Diskuze v psychologii 2021, 3(2):73-85 | DOI: 10.5507/dvp.2022.003

"I want to study it more and I want to do it well": psychology students' perceptions of the profession during the COVID-19 pandemic

Jan Trtílek, Natálie Navrátilová, Nikol Fojtů, Barbara Lášticová
Psychologický ústav, Filozofická fakulta Masarykovy univerzity, Arne Nováka 1, 602 00 Brno, Česká republika

The main objective of this multiple case study was to investigate how psychology students at the Faculty of Arts of MUNI talk about possible changes in their perception of psychology, motivation to study, and self-actualisation in the field as a result of the coronavirus crisis. Six interviews conducted with psychology students were subjected to thematic analysis. Our results suggest that the effects of the coronavirus crisis on the study motivation and the perception of psychology among the respondents and in society are, with a few exceptions, perceived as primarily positive. The perception of the psychology profession's importance and students' motivation to study has been strengthened. That was mainly due to society's increased mental health problems during the pandemic and the associated thematisation of mental health in societal discourse.

Keywords: psychology students; COVID-19 pandemic; perceptions of psychology; mental health

Received: July 3, 2022; Revised: August 31, 2022; Accepted: December 2, 2022; Prepublished online: December 5, 2022; Published: March 22, 2023  Show citation

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Trtílek J, Navrátilová N, Fojtů N, Lášticová B. "I want to study it more and I want to do it well": psychology students' perceptions of the profession during the COVID-19 pandemic. Diskuze v psychologii. 2021;3(2):73-85. doi: 10.5507/dvp.2022.003.
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