Chapter 4 Sensation / Perception

Have you ever noticed how the same experience can be different in different situations? Read chapter 4 Sensation and Perception in your text book to understand how the processes of sensation and perception can be influenced by the environment in which we experience the stimulus. Briefly describe a situation in which you believe that your sensation and/or perception was altered by your environment. What sensory mode was changed and in what way? How would your sensation or perception of this same experience in another setting be different? Use one of the sensation or perceptual concepts discussed in the textbook in chapter 4 that is likely an explanation for your experience. Make sure you fully define that sensory/perceptual experience, cite your source and explain why your example fits into that definition. For your example be sure to choose one of the sensory or perceptual concepts (thresholds, attention, illusory conjunctions, principles of perceptual organization) discussed in the text. You MAY NOT use anything due to pure physiological changes discussed in the “sensory adaptation” section on page 131 of the text book which is the example used in the below sample paper.

Formatting instructions

• Turn in your paper through the Canvas website for your Psychology 1000 course
• Submit only Word documents or PDF files! Other formats will not be able to be opened
• The following items can cause point deductions:
  • Papers will be checked for plagiarism, which is a serious form of cheating
  • Manuscript should be 1.0 – 1.5 page in length, nothing shorter or longer
  • Text must be double spaced with one inch margins
  • Typed in 12 point “Times New Roman” font
  • APA format of your textbook in the text of the paper
  • APA format reference section of book
  • Put your name on your paper (yes, this is still required even though you are posting online)

Additional Information and Hints For Your Paper

• Be creative with your example; do not just adapt one presented in the book or from the example below.
• You receive credit in the grading rubric for following simple formatting instructions, and for writing clearly and correctly. These are all good professional skills!
• For your personal experience, do more than tell your story: Show explicitly how you are applying the information to your own experience.
• Look over the grading rubric to see how your paper will be evaluated before you write.
• Use correct APA format to reference your textbook when citing information or concepts from the textbook. Since this writing assignment is not a full research report, it does not require all aspects of an APA formatted paper, such as a title page, abstract, table of contents, introduction, materials and methods, results or discussion sections.
• What it will require is correct font, font size, spacing of text, correct margins, in text citation of your textbook and an APA formatted reference section including the text.

For more specific dos and don’ts of paper writing go to Read Me: Paper Writing Dos and Don’ts

Example paper:

When I was in fifth grade, I broke my left leg and it had to be in a cast for six weeks. Obviously, this was quite uncomfortable. Everything was different in my cast. When my leg would bump into a chair or the wall it would make a loud thunking sound. My other leg would rub against the cast and feel agitated and I could even feel my leg hairs itching inside the cast. The worst was that my left side felt so much heavier than my right side. After the first few days I stopped noticing these things (especially the thunking sound). After the 6 weeks was up and my cast was off my leg felt strange again. I could feel a light breeze go across my left leg, the cast leg, but not my right leg. I noticed that it no longer made a sound and the itching was completing gone. And the best of all, I felt light as a feather. But then again, after a few days, I didn’t notice anything different. My left leg felt just like my right leg. My experience completely changed from when I was in the cast and changed again when I was back out of it. Each time it just took me a little bit of time to adjust to the new sensations and believe that it was completely normal. In the cast I stopped feeling like I even had a cast on, while out of the cast I didn’t pay attention to my leg (just like I had always never paid attention to my leg).

In terms of my senses, I began to adapt to those sensations just as described in the sensory adaption theory. This theory states that your reaction to a stimulation will decrease the more you are exposed to that stimulation. Essentially you adapt to the new normal (Schacter, Gilbert, Nock, & Wegner, 2017). So, when the cast went on, I needed to adapt to those new sensations; the rubbing, the itching, the thunking and when the cast came off, I had to adapt again.

The next time I have to have a cast on (which I hope is never) I’ll make sure I pay attention to the different sensory reactions that so when it comes off, I will appreciate my free leg (or arm) even more. Thank goodness for sensory adaption because without it, I’m sure the six weeks in the cast would have felt much longer.

(Put Reference page on separate page. Make sure your formatting is correct.)

