Though the term self-help can refer to any case whereby an individual or a group betters themselves economically, intellectually or emotionally, the connotations of the phrase have come to apply particularly to psychological or psychotherapeutic nostrums, often purveyed through the popular genre of the "self-help" book. Sometimes writers refer to a "self-help movement", though exactly what this is taken to be is not clear.

Psychology (ancient Greek: psyche = soul and logos = word) is the study of behaviour, mind and thought. It is largely concerned with humans, although the behaviour and thought of animals is also studied; either as a subject in its own right (see animal cognition and ethology),

or more controversially, as a way of gaining an insight into human psychology by means of comparison (see comparative psychology). Psychology is commonly defined as: "the science of behaviour and mental processes".

Psychology is conducted both scientifically and non-scientifically. Mainstream psychology is based largely on positivism, using quantitative studies and the scientific method to test and disprove hypotheses, often in an experimental context.