Topical Blog Week #14 (Due Friday)

Topic: Intelligence

source #4: in this source i liked the use of charts and how it broke down more about the facts of IQ testing. one statement i like said, Keep in mind that, due to random factors, IQ scores can vary about 5 points from week to week, and can often change by 10 points or even more over a period of years. This source also broke down all of the different kinds of testing. for example spacial testing, verbal testing, visual puzzles, etc.

Three aspects that i learned were the genetics played some role in intelligence, different ways of intelligence testing, and what the scores mean about intelligence.

#1 Genetics was proven to be important in the Goddard Kalikaks family when many experiments were done and generations were tracked to prove that there is a link between intelligence and genetics. There could be a line of non-feebleminded people but when one person breaks the chain there is a higher chance that more generations will then become feebleminded.

#2 Ways of intelligence testing: In history testing your intelligence was believed to tell what kind of person you were and what kind of character you had. If you were not up to par you were shed from the system. For immagrants moving over if they did not score well they were not allowed into the country. In the past testing such as phrenology and other strange methods were used to determine how smart you were. Now testing involves visual, and spacial, lingual, and comprehension tests. The measuring of these levels still fall in a similar pattern. Terms such as idiot, moron, and genius were all terms made back in the day that are still present.

#3 Scores in IQ testing: Although IQ scores tend to be fairly stable, IQ will vary over time. The Wechsler tests are the most common individually administered IQ tests. They currently include the WISC-IV (age 6-16 years), the WAIS-IV (age 16-89 years), and the WPPSI-III (age 2.5 - 7 years). Shown below are the labels and frequency of Wechsler IQ scores. A chart on the fourth source shows the break down of how people are measured. Description Score higher than:
10 Idiot Profound Mental Retardation Fewer than 1 out of 100,000
25 " Severe Mental Retardation "
40 Imbecile Moderate Mental Retardation 3 out of 100,000
and so on..

http://www.psychologicaltesting.com/iqtest.htm

Terms: Kallikaks, Goddard, feebleminded, intelligence testing, idiot, moron, Wechsler, spacial testing, visual testing.

Topic: Ablation

Source 4:Laser ablation for Brain Tumor

There is new technology that utilizes light energy to destroy brain tumors within the brain, which is another current form of ablation. Ablation back in the day has been very helpful for creating new ways to help find a cure for patients quicker, faster, and more effective for the present.

#1- This laser technology has known to be highly precise in destroying tumors and can be helpful in treating Parkinson's Disease and others such as Meningioma, Glioblastoma, and Metastatic brain tumors. It is so precise it can target and destroy the smallest areas of the brain by using high temperatures of light.

#2- Laser surgery is more safe than conventional surgery because it is lead by MRI images and it is pain free with a short recovery time.

#3- The major advantages of laser surgery vs open surgery of the brain include: can be performed with patient awake, minimal scarring, fast healing, no radiation, destroys only target with unharmed tissue around the area, more precise, no pain during procedure, and short recovery time.

http://www.rwjuh.edu/laser-ablation-for-brain-tumor-treatment/

Topic-Therapy
1. Many times in today’s world therapy can be written off by people. They think they do not need to talk about how they feel. They go to the doctor and want a little pill that will make everything all better. Sometimes that is not what they need though. Masow and Carl Rodgers developed client centered therapy. This was one of the first kinds of therapy. It instructed people to delve into their history to get to the root of the problem.
2. Cognitive behavioral therapy emphasizes what we think can influence our feelings. If a person is put in a bad situation, the outcome depends on how they look at it and how they act.
3. This is used a lot in treating people with disorders like OCD. Individuals that suffer from OCD are often prescribed Prozac to treat their symptoms. They compared glucose metabolism in the OCD area of the brain in a group of individuals that engaged in cognitive behavioral therapy to individuals on Prozac. The improvements in symptoms were very similar. This shows that cognitive behavioral therapy can work much like the prescription drug Prozac at reducing symptoms of a common personality disorder.
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/compulsive-acts/200907/the-biology-psychotherapy
TERMS: OCD, Cognitive behavioral therapy, Maslow, Carl Rodgers, client centered therapy.

