Why Study Psychology?

We could give you a thousand reasons why psychology is worth studying. However, there is one that sums it all up: psychology is passionate. Few disciplines go beyond simple professional performance to enrich us as people, to allow us to grow and have a much broader vision of our reality. While it’s not an easy career, it’s definitely a worthwhile adventure.

When someone attends their first class at university and comes into contact with the wide range of subjects that make up psychology, they often wonder if they were right in choosing this profession. Some people experience a certain amazement when faced with dozens of books, theories and different approaches to understand and differentiate.

 “You are what you do, not what you say you will do.”
– CG Jung –

Some people feel tension and even unease when faced with the ever-complex but interesting world of statistics, of experimental designs: a world in which mathematics remains present to the dismay of those who do not keep a good memory of it. However, it is the daily work and the contact with each of the fields that make up this science that make the person finally wake up to its fascinating universe and start to trace his own path.

On the other hand, it can be said that the study of psychology will hardly make us rich or guarantee us a job right after receiving a degree. Today’s society and labor market conditions are what they are, and sometimes it is necessary to combine talent with creativity, motivation with opportunity and persistence with patience. However, we can say that their fields of activity are multiple and that, with good specialization, we can build an enriching and exceptional professional future.

10 reasons to study psychology

If we are at this decisive moment in our life when we need to choose our professional future, or if we want to make a change and are looking for something different, studying psychology will always be a good option. It is clear that each one must make their own reflection taking into account two important points: what they are looking for and what they would like to offer to others.

Psychology is an exchange: we allow ourselves to grow while we graduate, to offer the best of ourselves for the benefit of others. Now let’s see what advantages training in psychology can offer us.

1. Psychology helps us to understand ourselves better

As we delve into all of the aforementioned theories, different approaches to personality, human development, or the influence of culture on our behavior, we will ease many aspects of ourselves and others.

Studying psychology will almost necessarily lead to asking ourselves many questions. Questions that will not always have answers, but will become a reason for constant search, a persistent adventure where we will get to know each other a little more each day and leave behind certain schemes, attitudes and ideas that were important before.

2. We will learn to value scientific methods

Psychology is not magic. We are not mentalists, we do not have a radar in our eyes that allows us to capture in 5 seconds the trauma that the person in front of us carries, their fears or what their strengths are. Probably more than once our friends, acquaintances or relatives will tell us the classic phrase: “I’m sure you are already analyzing me”.

Psychology accumulates many false myths that will accompany us in many contexts, whether we like it or not. However, there is one aspect that we must make clear from the “zero” minute onwards: psychology is a social science based on the scientific method.

It is necessary to understand that, in order to reach certain conclusions, certain data and judgments, psychology “relies” on a scientific, objective and patient work always based on a series of research methods; that’s exactly where professional success lies. On the opposite side is the “pop psychology” that people in general like so much and that we see daily in magazines or on social media, and which 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 the studies of psychology help us to develop critical thinking. It is an essential requirement if we really want to be good professionals, if we want to be useful to people without losing integrity and honor. Only in this way will we differentiate the tree from the forest, lucidity from deception, reality from manipulation.

4. Greater understanding of human relationships

Studying psychology will not instantly make us psychologically healthier, successful, or happier (at least most) people. Psychologists also suffer from depression, anxiety, also fail like anyone else in their affective relationships and have, why not, their phobias and limitations.

However, with all this knowledge, they are much more aware of what is happening to themselves and around them. They learned to better understand relational dynamics, they know the best time to ask for help or which paths to follow to provide themselves or others with greater well-being.

5. You will enjoy human development at all stages of life

Understanding how we develop, how we change people throughout our lives, not only brings us knowledge, but also makes us more sensitive and open to the problems of others and the sufferings or doubts that may be associated.

On the other hand, and no less important, is the fact that psychology reveals certain particularities associated with some phases of our development, such as childhood or old age. We may also find our passion or a reason to dedicate ourselves to a particular group.

6. You will develop a new perception about mental illness

Studying psychology will allow you to destroy many of the myths we believe about mental illness. You will understand, for example, the differences between what is a syndrome, a disorder and an illness.

You will find that medications do not cure certain diseases, they just “treat” them. You will feel in your own skin the complexity of making a diagnosis, the multiple nuances behind depression, anxiety disorder or schizophrenia.

7. There is a specialty for every passion

Not all psychologists are psychoanalysts or follow Freud’s principles; there are far greater numbers of those who don’t follow them than there are those who follow them. Not everyone practices hypnosis or performs their work in the clinical field. Studying psychology will give you the opportunity to later specialize in a wide range of specialties, so you can choose which one you like best. Undoubtedly, there are many options:

• Clinical psychology
• educational psychology
• sports psychology
• forensic psychology
• health psychology
• Organizational psychology
• Children’s Psychology
• Social or community psychology…

8. Psychology: a perfect complement to other disciplines

Few studies complement other disciplines like psychology. We can have, for example, a degree in journalism, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, philology, anthropology, art or economics and decide to study psychology in order to acquire a much richer and more complete and, at the same time, fascinating education.

In addition to having a much more solid curriculum, the study of psychology enriches us through the understanding of human behaviors : social interaction, language, communication, motivation, emotions, decision making… These processes are, many times, essential to have a more complete view of the rest of the sciences.

9. You will learn to communicate better

This is an aspect that is not always talked about. However, the psychology student realizes in their daily lives that, by acquiring skills in managing emotions or understanding body language and its nuances, they also acquire greater skill in their interpersonal communication.

We are not just referring to the opportunity to improve our public speaking skills, but to communicate better with our family and friends, to understand people through their non-verbal communication, by their tone of voice and expressions, to build a more empathetic and effective dialogue.

10. Studying psychology can be the first step towards the best stage of your life

We already said at the beginning of this article, that we could give you a thousand reasons to study psychology, but there is one that transcends all others: it is a fascinating science and can provide us with a new stage in our life. We will always find something, at a given moment, that will attract us in such a way that we will say: “this is for me”, I want to go deeper in this area, I want to be useful in this type of discipline, I want to help in this specific area.

It could be neuroscience and its mysteries, a certain type of therapy, the clear desire to help the world of childhood, or to focus on the more experimental area where certain research is being carried out. The field of psychology is so extensive that everyone, at any given time, will find their place. And that’s when everything changes and takes on meaning.

So, if you are currently considering the possibility of studying psychology, we encourage you to take this sensational journey that does not disappoint “almost” anyone…