The aim of all scientific methods is the same, that is, to analyze the observation made at the beginning but there are various steps adopted as per the requirement of any given observation. However, there is a generally accepted sequence of steps of scientific methods.

1. Observation and formulation of a question: This is the first step of a scientific method. In order to start one, an observation has to be made into any observable aspect or phenomena of the universe and a question needs to be asked pertaining to that aspect. For example, you can ask, “Why is the sky black at night? or “Why is air invisible?”

1. Data Collection and Hypothesis: The next step involved in the scientific method is to collect all related data and formulate a hypothesis based on the observation. The hypothesis could be the cause of the phenomena, its effect, or its relation to any other phenomena.

1. Testing the hypothesis: After the hypothesis is made, it needs to be tested scientifically. Scientists do this by conducting experiments. The aim of these experiments is to determine whether the hypothesis agrees with or contradicts the observations made in the real world. The confidence in the hypothesis increases or decreases based on the result of the experiments.

1. Analysis and Conclusion: This step involves the use of proper mathematical and other scientific procedures to determine the results of the experiment. Based on the analysis, the future course of action can be determined. If the data found in the analysis is consistent with the hypothesis, it is accepted. If not, then it is rejected or modified and analyzed again.

(i) Eating disorders: Adolescents obsession with self-living in fantasy world and peer comparisons lead to certain conditions where they become obsessed with their own bodies.

(ii) Anorexia nervosa: It is an eating disorder that involves relentless pursuit of thinness through starvation. It is quite common to see adolescents eliminate certain foods from their diets or to eat slimming foods only. The media also projects thinness, as the most desirable image and copying such fashionable image of thinness leads to anorexia nervousa.

(iii) Bulimia: It is another form of an eating disorder in which the individual follows a binge-and -purge eating pattern. The blumic goes on an eating binge, then purges by self-induced vomiting or using a laxative at times alternating it with fasting. Anorexia neruousa and bulimia are primarily female disorders more common in urban families.

Psychology is connected not only with the sciences but also with other disciplines which are not generally regarded as sciences. For example, the relationship between psychology and philosophy is well known.

Modern psychology grew out of philosophy and philosophers have always influenced theories in psychology. Even today, this is quite true. Literature and art are the other fields of knowledge which are also related to psychology.

In recent years extensive investigations have been made into the role of psychological factors in the production of literary pieces -and works of art. Freud, Jung and several outstanding psychologists have tried to analyse the role of psychological factors like ego, motivation and personality in literary and artistic creations.
 

Kurt Lewin first proposed the famous equation B = f (p1 E) – which suggests that behaviour is the product of a person and his/her environment. Kurt Lewin's behavior equation is “B = f(P, E)”. It states that an individual's behavior (B) is a function (f) of the the person (P), including their history, personality and motivation, and their environment (E), which includes both their physical and social surroundings.

Gestalt psychologists argued that these principles exist because the mind has an innate disposition to perceive patterns in the stimulus based on certain rules. These principles are organized into five categories: Proximity, Similarity, Continuity, Closure, and Connectedness.

The Bronfenbrenner's contextual view of development is based on four sytems.

(i) Microsystem: It is the immediate environment/setting in which the individuals lives. It is in these settings where the child directly interact with the social agents like family, peer, teachers and neighbourhood.

(ii) Mesosystem: Relations between teacher and parents or family and neighbourhood etc.

(iii) Exosystem: Events in the social settings where the child does not participate directly but influence the child experiences in the immediate context. For example the transfer of father or mother may effect the interaction with child.

(iv) Chronosystem: It involves the events socio-historical circumstances, divorce etc.

In nutshell the child development significantly affect by complex world.

A questionnaire is a research instrument that consists of a set of questions or other types of prompts that aims to collect information from a respondent. A research questionnaire is typically a mix of close-ended questions and open-ended questions. Open-ended, long-form questions offer the respondent the ability to elaborate on their thoughts. Research questionnaires were developed in 1838 by the Statistical Society of London.

There are a large number of areas of everyday life where understanding of psychology can be put to practice. A number of problems of life can easily be solved. For example, these days solutions to a variety of problems related to children, adolescents, adults and the elderly people are suggested by television counsellors to the rapists. They can also be seen analysing vital social problems relating to social change and development, population, poverty, interpersonal or intergroup violence, and environmental degradation.

The knowledge of psychology is also personally relevant for us in our day-to-day life.

The principles and methods of psychology should be made use of in analysing and understanding ourselves in relation to others. Psychological principles can be used in a positive manner to develop good habits of study for improving learning and memory, and for solving personal and interpersonal problems by using appropriate decision making strategies. Its knowledge is very useful in reducing or alleviating the stress of examination, work, etc.

Forgetting refers to loss of stored information over a period of time. After a material is learnt, there is a sharp drop in its memory and then the decline is very gradual. Forgetting may take place due to trace decay and interference. It may also caused due to absence of appropriate cues of the time of retrieval.

Cognition is the process of knowing. It involves thinking, understanding, perceiving, memorising, problem solving and a lot of other mental processes by which our knowledge of the world develops, making us able to deal with the environment in specific ways.

Forgetting refers to loss of stored information over a period of time. After a material is learnt, there is a sharp drop in its memory and then the decline is very gradual. Forgetting may take place due to trace decay and interference. It may also caused due to absence of appropriate cues of the time of retrieval.

Case study is another important technique to understand human behaviour. It is an attempt to explore, in some considerable depth, the behaviour and experiences of an individual. These are based on data generated by different methods e.g., Interview, Observation, Questionnaire and Psychological tests. Case studies are developed of individuals, organisations, small group of individuals, institutions and specific events.

Psychology is defined as a science which studies mental processes, experiences and
behaviour in different contexts.
In doing so, it uses methods of biological and social sciences to obtain data systematically.
It makes sense of the data so that it can be organized as knowledge.

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In research the main concern is with the understanding and explanation of behaviour and mental events and processes. Psychologists, who choose to engage in research, function more like other scientists. Like them, they drew conclusions which are supported by data. They design and conduct experiments or studies under controlled conditions on a wide range of psychological phenomena. The purpose is to develop general principles about behaviour and mental processes. The conclusions drawn on the basis of such studies apply to everybody and are, therefore, universal. Experimental, comparative, physiological, developmental, social, differential and abnormal psychology are generally regarded as domains representing basic psychology.
The themes of research in these fields differ from each other. For example, experimental psychologists study the purposes of perception, learning, memory, thinking and motivation; etc. using experiment as their method of enquiry, whereas physiological psychologists attempt to examine physiological bases of these behaviours. Developmental psychologists study qualitative and quantitative changes in behaviour from the beginning of human life to its end, whereas social psychologists focus on the study of experience and behaviour of individuals as they take place in social contexts.