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Unit 15 Discussion Post:

After reviewing my previous unit 14 discussion and unit 14 journal, the one individual fictional character I chose was Bart Simpson. After doing some research and reading on treatment methods for people, usually children, who suffer from ADHD, I discovered there is a slim variety of things that can be done to help Bart with his disorder. One method of treatment is medication. This is the most common method of treatment as this medication helps limit the symptoms of ADHD. This medication is also fast acting, so Bart would have less symptoms almost as soon as the medication is taken. Psychological counseling is also a great treatment method. If Bart describes how he is feeling to a professional, then that counselor will be able to help him in terms of what he can do to help him calm down in moments where his symptoms arise suddenly, and even provide insight and how he can better treat these symptoms at home. Parent-delivered behavior and teacher-delivered therapy are also great treatments. This behavior therapy can teach Bart how to better control his behavior, and lead to improved functioning not only at home, but also in school and in his relationships. This will definitely require time and effort, but it would have lasting benefits. All in all, I believe the best treatment method or therapy method for Bart would be psychological counseling. Therapy helps lots of people develop good habits, helps them work effectively, and communicate with others better. With a therapist, patients learn to identify what their strengths are and work on them. These techniques will need persistence, perseverance, and a positive outlook, but they would all prove to be beneficial to patients who suffer from ADHD, Bart included, as he most likely cannot do this with anyone in his home.

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"Emotion and Motivation"

1. William Masters and Virginia Johnson’s theory conceptualizes the human sexual response in four linear stages. They came up with these four stages after researching the human sexual response through about 10,000 human subjects. The first stage is excitement,  the second is plateau, the third is orgasm, and the fourth/final is resolution. Excitement occurs, or is noticeable, when the male’s penis is erect, and the woman’s clitoris is also erect and her vaginal canal is lubricated and expanded. During plateau, the woman’s vagina swells even more and blood flow to the labia minora increases, while a man’s penis becomes even more fully erect and may even leak pre-ejaculatory fluid. When a woman orgasms, she has rhythmic contractions of her pelvis and uterus and increased muscle tension, while men have pelvic contractions and then a build up of seminal fluid near the urethra that is then forced out, or in other words, ejaculated. Lastly, resolution is when both a man and woman return to an unaroused state and also experience a decrease in blood pressure and muscular relaxation. After a quick google search, I discovered another theory that conceptualizes the human sexual response, somewhat similar to Masters and Johnson’s, but not entirely. This theory was created by Helen Singer Kaplan in 1983, and it includes three stages to sexual response. The first is desire, the second is excitement, and the third/final stage is orgasm.

2. According to the textbook, physiological factors contribute heavily to sexual arousal and orgasm just as much as psychological factors do. The textbook states that the hypothalamus plays an important role in motivated behaviors, and that also includes sex. It also states that hormones secreted by the endocrine system also play an important role in sexual motivation and behavior.

3. The textbook theory does account for individual differences in sexual response. It mentions how there are some sexual orientations that have different responses to sex and sexual arousal. For example, people who identify as asexual do not care for sex, but are open to romantic relationships. Then there are people who identify as aromantic and they are open to sex, but do not want to have any romantic relationships.

4. Some limitations of the theory may include the kind of people that were studied. For example, did they only study people who are very open to sex and not afraid to be aroused, or did they also study people who are more timid about the subject? This may be important to consider for future research, and maybe even studies conducted by race, just to see if there are any differences in sexual arousal depending on a person’s race. Studies can also be done by gender, or even by age, as sexual arousal can differ in these factors as well.

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Unit 6 behavioral journal:
Step 1: For this journal discussion, I will be tracking classical conditioning in my exercising routine. I want to see if working out at the same time at night will create a conditioned behavior of me constantly working out without needing convincing.
Step 2: For my behavior project, I decided to set a time, for the last ten days, to exercise without needing to be convinced to do it. I wanted to test if I would be able to exercise at a consistent time if I conditioned myself to doing it at a certain time, so that it would just come normally to me. I used classical conditioning for this project. First, I set a time for when I would exercise for the day. The time I decided to do it was at 9 pm at night. I chose this time due to my home not being too loud or crowded since most of my family would be asleep. First, I decided to do some Pilates and leg workouts for about ten minutes each, respectively. Then, I decided to do some running on our treadmill for about thirty minutes. By the time I finished, it would usually be around 10 pm at night. So after this, I would shower and then sleep as soon as I was out and dressed. The second day of this project, I almost deviated from my schedule. I noticed the time was 9, which meant that I had to get to working out and exercising, but I had to actually force myself up. So after this day, I decided to set an alarm for myself that would alert me that it was time for me to exercise, and immediately get me out of any sleepy or lazy stupor I might be in. This actually helped a ton. This was the conditioning in the project, and actually the reason why I was able to keep up with a consistent schedule. In this project, the unconditioned stimulus was the time. Looking at the time created an unconditioned response, which was me not really wanting to get up. Basically me having little to no energy to get up. The neutral stimulus in this project was the sound of the alarm that I had set to notify me that it was time for me to get up and begin exercising. Hearing this alarm gave me a little bit more energy to want to actually get up and exercise. Now when I heard the alarm and also paid attention to the time, it brought back that feeling of laziness, but still gave me some energy to actually get up and move. After doing this repeatedly for ten days, a conditioned response was created. I no longer really had to pay attention to the time on the clock, but rather once I heard that same alarm ring, I knew it was time for me to exercise and stick to my plan. I can say with confidence that this behavior project definitely had positive results. I say this because not only did this project help me better myself by keeping myself fit, but it helped me sleep at a better time since I’d be too tired to stay up and do anything after the fact. Through classical conditioning, I was able to stick to working out at the same time without having to convince myself to actually get up and do it. It became a normal part of my nightly routine and I can say with confidence that this conditioning will definitely be sticking with me so long as nothing in my night schedule changes. Someday I most likely won’t need the alarm to remind me, but for now this is a really great start.

