Unit 3. Careers in psychology

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Popular images give many people a mistaken notion that psychology is really "shrinkology" and that all psychologists try to analyze other people's personalities and conduct therapy in their spare time. Psychologists are often stereotyped as clinicians or counselors. In fact, there are numerous subfields in which psychologists are involved primarily in scientific research. Many psychologists have neither counseled patients nor practiced psychotherapy.

Psychologists have studied the distorted images that people have of them and their profession. Webb and Speer (1985) asked people to write essays about psychologists, psychiatrists, and scientists. They found that there was a strong correlation between the way people viewed psychiatrists and psychologists but a low correlation between the popular views of psychologists and scientists. Psychologists were seen as "tender-minded clinicians preoccupied with psychological abnormality" (Webb and Speer, 1985).

The majority of psychologists in the United States are interested in clinical issues, such as studying abnormal behavior and conducting psychotherapy. However, a large and very diverse group of psychologists hold jobs in other areas.

Recognizing and interpreting word structure

The ability to recognize and interpret the structure of an unfamiliar word is one of the helpful means of identifying its approximate meaning. Recognizing and interpreting word structure

The ability to recognize and interpret the structure of an unfamiliar word is one of the helpful means of identifying its approximate meaning.

Recognizing word structure

When studying the LEARNING TO READ section of Unit I, you learned that the first step in finding the approximate meaning of an unfamiliar word is to determine which part of speech the word is. One way to do this is to use your knowledge of which word-building suffix forms which part of speech. The following chart for suffixes can help you identify which part of speech the word is.

Nouns

Verbs

Adjectives

Adverbs

-acy (-cy)

-age

-al

-al (-ial, -ical)

-ance (-ence)

-ant (-ent)

-ant (-ent)

-ate

-ate

-ate

-ation

-dom

-ee

-eer

-en

-en

-en

-er (-or)

-ese

-ese

-ess (-tress)

-ful

-ful

-hood

-ian (-an)

-ian (-an)

-ia

-ic (-ics)

-ic

-id

-ide

-in (-ine)

-ing

-ing

-ing

-ion

-ism

-ist

-ite

-ity

-let (-lette)

-ling

-ment

-ness

-ocracy

-ry (-ary, -ery)

-ship

-ster

-tion (-sion)

-tive

-y (-ie)

-y

-ed

-ed

-er

-er

-ify

-ize

-able (-ible)

-ile

-ish

-ive (-ative, -itive)

-less

-like

-ly

-ly

-ous (-eous, -ious)

-ward

-wise

Interpreting word structure

The last step in working out the approximate meaning of an unfamiliar word is to interpret the meaning of the word-building means present in its structure.

e.g. ‘disprove’: the prefix dis- usually shows an opposition or negative. So, this verb should be the opposite to the verb ‘prove’

Note: Working out the meaning of a word from its structure can only be done with a minority of English words. Use this method once you have tried all the other ways of identifying an unfamiliar word. Be careful – some apparent prefixes are in fact part of the root.

Compare, for example, ‘disaster’ and ‘disprove’, ‘restart’ and ‘respect’.

Adding affixes to existing words (the base or root) to form new words is common in academic English. Prefixes are added to the front of the base (like → dislike), whereas suffixes are added to the end of the base (active → activate). Prefixes usually do not change the class of the base word (the part of speech the word represents), but suffixes usually do change the class of the word.

Prefixes

The following prefixes can be used in front of many words to produce an opposite meaning.

prefix

comment on usage

examples

adjectives

verbs

nouns

a

ab

amoral

abnormal

amorality

abnormality

un

uncomfortable, unhappy

undo, undress, unlock

-

in

inconvenient, informal

-

-

im

often before a root beginning with 'm' or 'p'

impatient, impolite improbable.