References

Insert Textbook reference here

Watch 20 minutes of each of the three types of programs (do not code behavior in commercials). Record every aggressive act and prosocial act. Some categories will have several acts. Your chart and discussion will focus on comparing the following three types of programs you will watch: 1) children’s cartoons (such as from the cartoon channel, Nickelodeon); 2) children’s Teaching program can be found on cable stations like SPROUT such as Barney, Arthur, Clifford the big red dog, Berenstain Bears, or Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood; or Nick Jr programs (Dora the Explorer, Blues Clues); and 3) an adult program. Look for a program you think might have lots of aggression (NO Reality show, sports events, wrestling, comedy stand-up routines, music videos, talk shows). You can record/TIVO shows to watch at a later time; you can also find many of these shows online to watch when it is convenient for you!!

After watching your shows:

Answer the 5 questions below. This homework will be submitted on Canvas!

Don’t forget to attach your original data chart to the written assignment!

1. List the 3 programs you observed and the date and the time. Indicate which program is the cartoon, children’s teaching program and adult program.(5 pts)

2. Using the data on your chart, multiply the total number of aggressive acts by 3 for each type of program to arrive at an hourly rate of aggressive acts. Do the same for prosocial behavior. Make a table containing the hourly numbers for each program and include it along with the data chart or include it here for #2. (10 pts)—you are including a table AND your data chart. You will lose points for including only 1.

3. Discuss the levels of aggression and of prosocial behavior for the three types of programs by comparing and contrasting what you observed. Were there differences in the levels and the type of program? What impact could that have on the target audience for that type of program? (at least 120 words; Include word count). Use specific numbers. (10 pts)

4. What did you learn from this project about aggression and prosocial behaviors.? How are these behaviors more often displayed? Do you believe the amount of aggression and/or prosocial behaviors you observed are more or less than what is often displayed in everyday interactions? Does this have an impact on the model of behavior that has been displayed which could ultimately change behavioral expectations? (at least 120 words; Include word count). (10 pts)

5. What did you learn about doing research – the process of doing this project, e.g. collecting the data. Was the process of collecting date easier or harder than you hypothesized? What impact would bias have on this experiment? (at least 120 words; Include word count). (15 pts)

CHART

***THIS CHART MUST BE TURNED IN WITH ASSIGNMENT***

Rubric

Experiment assignment (1)

Next

1) Answer to this discussion. (250words)

Do you agree with the claim that there is an overarching intelligence that influences multiple domains of skill, or do you agree with the claim that there are multiple intelligences? Explain. After watching the video Healthy Learning: Multiple Intelligences in this week’s presentations, discuss how an understanding of learning preferences could help psychologists and therapists communicate and work with his or her patients.

1.1) 1 comment to this (like I am agree with you…..or not)

I agree with the claim that there are multiple intelligences. Chapter nine elaborates that early psychologists considered intelligence to come from one single source in which they referred to as the g-factor (S. Feinstein). However, more profound studies along with the help of standardized intelligence testing techniques, have popularized the idea that intelligence can be divided into different categories; verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalistic, and existential intelligence (S. Feinstein). All of these different intelligence components are then generated through either fluid or crystallized intelligence for problem-solving (Feldman, pg 268). To generalize and make an assumption that intelligence comes from only one source, or part of the brain would be misleading. As discussed in the book, an individual can show greater strength in one particular intelligence than the other and still constitute as an intelligent person. Personal experiences can also constitute in acquiring specific strengths over the other intelligences (Feldman, pg. 267). Ultimately, intelligence can be measured in many different forms because it is a very broad topic, thus far. Until further research can prove that a specific test can test intelligence with reliability, standardized IQ testing will remain the intelligence testing standard.

Reference

Feldman, R. S. (2019). Understanding psychology (13th ed.). Dubuque: McGraw-Hill Education.

1.2) 1 comment for this

Multiple intelligence theory was proposed by Howard Gardner and it says that there eight distinct domains of intelligence: musical, body, kinesthetic, logical-mathematical, linguistic, spatial, intrapersonal, and naturalist. (Feldman, pg. 268). I do strongly agree that there are multiple intelligence and this intelligence makes us unique as an individual. I believe one person cannot be good at everything, that means each person have his/her own area of weakness and what they are best at doing. According to Sheryl Feinstein, every individual possesses multiple intelligence, and have capabilities in each one. A person may be good at learning languages, poems, reading and writing, and another person may have the intelligence of being able to understand things in the real world. I believe intelligence is all about how good you are at something and a person’s ability to apply cognitive function into reality. Understanding of learning of preference could help psychologist communicate and work with his/her patient better because once the patient has taken the IQ test, then the therapist know how to deal with the patient, know what to expect from the patient , and how to help the patient get out of the situation. With the use of standardize IQ test which remains the most reliable test, will help provide important learning and knowledge in several modes or styles.

