Sports psychology is essentially the study of how the mind affects physical activity and athletic performance. According to the American Psychological Association, “sports psychology addresses the interactions between psychology and sport performance, including the psychological aspects of optimal athletic performance, the psychological care and well-being of athletes, coaches, and sport organizations, and the connection between physical and psychological functioning.” Continue reading
Colors are everywhere. They play a large part in how individuals present themselves through their wardrobe, their homes, and their belongings. Studies have demonstrated how colors can grab and retain attention, provoke emotional responses, and influence a person’s attitude (Sable & Akcay, 2001). As a result, companies carefully select the colors they use on brands, logos, mascots, retail stores, advertisements, packaging, and even products themselves to influence their target market. Ultimately, marketers want you to create positive associations with their companies, and do so in part by acting on your strong psychological reactions to different colors. Continue reading
It has been revealed that being able to speak a second language could have a significant impact on your future mental health. A recent study has indicated that bilingualism not only has the capacity to boost cognitive abilities in your youth but might also improve brain functionality in later life and could even help protect against diseases such as dementia (Bates, 2012). Continue reading
Food psychology is the study of the mental processes behind how and why we eat. While we might think of food consumption primarily from a biological perspective, research has shown that our eating habits are significantly influenced by our perception of food as well as various other social and environmental stimuli. Continue reading
In this lecture we discuss the definition of psychology, the goals of psychology as well as a few of the various branches/subfields of the science. Psychology’s rich history is also covered in lecture 1, with emphasis placed on the different psychological schools of thought and special mention to some of the individuals who contributed most significantly to the development of psychology as a respected science today. Continue reading
