of causes which are internal (to the organism) or external having location in the outside environment. Causal explanations are central to all sciences because without understanding them no prediction will be possible. Although, psychologists look for causal explanations of behaviour, they also realise that simple linear explanations, such as X Causing Y do not hold true. There is no one cause of behaviour.
Human behaviour has multiple causes. Psychologists, therefore, look for causal models where a set of interdependent variables are used to explain a behaviour. When it is said that behaviour has multiple causes, it means that it is difficult to pinpoint one cause of a behaviour because it may itself be caused by another variable, which in turn may be caused by some other. Theme : Understanding of human behaviour is culturally constructed.
This is a theme which has recently surfaced. There are psychologists who believe that most psychological theories and models are Euro-American in nature and therefore, do not help us in understanding behaviours in other cultural settings. Psychologists from Asia, Africa and Latin America have been critical of Euro-American approaches which are propagated as universal. A similar critique is made by feminists who argue that psychology offers a male perspective and ignores the perspective of women.
They argue in favour of a dialectical approach which will accommodate both male and female perspectives in understanding human behaviour. Theme : Human behaviour can be controlled and modified through the application of psychological principles. Why do scientists like to know how certain events can be controlled, be they physical or psychological? Their concern arises from their desire to develop techniques or methods that will improve the quality of human life.
Psychologists also seek the same while applying knowledge generated by them. This often requires removal of certain difficulties or adverse conditions that individuals experience in different phases of their life. Consequently, psychologists make certain interventions into the lives of needy people. This applied role of psychologists has, on the one hand, brought the subject closer to the life of people in general than other social science