-

-

il

before a word beginning with 'l'

illegal, illiterate

-

-

ir

before a word beginning with 'r'

irreplaceable, irrational

-

-

dis

dissimilar, dishonest

dislike, disagree,

disagreement

de

depopulated

decentralize

decentralization

non

non-aggressive

-

nonconformist, nonsense

1. qualify

2. correct

3. aware

4. regular

5. responsible

6. applicability

7. accurate

8. adequate

9. satisfaction

10. acceptable

11. curable

12. formal

13. ability

14. adaptive

15. logical

16. typical

Many other prefixes are used in English. Here is a list of prefixes which are useful in helping you understand unfamiliar words. Some of these words are used with a hyphen.

prefix

meaning

examples

ante

before

antedate, antenatal

anti

against

anti-war, antisocial, antibiotic

arch

chief; main

archbishop

auto

of or by oneself

autograph, auto-pilot, autobiography

be

make or cause

befriend, belittle

co

together; with

co-exist, co-operate, co-own; co-founder, co-owner

col

com

con

collaborate

compassion

confederation

cor

correlate

contra

against

contradict, contraceptive

counter

in the opposite direction

counterculture, counterproductive

en

make or cause

ensure

ex

former

ex-wife, ex-student, ex-president

ex

out of

extract, exhale, extend

extra

outside of, beyond

extracurricular, extravert

fore

earlier, before

foresee

hetero

other; opposite; different

heterosexual

hyper

extreme

hyperactive

hypo

too little

hypothermia

in/im

inside, into

internal, import, income

inter

between

international, interchange

intro

inside, into

introvert, introspection

iso

the same all through or in every part

isomorphic

mal

badly/wrongly

malpractice, maladjustment

meta

beyond the ordinary or usual

metaphysical

mis

badly/wrongly

misunderstand, mistranslate, misinform

neo

new

neo-impressionism

omni

all

omnipotent

out

bigger, further, better

outlive, outrun

over

too much

overdo, oversleep, overeat

para

beyond;

very similar to;

connected with and helping;

paranormal

paramilitary

paramedical

post

after

postwar, postgraduate

pre

before

pre-exist, prefix

pro

in favour of

pro-government, pro-revolutionary

proto

first in time or order; original

protogalaxy

pseudo

false

pseudo-scientific, pseudo-intellectual

quasi

in some ways; partly

quasi-analytic

re

again or back

retype, reread, replace

retro

backwards

retrospect, retrogressive

semi

half

semi-final, semi-detached

sub

under

subway, submarine, subdivision

super

above

supernatural, superhuman

tele

distant

telecommunications

trans

across;

between;

(showing a change)

