ATA 5

            The purpose of Assignment Five was to perform five random acts of kindness for a week.  We were to report our acts of kindness and how they made those that we performed these acts for feel.  Additionally, we were to report on how we felt after the conclusion of the week.         

            My biggest takeaway from this assignment was that doing nice things for other people can make you feel good.  In the past, I had never really stopped to think about how the things I normally did for others made me feel.  The week in which I performed these acts of kindness led me to being more introspective than I normally am in this regard, and overall, I would say this is a good thing.  It is not often that I really think about why I do or don’t do things of this nature.           

            Assignment five best relates to things I’ve learned in the workforce as an adult, more so to things that I have learned in school.  Essentially, it relates to things I have learned in the workforce because most people in retail environments have to interact with people that are not necessarily the most kind at times.  For this reason, I would equate performing random acts of kindness most closely to this.  You do your best to treat others as you would like to be treated and hope that your interaction with them is enough to brighten their day. 

            Lastly, the way in which this assignment was most relevant to me is that I performed two of these acts of kindness for people that were grieving.  My wife and mother-in-law lost a family member, so just performing even the smallest gesture for them felt good.  I know what it is like to lose someone you’re close with, so my wife losing her grandfather and my mother-in-law losing her father really hit home. I lost my grandfather in 2019, and this situation reminded me a lot of that.  I was happy that I could offer them the support they needed in this trying time.

ATA 4

            Assignment four was about taking a Styles of Love Questionnaire and assessing how we related to average scores for our gender.  We needed to describe or attribute the reasons why our scores were the way they were for our situation. On top of this, we were to also assess how our scores may be biased because of our current relationship as well. 

            Overall, I learned that my scores were different than what is average for most males.  For my Eros, Storge, and Agape categories, I have a higher-than-average score.  For my Ludus, Pragma, and Mania scores, I rated lower-than-average.  I would assume that these scores are related to the fact that my wife and I have been together for the better part of a decade.  In so far as relating these results to another course, it would be interesting to see how the data was collected to determine the means for each score.  In previous psychology courses, we learned about the statistical methods used to talk about data and I would be curious to find out if my scores we a full standard deviation from the mean.    

            Lastly, the assignment was most personally relevant to me because as my wife and I are expecting out first child, our relationship has changed.  This has been for the better as we are now more settled and contributing to something that has evolved into something new.  I have been more reflective of how things are because of the changes involved with the impending arrival of our son, and I have noticed that we have a stronger bond because of that.  I feel like this also may have contributed to receiving the scores I did.    

 

For my visual representative piece, I have included my scores.  They are in the gallery below:

 

 

ATA 3

            Assignment three was rather eye opening.  We were to watch a clip of comedian Michael Richards respond to hecklers and then decide whether or not the actions were racist or just intended to be hurtful.  I was vaguely aware of this at the time it occurred but didn’t really look much into it.  This event happened right before the internet exploded the way it has in the past decade or so.  I used Wikipedia to look more into Michael Richards after the assignment, because I don’t recall seeing him act in anything since this happened.  After doing so, I found that he went on the Davide Letterman Show after his tirade and apologized.  It seemed that he was very shocked at himself and really sorry for his behavior.  That doesn’t really excuse what happened in the least.

           I think personally, the best thing I can do is to help others realize that ideas like the social identity theory are real.  I feel like that is what Richards intended to do during his rant; he wanted to create an “us vs. them” environment in order to cause pain. That said, we should all try to stop viewing people as different groups and try to view ourselves as one collective whole.  That way, we can all have a better future where things like this do not happen.

            I think overall, this really relates best to the idea that race relations are still really strained in this country.  For example, despite most places being under some sort of mandated lock down last year, there were tons of protests over police officers using excessive force and killing unarmed African Americans.  My biggest take away is that I can do more to be an ally to those that are treated unfairly due to the color of their skin.  I’ve never witnessed anything like that firsthand, but I’m sure it is more prevalent than what I have experienced.  I think a good first step would be reaching out to local Black Lives Matter groups to see what ways I can help. 

ATA2

           For Assignment Two, we were to gather 6-12 photographs of ourselves and construct a self-portrait.  Each of the photographs I included reflected my self-concept, perceived self-control, and self-presentation.  These were then used to complete a self-analysis. 

            I can say that Assignment Two helped reinforce some of the content from the chapter on “The Self” from this course.  More importantly, I feel as though I learned a great deal about myself from completing this assignment.  Not often do we get to sit and think about how the version of ourselves that put out to the public is indicative of our true self.  I learned that the pictures that make up the majority of my camera roll on my iPhone really tell me that my self-presentation is that of someone that tries to make light of most situations, but most would say that I do happen to be very serious and stoic at times. 

            The material and lessons that I took away from Assignment Two are relevant to the other course I am taking this summer: Theories of Personality.  So far in the other course, we have only made it through the Psychodynamic models that apply to Freud and Erikson.  The photographs I chose from my wedding day are directly related to me valuing my relationship with my wife, which Erikson would say is indicative of real love.  He believed that only those that really have developed a true sense of self would be able to have real love and intimacy as an adult. 

            This directly applies to how this assignment is most relevant to my on a personal level at this point.  Since my wife and I are now expecting our first child, I have been even more reflective in the few moments I have to myself throughout the day.  I find myself thinking about how I will raise this child and what kind of wisdom I hope to impart on them.  I also find that since I am a Psychology major, I am terrified of all the different things that could go wrong in trying to raise a well-adjusted member of society.  However, I would imagine that these are fears that most new parents will have.  In that same vein, I wonder what parts of my self-concept or self-presentation will rub off on them.  What different parts of my personality and mental processes for interacting with people will be inherited versus learned?  I suppose that only time will tell.  For this reason, I have decided that for my visual representation for what this assignment means to me, I would include a recent sonogram picture of my son.