References

Feldman, R. S. (2019). Understanding psychology(13th ed.). Dubuque: McGraw-Hill Education.

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-educationalpsychology/chapter/multiple-intelligences/

2) Answer to this discussion

Explain which theory of emotion described in your text you most subscribe to and why. If researchers learned how to control emotional responses so that targeted emotions could be caused or prevented, what ethical concerns might arise? Under what circumstances, if any, should such techniques be used?

2.1) 1 comment for this

The theory of emotion that I agree with the most would be the Cannon-Bard Theory of Physiological Reactions as the Result of Emotions. This theory seemed the most acceptable because if we examine the way we react to certain situations and external stimulus, emotion is experienced first before the physical reaction is. One example would be when we first experience love; the love infatuation is felt instantly , as many would call it “love at first sight”. The physical reaction to that emotion is then followed with the sensation of butterflies in the stomach, sweaty palms, word stuttering, nervousness, and even as far as experiencing sexual hormonal chemical reaction. Thus, making this theory the most respectable out of all three (Feldman, pg. 318). Feldman also explains why all three theories can be considered accurate to some extend only, furthering the reason why further research and experimentation is needed to find one concrete explanation for emotional roots (Feldman, pg. 320).

Ethical concerns involved in the regulation and the tampering with emotion from researchers would be protection from harm and the right of withdrawal. Protection from harm would be seen where the participant could potentially have emotional trauma following the experiment. Right of withdrawal could possibly be hard to conduct from the participant’s perspective if the experiment involves tampering with the participant’s emotions to the point that they become vegetable-like or emotionless. In this case, how would that allow the participant to present emotion of doubt, fear and/or concern to withdraw from the experiment if no emotion is being felt at all?

Emotional manipulation and control should only be used with participants who experience great emotional trauma from repressed memories and/or traumatic life events. Of course, it should be the participants decision whether or not to opt for such procedure/experiment, or the right to consent.

Reference

Feldman, R. S. (2019). Understanding psychology (13th ed.). Dubuque: McGraw-Hill Education.

2.2) 1 comment for this

The theory of emotion I most subscribe to is the Cannon-Bard theory of emotion. I believe we first feel an emotion and according to that emotion is how we react. There have been many times where I’m driving and suddenly someone swerves in my line or stops Infront of me, immediately my eyes open and I feel a drop in my stomach, and a fear of hitting someone else. After that feeling, my hands begin to shake and I try to relax again. If researchers learned how to control emotions one of the biggest ethical concerns would be how were these scientists are able to control emotion when there are many different types of emotions connected to different parts of our brain. For example, happiness is linked with a decrease of activity in the cerebral cortex, but sadness shows increased activity in the cortex (Feldman 319). Another ethical concern is controlling emotion would be bad because emotion affects our behavior and allows us to evolve as a person (Week 5 Lecture slide).

https://learn.westcoastuniversity.edu/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_47500_1&content_id=_3972658_1

Discussion Questions: Review the Sector-Specific Plans and select a different Sector-Specific plan to focus upon this week. Regarding your chosen sector, explain the vital role the private sector plays in carrying out the objectives of this document. What do you feel serves as some primary challenges in private sector’s ability to fulfill their homeland security roles and responsibilities related to this plan?

You can choose whichever agency you want just not dams

https://www.dhs.gov/sector-specific-agencies

Instructions: Fully utilize the materials that have been provided toyou in order to support your response. Your initial post should be at least 350 words. Please respond to at least two other students. Responses should be a minimum of 150 words and include direct questions. You may challenge, support or supplement another student’s answer using the terms, concepts and theories from the required readings. Also, do not be afraid to respectfully disagree where you feel appropriate; as this should be part of your analysis process at this academic level.

Forum posts are graded on timeliness, relevance, knowledge of the weekly readings, and the quality of original ideas. While proper APA is not required, attribution to sources that informed your posting should be included. Refer to the grading rubric for additional details concerning grading criteria.