transatlantic

trans-racial

transform, transmutation

ultra

beyond

ultrasound

under

not enough

underworked, underused

mono

monopoly, monotonous, monolingual

one

one-way, one-sided, one-off

single

single-minded, single-handed, single-parent

uni

uniform, unisex, unique, unit

homo

homosexual, homeopathy, homogeneous

sym

symbol, symmetry, sympathy

sim

similar, simultaneous, simile

syn

synchronize, synonym

ambi

ambiguous, ambidextrous

bi

bicycle, bilingualism

di

dilemma, dichotomy

double

double-bed, double-check

du

duel, duet

dual

dual purpose, dual language

twin

twin-bed, twin-set

two

two-piece, two-faced

tri

three

triangle, trio

quad

four

quadruplicate

quart

quartet, quarter

tetra

tetrahedron

penta

five

pentagon

quint

quintet

sex

six

sextet, sexagenarian

hex

hexagon

sept

seven

septet, September

oct

eight

octave, October

non

nine

November

dec

ten

decimal, decade, December

cent

hundred

century, percentage

mill

thousand

millenium

multi

poly

many

multiple, multi-purpose

polygon, polyglot

1. anthropo

1. concerning or using water

2. chrono

2. concerning the stars, the planets, or space

3. agro

3. concerning the skin

4. andr

4. concerning books

5. astro

5. concerning time

6. biblio

6. concerning males

7. cardio

7. concerning the heart

8. crypto

8. concerning the Earth or its surface

9. derm

9. concerning farming

10. geo

10. secret or hidden

11. gyn

11. concerning the blood

12. hemo

12. concerning women

13. hydro

13. like or concerning human beings

14. matri

14. concerning mothers or women

15. morpho

15. concerning God or gods

16. neuro

16. concerning bones

17. osteo

17. concerning the nerves

18. patri

18. concerning foreigners

19. theo

19. concerning forms

20. thermo

20. concerning heat

21. xeno

21. concerning fathers or men

sufffix

used to form

meaning

examples

ate

verbs

cause to be

formulate, liquidate, duplicate

en

awaken, fasten, shorten, moisten

fy

classify, exemplify, simplify, justify

ise

characterise, symbolise, specialise

age

nouns

action/result of V

breakage, wastage, package

age

collection of N

baggage, plumage

al

action/result of V

denial, proposal, refusal, dismissal

ant

ent

person who V-s

assistant, consultant,

student

cy

state or quality of being A

urgency, efficiency, frequency

ence ance

action/result of V

dependence, interference,

acceptance

er

person who V-s something used for V-ing

advertiser, driver,

computer

er

person concerned with N

astronomer, geographer

ery/ry

action/instance of V-ing place of V-ing

bribery, robbery, misery refinery, bakery

ism

doctrine of N

Marxism, Buddhism, Thatcherism

ist

person who follows –ism;

person who studies, produces, plays, or operates N

Marxist, Buddhist

linguist, psychologist

ity

state or quality of being A

ability, similarity, responsibility

ment

action/instance of V-ing

development, unemployment

ness

state or quality of being A

darkness, consciousness

osis

condition or process

hypnosis, neurosis

ship

state of being N

friendship, citizenship

tion/ sion

action/instance of V-ing

alteration, demonstration,

inclusion

al

adjectives

of or concerning N(s)

central, optional, professional

able

ible

that is or can be V-ed

drinkable, countable, avoidable,

destructible

ful

full of N(s)

beautiful, peaceful, careful

ive

that Vs or can V

attractive, effective, imaginative

less

without

endless, careless, thoughtless

like

typical of

childlike

oid

like A; in the form of N

humanoid

ous

causing or having

continuous, dangerous, famous

Note: The list of affixes drawn up above is by no means a complete one. Whenever you come across an affix that is not included into this list, it is a good idea to look up its meaning in some learner’s dictionary of English and to note it down for future reference.

1. - archy

1. government; rule

2. - (i)cide

2. obsession; madness

3. - gamy

3. marriage to the stated number or kind of people

4. - meter

4. apparatus connected with sound and/or hearing;

person who speaks the stated language

5. – (o)cracy

5. government by the stated people or according to the stated principle

6. - ology

6. dislike or hatred of; unhealthy dislike or fear of

7. - philia

7. instrument for measuring

8. - phobia

8. the scientific study of

9. - phone

9. method of observing

10. - mania

10. killer; killing

11. - scope

11. liking for; unhealthy tendency towards or liking for

1. subfield

2. differentiate

3. encourage

4. similarity

5. extraordinary

6. mesmerism

7. pseudoscientific

8. monogamous

9. practitioner

10. undergraduate

11. disappear

12. nonhuman

13. unmask

14. overcome

15. revolutionize

16. technocracy

17. polygamy

18. xenophobia

19. theology

20. archetype

21. anthropomorphic

22. biculturalism

23. immeasurable

24. leadership

25. rediscover

26. nonjudgmental

27. forerunner

28. neo-Freudians

29. monism

30. metamorphosis

It is common in English to use nouns in a similar way to adjectives, to modify other nouns. In the noun+noun structure, the first noun modifies or describes the second:

milk chocolate (a kind of chocolate)

chocolate milk (a kind of milk)

Noun+noun expressions can often be changed into structures where the second noun becomes a subject and the first an object:

a college student (= a student who goes to college)

a Birmingham man (= a man who comes from Birmingham)

Note that the first noun is usually singular in form, even if it has a plural meaning:

student motivation (= motivation that students have)

child behavior (= behavior that is typical of children)

Some nouns have the plural -s even when they modify other nouns. These include nouns which have no singular form (like clothes), nouns which are not used in the singular with the same meaning (like customs), and some nouns which are more often used in the plural than in the singular (like savings). In some cases (e.g. sport(s), drug(s)), usage is divided, and both singular and plural forms are found. In general, the use of plural modifiers is becoming more common in British English; American English often has singular forms where British has plurals.

Some examples:

a clothes shop

a savings account

a customs officer

the drug(s) problem (US drug problem)

Note also that singular nouns ending in -ics can be used as modifiers:

athletics training

an economics degree

We use the plurals men and women to modify plural nouns when they have a 'subject' meaning; man and woman are used to express an 'object' meaning.

