英语翻译To appreciate the uniqueness and unity of psychology,you

英语翻译
To appreciate the uniqueness and unity of psychology,you must consider the way psychologists define the field and the goals they bring to their resear-ch and applications.By the end of the book,we will encourage you to think
like a psychologist.In this first section,we’ll give you a strong idea of what that might mean.
DEFINITIONS
Many psychologists seek answers to this fundamental question:what is hu-man nature?Psychology answers this question by looking at processes that oc-cur within individuals as well as forces that arise within the physical and soci-al environment.In this light,we formally define psychology as the scientific s-tudy of the behavior of individuals and their mental processes.Let’s explore t-he critical parts of this definition:scientific,behavior,individual,and mental.
The scientific aspect of psychology requires that psychological conclusions be based on evidence collected according to the principles of the scientific
method.The scientific method consists of a set of orderly steps used to analy-ze and solve problems.This method uses objectively collected information as
the factual basis for drawing conclusions.We will elaborate on the features of
the scientific method more fully in Chapter 2,when we consider how psychol-ogists conduct their research.
Behavior is the means by which organisms adjust to their environment.B-ehavior is action.The subject matter of psychology largely consists of the obs-ervable behavior of humans and other species of animals.Smiling,crying,run-ning,hitting,talking,and touching are some obvious examples of behavior youcan observe.Psychologists examine what the individual does and how the indi-vidual goes about doing it within a given behavioral setting and in the broadersocial or cultural context.
The subject of psychological analysis is most often an individual-a newbo-rn infant,a teenage athlete,a college student adjusting to life in a dormitory,a man facing a midlife career change,or a woman coping with the stress of
her husband’s deterioration from Alzheimer’s disease.However,the subject mi-ght also be a chimpanzee learning to use symbols to communicate,a white ra-t navigating a maze,or a sea slug responding to a danger signal.An individu-al might be studied in its natural habitat or in the controlled conditions of a
research laboratory.
Many researchers in psychology also recognize that they cannot understandhuman actions without also understanding mental processes,the workings of th-e human mind.Much human activity takes place as private,internal events-thinking,planning,reasoning,creating,and dreaming.Many psychologists believe
that mental processes represent the most important aspect of psychological inquiry.As you shall soon see,psychological investigators have devised ingenious
techniques to study mental events and processes-to make these private experie-nces public.

为了领略心理学的独特性与统一性,你必须从心理学家定义该领域及其研究与应用的目标来考虑.在这本书结束的时候,我们会鼓励你以心理学家的方式思考.在这第一部分里,我们会为你提供一个关于心理学应该是什么的强有力的观点.
定义
许多心理学家试图找到这样一个基本问题的答案—什么是人性?心理学既着眼于个体内部发生的过程,又从物理和社会产生的方面来回答这个问题.从这个角度出发,我们将心理学定义为是对个体行为及其心理过程的科学研究.让我们来探索一下这个定义的主要部分：科学、行为、个体及心理.
心理学的科学方面表现在要求心理学的结论,必须是在依据科学方法原则下所搜集到的证据的基础上得出的.科学方法是由用以分析与解决问题的一套有序的步骤构成的.该方法将客观搜集到的信息作为得出结论的事实基础.我们会在第2章中,在考虑心理学家如何进行研究时,详细说明科学方法的特性.
行为是生物机体适应环境的方式方法.行为即行动.心理学的主题很大程度上是由人类及其它种类动物中可观察到的行为构成的,笑、哭、奔跑、打、谈话及触摸都是一些你可以明显观察到的行为方面的例子.心理学家会在给定的行为设置及更广阔的社会与文化情境中,检查个体会做什么,以及与此相伴随的种种经历.
心理分析的主题最常见的是个体——新生婴儿、少年运动员、大学生如何适应校园生活、 一个面临职业生涯变更的中年男人,或一个应对因丈夫的阿滋海默病恶化所带来的压力的女人.然而,其主题也可以是学习使用符号进行交流的黑猩猩、在迷宫中航行的白鼠或是一只对危险信号做出反应的海参.对个体的研究可以是在自然生活环境中,也可以是在实验室的控制条件下进行.
许多心理学研究人员也承认,如果不对心理过程、人类大脑的运作进行理解,他们也难以理解人类的行为.人类的许多活动是隐蔽的、内部的活动,如思考、计划、推理、创造及做梦.很多心理学家相信,心理过程代表了心理学研究最重要的一个方面.正如你很快就要看到的那样,心理学调查人员设计出了独特的技术以研究心理活动与心理过程,以使那些隐蔽的经验公开化.
这些主题结合起来使心理学成为一个独特的领域.在社会科学范畴中,心理学家主要关注个体的行为,社会学家则研究群体中人的行为,而人类学家则关注不同文化中这一更广泛的情景中的行为.即便如此,心理学家依然从其他学科学者的研究中汲取精华.心理学家与生物学家,特别是那些研究行为的大脑过程和生物化学基础的研究者们享有共同的兴趣点.作为认知科学新兴领域的一部分,心理学家关于人类大脑如何运作方面的心理学研究,涉及到计算机科学、人工智能及应用数学.作为一门与医学、教育、法律及环境研究有着千丝万缕联系的保健科学,心理学努力改善每个个体及集体主观幸福感的质量.