Introducing the world of psychology
IN light of many exciting and rapid developments taking place in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the field of psychology has emerged as one of the fundamental drivers of change.
The Psychology School Convention, held annually at HELP University’s Subang 2 campus, explores how various aspects of the subject, including neuropsychology, forensics (criminal profiling) and cognitive psychology are shaping the way we think, work and live.
The event, in which admission is free of charge, draws close to 1,000 students every year from more than 50 schools in the Klang Valley, Johor, Kuantan, Penang and Malacca.
The one-day convention helps secondary school students learn about psychology in a fun and interactive way through escape rooms, virtual reality demonstrations, experiential booths and workshops on current topics like online predators, anxiety disorders, managing stress, studying smart, bullying, music therapy and cyber addiction.
HELP University Faculty of Behavioural Science dean Dr Goh Chee Leong said psychology could provide solutions to address the major challenges faced by society.
“Psychology, through its scientific understanding of people, can present ideas that bring understanding, unity, peace, success, innovation and productivity, elements that can help Malaysia progress further.”
In last year’s convention, Dr Goh, who is also the first Malaysian elected to the executive committee of the International Union of Psychological Science, began with a rousing keynote speech, discussing careers in psychology and surprising the audience with an abundance of opportunities in the field.
Dr Choy Tsee Leng, the resident neuroscientist at HELP, spoke about the functions and design of the human brain, explaining how different parts work and what happens when specific structures are damaged.
Dr Eugene Tee, whose academic expertise focuses on human emotions, laid out the basic spectrum of emotions that people experience, such as anger, happiness, surprise, disgust, sadness and fear.
While these emotions were independent of each other, they could also be experienced at the same time, thus forming more complex or secondary emotions, such as anticipation, gratitude, shame and even jealousy.
Elaine Fernandez, the current head of the department of psychology, and a former graduate and valedictorian of the HELP Psychology programme, spoke on the topic of social psychology.
It included how individuals could relate to one another, how we cope with love and relationships, how beliefs and groups were formed, and how opponents deal with each other.
HELP’s Psychology Challenge saw the participation of students from around 30 schools engaging in questions related to psychology.
The event culminated with SMK Kota Kemuning in Klang emerging the winner, and student Ng Han Xiang walking away with a full scholarship worth RM 90,000.
This year, the Psychology School Convention will be held on Saturday (July 28).
It will focus on how Psychology is driving the Fourth Industrial Revolution in areas like virtual reality research and neuropsychology experiments.
HELP’s Psychology Challenge will give potential school leavers a chance to win the grand prize of a full scholarship for HELP’s foundation programme and the 3-year Bachelor of Psychology course.
The Department of Psychology at HELP University also offers the Bachelor of Psychology and joint degree programmes with Flinders University’s School of Psychology in Australia.
There are three intakes per year — January, May and August. Orientation day for the new intake is on Aug 23 and 24.
Psychology, through its scientific understanding of people, can present ideas that bring understanding, unity, peace, success, innovation and productivity, elements that can help Malaysia progress further.
HELP University Faculty of Behavioural Science dean
For Masters programmes, the Department of Psychology also offers the Masters in Counselling, and the Master of Clinical Psychology programme.