Psychology in relation to other social sciences and natural sciences | Psychology for UPSC Optional (Notes) PDF Download

Psychology and Physical Sciences

• Psychology, as a science, focuses on the individual's experience, which involves the interplay between subject and object. Both subject and object are real entities. In order to understand mental processes such as cognition, emotion, and volition, psychology must examine the nature of physical stimuli in relation to these processes.
• However, psychology differs from physical sciences in the treatment of physical objects. Physical sciences study the nature of physical stimuli independently of their relationship to individuals. On the other hand, psychology investigates the interaction between individuals and physical stimuli.
• Psychological science is primarily concerned with the behavior of individuals and indirectly considers external stimuli. It does not focus on the nature of physical stimuli in isolation from their relationship to individuals. Physical sciences contribute to psychology by helping explain an individual's experiences and behaviors, which are reactions to physical and social stimuli.

Psychology and Biology

• Psychology, as the science of experience and behavior, cannot fully explain experience without considering the accompanying physiological processes. The environment affects the mind through the sensory organs, and the mind responds to the environment through muscular activity. Both sensory organs and muscles are bodily organs, making mental processes closely intertwined with bodily processes.
• In fact, many psychologists view mental processes as functions of life, serving as mechanisms for the adaptive functioning of the psycho-physical organism in its environment. From a biological perspective, psychology is often approached by understanding the evolutionary aspects of higher mental processes, which enhance the organism's adaptation to the complex environment.
• The relationship between psychological science and biological science is highly interconnected. The experience and behavior of an individual can be explained using fundamental concepts from biology. The work of E. R. Hess demonstrates close correlations between psychic and neuronal processes in human personality. It is plausible that there are connections between psychic performances and the organization of the brain.
• The subjective experience of an individual is intimately linked to the structure of the brain and the properties of its structural elements. The organization of the brain aligns with the arrangement of consciousness. Thus, it is evident that the relationship between psychological and biological sciences is profound.

Psychology and Physiology

• Psychology, as the science of experience, recognizes the close connection between an individual's experiences and physiological processes, particularly those of the nervous system. Therefore, psychology examines these physiological processes to provide a comprehensive understanding of mental processes.
• However, psychology does not study physiological processes that are unrelated to mental processes because its primary focus is on mental processes and behavior. It explores experiences such as cognition, emotion, and volition, which are intricately linked to physiological processes.
• Psychology also investigates behavior, which serves as an expression of experience. Behavior represents the bodily reactions of individuals to their physical and social environment. Consequently, psychology studies the nature of various types of behavior but does not delve into the nature of all physiological processes. In contrast, physiology is concerned with studying the functions of all organs in the body.
• Some behaviorists attempt to reduce psychology to physiology, which is a branch of biological science. They discard the concept of mind or consciousness. Psychology, however, examines behavior as a response of the entire organism to stimuli, rather than focusing on specific body parts or organs as physiology does.
• The relationship between psychological science and physiology is so intertwined that a significant discipline called "physiological psychology" has emerged in the past few decades. Physiological psychology has made remarkable progress by incorporating concepts and techniques from allied disciplines such as neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, endocrinology, pharmacology, cellular physiology, and biochemistry. Research in physiological psychology has shed valuable light on the nature of human personality and purposeful behavior.

Psychology and Logic

• Psychology encompasses a broader scope than Logic because it investigates various mental processes, including cognition, emotion, and volition. On the other hand, Logic solely focuses on thinking, which is a specific type of knowing, excluding the domains of feeling and willing.
• However, Logic should not be equated with the psychology of thinking because psychology is a positive science, whereas Logic is a normative science. Psychology describes how we actually think, while Logic prescribes how we ought to think in order to arrive at truth.
• There are distinct differences between Psychology and Logic. Psychology explores mental processes such as conception, judgment, and reasoning, while Logic examines mental products like concepts, judgments, and inferences.
• Psychology deals with the process of reasoning, which involves the mental exploration of data, whereas Logic deals with the outcome of mental exploration, namely, finding new relationships among data.
• Psychology addresses concrete mental processes, accompanied by feelings and volition, such as conception, judgment, and reasoning. In contrast, Logic focuses on abstract mental products, divorced from feelings and volition, including concepts, judgments, and inferences.
• Logic, as a normative science, is built upon Psychology, a positive science. To understand how we should reason, we must first comprehend how we do reason. We need knowledge of the nature of reasoning before investigating its conditions of validity.
• Psychology examines the actual process of reasoning, while Logic scrutinizes the validity of reasoning and the conditions that make it valid. However, the laws of logic are influenced by the laws that govern human thinking. All forms of logical thinking are constrained by the limitations of the human mind.
• In recent years, the relationship between psychological science and logic has grown closer. Many contemporary psychologists extensively employ concepts from symbolic logic or mathematical logic. While empirical research has been the primary focus during the empirical phase of psychological science, there has been an increasing utilization of symbolic logic for the theoretical systematization of psychological science. It is expected that with the further systematization of psychological theory, symbolic logic will be even more extensively employed.

