Human Adjustments Module 2

The psychological process of adapting to, coping with, and managing the problems, challenges, and demands of everyday life.

Growth involves learning, expanding your awareness, accepting new challenges, and coping effectively.

Refers to the historical, economic, social, and cultural factors and settings that influence us.

Behavior patterns, beliefs, and other products of a group of people, that are passed on from generation to generation.

Holds that people's lives are influenced by five environmental systems:

• >microsystem - immediate setting in which you live and the people with whom you directly interact (family, romantic partner, friends, college, and neighborhood)
• >mesosystem - connections between microsystems
• >exosystem - the influence that a social setting in which you do not have an active role exerts on your experiences in an immediate context. Ex, Friend moody from workplace.
• >macrosystem - culture in which individuals live
• >chronosystem - patterning of events and transitions over lifetime

Compare a culture with one or more other cultures.

Rooted in:

• - Cultural heritage
• - Nationality characteristics
• - Race
• - Religion
• - Language

Classification of people according to biological characteristics (such as color)

Psychological and sociocultural dimensions of being male or female.

• Involves thinking reflectively, productively, and evaluating the evidence.
• Means asking yourself how you know something.

• open-minded and curious - explore options and avoid narrow thinking. Wonder, probe question and inquire.
• intellectually careful - check for inaccuracies and errors, be precise, and be organized.
• skeptical - examine the evidence and be alert for problems and inconsistencies.

• Describe and interpret behavior
• Identify values and challenge assumptions about behavior
• Examine influence of context and culture on behavior
• Seek multiple points of view
• Appreciate individual and group differences
• Engage in self-reflection to improve self-knowledge

The scientific term for how people evaluate their lives in terms of their happiness and life satisfaction.

• having good social relationships
• mentally healthy and cope effectively with stressful situations
• have high levels of creativety, self-esteem, optimism, extraversion, and self-control
• are good citizens at work; help others more, skip work less, etc.
• have a spirituality and faith that embodies purpose, social support, and in some, religious attendance
• like other people, and others like them
• tend to be altruistic

• Recognice that no single factor produces happiness
• Develop good social relationships
• Learn how to cope effectively with stress
• Involve yourself in activities you enjoy and value
• Develop purposefulness in your life

The scientific study of behavior and mental processes.

Everything people do that can be directly observed.

Consist of thoughts, feelings, and motives that each person experiences privately, but cannot be observed directly.

• thinking critically
• being curious
• being skeptical
• being objective

Conclusions people draw from behavior.

Broad idea or set of closely related ideas that attempt to explain certain observations.

A prediction that can be tested.

• 1. Conceptualize the problem
• 2. Collect research information (data)
• 3. Analyze data
• 4. Draw conclusions

• Write on issues and concerns; reveal your emotions
• Just start writing without worrying about formalities
• Write whenever and wherever you feel like writing
• Keep your writing to yourself
• Writing will help you see things in perspective

Procedure in which one or more factors believed to influence the behavior being studied are manipulated while all other factos are held constant.

Manipulated, influential experimental factor

Factor that is measured to determine change in response to changes in independent variable.

Group whose experience is manipulated.

Group treated like experimental group except does not recieve manipulated factor.

When researchers assign participants to experimental and control groups by chance.

Research in which the goal is to describe the strength of the relationships between two or more events or characteristics.

• Distinguish between group results and individual needs
• Don't overgeneralize from a small sample
• Look for answers beyond a single study
• Don't attribute causes where none have been found
• Evaluate the source of the information

Evaluate and treat people with pyschological problems

Medical physicians specializing in treating abnormal behavior.

• Supportive, educational groups that address a single life problem or condition shared by their members.
• - participation is voluntary
• - members typically serve as leaders
• - professionals rarely have an active role in the groups' activites

• Have become an important source of psychological advice for millions of Americans
• High quality self-help books can benefit individuals with problems

• 1. Select a book that makes realistic recommendations
• 2. Examine evidence reported in the book
• 3. Select a book that recognizes that a problem is caused by a number of factors and has alternative solutions
• 4. Select a book that focuses on one problem
• 5. Don’t be conned by slick writing
• 6. Check out author’s educational credentials
• 7. Be wary of authors who complain about the conventional knowledge of mental health experts

• 1. Adjustment strategies for evaluating self-help books often apply to websites
• 2. Evaluate credibility of the website
• 3. Avoid websites that are purely commercial
• 4. Be wary about information from websites
• 5. Protect your privacy
• 6. The Internet is not a substitute for professional help