Compare:

men drivers (= men who drive)

women pilots (= women who fly planes)

man-eaters (= lions or tigers that eat people)

woman-haters (= people who hate women)

Articles belonging to the first (modifying) noun are dropped in noun+noun combinations. Compare:

Officers in the army are well paid.

Army officers are well paid.

More than two nouns can be put together. A group of two nouns can modify a third noun, these can modify a forth, and so on:

group decision making

brain damage research center

In order to understand such combinations, it is first necessary to identify the head word and then work backwards.

Spelling. Some short, common noun+noun combinations are generally written together like single words:

classroom

playmate

but not railwaystation

Others may be written with a hyphen (e.g. boy-friend) or separately (e.g. life expectancy). In many cases usage varies, and some combinations can be found written in all three ways (e.g. lifespan, life-span or life span). Hyphens are becoming less common in modern English, and (except with very common short combinations like classroom) it is usually acceptable to write the two words separately. For information about the spelling of particular combinations, see a good dictionary.

A particular kind of cohesive device is the discourse marker, words such as however, although, furthermore, namely. These words are signals that tell you the kind of relationship the writer intends between two parts of his text: if you can understand one part, the discourse marker serves as a possible key to the other part. Frequently the marker explicitly signals the functional value of the sentence, which otherwise has to be inferred. We need to be aware exactly how these markers work so that we can use them to help elucidate difficult texts.

All discourse markers fall into three main classes that reflect the three main classes of relationships possible between parts of a text:

1. Those which signal the chronological order of reported events.

2. Those which signal the writer’s manner of organizing his discourse (serve to inform the reader what the writer is doing at the given points in the text, drawing his attention to the function of this sentence etc. in the overall pattern of the discourse).

3. Those which indicate the writer’s view of the facts and ideas about which he writes (show the relationships perceived by the writer between the facts and ideas about which he is writing; the relative importance he attaches to each and other things about his attitude to them). This group can further be subdivided into:

   1. additive – used to introduce further facts or ideas that are seen by the writer as adding to and sometimes reinforcing those already dealt with;

   2. adversative – introduce information that the writer sees as contrary to what is expected or hoped or to what has been said;

   3. causal – indicate relationships of cause, effect, result, intention; and of condition. These relationships may be (a) between external facts or (b) between parts of the writer’s argument.

e.g. (a) She felt extremely tired. For this reason, she did not leave her room.

(b) This matter is extremely complex. For this reason, we shall not go into it further at this point.

4. attitudinal – indicate the writer’s attitude towards the facts and ideas about which he writes

The four main groups mentioned above are very dissimilar in function, even though the markers in each operate in similar ways; and some of the words serve as markers in more than one group, according to the way they are to be interpreted.

The following chart contains a list of discourse markers widely used in academic English that are classified in accordance with the functional value they indicate and the type of syntactic units they connect.

functional value

discourse markers

sentence level

clause level

coordinators

subordinators

1. Those which signal the chronological order of reported events

at first

initially

in the beginning

first, second, etc.

now, then, next

meanwhile

after that, afterwards

since then

last, finally, eventually

then

after

as

as soon as

before

once … then

since

until

when

while

2. Those which signal the writer’s manner of organizing his discourse

Sequencing

to begin with

first, second, etc.

first of all

now, at this point

meanwhile

then, next

eventually

lastly, finally

in conclusion

Restating

i.e. (Latin id est)

in other words

or rather

put otherwise

that is (to say)

to put it another way

Specifying

namely

to be more precise

to wit

viz. (Latin videlicet)

Referring

as far as … is concerned

as mentioned before

concerning this

ignoring this

in that connection

in this respect

talking / speaking of/about

Resuming

to resume

to return to the previous point

getting back to …

Exemplifying

e.g. (Latin exempli gratia)

for example

for instance

to illustrate this

Generalizing

as a rule

broadly speaking

by and large

for the most part

generally (speaking)

in most/many cases

in general

on the whole

to a great extent

Summarizing

all in all

in brief

in short

to summarize

to sum up

Concluding

in conclusion

to conclude

Those which indicate the writer’s view of the facts and ideas about which he writes

