Psychology is the science of behavior and mind, which encompasses all aspects of conscious and unconscious experience as well as thought. It is an academic discipline and a social science that seeks to understand individuals and groups by establishing general principles and investigating specific cases. In this field, a professional or researcher is called a psychologist and can be classified as a social, behavioral or cognitive scientist. Psychologists attempt to understand the role of mental functions in individual and social behavior, while exploring the physiological and biological processes that underlie cognitive functions and behaviors.
Psychologists explore behavior and mental processes, which include perception, cognition, attention, emotion (affection), intelligence, phenomenology, motivation (cognition), brain functioning, and personality. This extends to the interaction between people, such as interpersonal relationships, which include psychological resilience, family resilience and other areas. Psychologists of various orientations also consider the mind unconscious. Psychologists employ empirical methods to infer causal and correlational relationships between psychosocial variables. In addition, or in opposition, by employing empirical and deductive methods, some-especially clinical and counseling psychologists-are sometimes based on symbolic interpretation and other inductive techniques. Psychology has been described as a "central science," with psychological findings linked to research and perspectives in the social sciences, natural sciences, medicine, the humanities, and philosophy.
While psychological knowledge is often applied to the evaluation and treatment of mental health problems, it also addresses understanding and problem solving in various spheres of human activity. According to many versions, psychology ultimately aims to benefit society. Most psychologists are involved in some form of therapeutic function, practicing in clinics, counseling, or school settings. Many conduct scientific research on a wide range of issues related to mental processes and behavior, and usually work in departments of university psychology or teach in other academic settings (eg, medical schools, hospitals). Some are used in industrial and organizational environments, or in other areas such as human development and aging, sports, health and the media, as well as forensic research and other aspects of the law.