The emergence and growth of these specialties reflects the increasing participation of psychologists in providing direct services to special patient populations. Cognitive psychologists deal with memory, thinking, and perceptions. Some conduct research related to computer programming and artificial intelligence. Counseling psychologists use various techniques, including interviewing and testing, to advise people on how to deal with problems of everyday living. They work in settings such as university counseling centers, hospitals, and individual or group practices.
Developmental psychologists study the physiological development that takes place throughout life.
Some specialize in behavior during infancy, childhood, and adolescence, changes that take place during maturity or old age, or developmental disabilities and their effects. Increasingly, research is developing ways to help elderly people stay as independent as possible. Experimental or research psychologists work in university and private research centers, and in business, nonprofit, and governmental organizations. They study behavior processes with human beings and animals such as rats, monkeys, and pigeons. Prominent areas of study in experimental research include motivation, thinking, attention, learning and memory, sensory and perceptual processes, effects of substance abuse, and genetic and neurological factors affecting behavior.