Our interest in psychology signals troubled times

Psychology is more critical today than ever before, writes Justin Thomas

The spike in psychology's popularity can be traced back to Hollywood's dramatic portrayal of the discipline in the 1990s. AP Photo / TriStar Pictures

The spike in psychology's popularity can be traced back to Hollywood's dramatic portrayal of the discipline in the 1990s. The film Basic Instinct for example, features a super smart serial killer who is a psychology major. Around the same time, on the other side of the Atlantic, the BBC's hit TV series Cracker featured Robbie Coltrane as a degenerate, albeit endearing, criminal psychologist. Nursing numerous addictions, this misanthropic maverick solves those high-profile cases that outfox lesser minds. The take home message is clear: psychology is interesting and psychologists are smart.

Psychology’s increased screen time coincided with its rising popularity as a degree programme. The United States department of education reported that between 2001 and 2007, the number of psychology degrees awarded in the US jumped by 17.3 per cent. In 2007, bachelor’s degrees in psychology accounted for about 6 per cent of all degrees awarded, placing psychology firmly among the US's most popular majors.

There has been no reversal to psychology’s rapid rise. In a 2016 report by the US education department, psychology was still ranked the fourth most popular major. The picture in the United Kingdom is similar. According to the UK’s quality assurance agency for higher education, psychology has become the most popular scientific discipline in higher education in the UK and the second largest overall.

What is at the heart of this popularity? One rather cynical idea is that our interest in psychology is linked to rising levels of narcissism. Psychology after all is the study of self.

An equally cynical explanation is that the happiness industry and the depression epidemic have popularised psychology. Is this troubled students seeking answers to their own woes or opportunistic students hoping to cash-in on the increased demand for therapy? I suspect neither explanation accounts for much of its growth. Another explanation is that it is a sign of our troubled times. The collective unconscious is guiding us away from our external focus towards a more internal orientation. Our conquest of the rest of nature has proven so successful, it now threatens disaster. A greater understanding of human nature may provide the antidote to our self-inflicted global woes.

A simpler explanation of psychology’s popularity, however, is that it cuts across disciplines, enabling graduates to make contributions to society across a broad range of contexts. From a scientific understanding of the cognitive and emotional development of children to theories of human motivation and interpersonal conflict, the things studied in the psychology classroom are applicable in many work-life contexts. This breadth of focus is reflected in the diverse areas of employment enjoyed by psychology graduates.

Psychologists work in the health service, the armed forces, education and the civil service.

In the UK around a third of psychology graduates work in industry and commerce in various roles, from personnel management, through to marketing and advertising.

A further 10 to 15 per cent go into teaching and research, while the remainder take their valuable skills to a diffuse array of other jobs. Mark Zuckerberg, psychology major, founded Facebook.

It is important to remember that psychology is not only about mental health.

Helping people overcome psychological problems is a huge and increasingly important application of psychology, but psychology graduates have so much more to offer society.

Consider that operations such as interface design, advertising, public relations, health and safety, to name a few, are all informed by psychological science. As psychology matures in the UAE it is important for government and industry to foster, integrate and capitalise upon these valuable 21st century skill sets.

Dr Justin Thomas is an associate professor at Zayed University

On Twitter: @DrJustinThomas