Psychology and human competence development

Abstract

At the turn of the millennium it is important to recognise that accumulated psychological knowledge has the potential for contributing to human wellbeing and particularly to enhancing human competence, However, the relevance of psychology to such global "human development" issues is not well understood. To demonstrate the role applied psychology can play in promoting human competence, three examples of psychological endeavors are examined as case studies. The first is a brief treatment of a proposed, but not realised, case of advocacy based on psychological research evidence. It refers to how research can inform social policy and how psychologists can assume an advocacy role regarding education for all. The other two are examples from programs of research and intervention work in Turkey, one promoting early childhood development with an ecological/contextual approach focusing on the family environment and the other empowering women through an adult functional literacy program. They demonstrate how psychology can contribute to human competence development through the life span.