The word 'psychology' is derived from two Greek words, 'psyche', meaning the mind, soul or spirit and 'logos', meaning discourse or to study.
The Greek capital letter Ψ (psi) is often used to represent the word 'Psychology'.
Psychology is the science of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, as well as feeling and thought.
Or
The scientific study of the human mind and its functions, especially those affecting behavior in a given context.
Think of the last time you took a bus or a train. Did you notice anyone else there? Did you strike up a conversation with a fellow passenger? If so, is that because you are naturally outgoing, or was there something particular to that situation that made you speak? You may have wondered why you have as you do. It is this curiosity about how people behave that drives psychologists, and they ask such questions all the time. Psychology is the study of human behavior and the the mind. But what is the mind? It appears in our everyday speech: I don't mind, I've changed my mind. The mind is not a physical thing, however, and it is not the same as the brain. It is a conceptual mechanism with a set of abilities of functions. It doesn't matter that we cannot see it, nor can we take it apart to see how it works. Psychologists try to imagine a way that it could possibly work, and watch people to see if their behavior is consistent with that way of working. But people are difficult to study. The more you try to observe them, the more they change their behavior. Even so, huge advances have been made in our understanding of things such as how we form memories, make mistakes, interpret what we see, and communicate with other people. This has allowed us, in turn, to become better teacher, create a fairer justice system, build safer machines, treat mental disorders, and make many other advances. The journey toward understanding mind and behavior has taken about 140 years so far, but really we are just starting out. Every day, psychologists uncover new and surprising aspects of human behavior, but there is a long way to go before we can say that we truly understand the mind.
