sequence behavior of students in the class that we may sometime conclude that psychology and other mental activities are also mechanical in a sense that behavior of students has its patterns and sequence.

In terms of business consumer behavior, more or less 80% of the theories being used in studying the behavior of consumers are barrowed from the theories of Psychology. Take for example the Psychoanalytic theories by Sigmund Freud.  The skill of Freud using the psychoanalysis in business research and market segmentation are useful for scientific evaluation in the market’s consumer behavior. During 1960’s a famous article of Vance Packard “Hidden Persuaders” reveals that consumer behavior and marketing needs the assistance of psychological technique to play with the minds of the buyer or consumer.  As such Vance Packard uses the Theory of Freud to elaborate the practice of persuading technique applied to the chosen market segment.

Psychology Used in Business 

Psychology used in Education

Management on the other hand uses the tools of psychology to implement corporate policies across the business organization. From Frederick Taylor scientific management, Henri Fayol’s modern operational management theory, and Elton Mayo and F.J. Roethlisberger’s Hawthorne studies all of these famous management gurus are linking their theories to Psychology discipline of study knowing that management is dealing with people and the minds of the people.

Likewise in advertising, a wide array of psychology theories are also used to catch the attention of consumer using the actual market data for market analysis.  Most of the conducted research in terms of consumer behavior uses the theories of Psychology to actively accommodate the actual sequence of the consumer behavior.  Given, the theory of “Message reception process” from the text of Wells et al. (2000) the theory relates to the fundamental psychological reaction of the consumer towards the product.  From perception, awareness, understanding, persuasion, and retention or memorability the process of such theories perceives the fundamental concepts of theories of psychology.

Finally, the Aristotelian method of expounding the meaning and importance of natures and its final ends was replaced by a mechanical or mechanistic method of explanation in terms of the regular deterministic behavior of matter in motion.

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