SELF-ASSESSMENT OF MY ACHIEVEMENTS

It was one semester of ESP English course and I think I did my best. In my opinion, there isn’t time enough to learn that huge amount of information. It consist of tests on ESP vocabulary definitions, moodle tests, online listening practice followed by T/F, Synonym Match and Gap Filling exercises, Traditional listening to cassettes/CDs, Online exercises from R. Feldman's course book, Online exercises from AP Psychology Review, Making Power Point Presentations, Short talks, Speaking impromptu in class. The last task is to evaluate myself.

Tests on ESP vocabulary definitions : Some of definitions were quite easy, some of them were very difficult to me, but I think that the most important thing is to understand it in your own words. Then it isn’t as hard to learn as learn everything by heart. This was my technique, which was very useful for me and I think I was very good at it.

Moodle tests: It was innovation for me. My first attempt wasn’t extremely successful, but after some practices I did quite well in my tests. Now it doesn’t look really hard as it looked at the first sight.

 

Online listening practice followed by T/F, Synonym Match and Gap Filling exercises: I could clearly hear a record so it was easy to understand. Sometimes it was hard to understand the information in the text, because there were some unknown words. Despite the fact that my spelling wasn’t always correct I was good enough at it.

Traditional listening to cassettes/CDs: The quality of the record wasn’t always excellent. The drawback of it was that I couldn’t hear clearly some words. Some of records were highly hard some of them were greatly easy, the consequence of it was that sometimes I was good at it, but sometimes I didn’t succeeded in doing it.

Online exercises from R. Feldman's course book: It was quite easy, because online exercises were a team work, but I think I should do it individually if I want to evaluate myself objectively. Anyway I think I should improve it.

Online exercises from AP Psychology Review: It was very similar to online exercises from R. Feldman's course book, but it was much easier because we revised the definitions from AP Psychology Review and then did exercises, but I still need practice more.

Making Power Point Presentations: It was quite difficult task. Despite the fact that it was one power point presentation, it took a lot of time. However, my efforts warranted my results.

Short talks: It was really interesting task for me. I chose relevant themes of short talks for me. I had never believed that certain type of information can be so engrossing and valuable in my personal life.

It was very useful to develop my language skills. My performance on this task was very good.

Speaking impromptu in class: It isn’t very difficult task, because I can brightly remember the basic part of information and I’m not shy to say what I think about. My blind side is that sometimes it is hard to express myself in English, but I really like to communicate with people and take a part in discussions. So I always try to talk and do my best even if I do grammar mistakes, but I think that practice help me to improve my speaking skills.

In Conclusion, I want to say that all of task has advantages and disadvantages, which help me to do tasks successfully or unsuccessfully. However, I’m happy with my results, because I improved my English skills and I learn a lot of new things, which will be benefit in my future.

Pictures: http://www.gcsd.k12.nj.us/hpps/images/Success(19).jpg

http://www.citizenship-aei.org/wp-content/uploads/Testing.jpg

http://www.contrarian-investor.com/image-files/goals.jpg

Psychology of humor

Humor is defined as “the tendency of particular cognitive responses to provoke laughter, physical reaction, and provide amusement.” Humor is experienced across all ages and cultures. Humor has been shown to improve and help the aging process in three areas. The areas are improving physical health, improving social communications, and helping to achieve a sense of satisfaction in life.

Rod Martin’s book about psychology of humor shows that humor is a serious subject of study, and humor researchers should not be taken lightly. Rod Martin, a psychologist at the University of Western Ontario who studies the way people use humor. Being funny isn't necessarily an indicator of good social skills and well-being, his research has shown—it may just as likely be a sign of personality flaws. He has found that humor is a double-edged sword. It can forge better relationships and help you cope with life, or it can be corrosive, eating away at self-esteem and antagonizing others. According,  Martin "It's a form of communication, like speech, and we all use it differently". Though humor is essentially social, how you use it says a lot about your sense of self.

 I want to present 4  types of humor, in which you can find yourself. First type of humor is Put-Down humor. This aggressive type of humor is used to criticize and manipulate others through teasing, sarcasm and ridicule. Put-down humor, such as telling friends an embarrassing story about another friend, is a socially acceptable way to deploy aggression and make others look bad so you look good. When challenged on their teasing, the put-down joker often turns to the "just kidding" defense, allowing the aggressor to avoid responsibility even as the barb bites. Martin has found no evidence that those who rely on this type of humor are any less well-adjusted. But it does take a toll on personal relationships. Second type of humor is Bonding Humor. People who use bonding humor are fun to have around; they say amusing things, tell jokes, engage in witty banter and generally lighten the mood. These are the people who give humor a good name. They're perceived as warm, down-to-earth and  kind, good at reducing the tension in uncomfortable situations and able to laugh at their own faults. Third type of humor is Hate-Me humor. In this style of humor, you are the butt of the joke for the amusement of others. It is like to be a clown. A small dose of it is charming, but a little goes a long way: Routinely offering yourself up to be humiliated erodes your self-respect, fostering depression and anxiety. For example, Farley, who died at age 33 from an overdose, had  a streak of self-loathing. "Chris chose the immediate pleasure he got in pleasing others over  the long-term cost to himself," his brother wrote after his death. The bottom line: Excelling at this style of  humor may lead to party invitations but can ultimately exact a high price. The last type of humor is Laughing At Life. When we admire someone who "doesn't take himself too seriously," this is the temperament we're talking about. More than just a way of relating to other people, it's a prism that colors the world in rosier shades. Someone with this outlook deploys humor to cope with challenges, taking a step back and laughing at the absurdities of everyday life. The columnist Dave Barry has perfected it with quips like this: "Fishing is boring, unless you catch an actual fish, and then it is disgusting."

