Key Takeaways
- Psychology is a scientific study of mental processes and behavior, while common sense refers to good sense in practical matters.
- Psychology relies on science, theoretical understanding, and research, whereas common sense relies on experience and reasoning.
- Psychology has a clear theoretical basis, while common sense does not have a theoretical basis.
Psychology and common sense are two distinct concepts, with the primary difference between them being their source of knowledge. Psychology is the scientific study of human mental processes and behavior, encompassing various subfields such as social psychology, abnormal psychology, child psychology, and developmental psychology. In contrast, common sense refers to good sense in practical matters, drawing on experience and reasoning rather than scientific knowledge.
Understanding Psychology
Psychology is a wide-ranging field that focuses on the individual rather than the group. It has a solid theoretical foundation, with numerous theoretical perspectives such as the Functionalist perspective, Cognitive perspective, Behaviorist perspective, and Humanistic perspective, each offering different ways of viewing human behavior and mental processes. As a scientific discipline, psychology relies on theory, research, and experiments.
Defining Common Sense
Common sense is essential for navigating daily activities, allowing people to be practical and reasonable in making decisions based on their experiences. Laypeople often lack scientific knowledge, and common sense helps fill this gap by guiding individuals toward sound judgments in life. Notably, common sense is not a scientific field or discipline and does not have a theoretical basis.
Comparing Psychology and Common Sense
While psychology is a scientific field of study, common sense is not. Psychology is a discipline with a clear theoretical foundation, whereas common sense is based on reason and experience. In psychology, conclusions are drawn from research and experiments, while common sense relies on previous experiences to make decisions or arrive at conclusions.
