Psychology and Success

Chapter 1

“What lies behind us and what lies before

us are small matters compared to what lies within us.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Philosopher

Learning Objectives

• Define success.

• List several personal qualities that help people to be happy.

• Define psychology and cite its four major goals.

• Explain the relationship between thoughts, feelings, and actions.

• Define self, self-image, and identity.

• Describe the components of identity.

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What do you see?

An Interesting Afterimage Illusion

Understanding Psychology

• Psychology Scientific study of human behavior.

• Behavior Anything that you think, feel or do.

• Goals of Psychology Describe, predict, explain, and (in some cases) change human behavior.

Success Secret

• Studying psychology helps you understand yourself and others.

Explaining Human Behavior

Why do people think, feel and act the way they do?

• Nervous system Regulates thoughts, feelings and actions.

• Conscious Mind The part of the brain that controls the mental processes of which we are aware.

• Subconscious Mind The part of the brain that controls the mental processes of which we are not actively aware.

Thoughts, Feelings, and Actions

• Cognition (thought) Mental processing of information in any form.

• Includes: perceiving, recognizing, remembering, reasoning, solving problems, making decisions, forming concepts, visualizing.

• Emotion (feeling) Subjective feeling accompanied by physical and behavioral changes.

Personal Journal 1.2

Your Thoughts, Feelings, and Actions

Psychology

The science & study of human behavior…including the underlying processes that cause behavior…
…both physiological & mental…

We study those psychological (mental, emotional, social) and physiological processes that underlie human behavior!

Research!
Especially
empirical study*
and clinical observations!

What is an OBSERVATION?

What you measure, see, count, time, etc.
An observation is an event, even a little one..

• A TRUE experiment is a research method where one variable (IV) is manipulated to see if there is a change in another variable (DV).

• The independent variable is the thing that someone actively controls/changes; while the dependent variable is the thing that changes as a result. In other words, the independent variable is the “presumed cause,” while dependent variable is the “presumed effect” of the independent variable.

What is Success?

Success: a lifetime of personal fulfillment.

Success Secrets

• Success is a journey, not a destination.

• Money and fame don’t equal success.

Activity 1: What Success Means to You

Ingredients of Success

1. Self-Awareness Appreciating your personal values, qualities, skills and interests.

2. Self-Direction Setting a goal and working toward it.

3. Self-Esteem Respecting oneself.

4. Positive Thinking Focusing on future possibilities to propel yourself toward your goals.

Ingredients of Success continued…

5. Self-Discipline Daily personal effort putting your plans into action.

6. Self-Motivation Getting and staying motivated. Moving forward despite fears.

7. Positive Relationships Healthy relationships with friends, family, and co-workers.

Personal Journal 1.1 Ingredients of Success

Who is a Success?

• In society, it is not always obvious who are truly successful people.

• Role Model Person who has qualities you would like to have.

Success Secrets

• Always make time for relationships.

• Adults need role models, too.

Activity 2: Role Model

Social-Learning Theory

• Modeling: The social-learning process by which behavior is observed and imitated

• Locus of Control: The expectancy that one’s reinforcements are generally controlled by internal or external factors

• Self-Efficacy: The belief that one is capable of performing the behaviors required to produce a desired outcome.

Reciprocal Determinism

• Personality emerges from the mutual interactions of individuals, their actions, and their environments

Success and Happiness

• Happiness The natural experience of winning your self-respect and the respect of others.

• Outside factors—wealth, youth, physical attractiveness, etc., have little effect on happiness.

Success Secret

• Create your own opportunities for happiness.

Activity 3: How Happy Are You?

The search?

• Enlightenment programs

• E.g., “est,” Scientology, Silva Mind Control

• Organized groups

• Cult-type ideology

• Dangers apparent in Heaven’s Gate

• Security and belongingness are keys to involvement

• Established Religious Groups

• E.g., Promise Keepers

• Public “counsel”

• E.g., Dear Abby, Dr. Phil, etc.

• Self-improvement strategies

• E.g., self-help media

Codependency Movement

• Origin: “enabling” aspects of alcoholics’ spouses

• Beattie’s 1987 Codependent No More

• Expanded application of the term

• Identified addictions to diverse behaviors &

• “Codependency” to the participation of significant others in that “addictive” behavior

• The participation/controlling/enabling, itself, signals “codependency” in the significant other

• Treatment options include The Twelve-Step Program of AA

Is the Codependency Movement for real?

• Evaluation difficult

• Definitions vary widely

• Empirical research is minimal

• With vague definition, it’s hard…

• Which behaviors would one choose?

• Are all compulsive behaviors addictions?

• Are all repetitive behaviors compulsive?

• What problems are the ones “caused” by codependency?

• Gender bias

• Over-application to women

• Questions as to the NURTURING ROLE applied more to women

The SELF-HELP SENSATION

Books

Tapes

Videos

Infomercials

Self-Improvement plans

The SELF-HELP Evaluation

• Problems to watch for…

• Psychobabble

• Circular definitions and solutions

• Absence of empirical backing

• Concrete solutions

• Look for …

• Clarity and soundness

• A plan, not a “miracle cure” or “quick fix”

• Scientific support of effectiveness

Positive Qualities

• Another way to boost your happiness is to develop personal qualities that will help you enjoy life and cope with challenges.

• Psychologists have identified the following qualities: ability to love, vocation, courage, trust, optimism, future-mindedness, social skills, aesthetic sensibility, work ethic, honesty, emotional awareness, persistence, forgiveness, creative thinking, spirituality, self-esteem and wisdom.

Success Secret

• Try new ways of thinking and doing.

Positive and Negative Emotions.

Understanding Yourself

• Self Your sense of being a unique, conscious being, the inner core of you.

• Self-Image All the beliefs you have about yourself.

• Areas in which you have self-images include: intellectual ability, competence, creativity, sense of humor, morality, romantic appeal, physical appearance, parental relationships, close friendships, and social acceptance.

Building A Healthy Self-Image

• A healthy self-image is positive but realistic.

• Makes the best of all the things you do well.

• Is based on who you are right now.

• Does not limit who you will be next week.

• A complex self-image means having a variety of positive ways to see yourself.

Personal Journal 1.3 How Do You See Yourself?

Activity 4: Wheel of Life

You and Your Social World

• Social Role Norms that define how you are supposed to behave in a given situation.

• Self-Preservation Altering your behavior to make a good impression of others.

Activity 5: Sides of Yourself

Identity

• How you choose to define yourself to the world.

• Individual Identity The physical and psychological characteristics that distinguish you.

• Relational Identity How you identify yourself in relation to others.

• Collective Identity The sum of the social roles you play and the social groups to which you belong.

Activity 6: Identify Profile

Culture, Gender and Identity

• Culture – the behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and traditions shared by a large social group, transmitted from one generation to the next.

Western– individualism, Eastern-collectivism

• Gender Role – norms that define how males and females are supposed to behave.

• Gender Bias - treating someone differently or unfairly due to one’s gender.

Defining Your Role

• Researchers suggest that it is healthiest to have a combination of stereotypically masculine and feminine qualities.

• Some typical qualities: logical, assertive, sensitive, independent, gentle, compassionate.

Success Secret

• Don’t put limits on what you can become.