Student Responses

Student# 1 Josh

The Critical Infrastructure Sector that I will focus on this week is the Communications Sector. I feel that this sector is very important in the daily lives and continuity of operations of everyday Americans, as well as businesses within the private sector, and governmental agencies. This is a sector that directly effects nearly everyone and everything, unless they sit in an empty room with no responsibilities or connections to the outside world. According to the 2015 Sector Specific Plan for the Communications Sector, the primary goals are:

“1. Protect and enhance the overall physical and logical health of communications.

2. Rapidly reconstitute critical communication services in the event of disruption and mitigate cascading effects.

3. Improve the sector’s national security and emergency preparedness posture with Federal, State, Local, Tribal, International and Private sector entities to reduce risk (Communications Sector-Specific Plan, 2015).”

The private sector is primarily responsible for this sector, and also has the most use of it. Private entities such as social media outlets, television networks, news and radio stations, and WiFi connected sources are huge uses of the Communications sector. With these all belonging to the private sector, they must do their share to protect and secure all of these forms of communications and networks from hacking and cyberterrorism. The government simply does not have the man power nor funding to secure all of these enterprises, and the private sector must provide their own security monitoring, whether on their own through in house cyber security measures, or by hiring other privately owned cyber security firms.

The primary challenges that face this sector are natural disasters which can knock down or out radio towers and other forms of signals required for the use of communications. Additionally, malware and viruses, as well as cyberattacks and terrorism can spread very easily from network to network, rendering them useless or stealing valuable private or publicly owned information. I believe that these could be mitigated by working with local, state and federal agencies to set forth plans to react to such instances, as well as creating new and/or improving current policies to protect all networks and communications outlets. This includes training private employees, as well as the everyday user of networks on what to avoid clicking on or allowing on their phone or laptop. This is a very tough sector to protect, as it faces many vulnerabilities. However, through increased training, awareness and cyber security monitoring, it can and is being done.

Josh

(2015). Communications Sector-Specific Plan. Retrieved from https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publicatio…

Student #2 Sommer

Hello class!

I chose the Emergency Services Sector because I believe it has one of the most vital roles when it comes to the private sector’s contribution to homeland security. The Sector Specific Plan prioritizes 12 objectives that lead to 4 overall goals in the Plan. To accomplish the first goal, Partnership Engagement, the private sector must coordinate and collaborate with all levels to strengthen planning and decision making; additionally, they must participate in working groups and support implementation programs. The private sector must contribute to information-sharing in regards to risk and building information, new technologies, data, tools, and security processes. The third goal is Prevention, Preparedness and Protection in which the private sector must identify and approach risk assessments and gaps in capabilities to include reporting metrics to measure effectiveness of sector efforts. Finally, the private sector needs to promote Recovery and Reconstitution by strengthening all elements of integrated recovery capabilities and response, enhance abilities of all levels of government to effectively recover from the outcome of an emergency or crises.

There are a few primary challenges the private sector has to deal with when it comes to completing their responsibilities to homeland security. Although they are considered a critical infrastructure themselves, they depend heavily on the Communications and Transportation Sectors, if that were the target of the attack, its response capabilities would be greatly affected. I say that because if I remember right from another class I took, I learned that was one of the after action issues following 9/11. The Comm Sector was not attacked but it had become so overwhelmed in the region of the attacks, there was a major degrade in the communications between not only the first responders but victims and witnesses attempting to make notifications as well. The ground Transportation System after 9/11 was not attacked per se but it was also overwhelmed in the location of the attack with the city trying to evacuate by any means necessary. Emergency services also hold a critical role of representing the resiliency and morale of the public, they are not allowed to slow down, they are not allowed to say no to a response, they are the first positive sign people see following such a traumatic event that they must uphold the image of strength and bouncing back no matter what the circumstances.

REFERENCES:

Department of Homeland Security. (2015). Emergency Services Sector-Specific Plan. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office.

HLSS303 I001 Sum 19: Lessons. “WEEK 6: Critical Infrastructure (Private Sector).” American Public University System. 2019.

After you have completed your initial post, respond to at least two of your peers’ posts and provide substantive feedback on their initial responses. Consider their focus of interest and reasons for investigating those topic areas. What insights can you share about their areas of interest? What suggestions do you have for resources in those areas? To what extent do these topic areas also interest you?

