Finding The Best Area Of Specialization For A Psychologist Calgary

By Eula Clarke


The brain is a complex organ. Many marvel at its great capacity - the psychologist Calgary amongst others. If you would like a degree in psychology, you will be surprised that it has various sub fields under it. Before you graduate, it is good to know and be familiar with the various fields so you can choose early which to specialize on.

Psychology can be divided into two main branches. The first one deals with research. Research driven psychology pushes the practitioners to continuously increase the knowledge on a given field. The second one is through practice. This deals with focusing on current psychological problems and curing or solving them.

The most challenging sub-field in psychology is biopsychology. It is a combination of basic psychology and neuroscience. It is the study of brain function and how it affects a person's behavior. Messages and commands go through the nervous system and this is the principal concern of bio psychologists.

The largest specialty area in terms of coverage and practitioners is clinical psychology. Patients who are mentally and emotionally sick are the main concerns of clinical psychologists. Practitioners use principles to assess and cure the patients using medicine or therapy.

Developmental psychologists deal with a child's way of thinking from birth to death. How a child is taught, punished, trained and rewarded all have an impact on his mental and emotional development. Developmental psychologists' research spans a person's lifetime and is most useful for parenting techniques.

Crimes and law enforcement need psychologists as well - forensic psychologists to be specific. They work with the court system to assess suspects though their actions and motives. Their testimonies are of a great bearing to the court because their observations are based on scientific research.

The study of psychology in the workplace is undertaken by industrial psychologists. They study a company's culture and how it can contribute to employee productivity. They can suggest solutions as simple as improving the lighting in the office or as drastic as reorganizing a whole department.

Personality psychologists study each person's personality. Although their specialization is general, they make great life coaches. Moreover, they can teach Psychology 101 to colleges and conduct research work as well.

Social psychology is more dynamic than personal psychology. It deals with studying how an external stimulus affects a person's behavior. These psychologists usually work under advertising companies as consultants for improving product packaging and commercials.

Given these many fields, a student will be given the first few years of undergraduate studies to think hard about his future specialty. After graduating from college, one may opt to get a master's degree or a doctorate degree to continue his studies.

Many people want to study psychology to help them understand themselves. This is the wrong motivation for a psychology degree. A person needs to know what he wants first before choosing a career that needs more than 4 years to master. A budding practitioner must remember that psychology is a pursuit of knowledge and development for individuals and the society.




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