How can we bring innovation to Modern Psychology?

Psychology as a modern science has evolved in ways throughout the years and can generally be broken into several schools of thought; including- Biopsychology, Cross-Cultural Psychology, Humanistic Psychology, Behavioural Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Evolutionary Psychology, Psychodynamic Psychology. Also, there has been many advancements in recent psychology, as the subject has grown, the number and variety of topics that psychologists investigate have also expanded. the field of psychology has flourished and it continues to grow at a rapid pace, as does the depth and breadth of subjects studied by psychologists.

Though there have been many innovations made in the field of psychology; including digitalized research reports, online counselling/therapy sessions, webinars, and so on, I think there are still many more ways in which we can bring innovation to Modern Psychology. Since technology and online world is prioritized so much these days, we can organize virtual fairs where we can make more and more number of people aware about various mental illnesses and to make people feel comfortable who are already suffering from such illnesses. Just like 'hyping up' about the events in which celebrities/famous singers are invited or maybe music concerts of various famous artists, these virtual fairs on mental health should also be made worth the hype and prioritized more. We can focus on how we can attract the attention of more number of people to attend such events by inviting famous public figures/celebrities who have gone through any kind of mental health issues in the past and can come forward to share their experiences and celebrate their healing journey with fellow audience, accompanied by rock bands/singers to make the event soothing, lively and crowd pleasing.

A higher number of psychologists or mental health practitioners should be made available for people both in online and offline settings. In many countries, even though advancements in mental health are increasing, I think there is still a need to make people more aware about the importance of mental health and also to be provided with mental health professionals in the country. Most Asian countries still lack in providing the psychological services to their people. I think just like regular health/dental checkups, it's also important to have regular 'Mental Health Checkups'. We can also setup camps to encourage more and more number of people to come and get their mental health checked on regular basis. And the very first step towards these tasks would be increasing the knowledge and power of mental health amongst the common people. This could be done like any other advertisement on TV, on several advertisements, newspapers, magazines, social media and so on.

Furthermore, educating the students in schools about the importance of mental health from the very beginning and educating them about the importance of 'journaling' and keeping a personal diary to vent out their emotions on regular basis, keep a track of their emotions and adopting a healthy way to vent or feel their pain rather than escaping from it would be very beneficial in the long run. Not only for them but also for the psychologists/mental health practitioners as well, because if they ever feel the need to get their mental health checkup or facing any mental health issues, it would ease the professionals' work and would also give them a clarity and better understanding of the clients' emotional/mental health track. So, educating the students from the very beginning would be very advantageous because what's taught to the children from the very beginning would have a great impact on them in the future.

Moreover, I think just like any other social media apps (Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, etc.) there should be an app particularly for mental health. An app where people- openly discuss about their mental health/daily mood or emotional irregularities; can vent out their feelings and emotions without having a fear of getting 'judged' or 'simply made fun of'; get inspired by other people's struggle story and realize that 'it's okay to have bad days', 'it's okay to have mental health issues'; a place where psychologists, therapists, counsellors, mental health practitioners could be found easily in just a click and contacted in a hassle free manner, where these professionals or anybody who could provide you with any kind of help/guidance would feel free to connect with you and help you come out of the dark place and give an emotional blanket of comfort; where you can also show gratitude to those who helped you fight the illnesses and give an honour or some sort of recognition on your profiles or feed.

This is the type of innovation I would like to bring to the Modern Psychology in 21st century by creating an app specifically for mental health, organizing fairs, camps, raising awareness about mental health through various mass communications, media, teaching the children from the early stages about developing a healthy habit of venting or feeling their emotions by journaling them. These are the type of innovations that seem to be useful in my eye.