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"Personality"

1. Personality tests are generally used to collect data and information about a person using a scale of numbers that they can rate themselves in terms of what they like to do most, least, or what best suits their character. The purpose of these tests is to reveal who exactly a person is, and to shed light on their quirks. For example, there might be a personality test that has you choose between two or more different choices to multiple questions. There might be a question like “Would you rather go out with friends, stay home, or go out with family?” And then you choose an answer, and a series of more questions ask similar things like this, all of it leading up to combining your answers to get one result about how you love to spend your time. Some might just have you rate on a scale of one through five for things like “How much do you enjoy staying home?”, “How much do you enjoy going out with friends?”, and “How much do you enjoy going out with family instead?”.

2. Some of these personality tests are not as valid as others. Some are very basic and to the point, while others have you provide more detail and insight into things you do in life in order to truly determine what characteristics make up your personality. In order for a personality test to be valid, it must be based on a body of research. Valid personality tests can include the kinds that measure a construct rather than a skill or ability. This is defined as construct validity.

3. If a certain personality test is done over multiple times, and seems to receive similar scores amongst the test takers, then it can be considered reliable. Despite how reliable they may seem though, they may not be the best way to describe a person.

4. Some things I found interesting about my results were how low some of my results were on my big five results personality test’s scale. I noticed that for my open-mindedness, I am apparently closed-minded, but I feel that I am very open to trying new experiences. I also apparently am neither disorganized or conscientious, and although this is accurate with the fact that I hate being disorganized, I feel that I am quite conscientious in how my belongings are organized. If things are out of place, I get irked by it and fix it immediately. The other three seem to best describe me as a person. I love being social and going out with friends, I do get irritated quite easily and am not afraid to show it, and I am naturally a very nervous person. I’d say that the personality test was somewhat accurate, but not entirely as there were some things that did not really suit me too well.

5. Based on my results, I can say that my strengths include being tidy and organized, but not to a too extreme measure and that I am very sociable and willing to make new friends.

6. Based on my results, I can say that my weaknesses include being closed-minded, in the sense that I am not too willing to try new things, I am easily prone to become irritated quickly, and not afraid to tell the person who caused it, and that I am naturally a very nervous and anxious person, which can end up hurting me in the future as it can cause me to freak out in moments where I don’t necessarily need to. It can also lead to anxiety and panic attacks.

7. I discussed the results with my older sister who knows me just as much as I know myself. After looking through my results, she stated that she agreed with me and my findings, that the test was not one hundred percent accurate, but did hit the money on some categories. She feels that I am very open to new experiences, and that I am a very organized person who, despite not being a control freak, is very much aware of when something is somewhere it does not belong.

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Unit 14 Discussion Post

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Unit 15 Journal Prompt

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My Multiple Intelligence Inventory Response:
1.  For bodily-kinesthetic, I scored a total of 18. For visual-spatial, I scored a total 15. For verbal linguistic, I scored a total of 13. For logical mathematical, I scored a total of 12. For musical, I scored a total of 13. For interpersonal, I scored a total of 21. For intrapersonal, I scored a total of 17. For naturalistic, I scored a total of 12. I believe the scores I received are accurate. I scored the highest in the interpersonal category, and I can see how that can suit my personality very well. For example, a person who is interpersonal can sense how a person is feeling without that person even having to tell them. I am actually very good at being able to tell when a person is feeling down or just not acting like themselves. It’s something I notice most whenever I’m with close friends or loved ones, especially my sister, whom I have been able to read since we were kids. I am a great listener and believe trust is the most important thing in any relationship/friendship.
2.  I believe that people do not necessarily get smarter as they get older, but rather become more aware of the world around them, and reality as a whole. As we age, we sometimes seem to forget the things we learn along the way, but we do learn about the ways of life. We learn how to truly grow up and become adults and even contributors to society. We work, pay bills, drive, hang out with friends, and some of us even get married and grow families. Life’s experiences help all of us grow a little more wiser as we age, and some of us may also increase our intelligence at the same time, but what’s most important is everything we learn once we are put into the real world.
3. I believe psychologists should not be asking about group differences in terms of intellectual ability. Studies like this can create biased results and are not completely accurate. It can also be belittling to some minority races and sexes if expectations are that one race is meant to be more intelligent than another, or that one sex is more intelligent than the other. Studies by age can most likely provide accurate results, as the study has to do with aging and whether or not intelligence increases with age, so that can be one good approach to take.

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Unit 14 Journal Prompt