Psychology is a science that studies the mental processes and behavioral reactions of people. The study of human psychology, like any other science, begins with a consideration of its tasks, goals and methods. In its development, psychology, otherwise called the science of the soul, has gone through several stages. For the first time, they spoke of the spiritual component of man in the fifth century BC. During this period of time, the basic ideas of people about the soul were based on numerous legends and myths, ancient beliefs and tales. The time of the second stage in the development of psychology is considered to be the 5-6th century A.D. At their turn, the science of psychology as such did not exist, all reflections on the soul of man were part of the general philosophy. Many centuries passed before psychology was discussed as a separate science in its modern sense. This happened only at the end of the 18th century. Then it became one of the main subjects in many universities in Europe.
Each science has its own goals and objectives, the achievement of which is possible thanks to the methods that it uses for this. The basic methods of psychology - these are certain means by which psychologists collect reliable data necessary for the construction of basic scientific theories and the further development of science as a whole. For a short period of existence, as a separate field of knowledge, the science of the soul has accumulated a fairly large number of its own methods. The main ones include:
- observation;
- experiment;
- poll;
- conversation;
- questioning.
The method of observation in psychology consists in a specially organized perception of the object of observation with the subsequent recording of its behavioral reactions. In the broader sense of the word, observation is the perception and memorization by an individual of the world that surrounds it. Objects of research of a specialist when using this psychological method can be: the content of the object’s speech, its intensity, duration, the prevalence of the emotions and movements that accompany it. Observation is carried out, as a rule, either by the observer (psychologist), or by special equipment (video camera, audio equipment, etc.).
An experiment (from Latin - "experience", "test") is a method of psychology that allows you to track the behavior of the subject in an artificially created, but close to reality situation. The experiment allows you to more fully evaluate the scale of the existing problem, as well as the result of the work already done. For example, a psychologist works with a patient suffering from fear of spiders. At the final stage of the work, the psychologist can conduct an experiment in which the patient will be asked to approach the aquarium in which the insect is located, which previously caused him horror. By the reaction of the patient, one can judge how successfully the treatment was carried out and whether there is a positive effect on it in this case.
The basic methods of psychology, as a rule, have their advantages and disadvantages. For example, observation is only a passive contemplative character. At the same time, the researcher observes the normal activity of the subject, but cannot make the necessary changes to it. If the creation of an artificial situation is necessary, the researcher resorts to a method such as an experiment, which has great advantages over observation.
A conversation is a type of verbal communication between a researcher and a test subject (psychologist and patient), in which the researcher seeks to obtain as much information as possible about the test subject. This scientific method is usually used at the initial stage of the study and precedes an observation or experiment.
A survey is a way of interaction between a researcher and a subject, which is carried out by formulating the necessary questions and receiving answers from the subject. Questioning - a type of interaction between two study participants (psychologist, patient), in which the latter is invited, as a rule, to give answers to asked questions. Basic psychology methods, such as questioning and questioning, can have common features. Interviewing a patient with a specialist is usually carried out orally, the questionnaire is a written survey where the subject is offered several answers. Moreover, the questions can be exactly the same, regardless of the form of their presentation to the patient - oral or written.
All the basic methods of psychology have a close relationship with each other and can be used both individually and jointly. Which method of study will be useful in each case, the researcher decides.
Today, researchers in the science of the soul to achieve their goals can use the methods of modern psychology, the classification of which is offered by different scientists. For example, the classification of methods from the author of several psychology textbooks by V. Druzhinin contains only three main methods: empirical, theoretical and descriptive. Most of them, as a rule, are still only experimental in nature and are rarely used in applied psychology.