Author Archives: rachelpsy105blog

Chapter 7 post

--Original published at Rachelsblog

Technology has been taking over our world for the past 20 years, but not necessarily all in a good way. Over these years, the amount of violent video games has increased. There are many negative criticisms towards these violent games. It has shown to have negative effects on the child playing the game. Young children and teenagers are playing these games and resulting of it, they have a more aggressive behavior towards real life people because they are aggressive to the characters in the game, so they think it is okay. I agree with this and think that young children, who have not had the chance to have their brains matured and developed, should not be playing such violent video games. This could lead to them thinking it is alright to be violent in real life.

In class, we have touched on the parenting styles and how the environment a child grows up in shapes the child. If parents allow and encourage their child to play these violent games, it will cause the child to be more aggressive and be negative towards the people around them. I do not think these video games should stop being sold, they just need to be monitored and sold to the correct age group.

Chapter 4 Impression Post

--Original published at Rachelsblog

There are so many different kinds of ways for a parent to help develop their children into happy, healthy, and productive members of society. I believe that there’s no “right” way but there is definitely a “best” way in my opinion.

When a child is first born and growing into their toddler years, they need love and nurturing. The world is a big place in their small eyes and they rely on their parents for everything. The parents need to be their shoulder to lean on. Some parents think it is ok to take “off” days and not parent, but a child needs their parent to be there 24/7 as they are growing up. I believe as the child grows up, they see their parents as their role models and will do what they do because they don’t know any better.

As the child gets older it comes time for the parents to set boundaries and their own rules. The child needs to be taught right from wrong at a young age and be disciplined, but not too much that it is overbearing. I believe that if parents are too strict it just causes the child to sneak around and do stuff behind their parents’ backs.

From personal experience, I have a very good relationship with my parents because they were not overly strict. I believe parents need to be able to put themselves in their kids shoes when they make a mistake because odds are they we’re in the same spot when they were children. Parents aren’t supposed to be their child’s best friend, but they are supposed to be the safety and shoulder for them when they need it.

 

Extra Credit Post

--Original published at Rachelsblog

“Miguel has been struggling with his coursework lately. He has felt very tired in recent weeks and has found it difficult to focus on his studies. Even though he is always tired, he has trouble falling asleep at night, is irritable during the day, and picks fights with his roommate. He is a bit of a perfectionist and gets mad at himself when he makes even tiny mistakes. It’s gotten to the point where he doubts his ability to do anything right.”

Based on psychodynamics, Miguel’s problems are not within his consciousness, but within his unconscious mind. He may not know the root of his issues, which is what psychodynamics is all about. Psychodynamics is the about unconscious mind and desires. He may be desiring something he is unaware of. He may have internal issues he is unaware of as well.

Based on behavioral psychology, Miguel may be fighting with his roommate because he sees others doing this kind of behavior. Behavioral psychology has to do with observable behaviors and if he sees others acting in a sort of way, he will tend to do the same. This can also lead back to his unconscious mind, and he may be unaware of what is causing the fighting.

Based on humanistic psychology, Miguel is struggling internally with personal strength. He may feel as if he is not smart enough for the course load he has been handed, since he is clearly struggling with it. He may have doubts about his personal strength which causes him to lash out.

Cognitive psychology studies the brain and its thoughts. Miguel may be struggling in class because there is a lot of information thrown at him and he may have trouble retaining it all. This may cause frustration and may make it hard for him to do his work if he doesn’t fully understand it.

Cultural psychology is the study of how mental processes and behaviors vary across cultures. Miguel may be struggling at home and bring the tension with him to college. He may be feeling pressured by people he has at home. In his education he may have been very smart and top of his class which set a standard for him that he may not be able to reach at the college level. This may explain his frustration with his course load.

Neuroscience is how the brain and body enable memories and emotions and sensory experiences. Miguel is having a difficult time with his course load and this may be caused by a weak ability to memorize the information his professors are giving to him in his classes. All his problems can relate back to neuroscience, considering it is all about his emotions and brain.

First Impression Blog

--Original published at Rachelsblog

I chose to watch the Mythbusters episode about traffic and if changing lanes gets you to your destination faster. I’ve always believed that changing lanes does get you to your destination faster than staying in one lane. After watching this video, I see that is not the case.

The method used in the episode was to put two cars on the highway during rush hour and while one car stays in the same lane the entire time, the other car weaves through traffic. I support this method and find it to be the best way to test if it this myth is actually true. Although, one weakness I found in the method was they used a very small car to weave, which makes it easier to do. Not everyone has the smallest cars, so while one person with a small car can weave their way through traffic, then the myth may be true for them. If another person tried to do this with a big car that doesn’t have the advantage of being able to weave as easily as the small car, then the myth may not be as true for them.

One way they can change their method to fully test their method is to have more than two cars on the road going through the experiment. They should test it with cars of different sizes. They also should test this experiment in different types of traffic. This myth may be true on a 4 lane highway because there is more room to merge, but is it the same for a 2 lane? Making these changes to the method may help to find a more true answer to the myth.

Introductory blog

--Original published at Rachelsblog

My name is Rachel Christman and I approach this course to be slightly difficult but also very interesting. I decided to take this course because I enjoy learning and studying about the brain and the way it works and affects human behavior. Although, I do not have a wide background with psychology I hope this course will change that. When I hear the word “psychology” I think about the brain and how it is so much more complex than humans think it to be. I am mostly intrigued by the macro and micro topics of the brain in the syllabus. Along with the “How to Improve Memory” and the personality topics. I enjoy learning how and why things happen, which is why I am excited for these topics. The only topic I am not as interested in is “How to Choose a Therapist”, it just does not sound as intriguing and interesting as the others. As I have not taken psychology in high school, I have tons of questions on all of psychology that I’m sure will be answered throughout the course of the semester. I enjoy learning all about how the brain works and all its complexities so I hope all of my questions pertaining to that are answered!