PART I-TAKE AWAY ELEMENTS THAT ADDED TO MY UNDERSTANDING OF PSYCHOLOGY
Social psychology offered me the most take away elements that I feel will help me in my professional and personal life experiences. Social psychology helped me understand the relationship between the individual and his or her social situation. I have struggled to understand people’s personalities. I have always had certain perceptions and views about people’s behavior. I always disparaged and undermined people who did not behave in a manner that I considered a sulk to the moral fiber. I have understood how situations influence a person’s thoughts, emotions, and behavior, as well as how a person influences and creates the situation. This course has enabled me to explore the perspectives on human natures that have reflected popular understanding of what it means to be human. My take away element is on social interaction and social influence. This course has enabled me to understand the approaches and apply them to novel situations. People’s (especially children) background and social situations must be understood first before admonishing them for certain behaviors. It is imperative in my social and professional life to understand people’s circumstances to enable me guide and understand them best. This will foster social interactions with my colleagues and even clients.
The second take away element is based on the humanistic personality theory. I have learnt that a human being as a whole supersedes the parts. I have also learnt that a human being must make choices which are inherent with responsibility. This responsibility is what shapes destiny and future events. My take home message is that life is precious, and it is upon an individual to shape the destiny of their own life. The choices and decisions I make in life are what will determine my future. This debunks the fallacy that success in life can be secured through luck and a predetermined destiny. It is an important lesson in my life to make the right choices and be ready to take responsibility of the choices I make. This will remain of value to me in my personal and private life since the right decisions and responsibility is a cornerstone of a successful life. The choices I make with have far reaching consequences in my life. Professionally, a correct choice in life will enable me pursue happiness while understanding the value of my life is paramount in overcoming self-hate and self-immolation. It will also enable me interact and impact this values in young children.
The last take-home element from the course is the role of social influence. Social influence is pervasive. It affects all spheres of life. This ranges from romantic relationships, economic decision making, child rearing, marketing and advertisement, group identification, political negotiations and most of the issues that pertain to life. The high level of applicability of the principles I learnt from this course and its structure will be core for my future personal and professional life. This will enable me get a more cohesive and engaging organization in life compared to a situation where I could not have had prior knowledge in human psychology.
PART II-MEANINGFUL EXPERIENCES I HAD WHILE PARTICIPATING IN THE COURSE DISCUSSIONS
The most notable experience was when we were discussing the contributions of psychoactive drugs such as alcohol to the development of mental illness. The psychopathology aspect helped me understand the basis of mental illnesses. So many students did not have a lot of knowledge on the role alcohol plays in leading to mental illnesses. This was the most enthralling, engaging and resourceful discussion. It was an opportunity for a peer discussion.
The other meaningful experience was when we discussed the personality theories. Some members of the group used a model to illustrate how the humanistic theory and the behavioral theory differ. The model highlighted the close relationship between developmental characters and social environment to that of individual decisions. The discussion on learning and development of young children based on these personality theories was captivating. This experience helped me understand the value of choice in shaping the destiny.
It was a milestone when the group engaged in a discussion on the relevance of human psychology to real life situations. I started focusing of the subject of human psychology as a window to a human beings mind and behavior rather than just an academic responsibility. It is this experience that has built my understanding of human psychology and understood its applicability.
PART III -SENTENCE COMPLETION
If I could pick just one thing that the world would be well served to better understand about psychology it would be human behavior. I chose this because it is the pillar of social interactions, tolerance and successful human coexistence.
