sleepless night, then through the days and weeks that follow, the sense of impending disaster persists: the dread
invades him, as if some alien power had taken possession of his body. Finally, he seeks the help of a
psychotherapist. He learns that his problem is shared, in varying degrees of intensity, by millions of people. It is
called pathological anxiety. What is its cause? What does it signify? How is it to be cured?
These examples pertain to human beings, but psychology is not restricted exclusively to the study of man—it
includes the study of animals. When a scientist investigates the learning processes of a dog, or the relative
effectiveness of reward and punishment on a monkey, or the "family life" of a chimpanzee—his pursuit and
concern are distinctly psychological. If, on the other hand, a scientist studies the actions of astronomical bodies or
the heliotropic action of a plant, his investigation is clearly not psychological. How do we recognize this? What is
the principle of the difference?
Psychology is confined to the study of living organisms. Of all living organisms? No—of those living organisms
which are conscious, which exhibit awareness.
If one wishes to understand the definition and distinctive nature of a particular science, the question to answer is:
What are the specific facts of reality that give rise to that science? For example, the basic fact of reality that gives
rise to the science of biology is that certain entities in nature are alive. Thus, biology is the science that studies the
attributes and characteristics which certain entities possess by virtue of being alive.
That certain living organisms are conscious—that they are able to be aware of existence—is the basic fact of reality
which gives rise to the science of psychology. Psychology is the science that studies the attributes and
characteristics which certain living organisms possess by virtue of being conscious.
This definition subsumes the study of behavior; of motivation; and of the structure, categories, and functions of
consciousness. As such, it subsumes the areas covered by the traditional definitions of psychology as "the science
of consciousness" or "the science of mind" or "the science of mental activity" or ''the science of behavior."
"Consciousness" is used here in its widest and most general sense, to indicate the faculty and state of awareness, of
any form of