10 Reasons To Choose To Study Psychology
We could give you a thousand reasons why we think it’s worth studying psychology. However, there is one that sums them all up – it’s exciting! Few disciplines go beyond just professional development and enrich us as human beings so that we can grow and have a much broader vision of our reality. While not an easy subject to study, it is an adventure that is definitely worthwhile.
When you attend your first lesson at university and find out what the wide range of topics psychology is, you may ask yourself if you have made the right choice by studying psychology. You may experience a shock when you have dozens of books to read, all with different theories and approaches that you need to understand and know how to differentiate between.
“You are what you do, not what you say you want to do”
-CG Jung
Some people feel tense and even despair when faced with the always complex but interesting, statistical world and experimental designs. A world where math is still needed – bad news for those who have bad memories of this topic. However, it is the daily work and contact with each of the fields that make up this science that finally awakens us to its fascinating universe and helps guide us on our way.
On the other hand, it is fair to say that studying psychology is unlikely to make us rich or even guarantee us a job, right after graduation. The current society and labor market relationship is what it is, and sometimes we have to combine talent with ingenuity, motivation with opportunity and perseverance with patience. But it must also be said that there are so many facets to branch out in, and that if we choose a good specialization, we can build a rich and exceptional professional future.
10 reasons to study psychology
Whether we are at the crucial time in our lives where we have to choose what we want to work on, or whether we think it’s time for change and learning something else, it will always be a good opportunity to study psychology. . Everyone should, of course, reflect on two important points: what they are looking for and what they would like to offer others . Psychology is a subject where we can grow as we train, in order to offer the best of ourselves, for the benefit of others. Let us now see what benefits an education in psychology can offer us.
1. Psychology helps us to understand ourselves better
When we go deeper into all the above theories, the different approaches to personality, human development or how culture affects our behavior , we are forced to look at our own lives and also those of other people.
Studying psychology will make us ask ourselves many questions. Questions that do not always have an answer. But they help us to constantly search and discover. It will be an adventure where we get to know ourselves and other people a little better, every day, and where we can leave behind certain attitudes and ideas that used to be so important to us.
2. We will learn to value scientific methods
Psychology is not magical. We are not mentalists, nor do we have a radar in our minds that allows us to capture in 5 seconds what trauma the person in front of us is suffering from, what they are afraid of or what their strengths are. We will also definitely be accused by friends, family or acquaintances of “analyzing them”.
Psychology, as we know, has many false myths associated with it, and we will have to confront them in many contexts whether we like it or not. But there is one aspect that we need to be aware of from the start -Psychology is a social science that is based on scientific method.
We need to understand that in order to reach certain conclusions, certain data and insights, we have to go through very hard work, objective and patient work. This work is always based on a number of research methods, and this is the way to be successful as a professional in psychology. On the other hand, there is “pop psychology”, which the public loves so much and which we see daily in magazines or on social media. However, this has little or nothing to do with reality.
3. You will develop critical thinking
Much of the material , theories, approaches, and areas that make up psychology studies help us develop critical thinking. Whether we like it or not, it is an important requirement if we want to be good professionals and if we really want to be useful to people, without losing our integrity and honor. Only then will we distinguish the forest from the trees, the clarity of lies, the reality of manipulation.
“Never think you know everything. No matter how much you value yourself, always have the courage to tell yourself: I am ignorant “
–Ivan Pavlov–
Greater understanding of human relationships
Studying psychology will not spontaneously convert us into mentally healthier people, more successful or happy people (at least not most). Psychologists also suffer from depression and anxiety. They are not immune to errors in their emotional relationships and even have their small phobias and limitations.
But having all that knowledge makes them much more aware of what is happening to them and around them. It makes them understand the dynamics of relationships much better. It helps them know when to ask for help on how they can best help themselves or other people.
5. You will appreciate human development in its phases
Understanding how we evolve and how we as humans change in our lives not only gives us valuable knowledge. As a rule , it also makes us more sensitive and open to the problems of others and their ailments or doubts.
There is also the fact that psychology reveals particular conditions associated with certain stages of our development, such as childhood or old age. We may also become passionate about these stages of life and decide to devote our time to a particular group.
6. You will develop a new perspective on mental illness
Studying psychology will allow you to dispel many of the myths that people believe about mental illness. For example, you will understand the differences between what is a syndrome, a disorder, and a disease. You will realize that medication does not cure certain diseases, it simply “treats” them. You will discover the complexity of making a diagnosis and the many nuances that are in a depression, an anxiety disorder or a schizophrenia.
7. There is a specialty to any passion
Not all psychologists are psychoanalysts or follow Freud’s principles. In fact, there are many more who do not follow them than those who do. Not everyone practices hypnosis or has clinics. Studying psychology allows us to later train in a wide range of specialties so that we can choose which one we like best. The possibilities are many:
- Clinical psychology
- Educational psychology
- Sports Psychology
- Forensic Psychology
- Health psychology
- Organizational Psychology
- Child and adolescent psychology
- Social or social psychology
8. Psychology – a perfect complement to other disciplines
Not many areas of study complement other disciplines as much as psychology does. We can e.g. have a degree in journalism, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, philology, anthropology, art or economics and at the same time decide to start an education in psychology, to acquire a much richer and more complete education, and a fascinating one at the same time.
“Even when it is not entirely possible, we become better at trying to pursue a higher goal.”
–Viktor Frankl–
Much more than having a good curriculum, psychology lends itself to an enrichment by understanding human behavior, much better with all its social interaction, language, communication, motivation, emotions, and decision making. These processes are often crucial to gaining a more complete vision for the other sciences.
9. You will learn to communicate much better
This is an aspect that we do not always talk about. But something that the student of psychology discovers in their daily studies is to acquire skills in managing emotions or by understanding body language much more along with all its nuances that actually give them a greater ability in interpersonal communication.
We talk not only about improving our ability to speak in public, but also how we begin to communicate better with our acquaintances. We understand the person in front of us through their non-verbal communication, their voice and expression, and we will be able to have a more empathetic and effective dialogue with them.
10. Studying psychology can be the first step towards the best phase of your life
We said at the beginning that we could give you 1000 reasons to study psychology, but there is one that transcends all others – it is a fascinating science and it can open a whole new stage in our lives. We will always find something that at a given moment touches us in such a way that we say to ourselves “This is me”, this is what I want to go deeper into, this is the area I want to help people in .
Sometimes it will be neuroscience and all its mysteries. In other cases, it will be a specific type of therapy. Sometimes it is the desire to help children or to focus on a more experimental area of research. The world of psychology is so vast that at some point everyone will figure out what specific aspect they want to work in. And in that moment, everything has changed and everything makes sense.
So if you are considering the possibility of studying psychology, we would like to encourage you to complete this amazing adventure that almost never disappoints.
Bibliographic references
Triglia, A, Regader, Bertrand, and García-Allen Jonnatahn, (2016). Psychologically speaking.
Paidós.Sheena Iyengar, (2006). The Art of Choosing. Psychology Press.
Pink, Daniel (2010). The amazing truth about what motivates us. Management 2000.
Butler-Bowdon, Tom (2004). 50 Psychology Classics: Who We Are, How We Think, What We Do: Insight and Inspiration from 50 Key Books. New York: H. Books.
