Clinical Psychology

This is when psychology is used to help understand and treat psychological distress, illness or dysfunction. A clinical psychologist is someone who takes into account many different factors involved in a person’s life, such as emotional, biological and social aspects. This means that they are able to understand, prevent and alleviate symptoms and improve an individual’s well-being.

Developmental Psychology

This is the study of psychological changes over an individual’s lifetime. This means that it mainly focuses on the development from childhood or infanthood, to adults and the elderly. This means that they may study changes in moto skills, problem solving, identity formation and acquiring language. Environmental factors can also be taken into account to study how external factors interact and play a role in an individual’s development.

Forensic Psychology

This involves the application of psychological research and theories to criminal investigation and law. A forensic psychologist can work in many different fields – in prisons, justice systems, criminal cases and hostage situations. A large aspect of their job will involve assessing behaviour and mental processes and how this can contribute to crime.

Educational Psychology

This branch of psychology is concerned with schools and education. Educational psychologists may study how student learn and how student-teacher interaction may play a role in quality of education. They may also study other factors in the learning environment, such as learning disabilities, individual differences, and ways of teaching.

Sport Psychology

This is the study of how psychology influences sport, performance and exercise. Sports psychologists often work with professional athletes and teams to improve performance and motivation, and team dynamic.

– Ellie Gregory