Psychology is a broad term and a popular college degree. Many students pursue the study of psychology because it can lead you to many different career fields and opportunities. Since the job possibilities are endless, I am going to break down a few of the top psychology fields. In my previous blog, I reviewed clinical, development, forensic, and sports psychology. Now let’s dive into another four popular psychologist fields!

Behavioral Psychologist

During the first part of the 20th century, this field of psychology, also known as behaviorism, was very prominent. Although behavioral psychology is not as popular today, behaviorism techniques are still used today in classical and operant conditioning. A behavioral psychologist used the idea that all behaviors are acquired through conditioning, and they study how rewards and consequences affect educational outcomes.

Educational Psychologist

Another common field is educational psychology. Educational psychologists focus on schools, teaching psychology, student concerns, and educational issues. The field of educational psychology studies how educational learning and interactions between students, teachers, staff, and family members. Other aspects that educational psychology focuses on is learning disabilities, giftedness, student differences, and the instructional process. Similar to a behavioral psychologist, an educational psychologist may study how different variables influence individual student outcomes.

Health Psychologist

Health psychology is growing in demand because this field is focused on promoting health as well as the treatment and prevention of illnesses and diseases. Medical psychology and behavioral medicine are other terms that can be interchanged with health psychology, but all focus on how psychology, behavior, biology and social factors influence health and illness. Health psychologists often examine weight management, stress management, nutrition and other health-related issues. They might also study how people cope with illnesses and help design prevention programs.   

Personality Psychologist

A personalist psychologist focuses on feelings, thought patterns, and behaviors that make each individual unique. The field of personality psychology uses classic theories of personality including Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development and Freud’s psychoanalytic theory. This branch of psychologists will study how factors such as parenting, genetics, and social experiences influence personality development and evolution.

While there are many more fields of psychology, these eight are amongst the most popular. Psychology is an excellent field to study because it offers a wide realm of possibilities. To learn more about where psychology can take you, check out my previous blog: Where Can a Psychology Degree Take You.