Applied Learning
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Applied Learning
Psychology is an interesting field of study because the theories and concepts that you learn can often be observed in the world around you. This assignment allows you to consider material you have covered in the content of this module and apply those concepts to your own life.
In Section 1, you will identify and define ideas. In this module, as you reviewed your course materials, you likely discovered many interesting new ideas in psychology.
· Identify three different concepts, ideas, or research findings that were interesting or useful to you.
· Explain or describe each concept, theory or research finding in detail, in your own words.
· A good response here would be at least 150 words. Be sure to use proper spelling and grammar in your response. Write your response in the space below.
Response:
The three concepts or theories that I am most interested in are the Psychodynamic Theory, the Cognitive Perspective, and the Gestalt Theory. My first interest, the psychodynamic theory, was developed by neurologist Sigman Freud. Freud believed that unconscious and conscious forces drive human behavior to try and solve conflicts with personal needs and society’s demands. His theory views a person as being pushed or pulled, and emphasizes early childhood as a time in which a persons personality is formed. The theory goes on to explain that a persons personality is formed by the events that motivate behavior in early childhood, therefore proving that all behavior is motivated. Freud proposed this theory by studying which parts of the personality consisted of the Id (instincts and pleasure), the superego (obedience to parents and society), and the ego (mediates between Id and superego according to it’s demands). Freud felt that if he could help people understand how their personalities were developed and to understand the unconscious and conscious mind, they could actually experience an emotional release, therefore finding relief from psychological disturbances and distress. Behaviorist and Humanist also support Freud’s psychodynamic theory of personalities. My second interest, Gestalt psychology, was developed by psychologist Max Wertheimer et al., and is a theory of visual perception. Gestalt psychology has also been referred to as gestalt theory and the Max Wertheimer theory. The idea of the gestalt theory is that the mind can understand experiences as a whole and not just as a collection of different experiences. It has also been explained as the whole of anything is greater than its parts. This is why the theory is appropriately named gestalt, because gestalt is a German word that means unified whole. Wertheimer believes that the human mind has the capability to accumulate and maintain many different perceptions in a chaotic world. Wertheimer’s theory has been become known as “ The laws of Max Wertheimer” and also as “ Gestalt laws of grouping.” Gestalt psychologist base their research on principles that are organized into five categories known as proximity, similarity, continuity, closure, and connectedness. These principles exist because of the observation of the human minds disposition to see patterns in the way things are arranged in relation to each other. Lastly, my third interest is the cognitive perspective. The cognitive perspective is when psychologist study perception, memory, language, thinking, and decision making among many other processes involving the mind. This perspective was developed by the cognitive scientist Noam Chomsky. The cognitive perspective has been said to be the dominant approach in psychology by many psychologist because of it’s focus on the process of the mind. The cognitive perspective idea is to understand the mental process, and the theory is that thoughts are seen as results and causes of outward actions. Basically, people are human, therefore they learn, think, and react according to outward stimuli. Although learning and thinking instigate certain behaviors as a result of outside stimuli, Chomsky’s theory focuses more on the internal processes rather than the external behavior. Other psychologist and research scientist argue that this theory does not take into account the individual differences in human behavior. For example, two people can be told the same story but perceive it and react to it in very different ways. However, case studies of individual behaviors does focus on the thoughts peculiar to an individual. The case study not only focuses on the peculiar or quirky thoughts of an individual, it also asses the automatic responses from the unconscious mind such as, walking, talking, and eating. These case studies also support the gestalt theory
In Section 2, you will make an application to your personal life.
· After identifying the interesting concepts, ideas, or research findings above, provide an original example of how one of them is relevant in your personal or family life.
· A good response here would be at least 150 words. Be sure to use proper spelling and grammar in your response. Write your response in the space below.
Response:
I feel the cognitive theory is most applicable to my personal life. When discussing issues or just common daily events with my husband it amazes me how differently we perceive the same things. In most areas of my life I like to think that I am a very logical thinker. For example, my husband and I have an ongoing debate about light and darkness coexisting. I say it is impossible for the two to coexist. My example for this is, If you turn a light on in a dark room the light over takes the darkness, therefore proving that they can not coexist in one place. His argument is there are dark shadows that are produced as a result of the light therefore causing darkness in a lighted room. I’m not sure if we will ever agree on this subject. Another way I feel this theory is relative to my life is that I have been married to two alcoholics. They both drink differently for very different reasons, but both say it’s like medicine. One drinks only beer and and a few a day because he says it helps him think clearly, and the ex husband drinks shots of whiskey everyday because he says it helps him cope. Although they both work hard and have productive lives, I am curious and fascinated at how their minds work and process their lives that they both feel they need the alcohol to manage their day. I personally have been focusing on how I process my thoughts and emotions in reacting to their drinking. I think, how should I respond or should I respond at all to their behaviors, what works best in managing their behaviors as well as my own. This is something that has been a top priority since I have started school and has actually helped my husband ans I a lot.
In Section 3, make an application to your work life.
· From the interesting concepts, ideas or research findings identified in Section 1 provide an original example of how one of them is relevant in your work life. Or, can you think of an example of how this issue plays out in your own current or future career?
· A good response here would be at least 150 words. Be sure to use proper spelling and grammar in your response. Write your response in the space below.
Response:
I am a certified dance instructor and have been teaching since I was 14. Over the past several years I have been focusing on how differently each child learns as well as trying to be more creative in explaining things. It has taken me many years to see and understand that just because someone wants to learn something doesn’t mean they will learn it quickly and easily. When I have difficulty understanding someones explanation I usually ask them to explain it to me on an elementary level. I have started to apply this to my teaching and it helps a lot. I no longer assume that everyone learns like I do and that this should be easy because it was easy for me. This cognitive theory in focusing on the processes of the mind is also helping me with my grandchildren. I have one who is autistic and one who has Asperger’s. Trying to pay more attention to how each one reacts to different things and what their individual processes are really helps in dealing with outburst. The reason I bring up my grandchildren is because since I have started focusing on how to help and interact with them, it has rolled over into my teaching. I have two student who are also autistic. One is older and is high functioning and the other is very young a