Day: October 3, 2020

Introduction

            Description of journal article (e.g., publication date, title, journal name)

            Thesis Statement clearly indicated (main idea of your critique, sum up the main points)

            Explanation of why you think the article is relevant

Summary

            Provides overall idea of the content of the article

            Outline main points

            Outline results

            Outline discussion

Analysis

            Provide critique of the article

            Description of problems with the authors premise, methods, or conclusions

            Well-organized, argument flows well from one point to the next

            Clearly addresses and refers back to thesis statement of critique

Conclusion   

            Overview of the articles argument

            State conclusions based on analysis/critique

            Provide your conclusion and your reactions to the article

Discussion 3 this is the main post

The instructions for this Discussion Forum is different than the others. Please read carefully.

First please take an Implicit Association Test (link below). You can select whichever one you desire. Secondly, watch How to overcome our bias: Walk toward them video (Link Below).

Please discuss your experience/reaction to completing the test, and watching the video. Please list which test you completed and the reason you selected that particular test. What did you learn about yourself? Were you surprised about the outcome of the test? How did the information in the video help you to more fully understand your test results and what it meant for you based on your lived experiences? 

Please write a reaction/response to at least one of our classmate’s post.

https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html (Links to an external site.)

Link (Links to an external site.) Watch Video – How to overcome our bias: Walk toward them.

Initial Post Due – February 11th

Final post should be made by February 18th.  (Given this is a two part discussion allowing some extra time)

Rach respond to the main post

I took the Native American Implicit Association Test (IAT). I chose this test because I was drawn to it and I don’t think I’ve done anything related to Native American heritage or culture. My results were as follows: ‘Your responses suggested little or no automatic association between American and Foreign with Native American and White American.’ I actually made no errors on the test, which I was pretty happy about. I have done similar IATs before, and remember that feeling of getting the red ‘x’ when I was incorrect. I guess that I am not surprised with my results of this test because I don’t have a preference between white people and Native Americans. What I learned about myself is that I am truly neutral when it comes to certain associations related to race and ethnicity. It was surprising to me to learn that many people do have a preference.

In the video, Verna Myers offers some ways to help reform biased thinking about African American youth (Myers, 2014). She suggests that people get out of denial and to accept that old stereotypes are wrong (Myers, 2014). She also advises to move toward young black men and not away from them (Myers, 2014). Verna Myers also explains how research demonstrates that people prefer white people (Myers, 2014). In tasks much like the IAT that I just completed, most of the population would exhibit a preference for white people (Myers, 2014). This is a very interesting fact. Studies show that individuals are more likely to associate positivity with a white face than a black face (Myers, 2014). Studies are also demonstrative that individuals are more likely to associate negativity with a black face than a white face (Myers, 2014). Some statistics Myers provides are that 70% of white individuals prefer white faces over black faces, and that 50% of black individuals prefer white faces over black faces (Myers, 2014).

“Biases are the stories we make up about people before we know who they actually are” is something that Myers stated in the video and I appreciate this perspective (Myers, 2014). Establishing the existence of biases and recognizing what the biases are and how they can affect our own lives and the others around us will help create a community where everyone can thrive (Myers, 2014). I understand the purpose of taking the IAT and how it associates with the video. These tools have helped me gain a greater understanding that my personal bias, or lack thereof, will present itself in practice, because the brain makes various automatic associations when it sees individuals of different races.

References

Project Implicit. (2020). Take a Test. Retrieved from https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.htmlLinks to an external site.

Myers, V. (2014). How to overcome our biases? Walk boldly toward them . Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/verna_myers_how_to_overcome_our_biases_walk_boldly_toward_themLinks to an external site.

Hi class,

See this meta-analysis that examined the link between exercise and depression. How does exercise rank as a treatment? How might you discuss these findings with a patient?

http://faculty.cas.usf.edu/mbrannick/meta/CMA/Kvam2016ExerciseDepressionMeta.pdfLinks to an external site.

Kvam, S., Kleppe, C.L., Nordhus, I.H., & Hovland, A. (2016). Exercise as a treatment for depression: A meta-analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders, 202, 67-86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2016.03.063

Amans repond to the main post

I will admit, I have always had these moments of wanting to exercise and then getting into the groove of it and then stopping. Like an endless roller coaster, because sometimes life just gets in the way. According to Schuch (2018), physical exercise can help against depression or symptoms like depression and after reading the article, I began to reflect on how that looked in my life. Now, I definitely can say that without exercise, I am more sluggish, more tired all the time and due to other factors such as work and stress, I can seem pretty rundown at times as well. I often think that sometimes I should incorporate even just 30 minutes a day to change my lifestyle and see the differences. After reading the article, I have begun slowly but surely incorporating this and although I am usually tired on most days where I work for 10-12 hours, I am getting better at realizing my own physical health and not letting it wear me down so much.

Another article I found on the correlation between physical and regular exercise and protection from depression is an article from Romero-Perez (2020) describes how children can exhibit different symptoms of depression due to not regularly exercising thus in turn adding to their weight and causing obesity. The study indicated that the more children exercise and build it into their daily routine, the less likely they will develop the symptoms of depression which can have a direct correlation to childhood obesity.

            In looking at health psychology from a viewpoint that is not euro centric, I chose to focus on the Latinx population and their views on physical health and stress. There is a growing population of Latin and Latinx immigrants in the United States but their views culturally in terms of health and specifically physical health differ from most Americans. The study conducted by Cariello, Perrin, Williams, Espinoza, Morlett-Paredes, Moreno, & Trujillo (2020) describe the relationship between overall stress on physical health on the body and how that factors into the everyday lives of a Latinx person. To begin, Latinx individuals do not have the proper medical coverage through jobs or security to help go to doctors to help with physical health. Therefore, the lack of healthcare treatment and lack of physical well-being for most Latinx individuals is significantly poor. The study concludes that the overall population of Latinx use home remedies to take care of themselves instead of going to doctors, do not seek their advice and often lack in the care they deserve for their physical health. This component adds stress to these individuals lives and therefore does not help in weight gain or other stressors that manifest into physical symptoms such as becoming ill. In understanding this population we must ensure that we are talking and communicating medially and through research in helping those of Latin descent get proper care and take care of their bodies before it amounts to physical stressors which in turn leads to physical health problems.

References:

Cariello, A. N., Perrin, P. B., Williams, C. D., Espinoza, G. A., Morlett-Paredes, A., Moreno, O. A., & Trujillo, M. A. (2020). Moderating influence of enculturation on the relations between minority stressors and physical health via anxiety in latinx immigrants. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 26(3), 356-366. doi:http://dx.doi.org.tcsedsystem.idm.oclc.org/10.1037/cdp0000308

Romero-Prez, E., Gonzlez-Bernal, J.,J., Soto-Cmara, R., Gonzlez-Santos, J., Tnori-Tapia, J. M., Rodrguez-Fernndez, P., . . . de Paz, J. A. (2020). Influence of a physical exercise program in the anxiety and depression in children with obesity. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(13), 4655. doi:http://dx.doi.org.tcsedsystem.idm.oclc.org/10.3390/ijerph17134655

Schuch, Felipe & Vancampfort, Davy & Firth, Joseph & Rosenbaum, Simon & Ward, Philip & da Silva, Edson & Hallgren, Mats & Ponce, Antonio & De Leon, Antonio & Dunn, Andrea & Deslandes, Andra & Fleck, Marcelo & Carvalho, Andre & Stubbs, Brendon. (2018). Physical Activity and Incident Depression: A Meta-Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies. American Journal of Psychiatry. 175. 10.1176/appi.ajp.2018.17111194.