In conclusion, I want to say that what I had read  made me interested in psychology of humor. I have never believed that  certain type of humor  can show  what  person  is in public and how he feels in real.

References : http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200606/whats-your-humor-style

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humor_%28positive_psychology%29

Picture :  http://www.laikas.lt/assets/data/events/humoras_2.jpg

http://www.efoto.lt/files/images/14853/gulbinas.jpg

Psychology of infidelity

Infidelity is breaking a promise to remain faithful to a partner. The probability of someone cheating during the course of a relationship varies between 40 and 76 percent. Why people cheat on their partner? Not long ago, this would have seemed an easy problem to researchers. For women, the main benefit of infidelity was better genes for her offspring with the ancillary benefit of gifts provided by lovers. For a man, the advantage was simply spreading his genes around or siring more children.

People, who are cheating explain 3 reasons of cheating. 1-st reason is that they felt their marriage was sexually satisfying, or they wished to have more sex than they were having now. The next two reasons reflect emotional needs. Participants reported that they weren’t emotionally satisfied in their current relationship or wished to gain additional emotional connection or validation.  The least frequent reasons for engaging in affairs had to do with love- either falling out of love with their partner or falling in love with the new partner. This is might basic reasons, but there’re other reasons which aren’t less important. One was “revenge sex.”  People seeking an affair for this reason were trying to get back at their own partners who had already cheated on them. This seems understandable. Also the researchers were surprised to find that nearly 20% of the married people in the sample were into "sensation seeking," meaning they were curious or just bored.  It can be the desire for sexual variety, and attraction to younger women or men or long distance between partners.

Now we know why people engaged in affairs, but the question is - how did they feel once they were in them? As it turns out, the participants felt the full gamut from positive to negative emotions. On the positive side, people who cheated for sexual reasons tended to be emotionally satisfied with the outcome. They also felt more energetic about life in general and felt that they were becoming emotionally more open. The price they paid for feeling more alive and open were guilt, shame, and disappointment.  The unfaithful weren’t disappointed with themselves, but with the partners and with the fact that the affair didn’t bring them as much satisfaction as they thought it would. Anxiety over being caught, fear of abandonment by the extra-marital partner, jealousy, and depression were other undesirable emotions.  However, a surprising number of participants said they felt no negative emotions at all.

Clues to Your Partner's Future Infidelity. Your husband or wife has begun keeping secrets. If he walks into another room while on the phone, or shuts down the computer monitor. Arguments flare up for no apparent reason. When your mate gets angrier than is warranted, there is often something else going on under the surface issue. That anger and the argument itself may be a way of making it "obvious" that YOU are the problem in this relationship. Your mate still believes in magic and soul-mates.  Some men and women, though, persist in thinking that what they actually have is second-best, and that "the one" is still out there. Your mate has forgotten your early starry-eyed history together. You bring up a thrilling date, some beloved memory or other, and he/she can't recall it. Such glowing memories cause cognitive dissonance in the unhappy present, so they are put deeply away. Your partner avoids your family members, because he or she feels shame.

In conclusions, I want give some tips how to prevent infidelity.

1.      Do not keep secrets from your partner. Talking improves your relationship. You shouldn’t hide or lie about something you’re ashamed or think that it’ll be unpleasant for your partner. If you disagree with partner’s ideas, you should tell him/her and never be angry on him/ her because he/she thinks different. Try to explain your toughs and find compromise.

2.      Make some rules. May be it sounds that there is no freedom left, but it isn’t like it looks. Some things, which you do  looks normal for you and you think that there is no big deal, but in your partner opinion it looks awful thing and also you think that some aspects of his/ her behavior are inappropriate too. For example she likes call her boyfriend darling, but for some reasons he hates when somebody calls him like this. This is why partner need to make some rules.

3.      Don’t forget to pamper yourself. Buy a new dress or suit, make special makeover or shave your beard. Don’t be scruff.

4.      Avoid routine. It looks quite difficult and it is, but you can start from the simplest things. For example, try to wash dishes together. It shouldn’t be just housework, it can be funny activity. Go on a date once a year, or do something spontaneous together. You will never be bored together.

