application of psychology in our lives

[liza123]

do you think that you apply psychology in your relationships?sometimes, it is important to know about psychology and apply it in our relationships...i do that wiht my parents...what about you?

[SWM]

all the time, i dont have many close relationship. that is my choice. i like people at a distance. but yes, what i know and understand about people, i use  in all my relationships.

if you were an artist and you new the best way to compose a picture would you not compose everypicture to the best of your ability? there is a diference between art and psychology. it is much easier to stop painting  than it is to get away from people.

[anaklio]

I have much psychology training, yet I don't formally use it. I'm often criticized for that. Yet I have no regrets. Instead of patients, I have my friends and family. Trust me, they are far greater work ;-) but the rewards are also far greater :-)

[liza123]

all the time, i dont have many close relationship. that is my choice. i like people at a distance. but yes, what i know and understand about people, i use  in all my relationships.

if you were an artist and you new the best way to compose a picture would you not compose everypicture to the best of your ability? there is a diference between art and psychology. it is much easier to stop painting  than it is to get away from people.

well-said. that is what i  do. apply what i know when it comes to dealing with people. and as you said, i cannot keep away from people....unless i live in a secluded island somewhere all by myself.
as a matter of fact, we do use lots of psychology in our daily lives when we deal with people. even a baby is said to use psychology(according to some recent studies).babies are supposed to be smarter than people think. the point is that we do not call all these as "psychology"(such a bombastic word;in reality, we do use psychology!).

[liza123]

I have much psychology training, yet I don't formally use it. I'm often criticized for that. Yet I have no regrets. Instead of patients, I have my friends and family. Trust me, they are far greater work ;-) but the rewards are also far greater :-)

well, you are the expert. how would you define psychology? would you not say that you apply it consciously or subconsciously even on your friends and family as they do?

[anaklio]

We were taught that psychology is "the science of human behavior".
And that seems a reasonable definition.

Absolutely, I am a complete "victim" of my training.
Often I get confused...where I see "pathology"...my friends see "issues".

[voodoo scientist]

Yes. Everyone applies psychology in every single social interaction. One's understanding of human psychology defines virtually every interaction one makes with another human being, and is normally taught as part of "parenting" through cultural values and memes.

What varies from person to person is the breadth of their psychological understanding, the veracity of their psychological understanding, and the ability to direct their attention to the correct cues when in the situation.

[anaklio]

It's really a matter of "worldview".

Because of my training, I see the "quirks" in people. I understand how they come to be that way, and how those quirks are affecting their lives. My friends are religious, they see these things as being under God's control.

Who can say which view is correct?

[liza123]

We were taught that psychology is "the science of human behavior".
And that seems a reasonable definition.

Absolutely, I am a complete "victim" of my training.
Often I get confused...where I see "pathology"...my friends see "issues".

Well, that is understandable. Sometimes, people tend to "think too much" based on the knowledge, etc that they have. Having friends who give you a different perspective helps...

PS- thanks for your answer on the definition of psychology

[liza123]

It's really a matter of "worldview".

Because of my training, I see the "quirks" in people. I understand how they come to be that way, and how those quirks are affecting their lives. My friends are religious, they see these things as being under God's control.

Who can say which view is correct?

Precisely. There is no right or wrong. But, what is important to reflect on the "quirks" or whatever name you call it. How it is affecting a person 's life and whether it is necessary to do something about it using religion or psychology or whatever

[liza123]

Yes. Everyone applies psychology in every single social interaction. One's understanding of human psychology defines virtually every interaction one makes with another human being, and is normally taught as part of "parenting" through cultural values and memes.

What varies from person to person is the breadth of their psychological understanding, the veracity of their psychological understanding, and the ability to direct their attention to the correct cues when in the situation.

Precisely. Different names are used and the word "psychology" does not come into play often enough. Whether it is consciously or subconsciously, we use psychology in our social interactions, even babies do....

[anaklio]

Yeah, it's a ridiculously broad term. But still, training will allow a deeper understanding of things. We all use psychology, but few of us understand the details.

First, the details are still being worked out in studies. Second, as with "chaos theory" the initial conditions are very hard to pin down. For example, it is not possible to form memories before the age of two. Yet many interesting things happened to us before then.

[voodoo scientist]

I would argue that most or all religions (covering my bases on the really crazy ones here) are early attempts at psychology. There are many parallels to draw between established psychological facts and practical interpretations of religions, and the larger religions can demonstrably all be used to perceive and function in the world, as their believers continue to survive and expand.

[anaklio]

Agreed. I definitely see a convergence between religion and psychology. In years past, people would seek priests and God for help. Now they often seek psychologists and drugs.

[liza123]

Agreed. I definitely see a convergence between religion and psychology. In years past, people would seek priests and God for help. Now they often seek psychologists and drugs.

But, they are still people seeking priests and God for help since psychologists can only help them in medical terms(realted to mind). They are other things in their lives for which they still have to seek God and priests as you put it.

Would taking drugs be a good deal considering the side effects and other possible health implications?Generally speaking, can psychologists feel empathy towards their patients?Or is it just treatment given based on their academic studies?

[voodoo scientist]

But, they are still people seeking priests and God for help since psychologists can only help them in medical terms(realted to mind). They are other things in their lives for which they still have to seek God and priests as you put it.

Would taking drugs be a good deal considering the side effects and other possible health implications?Generally speaking, can psychologists feel empathy towards their patients?Or is it just treatment given based on their academic studies?

Doctors and psychologists today are all taught to empathize, but not sympathize with the patient. It's often what defines a good psychologist.

Name one thing a priest can help you with that a psychologist can't, assuming the same level of trust.

[liza123]

But, they are still people seeking priests and God for help since psychologists can only help them in medical terms(realted to mind). They are other things in their lives for which they still have to seek God and priests as you put it.

Would taking drugs be a good deal considering the side effects and other possible health implications?Generally speaking, can psychologists feel empathy towards their patients?Or is it just treatment given based on their academic studies?

Doctors and psychologists today are all taught to empathize, but not sympathize with the patient. It's often what defines a good psychologist.

Name one thing a priest can help you with that a psychologist can't, assuming the same level of trust.

Oh!My!Voodoo scientist, you are doing it again. Pls read my post(i said that people still seek priests and God for other things not related to medical stuff!)

[liza123]

Doctors and psychologists today are all taught to empathize, but not sympathize with the patient. It's often what defines a good psychologist.

Name one thing a priest can help you with that a psychologist can't, assuming the same level of trust.

Generally speaking, a priest(could be christian/hindu/buddhist or whatever) can teach yoga(an example). Would a psychologist be able to do so?

Back to docs and psychologists, you said that they are taught to empathize. you can tell people to do so but, it is not as simple as that!Empathizing is like putting yourself in the other person shoes......you really need to care in a selfless way to some extent(you need to undestand the 'true' meaning of the medical profession).

[liza123]

voodoo scientist, there is another thread dedicated to doctors, etc(mentioning empathy etc). So, I think that you should have a look at that thread.

[voodoo scientist]

Okay, since you seem to be getting confused about what I'm saying (none of your replies are really relevant to what I tried to convey, so I must be doing something wrong), I'll summarize my points here and then you can summarize yours:

* Religious belief systems are primitive, but functional attempts at psychology.
* Psychologists and priests "treat" the same things.