Behavioral Psychologists

A behavioral psychologist studies the way in which a person behaves. A behavioral psychologist is looking at a person’s actions, thoughts, and feelings of an individual. Behavioral psychologists are looking to see what behaviors are voluntary, and which are involuntary. Behavioral psychologists are interested in the connection to the mind and the body. Behavioral psychologists measure the degree to which the mind influences a person’s actions. A behavioral psychologist will also look to those outside sources that have an influence over the way that a person behaves. A behavioral psychologist is looking to see what behaviors come as voluntary, and which serve as involuntary actions. A behavioral psychologist is looking to see how a person behaves in a private environment versus out in the public.

One of the aspects that is unique about a behavioral psychologist is the fact that they can conduct studies such as this because they would either prove or disprove their theory. A behavioral psychologist has the capacity to use a person’s behavior, which is something that can be measured, in order to come to a concrete conclusion. A behavioral psychologist can then use these theories to devise treatment options for both children and adults.

The practices of behavioral psychologists are highly influenced by Sigmund Freud. Behavioral psychologists highly practice Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic approach. A behavioral psychologist will study how it is that a person thinks, then they will use this to develop theories about how it is that humans behave. Behavioral psychologists are looking to find a consistency in the theories that are formulated so that they can work to form treatment options.

One of the prominent theories that behavioral psychologists follow is the fact that learning through association has one of the highest influences on a person’s behavior. A behavioral psychologist will spend the beginning stages of their behavioral psychology learning about this theory through a process called classical conditioning. One of the founding behavioral psychologists, Ivan Pavlov, conducted a thorough study that included dogs, which aimed at proving this theory. Ivan Pavlov was the first behavior psychologists to be able to successfully do so.