Psychology and Philosophy

• Philosophy consists of two parts: epistemology and ontology. Psychology is closely related to epistemology as it examines the nature of knowing, feeling, and willing. It focuses on the factual aspects of knowing and the nature and development of knowledge within an individual's mind.
• Psychology is concerned with the validity of knowledge and assumes its possibility, tracing its growth and development in the individual mind. Epistemology, on the other hand, investigates the conditions under which knowledge is possible and deals with the validity of knowledge.
• Epistemology seeks to answer questions such as whether knowledge of reality is possible, if knowledge represents reality, what the source of true knowledge is (experience, reason, or both), what the conditions of valid knowledge are, and what the range, extent, or limits of knowledge are.
• Psychology serves as the foundation for epistemology by exploring the nature of knowing as a factual phenomenon. Epistemology, in turn, examines the validity of knowledge. To investigate the validity of knowledge, it is necessary to understand how we actually acquire knowledge.
• While Locke attempted to solve epistemological problems through the psychological analysis of the process of knowing, Kant employed the critical method to uncover the a priori conditions of knowledge, which serve as its presuppositions.
• Psychology is also related to ontology or metaphysics. While psychology deals with knowing as a fact, ontology or metaphysics investigates the ultimate nature of the reality that is known. Ontology delves into the nature of the self, the external world, and God. Psychology is not concerned with God, assuming the reality of the mind, the external world, and the mind's capacity to know the world. Metaphysics verifies the reality of the self, the world, and the knowledge of the world through the self. It tests the validity of the fundamental assumptions of psychology.
• Psychology originated from philosophy, like other sciences. However, as psychology developed as an independent science, it separated itself from philosophy. Recently, it has recognized that certain theoretical problems within psychological science have speculative aspects that fall within the realm of philosophy. Philosophical psychology addresses these problems that carry philosophical implications within psychological science.

Psychology and Sociology

• Psychology examines the behavior patterns of individuals in relation to their physical and social environments. The physical environment consists of elements such as light, sound, taste, smell, heat, and cold, while the social environment comprises parents, relatives, friends, enemies, playmates, companions, and all individuals with whom an individual interacts.
• An individual's mind grows and develops through interaction with society, and personality development occurs through social intercourse. There is constant interaction between the individual and society.
• Sociology investigates the nature, origin, and development of society. It examines the customs, institutions, and manners of a society throughout its stages of development, from primitive to civilized states. Consequently, there is a close relationship between psychology and sociology.
• Sociology primarily focuses on the study of interpersonal relationships within social groups. It examines the bonds that connect individuals in society. Psychological research has shed light on the nature of interpersonal relationships, making them more understandable.
• While there is considerable overlap between psychology and sociology, there are certain points of difference between the two disciplines. Psychology primarily concerns itself with the experiences and behaviors of individuals, whereas sociology focuses on the role an individual plays in society.
• Social psychology explores collective behavior, investigating the unique characteristics individuals acquire as members of groups. It examines crowd behavior, mob behavior, and the psychological principles of social organization. Social psychology serves as the meeting point of psychology and sociology.
• Psychology, sociology, and social psychology are different branches of social science. Psychology and sociology both study the behavior of individuals within a social context but from different perspectives.

Psychology and Education

• Psychology is the scientific study of individual behavior in relation to the environment, while education focuses on developing an individual's abilities and shaping their character and behavior to become valuable and well-adjusted members of society.
• Education aims to harmoniously develop an individual's abilities and adjust them to the social environment by modifying their behavior. Educational psychology applies the general principles of psychology to the practical needs of education, providing a psychological foundation for sound educational practices.
• Education involves two key agents: the teacher and the student. The teacher needs to understand the student's mind in order to provide appropriate education. The child's mind has specific characteristics that vary at different stages of development.
• A teacher should utilize psychological principles to foster the child's powers of observation, attention, memory, imagination, thinking, emotion, volition, and character.
• Psychology assists educators by providing insights into the innate abilities of the child, the laws of their mental development, and the influence of the environment on their mind. It helps educators understand how individuals influence each other, how group dynamics impact individuals, and how the collective environment of a school shapes a child's personality.
• Psychology also explains how knowledge systems are constructed and how new knowledge is acquired and assimilated into existing knowledge frameworks.
• In recent years, psychological techniques have been employed to encourage creative behavior. According to Jackson and Messick, human invention arises from the interaction between a creative person, their creative output, and the responses of the environment.
• Psychological principles have been successfully applied in designing educational approaches. "Through educational designs, humanity has created civilization." Thus, the relationship between psychology and education is undeniably close.
• Education is a normative science; it defines the objectives of education. Psychology, however, cannot determine the ends of education but can contribute by identifying the means to achieve those ends. It studies mental processes, such as motives, emotions, and sentiments, in children, adolescents, and adults.
• As a result, psychology can support the education of individuals at different stages of life. Psychology also studies individual and group behavior, thus aiding the science of education, which aims to foster intellectual growth in learners.