Psychological Theories
What are Psychological Theories?
Psychological theories are systematic explanations of human mental processes and behaviors, developed through both empirical research and field observation. These theories provide frameworks for understanding how and why people think, feel, and act the way they do, and guide both academic research and practical applications in areas like therapy, education, marketing, and public policy.
The Basic Idea
If you’ve ever snoozed your alarm and then been late to work or school, you may look back and ask yourself: why did I do that? Maybe your bus driver saw you running for the bus and chose to keep on driving, and you ask yourself: what was going through his mind? Or maybe the day turned out okay, because you came home to your loving partner, and you thought to yourself: why am I so compatible with this person but not others? To begin unpacking these questions and more, we can turn to psychological theories to help us understand ourselves and the people around us.
Psychological theories are systematic frameworks for understanding, predicting, and explaining human behavior and mental processes. These theories include everything from cognitive theories, which focus on mental processes such as perception and memory, to behavioral theories, which examine the relationship between stimuli and responses. Although there are many ways to explain how and why we are the way we are, it is the constant testing and refining of different psychological theories that guides research and helps us to consistently improve our understanding of humans—both within academia and beyond.
Most Influential Psychological Theories:
- Psychoanalytic Theory (Sigmund Freud): Focuses on the influence of the unconscious mind on behavior and uses concepts like the id, ego, superego, and psychosexual stages of development.
- Behaviorism (John B. Watson, B.F. Skinner): Emphasizes the study of observable behaviors and the role of environmental stimuli in shaping behavior, including classical conditioning and operant conditioning.
- Cognitive Development Theory (Jean Piaget): Explains how children's thinking evolves as they grow, identifying four stages of cognitive development (sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational).
- Humanistic Psychology (Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow): Emphasizes individual potential, self-actualization, and the importance of personal growth and free will. This also includes Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Rogers' client-centered therapy.
- Social Learning Theory (Albert Bandura): Proposes that people learn behaviors through observation, imitation, and modeling, rather than solely through direct reinforcement and uses reciprocal determinism, where behavior, personal factors, and the environment interact and influence each other.
The world makes much less sense than you think. The coherence comes mostly from the way your mind works.
– Daniel Kahneman
About the Author
Annika Steele
Annika completed her Masters at the London School of Economics in an interdisciplinary program combining behavioral science, behavioral economics, social psychology, and sustainability. Professionally, she’s applied data-driven insights in project management, consulting, data analytics, and policy proposal. Passionate about the power of psychology to influence an array of social systems, her research has looked at reproductive health, animal welfare, and perfectionism in female distance runners.
