Black Swan actress Natalie Portman believes that acting and Psychology are “very similar”. The actress took a break from her career to pursue a degree in Psychology from Harvard University. She thinks it helped her work because doing both successfully involves being “observant”, reports Female First UK. Asked if her degree has been useful in her work, she told Radio Times magazine: “I think it’s very similar – in acting you’re trying to imagine why people do the things they do and what forms them. Psychology is very much the same practice. The first thing they teach is observing – it’s watching people, noticing patterns, behaviour.” As per Female First UK, in May December, Natalie plays Elizabeth, an actress preparing to play a real-life figure and she admitted playing someone based on a real person can feel “vampiric”, even when she is trying to be empathetic. (IANS)