100 words

Describe a famous research study in the field of psychology (refer to the links in Extra! Extra!, your readings, and the KU Library to help locate a study), and briefly describe the research method used and the findings of the study for the class. What were the independent and dependent variables in this study? What might be some of the strengths and weaknesses to using the research method for the study which you described?

100 words

Consider the following case study:  A 28 year old woman is newly married and has relocated to a different state with her husband. She is experiencing a lot of anxiety to the point of not being able to eat or sleep well. She has feelings of panic and worries that she might be going crazy. She tries to work outside the home, but often feels overwhelmed and is afraid that her colleagues will notice her strong anxiety symptoms. She is seeking therapy because she feels she has become mentally unstable, is fearful about losing her job, and is worried about the state of her marriage.

Choose one theorist from your reading that you think would work well with this woman (Sigmund Freud, Alfred Adler, Carl Jung, Karen Horney, Abraham Maslow, and Carl Rogers). Review the theory and apply it to this case. What do you think would help this woman and why do you think so? [Note: Use a different theory and/or perspective from your classmates.]

100 words

Provide a real life example of classical conditioning from your life experience. Be sure to label the different components of classical conditioning in your example, namely:

o   Neutral Stimulus (NS)

o   Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)

o   Unconditioned Response (UCR)

o   Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

o   Conditioned Response (CR)

Feel free to use TV commercials, music, fears or phobias, or other real world illustrations in your answer.

Here is an example post to help you get started:

“When I was a kid growing up in NY, my grandma lived in Queens in a two story brick semi-attached house near the park. Whenever I went to visit Grandma, she would always have the heat cranked up really high. As you might imagine, every time I went to visit her, I would sweat profusely. Eventually, over time, I would break out into a sweat before I even went inside Grandma’s house. I would just see her house, and start to sweat. This effect can be explained by classical conditioning, or the repeated pairing of one stimulus (the house) with another (the heat). In this example, Grandma’s house before conditioning or repeated pairing with the heat is the neutral stimulus (NS). The heat is the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) because it causes a response or reaction that did not have to be learned. It is innate or a reflex. Sweating in reaction to the heat is the unconditioned response (UCR). Again, this is an unconditioned response because your body does it automatically, without any thought. It is automatic. After repeated pairings, conditioning or learning takes place, and the neutral stimulus (NS) alone causes the sweating to occur. When the neutral stimulus (house) takes on the properties of the unconditioned stimulus (heat), conditioning or learning has taken place. In this example, Grandma’s house becomes the conditioned stimulus (CS), and sweating in reaction to just Grandma’s house (nothing else) is the conditioned response (CR).

See if you can think of an example like this, and be sure to label the different components. Good luck!