 

Picture references: http://www.etiketogidas.lt/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/geliu-dovanojimas.jpg

http://scottpsychologicalservice.typepad.com/.a/6a00e554e7f95e88330134880bb85e970c-800wi

http://www.mentalhelp.net/images/root/infidelity_stockxpertcom_id18389421_size01.JPG

Literature references: http://www.psychologytoday.com/search/query?keys=infidelity&x=0&y=0

Syllogism, heuristic and algorithm

First of all I  want to talk about syllogism. It  is a kind of logical argument in which one proposition (the conclusion) is inferred from two or more others (the premises) of a specific form.There are two basic premises: Major premise and minor premise. To understand better I want to give examples:

Major premise: "All birds are animals"

Minor premise: "All parrots are birds"

Conclusion: "All parrots are animals".

Major premise: People have fun in Disnaland.

Minor premise: John is in Disnaland

Conclusion: John has fun

Major premise: All men are animals

Minor premise: Some animals are aggressive

Conclusion: Some men are aggressive

Sadly, the logic and truth that we assume is not always right.for example.

Major premise: All men are animals

Minor premise: Some animals are female

Conclusion: Some men are female

Now the conclusion appears to be ridiculous and false - yet the reasoning is exactly the same as in the first example. The first example thus has a false conclusion. The animals who are aggressive are not necessarily men.

Algorithm is a rule that, if applied appropriately, guarantees a solution to a problem. We can use an algorithm even if we cannot understand why it works. For example, formulas in  mathematics and physics. It helps as to do exersices, but it much more difficult to find formula to solve our own problems, but we‘r able to use heuristics to help us. A heuristic is a cognitive shortcut that may lead to a solution. I want to indroduce you with two types of heuristic. Firstly, representativeness heuristic. It is a rule we apply when we judge people by the degree to which they represent a certain category or group of people.

Example No.1.  If I meet three people from a company and they are all aggressive, I will assume that the company has an aggressive culture and that most other people from that firm will also be aggressive.

Example No.2. If I meet someone with a laid back attitude and long hair, I might assume they are Californian, whereas someone who is very polite but rigid may be assumed to be English.

The availability heuristic involves judging the probability of an event on the basis of how

easily the event can be recalled from memory.

Example No.1 : A person argues that cigarette smoking is not unhealthy because his grandfather smoked three packs of cigarettes a day and lived to be 100. The grandfather's health could simply be an unusual case that does not speak to the health of smokers in general.

Example No.2. A lot of  people‘re using iPods” so they think it’s very popular, so more people buy it, more popular it becomes.

In conclusion, I want to say that people do the same things like in these examples all the  time. It seems difficult to understand everything from deffinition, but it shows that we faceing with making desision evryday.


References: Robert S. Feldman  Essentials of Understanding Psychology, eight edition, higher education, 2008, p. 243.
http://www.wikihow.com/Understand-Syllogisms
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syllogism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heuristic

Psychology studies in Mykolas Romeris university and Oxford university

Today I would like to compare psychology studies in Mykolas Romeris University  and Oxford University. How You know, psychology is the science of mind and behavior. So, it‘s important to choose right university.

First of all, I want to introduce with the purposes of the programs. The main purpose of Mykolas Romeris university undergraduate studies is to educate qualified bachelor degree students of psychology ready to continue master degree studies in psychology or other social sciences. Bachelors of psychology should be able to apply psychological knowledge in scientific and ethical way in different circumstances; they should have wide erudition, high psychological culture and a need for permanent professional development. Undergraduate psychology at Oxford is taught as a scientific discipline, involving substantial amounts of practical work and experimentation. The course concentrates on biological, human experimental, social and developmental psychology. The most important thing in the program is teaching and learning methods. It contains of lectures, Problem solving method, Graphical visualization, E-learning, Group learning, Independent work. The basic difference between universities is  length of programs. Studies last 3,5 years in Mykolas Romeris university, but it lasts 3 years in Oxford university. Also Oxford has 102 libraries, MRU has only 3 libraries, but the cost of studying at Oxford is £3,500 in year. It costs 5220 litas in MRU . Bachelor degree in Psychology in Mykolas Romeris university is a prerequisite for the graduate programs in different sub-specialities of this field, as well as professional psychologist or research and teaching career. Students can also choose graduate programmes in other fields such as human resource management, social work, education, media and advertising, or healthcare. Career opportunities after getting bachelor degree in Oxford university are similar to MRU .Students can gain a Master’s degree in Oxford University. There are many various programmes like Social, Cognitive, Clinical and others psychologies .

 In conclusion, I want to explain why I had chosen Mykolas Romeris university. One of the reasons is that it’s very modern place and I can easily work at computer. Another reason is that I wanted to live in Vilnius and the last reason is that MRU does not avoid innovations.



References: http://www.mruni.eu/en/university/
 http://www.ox.ac.uk/