1. additive

Adding

also

apart from this

besides (that)

further

furthermore

in addition

moreover

on top of that

too

what is more

and

apart from this

as well as

both … and

nor (‘and not’)

not only … but also

Support

actually

as a matter of fact

indeed

in fact

Comparing a further point with a previous one

also

in a similar way

in/by comparison

in the same manner

in the same way

likewise

similarly

too

and

both … and

nether … nor

as

just as

B. adversative

Contradiction

but

conversely

in/by contrast

despite the fact that

in spite of the fact that

on the contrary

but

Balancing contrasting points

at the same time

on the one hand … on the other hand

whereas

while

although

even though

though

Admitting the unexpected

actually

as a matter of fact

in fact

yet

Denying the expected

however

instead

rather

although

even though

though

Introducing an alternative

otherwise

alternatively

or

either … or

neither … nor

Dismissing

anyhow

anyway

at any rate

either way

in any case

at least

at least

Concession

all the same

even so

nevertheless

nonetheless

notwithstanding

still

but

c. causal

Introducing reason

for this reason

on account of this

because of this

for

because

since

as

Introducing effect or result

accordingly

as a result

as a consequence

consequently

for this/that reason

hence, thus

then

thereby

therefore

so

thereby

Introducing purpose

with this in mind

to this end

in order to

so as to

so that

Signaling condition

in that/this case

that being so

in these circumstances

otherwise

then

as long as

if … (then)

in case

on condition (that)

once

otherwise

provided (that)

providing

unless

D. attitudinal

Emphasizing

above all

chiefly

especially

in particular

first and foremost

more/most importantly/ significantly

notably

particularly

primarily

Expressing degrees of certainty

after all

certainly

clearly

naturally

obviously

of course

surely

undoubtedly

perhaps

probably

Expressing attitude

admittedly

amazingly

fortunately

luckily

strangely enough

unfortunately

B

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Developmental Psychology

Many people are attracted to psychology because they want to help individuals with psychological problems. Developmental psychologists, on the other hand / otherwise, are interested in the factors that influence growth and development. Therefore / Because developmental psychologists study changes in behavior, their interests can involve many subfields of psychology, such as social, personality, cognitive, and physiological psychology.

At one time / At first, developmental psychologists focused primarily on the behavior of infants and young children. This focus has now broadened to an life-span approach in which development is studied from conception to death.

However / Above all, many developmental psychologists continue to concentrate on infant and child behavior. For example / In fact, developmental psychologists have recently devised intelligence, or IQ, tests for infants as young as six months (Kolata, 1989). The tests make it possible to identify babies who are at risk of doing poorly in school, as well as those who are likely to be above average in intelligence. Early identification allows intervention with low-IQ individuals so that their future academic performance can be enhanced.

Thus While For example Conversely Although

C

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Psychology Applied to Medical Settings

The expression "Don't worry, be happy" may be more than a catchy song lyric. We now know that psychological factors such as worry and stress are related to disease and illness. (1) …………… the medical profession used to concentrate primarily on physical causes of illness, they now study as well how psychological factors can make you sick. This rapidly growing area is called health psychology. Health psychologists investigate the role that psychological variables, such as stress and anxiety, play in health and disease. They also do research on how people learn and maintain bad health habits. (2) ………….., (3) ………….. doctors often assume that patients follow their advice, health psychologists have found that 93 percent of patients do not strictly adhere to their medical treatment regimens (Taylor, 1990).

As a student, you probably worry about your grades or feel stress when a major paper or project is due. Health psychologists Stephanie Booth-Kewley and Howard Friedman found that personality traits associated with being "neurotic" (anxiety, pessimism, sadness, and hostility) can make a person susceptible to a number of illnesses (Goleman, 1988).

If your personality can be a cause of disease, can changes in your life-style lessen illness? Some recent research suggests that drastic changes in life-style and diet can reverse clogged arteries, a condition associated with coronary heart disease. One study found that the combination of one hour of yoga and meditation, exercise, and a strict vegetarian diet reduced the levels of arterial blockage in individuals who had had heart attacks. Researchers found that eighteen of the twenty-two people in this radical treatment program had reduced the level of blockage in their coronary arteries. (4) ……………., ten out of nineteen in the group that received standard medical treatment (reduced dietary fats, moderate exercise, and no smoking) experienced increased blockage. Only six out of nineteen in the standard treatment group showed a reduction of coronary artery blockage. (5) ……………, it appears that the psychological variable may have made a difference (Goleman, 1989).