PSYCHOLOGY

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College        Thomas Edison State College

Semester:           October 2015

Course code:       PSY-101-GS004

Course name:       Introduction to Psychology

Instructor:            Dr. Lee StJohn

Date sent:   04 October 2015

Date Due:   05 October 2015

Assignment #  1

Thank you for this cover page XXXX

I have to say you did a fabulous job on this assignment identifying the facts as well as illustrating how you understand the facts. You did this by using examples from your life connecting what you are learning to how you understand it. A few parts were thin on content, but overall you did a great job. I was very impressed that you outlined your paper. By outlining your paper according to your assignment you answered all parts of it. Keep following this format. Kudos to you! Dr. StJohn

PS:

Please title your assignment document with your last name and then the assignment number, example: StJohn A1

Thanks

Answer the following questions.

1. The first psychologists were philosophers; however, the field became more sophisticated as scientific approaches were developed.

a. Explain the historical evolution of psychology, tracing its roots from Ancient Greece to the modern day.

b. Identify and describe three of “today’s perspectives,” and

c. Explain in detail which perspective you think best explains the root of human behavior.

a. Explain the historical evolution of psychology, tracing its roots from Ancient Greece to the modern day.

In today’s society, we face some of the same questions that were researched by philosophers and psychologists as far back as the days of ancient Greece. We continue to research human minds looking for answers on exactly what leads to people’s different perspectives, different ways of thinking and what makes emotions come to surface. Are people “programed” this way from birth? Or was British philosopher John Locke correct in his idea of infants are born into the world with minds like blank slates, and their experiences dictate the outcome of their adult lives (Feldman 2015, p. 14)? The first psychological experimental laboratories were built in the late 19th century which is why that era is considered the beginning of the psychology discipline (p. 14). In the late 1800’s, there were fewer approaches and ideas used during research Wilhelm Wundt studied human conscience experiences using his perspective know as structuralism (p. 14). The technique he used to research structuralism was called introspection. Imagine if someone gave you a sentence or short story to read, or even described a scenario; would you be able to give them a detailed explanation on how it made you feel? This is the idea behind introspection, it was soon deemed unreliable. There were other perspectives that were used to study minds such as functionalism which studied how people adapt to their environments and Gestalt psychology which was used to determine how perception is organized (p. 15).

Until the middle of the 20th century, women were not openly accepted in scientific fields. Although they were not accepted, they still made a positive impact on psychology studies. Some of the research they were involved in were animal behaviors, early childhood development and women issues (p. 15). What could have played a major role in women gaining access to college programs was when Mary Calkins who studied memory, became the first female president of the American Psychological Association (p. 15).

b. Identify and describe three of “today’s perspectives,”

Today, the field of psychology includes five major perspectives: Cognitive, Behavioral, and Neuroscience, Humanistic and Psychodynamic (p. 16). I will describe neuroscience, cognitive and behavioral further. The neuroscience perspective is like studying the biological road map of how a person’s feelings are transmitted. This perspective maps out feelings like a pin prick on your finger, it would track it through your body to your brain and also how you respond to such a pain. It also looks at things like the family genes that may have been passed down from generations past and how they influence a person. With this perspective being so broad it has made major contributions to bettering human life such as cures for certain types of deafness to drug treatments for mental disorders (p. 17).

There are people in the world who go through life that do not think they have the ability to succeed on things. It could be as simple as a 20 year old not having a drivers license because they think they would fail the drivers test. This person could have heard a couple friends say it was hard or they had failed it the first time which would influence their behavior. This is the type of behavior that the cognitive perspective would research. The cognitive perspective looks at how people comprehend and represent the outside world (p. 19).

It is typical to hear on the news or read on social media that students that go to schools in bad areas or very poor areas are getting low scores on state wide testing. These are the types of issues the behavioral perspective would research, it suggests that people learn from their surroundings (p. 18). In my example above, it may be viewed as normal in these areas to have low test scores so they do not put forth the effort.

c. Explain in detail which perspective you think best explains the root of human behavior.

