Hypermotility denotes increased movement or activity either abnormally, either physically or physiologically. In psychology or medicine, describing excessive restlessness or hyperactivity, frequently correlating with conditions like ADHD, anxiety, or an active mania, is hypermotility. Physiologically, it can mean increased movement of the gut. Knowing hypermotility is helpful in determining potential clinical neurological, emotional, or developmental […]
Hypnotic regression is a therapeutic strategy that involves guiding patients back to prior memories via hypnosis. In psychology, regression serves to bring back emotions, events, or traumas from the past which were buried, dissociated or unresolved. The primary aim is to allow patients to surface subconscious issues that are operant in the now. It is, […]
Holistic health is an approach to well-being that considers the whole person — mind, body, and spirit — rather than focusing solely on physical symptoms or isolated aspects of functioning. In psychology, holistic health recognizes that mental, emotional, social, and physical dimensions of health are deeply interconnected and mutually influential. This perspective informs integrative therapeutic […]
Hedonism is a philosophical and psychological concept that posits pleasure as the primary motivator of human behavior, and the avoidance of pain as its counterpart. In psychology, hedonism is studied in relation to motivation, decision-making, and well-being. The hedonic principle suggests that people are naturally drawn toward experiences that feel good and away from those […]
In the fields of psychology and neuroscience, the term homunculus denotes the depiction of the body within the brain — specifically, the representation within the somatosensory and motor cortices. Certain regions of the body, such as the hands and the lips, are disproportionately represented as larger because they demand greater degrees of sensory and motor […]
A heuristic is a mental shortcut that assists in making decisions and understanding complex problems. They lead to efficiencies in thinking but can also produce biases. Some of the most common are the availability heuristic (making decisions based on easily retrievable instances) and the representativeness heuristic (making judgments based on likeness to a category). Heuristics […]
The branch of psychology which focuses on the growth, free will, and potential of the individual is called humanism. Its emergence was a response to behaviorism and psychoanalysis, and thus it focuses on conscious experience, and neither on the drives of the unconscious nor on conditioned behavior. Humanistic psychologists, like Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow, […]
Human nature denotes universal, fundamental psychological traits, behaviors, drives, and mechanisms of all individuals. Drives include the primal instincts of self-preservation and social bonding, along with self-expression, curiosity, and communication. Psychologists investigate the nature of these phenomena to discern with greater finality the biological and environmental components of the complex psychosocial framework. Along with basic […]
In psychology, the term homogeneity describes the extent of resemblance within a group, sample, or behavioral set. It can pertain to sentiments, attitude, personality, culture, or behavioral response in a given study or inquiry context. In social psychology, homogeneity tends to be characteristic of groups in which members possess a similar set of values, beliefs, […]
Personal hardiness refers to the capability to plow through any kind of stress with great resilience. This ability was proposed by Kobasa in the late 1970’s and stems from an individual’s ability to remain committed (mentally and emotionally involved in any endeavor), have control, and view adversity as challenge (seeing constraining and restricting opportunities as […]