‍Our mind is our most powerful tool, yet so much about it is still a mystery. With so many unanswered questions. Psychology is quickly becoming one of the most interesting, relevant and popular subjects to study in the world today. 

There are so many exciting areas to study within the human mind and behaviour, you can go really small and learn about specific mechanisms within the brain or do the opposite and work out exactly how whole countries of people can be influenced to behave in a certain way, there is always something worthwhile to discover in psychology. 

Not only is it an intriguing subject to study academically, understanding psychology is very useful to our day-to-day lives too. Come to think of it, you can use psychology in nearly every situation. Want to make lasting connections? Thrive in the workplace? Understand someone else's struggles? By applying psychology, you can gain important insights to these situations. 

Through the study of psychology, not only do you gain deeper insight into people's minds and behaviour. You develop cognitive thinking, critical analysis, research skills and more. There are various career and study paths you can apply this to, including but not limited to, forensic psychology, sports psychology, educational psychology and clinical psychology. All with the same goal; to make human lives better. 

In psychology it's important you can use your own intuition and be able to draw upon experience and examples. So don’t just fall back on your knowledge on Freud, instead bring a unique perspective to your studies with our recommended book, film, and podcast.

Book: The Psychology of Pandemics: Preparing for the Next Global Outbreak of Infectious Disease, 2019, by Steven Taylor

The pandemic changed life as we know it, and while the physical effect to health is clear and obvious, how the pandemic impacted our mental health is still yet to be explored. So, I guess it could be a crazy coincidence that not long before Covid-19 hit us, Steven Taylor’s book on the psychology of pandemics came out. 

If you want to learn more about the emotional distress and social disruption that occurs during pandemics this is the best book for you. The problems addressed within this book range from excessive fear to maladaptive behaviours, giving you a perspective of the impact on individual mental health, but also wider patterns of behaviour across society. It is also perfect for students wanting a more current focus on this ever expanding field of study. 

Film: Silver Linings Playbook, 2012 

The best thing about Silver Linings Playbook is that it portrays mental health in a natural setting. Whilst there are a lot of films out there that focus on mental health, such as Shutter Island, We Need to Talk About Kevin and Black Swan, they explore it in a theatrical way. Silver Linings Playbook instead gives a more realistic, down to earth representation of mental health.

An uplifting film about two people suffering from trauma and mental disorders. Pat, played by Bradley Cooper, has bipolar disorder and falls in love with Tiffany, played by Jennifer Lawrence, struggling to cope with the death of her husband. The film deals with complicated issues such as manic depressions, bipolar disorder and obsessive neurosis. It focuses on how this can affect family and relationship dynamics, and shows us how working on yourself is a continuous process. 

Podcast: Hidden Brain

The Hidden Brain podcast is hosted by journalist Shankar Vedantam and uses psychology to explain human behaviour. He interviews leading experts including psychologists and scientists attempting to explain human behaviour and the brain. So, on your next run or commute give it a go, you could be listening to topics from mind reading to social perceptions and relationships, it really covers everything.

Useful websites

https://www.simplypsychology.org/ - Broken down in various categories, Simply Psychology is a helpful resource for someone looking to expand their knowledge in theories, statistics and essay writing techniques for their upcoming psychology exams. 

https://www.16personalities.com/ - Whether you agree with it or not, The Myers-Briggs personality test has become quite influential in our world today. Take the quiz to find out which personality category you fall into, and see if you believe any of it to be true. 

https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb - Psychology today features daily articles and links that keep you up to date with the ideas and issues in the world of psychology. Reading their articles really helps put your studies into perspective.