I think the neuroscience perspective best explains the root of human behavior. Although it is possibly the most scientific perspective, I feel the findings have been proven for years. Even though psychology is a science there are different outcomes occasionally from the “typical”. I have read numerous studies on Native Americans tendency to become dependent on drugs or alcohol, I am one quarter Native American but I do not have an alcohol or drug addiction. Most of my relatives from the Native side of my family are dependent on drugs or alcohol. From my readings of studies and the number of my family members suffering from addiction this leads me to side with this perspective.

2. You are interested in conducting a research study that investigates whether listening to different types of music while studying improves test scores in an Introduction to Psychology course.

Detailing

a. Ethical considerations,

b. The scientific method, and

c. Experimental research methods,

How would you implement this research study from start to finish?

How would you implement this research study from start to finish?

During my research on whether listening to different types of music while studying improves test scores I will select students who are also enrolled in Introduction to Psychology. I would select my sample population with as many different races, religions and from different parts of the country as possible. Realizing that folks listen to all different genres of music, I will make an attempt to accommodate everyone by offering them four different genres of music to choose from, they must choose two and I will assign the final one. I will offer them hip hop, country, heavy metal and classical.

My question of interest for the scientific method is: Will listening to different types of music while studying raise test scores? This research is to satisfy my own curiosity and to educate people of my findings. I have friends who get great grades that can sing and play the air drums while studying, they say the music helps them “get in zone”. In my daughter’s 8th grade class, the math teacher encourages them to listen to music on the available tablets while working on assignments. Just knowing my friends that have this study habit, they are very focused, I do not think they would get distracted but I am not sure if it helps. For my girls’ class, I feel the teacher may just like a little peace and quiet, he knows he will get just that if they are listening to music through their ear buds. I believe the research will not reveal a direct correlation between listening to different types of music while studying and grades on tests.

a. Ethical considerations,

I will have all participants sign a document acknowledging that they have been explained and understand the outline of the research. Due to the nature of this research and me offering different music choices, I do not anticipate any ethical hindrances to arise. Here you needed to describe what ethical considerations might have been raised and what you would do to address them.

b. The scientific method,

For my research, I will be using a descriptive research method by conducting a case study. I will enlist the help of 2000 people, this will allow me to have a good representation of the target audience. As mentioned above, all participants must choose two genres of music and I will assign the third and final genre. I will keep a close eye on the numbers of all genres selected, I will use the numbers to determine what are the least used after they have selected their own and take that into account when assigning the final genre. All participants will be given a device in which they can download an hour of music from their selected genres. After everyone has the music downloaded I will hand out a newly released text book and have them study the first chapter for an hour, then I will have all of them participate in a written test. I will use the different genres of music as the independent variable and I will use the actual test score as the dependent variable. I will proceed through the next genres of music in the same fashion.

I will use my results to draft up a report listing my theory, hypothesis, case study procedures and the results. I will use a simple bar graph outlining my results. This will give a good visual representation of my findings and will be sufficient to determine whether or not the music genre has any effect on test scores. I will make it available to the other students in the class. If I reveal that listening to specific types of music while studying does increase test scores, I would attempt to get it posted on the campus website.

3. The brain naturally produces neurotransmitters that have a significant impact on our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

a. Choose three neurotransmitters, and

Discuss how each one impacts an individual’s

1. Thoughts, feelings, or behaviors.

The brain naturally produces neurotransmitters that have a significant impact on our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

a. Choose three neurotransmitters,

1. Dopamine

Discuss how each one impacts an individual’s thoughts, feelings, or behaviors

If you know someone who suffers from schizophrenia, it is possibly due to an unusually high amount of dopamine in their brain. People who suffer from Parkinson’s experience a deficiency of dopamine. Dopamine is the neurotransmitter that passes on messages from one nerve cell to another in the brain. Dopamine is thought to be a significant factor when children are trying to focus and pay attention in school, even slightly elevated levels are thought to contribute to attention deficit disorder or at least the same type of inattention. This was explained to me by my family doctor about five years ago.

2. Serotonin

Discuss how each one impacts an individual’s thoughts, feelings, or behaviors

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that can be found in the spinal cord and in the brain. It is associated with the regulation of sleep, eating, mood, pain, and depression (p. 58). If you have visited the health food store lately and looked in the vitamin and medicine aisle, you may have noticed bottles of serotonin on the shelves. It is sold to help reduce anxiety, lose weight, and most typically seen as a sleep aid. Serotonin is the bodys natural appetite suppressant, if the brain is lacking it people tend to think they are hungry even if they are not.

