Psyc 420: Cross-Cultural Psychology
The course Cross-Cultural Psychology is designed to expose students to scientific concepts regarding worldwide culture and psychology. Students are expected to learn how to better interact with people of other cultures by gaining a greater understanding of the diversity of various cultures. By critically thinking and applying information learned, students gain the skills to connect concepts of cross-cultural psychology to the world outside the course.
The series of assignments from this course encouraged me to explore and analyze cultural concepts as it relates to psychology and my specific discipline in Exercise Science. As an end-product of the course, an e-Portfolio site was created. This ePortfolio serves as a rich reservoir of artifacts and information regarding the assignments in this course. One of my favorite components of this course was that I had the opportunity to reflect on each assignment. This helped me to relate class topics to my experience in the real world.
There were three main components to the e-Portfolio site. First, there were Weekly Blogs, which consisted of completing a prompt related to class material and posting a photo that represents the personal takeaway of the prompt. Next, there were Assignment Takeaways, which consisted of reflecting on essay assignments from the course. Finally, there were Artifacts. At the end of each module in the course, artifacts related to the lesson were to be “archived,” and by the end of the semester, the top artifacts were chosen to reflect upon and post. Each of these components helped me to better process the information presented in this course, and connect the information to the real world. Click on the links below to explore my Cross-Cultural Psychology e-Portfolio site.
The information and skills I gained from taking this course can be transferred to my future academic and professional career.
This course required me to be adaptable. A majority of the assignments in this course were through Word Press, a system that I previously had no experience with. On top of keeping up with the modules, written assignments, and exams, I was required to create an e-Portfolio consisting of weekly posts. This helped me to further develop my time management skills, which are very important to have when it comes to completing graduate school.
As a future healthcare professional, I will have the opportunity to work with a diverse population of patients. Understanding differences across cultures is vital when interacting with others. By learning to better understand the psychology of various cultures, I hope to become a better listener, more empathetic, and a better communicator.