The field of Psychopharmacology combines psychology, which is the study of human behavior, with pharmacology, which is the study of how drugs affect the biology of the human and the body. In general, the scientific field helps practitioners understand how prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, and other drugs, legal or illegal, can change behavior in predictable ways.

It examines the effects of drugs on people's behavior. It answers the question: How do the different drugs used by humans change biological responses and as result, how do they affect a person's behavior. The behavior can include mood changes, body sensations, a person's thoughts, or physical movement.

The psychopharmacologist is interested in two different principles about a drug. They first review how the drug is absorbed into the body, distributed throughout the body systems, and what the body does with the drug and how it excretes substances. This examination is called pharmacokinetics.

Next, they are concerned with how the drug interacts with neurotransmitters, receptors, and other similar sites of the body. This examination is called pharmacodynamics. The two principles help scientist see how the drug is working and then they can predict how behavior may be affected by a drug.

They have learned that drugs can interact with neurotransmission in several ways. The drug can be an agonist or as a neurotransmitter. Heroin is an example, which when it interacts with the certain neurotransmitters in the body, it produces changes in behavior, such as feelings of euphoria.

Drugs can also block receptor sites. Some antipsychotic drugs, called antagonist drugs, have the opposite effect of agonist drugs. They may induce feelings of sadness or depression.

Psychopharmacology can be summarized as "the science of drug action". Drugs that are prescribed, or the over-the-counter drugs available for everyday purchase, must have instructions, consequences and side-effects listed along with their ingredients. The person in this field of study is one of the scientists responsible for the sometimes long-listing of side=effects of a drug.

Psychopharmacology is an ever-expanding field of science due to the development and the availability of the many kinds of prescription and over-the counter drugs available. They also study the side-effects of illegal drugs, and in addition will understand the effects of overdoses and the misuse of drugs. Their research assists doctors in prescribing and suggesting drugs for a patient's use.

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