Reflection Blog 3

I loved the book reading this week. I was very fascinated by Piaget’s theory about sensorimotor thinking. I never really thought about learning in steps like the idea of object permanence. It seems absurd to think that just because you cant see something directly, doesn’t mean its not there. I would like to conduct this experiment just to see if it really is true. I would think that if the baby saw you cover up the toy, and can see the shape of the toy under the blanket, that they would still know its there. But this theory states otherwise. This theory states that once you cover up the object the baby will forget that it is even there. To them there is not longer a toy in front of them. Out of sight out of mind. I found that very interesting.

I also like the article “What’s the difference between boys and girls”. Physically the difference is quite simple but when you start thinking about it, what makes a boy act like a boy? What makes a girl act like a girl? When my brother was about 1 and half years old, he would play with toy cars and make car noises. Where did he learn that? My sister and I certainly did not teach him how to make car noises. We usually played with dolls, but Joe was never interested in them unless it was to cut their hair. It is surprising how much our hormones play a part in becoming the gender we are. Young boys definitely play rough and rowdy and that is what society expects of boys, where as girls are usually more verbal beings which is again, what society expects.

               

Reflection Blog 2

I really enjoyed the “Sense of Self” article. This article explains kind of what those of us who have ever been around kids already knew. Kids have their own personality right from the start. What makes children have their own personality? What factors shape their personality? This article talks about four different factors, nature, nurture, genes, and parenting style. I am curious to find out if one of those four factors is more dominate than the others. I also liked the study with the monkeys, how a monkey born with the short gene and raised by an average mother, either their own mom or a foster mom, will grow up poorly adjusted. But if the monkey is raised by an extra nurturing mom they learn how to avoid stressful situations and grow up just fine. I wonder if we could try this same tactic on older people, who may not have had the nurturing mother in the beginning, if they have a nurturing husband or wife, can their personalities change after they have grown up?

A friend of mine recently had another baby boy, and this boy is so different from her first boy. Her first boy is so shy and doesn’t like to be touched by people who aren’t mom or dad. He is almost 2 now and we have known them since he was about 6 months old. Her second son is completely different. He is almost 4 months and doesn’t care who holds him, he is just happy. Their personalities are so different.

Reflection Blog 1

I really liked the article "The Identity Dance". I liked reading about the different sets of twins and how some were similar to each other and some were different from each other. Identical twins prove the idea that DNA shapes who we are because they are clones of each other, yet they are different. They may like the same things, but their personalities and preferences are different. DNA does shape who we are but not to the extent that researchers initially believed. I find it very fascinating that there have been studies done to show how DNA can affect who you are, based on what you have experienced. The study about depression particularly piqued my interest because depression is so prevalent in our society. The research showed that 43% of people who experience 4 or more traumatic events in their early adulthood and who had the short genes became clinically depressed while only 17% of those who either had the short gene or the long genes or didn't experience 4 or more traumatic events in early adulthood. A similar study was also done with monkeys, and those who were raised in the nursery and had the short gene were at a higher risk for being and alcoholic, aggressive, and depressed compared to monkeys who had the long gene or the monkeys with the short genes raised by their mothers. These studies show how much outside influences can impact our lives. My husband and I have a Rottweiler mix named Diesel. I have found that when I talk about him, some people automatically think that he is mean, because there are some that are. I think that any dog could be mean, if you raise it that way, but if you raise them to be gentle and kind, then that is what they are going to be. These studies show this is true. If they are nurtured they have a better chance of the short gene not being expressed just like any other dog. If the animal has a traumatic up bringing they may be aggressive. I would like to know more about what other diseases are affected ones life experiences in early adulthood. If we knew what triggered certain diseases maybe we could make an effort so that they can be avoided all together.