ATA5

Activity 5 allowed me to read an article and study the effects of socioeconomics and social relationships on the health of Italian adolescents. From this study, I realized many of the findings in Italy were fairly relevant to the behaviors in America. For example, financial status can either positively influence relationships in a family, or negatively influence them. Also, an adolescent’s friends often have an influence on decisions and behaviors. I also realized that America tends to have more obesity, which can probably be traced back to our differences in cultural values and beliefs about food, activity levels, and health.

I related this assignment back to a topic I learned in Health Psychology: behavioral pathogens. These are behaviors that may bring harm to a person’s health. I also was able to relate it back to a topic I learned this week in Psychology of Women. This topic discussed how there is a stigma around pregnant women; many people believe they should not work. The class also discussed how many fathers do work, and do not contribute as often to childcare. I think this may impact the relationship many children have with their parents, especially the father.

I was able to relate this assignment back to my own personal life in a few ways. First, I remembered all the things I saw in Italy, such as family dynamic, working class, fresh foods, and activity levels. I also know from personal experience, that sometimes factors such as financial issues, can put strain on relationships in the family. Lastly, I know I am personally influenced by my friends. I am more likely to behave like they do if I have been around them for a long period of time. If they are more healthy, I am likely to be as well!

ATA4

ATA3

For the last assignment, I read a blog about a girl who studied abroad in Australia. I read all of her blog entries and studied how she adjusted to her temporary change in living. After reading all of the posts, I learned how she adjusted to the Australian way of living, and I applied this to what I had just learned in our module: enculturation and socialization. The student compared how Australia and the United States had many things in common, but she also stated how she got too used to her everyday routine back home and this caused her to have a little trouble adjusting at first. I also thought of a few ideas that I have learned in past psychology classes. These concepts and the study abroad student, both explain how sometimes America has this sense of entitlement in the workplace. She also discussed how Australian students decide on a degree/career path way earlier in life than we do. I also applied this blog back to my own experience with traveling to Italy and Mexico. When visiting both of these places, I realized that if I needed to stay there for a longer amount of time, there would be a lot of adjusting I needed to do. Italy affected my adjustment more, just because I spent more time there and actually got to experience many different places and the culture. In Mexico, I was on a resort for most of the time. I got to speak with the workers about their culture and stuff, but I did not get to go out and really see it in person every day.  

ATA2

Assignment 2 allowed me to reflect on values that are held dear in America. I had to think about a list of values, and decide which ones were most relevant and important to my life. I chose directness and openness. In the assignment, I explained how these values are important in my social life, family life, and work life.

This assignment encouraged me to see how American values may be viewed differently from a foreigner’s stand point. Thinking this way allowed me to relate the assignment to a class I am currently in, as well as to my current job. I work at a Middle Eastern restaurant, and every single worker has a different ethnic background. It is interesting to see how my directness or sarcasm can be perceived as negative, when I may not mean it that way at all. At the same time, values that may be important to my coworkers may have a negative connotation to me. I related this back to my Organizational Psychology class, in which we talk about differences in the workplace and how to best work with them. The image I included is a picture of me and fellow members of Pi Beta Phi. This sorority is a big part of my social life, as well as a way of networking careers. We value each other, and expect complete openness and directness. I believe this is why I get along so well and fit with them perfectly!

ATA1

Assignment 1 required me to reflect on what stage of intercultural sensitivity I most identified with. This assignment informed me of all the different stages of intercultural sensitivity that I was unaware of. I was able to sit back and reflect on how I am accepting of other cultures and beliefs, but that does not necessarily sway me away from my own. I related the assignment to another psychology class I am in currently, in which we are talking about culture and stereotypes in the workplace. I thought of how I could be more aware of the different cultures my coworkers are a part of in order to help us work better together. Above, I attached a picture I took while visiting Italy last summer. During this assignment, I related personally by thinking about my time spent there. Interacting with all the different people made me very interested and always eager to learn about other cultures. It was nice to share my culture, while also learning about another!