A psychology lecturer may discuss psychology theory, practice, or application. He or she may also give public speeches or use a lecture-style presentation to conduct on-the-job training. People in this field may conduct research or publish academic papers on the subject of psychology, and as a result, they may give lectures based on their findings.
Depending on the audience, a psychologist’s lecturing activities may cover a wide range of topics within the field of psychology. A psychology professor may deliver academic material to psychology students, whereas a well-known psychologist may speak to a group of professionals, such as those in attendance at a trade show. A company may occasionally invite a human behavioral science expert to give a presentation to its employees. A psychologist with experience in preventing workplace violence, for example, may give a presentation to a company’s employees on various methods of spotting warning signs in order to train employees to prevent violent incidents.
A psychology lecturer’s primary responsibility is to teach students. The lecturer is usually a professor, but this is not always the case. As a grad assistant, students pursuing a master’s degree in psychology may occasionally present academic material to other students. This is especially true of lectures given to students who are taking a psychology course as an elective rather than as preparation for a career in psychology.
A psychology lecturer will typically delve into a much more academically rigorous exploration of the subject matter for students seeking degrees in the field of psychology. In these cases, the subject matter of a lecture could include presentations of scientific findings and discussions of clinical research studies. Students may be lectured on a variety of topics in the field of psychology. A lecturer teaching behavioral psychology, for example, will usually give students examples and facts about how human psychological dynamics can influence a person’s or a group’s behaviors.
A social psychology lecturer will usually concentrate his or her material on how groups influence social interactions and the mental states of individuals within the group. Clinical psychologists may present best practices in clinical psychology or new research findings to groups of medical professionals. A developmental psychology lecturer may give a talk to a group of teachers or present scientific findings in this field. Scientists in the field of psychology frequently give talks on more esoteric topics that would appeal to a smaller group of psychology professionals. In addition to teaching college classes, a psychology lecturer at a university or college may be expected to publish papers or books in his or her field.