Experimental Psychology

Those in experimental psychology use a methodological approach to conduct experiments in controlled situations in order to examine human behavior. These psychologists take nothing for granted as they scrutinize human responses to sensation, perception, motivation, memory, learning and physiological psychology.

Experimental Psychologists perform the following duties:

• Run experiments to study human behaviorism and mental phenomena
• Study behavior processes in animals
• Use findings to inform diagnoses and treatments for various social, behavioral and emotional disorders

The average income for experimental psychologists holding a PhD is $87,000 (and up to $112,000) according to a 2010 survey conducted by PayScale.com. Concurrently, professors in this field who hold a master’s degree earn roughly $55,000 per year. Incomes will vary for experimental psychologists depending upon the geographic location they choose to live and work, and this specialty in psychology may tend to be employed by a lab or research facility which could limit the flexibility in schedule that other psychology fields enjoy.

Experimental psychologists often work in private research centers and universities (where they are employed as professors), as well as nonprofit, business and government organizations. Their work is primarily focused on statistics, research and experimentation.

Becoming an experimental psychologist should begin with an undergraduate degree in psychology. From there, individuals are free to pursue a Master of Arts or Master of Science degree (MA or MS) in experimental psychology, or simply psychology (MA and MS programs in psychology are more plentiful than programs in experimental psychology). These programs, which generally take two years to complete, will further expose students to the wide and fascinating field of psychology. However, this degree alone is not enough to enter the fiercely competitive field of experimental psychology.

Most doctorate programs (PhD) in experimental psychology require individuals to have obtained their MA or MS degree in one of the psychological fields. PhD programs can take three years or more years to complete, depending on the individual's time frame. These programs provide students with the nuanced training and knowledge to perform their own empirical research, read data and conduct experiments.