3. Endorphins

Discuss how each one impacts an individual’s thoughts, feelings, or behaviors.

Endorphins are another class of neurotransmitters.

They are also found in both the brain and spinal cord. If you sustain an injury, endorphins are what is attempting to suppress the pain. Endorphins are also the same neurotransmitters that transmit pleasurable feelings, appetites, and placebos. These neurotransmitters are produced by the brain and are similar in structure to pain killing drugs such as morphine (p. 57f, 58) This is a bit thin on content.

4. The activities of the sympathetic nervous system are often referred to as the “fight or flight” response.

1. Discuss an event in your life when your sympathetic nervous system became activated.

2. What changes did you notice to your body?

Discuss an event in your life when your sympathetic nervous system became activated.

While salmon fishing on Kodiak Island, Alaska without bear spray or a firearm for defense, I came face to face with a huge brown bear that weighed about 800 pounds. The pink salmon were making their way up the rivers but the river banks were empty due to the torrential down pour. With me only having three days on the island before I had to fly home I was not about to miss out on fishing. I had my rain jacket on with my hood up which really restricted my peripheral vision, then out of nowhere a Kodiak Giant was walking towards me and was only about thirty yards away. I immediately began to raise my arms and yell at the bear to let it know that I was there while backing down the river. The bear was between me and the road where I was parked, the only thing behind me was about another fifty feet of gravel bar then the ocean. I quickly decided that if he was going to have me for dinner, he would have to pull me out of the water. I had backed up to about ankle deep water in the ocean and the bear had closed the distance to about 15 yards when it sprinted into the river and grabbed a salmon. With the salmon in its mouth the bear exited the river on the other bank. I took that opportunity to head back to the truck.

What changes did you notice to your body?

After the encounter my heart rate was elevated, I am not sure what my pulse was but I could hear my heart beating when I arrived to my truck. Not only was my heart beat elevated, I could hear my heart beating and actually feel my pulse in my carotid artery while just sitting there, I didn’t even need to use my fingers. When I removed my jacket the veins on the back of my hands were bulging out like I have never seen and my skin appeared to have lost all of its pigment, I was ghostly white and I also remember sweating profusely. There is one thing that I always remember about that day other than the fear, it was how keen my hearing was. Even in the pouring rain, I could hear the bear breathing from over twenty yards away. I heard his claws clicking on the rocks before the rocks would grind together under its weight. Of all the things that I felt that day, I always thought it was weird that the sounds were what stuck in my memory the most.

5. Suppose you were to suffer an accident to the frontal lobe of your brain.

1. Describe what effects you might notice as a result of this accident?

2. Explain the role neuroplasticity would have in your recovery.

Suppose you were to suffer an accident to the frontal lobe of your brain.

Describe what effects you might notice as a result of this accident?

The frontal lobe of the brain is where the motor area and Broca’s area are located (p. 74) The motor area is the part of the brain that controls movements of the body. An accident that causes to the frontal lobe could effect motor functions such as walking, running, turning your head and things as simple as pointing your finger. With the frontal lobe being such a large area of the brain, it is broken down in several different areas that are responsible for different motor skills. A very basic function such as bending your leg may be a controlled by a very small portion of the frontal lobe but something such as writing may be controlled by a larger portion of the frontal lobe because it takes more concentration to write.

Explain the role neuroplasticity would have in your recovery.

Neuroplasticity would play a significant role in recovering from an injury to the brain. Neuroplasticity is the science behind the brain being able to change throughout a person’s life. Since the brain has the ability to generate new cells, this allows the brain to basically replace the damaged areas neurons with new ones which in a sense helps to heal the brain. It also allows the brain to adjust if there were to be an area of the brain that was surgically removed due to disease or a traumatic brain injury. It has been proven that another area of the brain could take on the role of the removed section, this has been successful especially when the surgery procedure was done on a younger patient.

References:

Feldman, R.S., (2015). Essentials of Understanding Psychology, 11th ed. New York: McGraw-

Hill