Psychology is the science of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, as well as feeling and thought. The words found in this glossary are often used in this field and can help someone understand more complicated vocabulary regarding psychology. Most definitions were found on Google directly or on the Merriam-Webster dictionnary.
anxiety
noun
An intense emotional response caused by the preconscious recognition that a repressed conflict is about to emerge into consciousness.
Example: There was anxiety in her quiet voice.
en: anxiété
behavior
noun
The way in which one acts or conducts oneself, especially toward others.
Example: A person's attitude and beliefs can affect behavior.
en: comportement
brain
noun
An organ of soft nervous tissue contained in the skull of vertebrates, functioning as the coordinating center of sensation and intellectual and nervous activity.
Example: The biggest part of the brain is the cerebrum.
en: cerveau
cognitive
adjective
Of or relating to the mental processes of perception, memory, judgment, and reasoning, as contrasted with emotional and volitional processes.
Example: These cognitive processes include thinking, knowing, remembering, judging, and problem-solving.
en: cognitif
conscious
adjective
Directly perceptible to and under the control of the person concerned.
Example: "Was she good-looking?" "Actually, my conscious mind no longer remembers anything about her physical appearance. She went the way of my seventh-grade French."
— Joseph Wambaugh, Finnegan's Week, 1994
en: conscient
emotion
noun
A conscious mental reaction (such as anger or fear) subjectively experienced as strong feeling usually directed toward a specific object and typically accompanied by physiological and behavioral changes in the body.
Example: The defendant showed no emotion when the verdict was read.
en: émotion
intelligence
noun
Intelligence is the ability to learn or understand or to deal with new or trying situations.
Example: She impressed us with her superior intelligence.
en: intelligence
interpretation
noun
Action of explaining the meaning of something; the way something is explained or understood.
Example: The edict was subject to many interpretations.
en: interprétation
knowledge
noun
Facts, information, and skills acquired by a person through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject.
Example: With their aid, he should be able to adapt himself selectively to his culture, rejecting its evils, stupidities and irrelevances, gratefully accepting all its treasures of accumulated knowledge … and practical wisdom.
en: connaissance
motivation
noun
The reason or reasons one has for acting or behaving in a particular way.
Example: Escape can be a strong motivation for travel.
en: motivation
neurology
noun
The branch of medicine or biology that deals with the anatomy, functions, and organic disorders of nerves and the nervous system.
Example: But just as the brain is more than a corporeal lump of flesh, so the art of neurology is more than a static image.
en: neurologie
perception
noun
The neurophysiological processes, including memory, by which an organism becomes aware of and interprets external stimuli.
Example: Some drugs cause blurred vision and changes in color perception, or increased tears.
en: perception
personality
noun
The combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual's distinctive character.
Example: She had a sunny personality that was very engaging.
en: personnalité
prejudice
noun
An unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason.
Example: He has prejudice against people of different backgrounds.
en: préjugé
psychiatry
noun
The study and treatment of mental illness, emotional disturbance, and abnormal behavior.
Example: Freud was the father of psychiatry.
en: psychiatrie
psychologist
noun
A psychologist is an expert or specialist in psychology.
Example: I went to see a psychologist last week.
en: psychologue
self-awareness
noun
Self-awareness is the capacity for introspection and the ability to recognize oneself as an individual separate from the environment and other individuals.
Example: Deindividuation is characterized by deminished self-awareness and individuality.
en: conscience de soi
therapeutic
adjective
The adjective therapeutic relates to the healing of disease.
Example: They confirmed the therapeutic effect of supplemental light in treating winter depression with phototherapy.
en: thérapeutique
therapy
noun
The treatment of mental or psychological disorders by psychological means.
Example: He is currently in therapy.
en: thérapie
unconscious
noun
The part of the mind which is inaccessible to the conscious mind but which affects behavior and emotions.
Example: Freud had this idea that pretty much all of human behavior could be explained by these unconscious conflicts that we had deep in our psyche.
