Dismayed by psychology

SattvaPaul

I've just started a Uni course in psychology and am a bit dismayed that is seems to be about behaviourism. Why on earth did I expect something deeper? Right now I'm learning about 'personality' and how psychologists can measure 'personality'. What a load of BS. I should have picked philosophy instead. Fortunately I'm not aiming at degree in psychology.

person

If its a 101 level course its not that surprising, most of the interesting stuff comes later.

SattvaPaul

Yeah it's introductory course, so equivalent of 101 I guess (I'm in UK).

compassionate_warrior

Behaviorism. hm, that must be a current fad in psychology, or something. Give it time, the course should flesh out eventually, and discuss different pathologies, at least. That will give you a framework for further study on your own. Strange how courses in some subjects follow the current fads. You'd think they'd be more objective, and present the variety of approaches to psychology that are practiced, current research and innovations, etc.

Mountains

Give it time... If you become so cynical that you feel you have nothing to learn from your education, you're sunk. That's your ego calling. Adopt the beginner's mind. Sure, you may know more about some things than some teachers. But that doesn't mean they don't still have something to teach you. Only your ego is sure it's smarter than they are.

SattvaPaul

Good thought @Mountains. I am cynical because I'm returning to education as an adult learner and I'm not necessarily new to all this, I'm just doing this to further my chance in job market. Hopefully after this course, if I decide to continue, I might pick something more interesting/challenging. And yeah, my style of learning is just following my interest and making up my own mind, rather than following someone else's lead, although this Uni, being distance learning, gives me a fair amount of leeway.

Mountains

I started back to school almost ten years ago at age 40, and have been in school most of the time since. Cultivating a beginner's mind is even more important as an adult learner. I'm 100% sure I know more than a large percentage of those I've had as teachers, many of whom are younger than me. But that doesn't mean I can't learn something from them. Sometimes you just have to bite your tongue and carry on.

Jeffrey

Behaviorism isn't a fad. Isn't that based on BF Skinner's work? Thats like the pavlov's dog. Thats been around since the 60s and 70s.

SattvaPaul

Yeah - salivating canines. I think the fad is relying on it too much. It's extremely superficial. No wonder people study psychology and then go on to work in advertisement or PR.

genkaku

@sattvapaul -- It's just like having a Buddhist PRACTICE... you start out with a bunch of dreams; then you start laying the actual-factual foundation ... some of it fascinating, some of it very hard and sometimes tedious work; in the end, you get to surrender the self-serving notion of 'fun' or 'relief' and just do what you do.

Jeffrey

If I recall in my psych course in college we went over four paradigms in psychology, behavioralism, cognitive x, psychotherapy like Freud/young, and two I don't recall.

compassionate_warrior

Behaviorism isn't a fad. Isn't that based on BF Skinner's work? Thats like the pavlov's dog. Thats been around since the 60s and 70s.

You're right. I was confusing behaviorism with cognitive therapy.

@sattvapaul The course outline should tell you what topics the course is going to cover. Is the textbook all behaviorism all the time? A beginning psych course should provide an overview of the whole field.

SattvaPaul

I think it's going beyond behaviourism towards the end. I think my main issue is the "scientific" approach (evidence based) as opposed to the way I always thought about psychology in more existentialist/philosophical terms. I dunno, we'll see.