Response # 1

My life event would have to be a career change going from a classroom teacher with nineteen years’ experience to a middle school counselor. After earning my masters in counseling, I immediately thought I would be hired as a school counselor but that took a long ten years. I remember going on interview after interview being asked the same questions and receiving the email, “congratulations you have been accepted into the counseling pool!’ and that was all. When I was called for the interview for the counseling position I currently have, I didn’t remember applying and after my interview, my mother asked how it went and I stated, “Oh, they asked the same questions!” A month later I was hired. I was so excited I got my dream job which was a middle school counseling position and a brand new school. What I didn’t expect was the huge pay cut that came along with the position. I’ve always worked in the public education school system and this position was at a charter school that pays a lot less. I was faced with the dilemma of do I continue teaching at a school that I hate and in a field that I no longer want to be in because of the pay or do I take my dream job and make it work? I chose to take the counseling position and haven’t regretted my decision not once.

In my career as a middle school counselor, I work with adolescents who have all types of issues related to mental disorders or just normal teen issues and just need someone to talk to or an ear to listen. I work in a low income, at-risk area with minority students. I feel in today’s society, there is becoming a huge public awareness for mental health whereas fifty years ago it wasn’t recognized. I work with a large population of African American Students and its normal for them to see a school counselor and have a therapist outside of school. I feel this is a change in the African American Culture because culture can be defined as shared basic value orientations, norms, beliefs and customary habits and ways of living (Cavanaugh & Blanchard-Fields, 2019). In past years in the African-American Culture no one was talking to a counselor or therapist, all problems were solved by praying, going to church, or within the family. If a child didn’t listen and what was considered a behavior problem that was solved by a punishment or spanking. In today’s society in order to live and have long healthy lives everything is taken into consideration such as the persons physical, mental, and medical health with the use of advanced screenings, resources, medications, etc.

Response# 2

Time Management

Time management is an important skill throughout the lifespan. Like money management, the first step in time management is knowledge of how you spend your time. Keep a log of how you spend your time each day for at least one week. Write down the time you begin and end an activity. Briefly describe the activity. Be honest.

Next, analyze your time log. Summarize/categorize the amount of time spent on each type of activity. Are you surprised at how much time you spent on some of your activities?

Next, develop a new daily schedule to maximize your time. Take into consideration where certain tasks fit best into your day as well as when you are at your best for certain tasks (such as studying); group similar tasks together for efficiency; and set aside time for doing uninterrupted work. Write down your new routine or schedule and post it where you will see it!

Be flexible. Re-visit and revise your schedule as needed.

Strategies for your new routine:
1) In addition to scheduling your day, prioritize your tasks. Which ones are high priorities or secondary priorities? Prioritize your people contacts, your telephone calls, and your email replies. Do this first thing in the morning or the night before (so that you are “ready to go” in the morning).

2) Build “cushion time” into your schedule so that you have some flexibility and “catch up” time.

3) Take time for yourself. Schedule “me time” — even if it is only 15 minutes — each day. Build “me time” into your normal routine. For example, walk, in place of riding cars or elevators, for daily exercise. Walk with a friend or colleague to maintain and build relationships.

4) Structure your telephone time. Set aside certain time periods of the day to accept, initiate, and return calls. The best time to accept incoming calls is just prior to lunch or at the end of the work day (the other person will not want to engage in extensive conversation). The best time for initiating or returning calls (to hard-to-reach people) is early in the morning, just before or after lunch, or late in the day. Plan in advance what you need to cover during the call. At the beginning of the call, you might say “I have about 10 minutes to spend with you, now. If we don’t finish, we can schedule another time.”

5) Don’t procrastinate. Tackle the unpleasant tasks first.

6) Negotiate a different work schedule with your employer (longer hours and fewer days; work-at-home days, etc.).

7) Reduce interruptions by creating stronger boundaries around work, study, personal, and family time. Let people know when you can and cannot be interrupted. Set up quiet-times and open-door times.

We only have 24 hours in a day; therefore, under-promise and over-deliver! Learn to say “NO.” Do not over-commit yourself. Develop a formula for making commitments. For example, one student created the following formula: One activity for me; one commitment to my community; one to my church; one to husband, and one to each child. Sometimes, two commitments were fulfilled with one activity.