My topic from blog 13 was Progressive relaxation which was invented by Edmund Jacobson. This was a technique used to help relax the muscles to help relieve tension in a variety of problems, one including anxiety. Another source I found that fits into this concept is from essenceofstressrelief.com. I liked this source because it stated this: "mental calmness is a natural result of physical relaxation." This is interesting and a good way to understand what muscle relaxation is all about. This source also helps one understand how muscles tension is related to stress and anxiety. Everyone experiences some type of stress throughout their life so basically everyone at some point could benefit from this procedure. It can be used for anyone in most situations. Patients get into a deep conscious state in order to relax the mind which in turn relaxes the body. This source is good because it helps show the relationship between the stress and the muscle tension. It says that when we are stressed, we unconsciously tense our muscles and the tense muscles cause us pain which in turn causes more stress. It is just like one big circle. Another quote from this source says: "an anxious mind cannot exist in a relaxed body." I thought this was a good way of putting it. Progressive relaxation is simple and can be a good technique to help with many problems.

The first thing that I found interesting from all the sources was the different things that you can use progressive relaxation for. You can use progressive relaxation for anxiety, post traumatic stress disorder, panic attacks, headaches, backaches, insomnia, and even gastrointestinal disorders. Of course, because of individual differences, differences in traits and such, people will benefit differently from this technique. For example, one person may receive treatment and gain a lot from it, while another may receive the same exact treatment and not gain as much, so a different approach must be taken.

The second aspect of my topic I thought was important and interesting is the different muscle groups that the therapist focuses on in therapy. These different groups include: hands and forearms, upper arms, shoulders, feet, front and back of legs, thighs, bottom, abdomen, back, chest, neck, and face. As you can see, a huge variety of muscles can be completely relaxed using this technique. This is why I find this to be so interesting! I think It is crazy how one technique can help to treat so many different muscle groups.

One final part of this topic that I thought was important was how the actual procedure is conducted. It involves deep breathing exercises, no distractions with complete focus, and simply concentrate on relaxing the muscles. If certain areas are still tense afterwards, repeat the procedure for those specific areas. I think this is pretty interesting because the sources I found explain this is such great detail that individuals could basically complete these techniques on their own. It almost reminds me of a type of meditation. You just have to focus on the mind and relaxing the muscles.

Terms used: Progressive relaxation, Edmund Jacobson, individual differences, traits, unconscious, meditation

http://www.essenceofstressrelief.com/progressive-muscle-relaxation.html

My original topic of choice for this assignment is looking at the effects of war on mental health. This arose out of my interest after chapter 13 and their mention of how the mental health field was flooded with patients after WWII. However, as I did some more research I found some interesting information about refugees and displaced persons having severe mental disturbances that are almost on level with soldiers. Because of this new found research I decided to expand my scope to look at traumatic events and mental health. This will still include looking at veterans but will also seek to include others that endure traumatic events in their life, such as refugees and displaced people groups.
This brings us to my new source which was the UN Chronicle and was copyrighted by United Nations Publications. Now the UN being who they are I believe that they are held to a certain level of accountability and will most certainly be called out for any intentionally false reported information. These are my reasons for trusting the information they put forth. Their topic looked at how the approximately 30 million refugees and displaces persons around the world and how they weren’t receiving mental health services and how this had a devastating impact on their societies for the long haul. The current system of helping these individuals it totally about their physical well being and totally disregards their mental injuries. Their mental states are crucial to rebuilding their society and if they do not get the necessary care then it is likely that the invisible ‘trauma of war’ will be passed down to future generations. It would be in our best interests if we were to revamp our current aide structure to help their mental states. Their newly proposed idea consisted of relying more on their traditional healers and available help sources, if available, helps them not become so displaced or feel as though they have lost themselves in whatever catastrophic event they were subject to. It also proposed that we make sure that we deal with every traumatic event on an individual basis rather than having a “trauma kit” that we pull out for everything. The lasting effects of rape/genocide or an earthquake will be much different and the differences only grow when you look at cultural differences. Japanese civilians will react much differently from Peruvians. Leaving people alone to their own devices after extremely traumatic events, whether they be war, displacement, or genocide, isn’t humane. We should feel obligated to help these individuals.
There are three aspects that arise from the sources I have compiled on traumatic events and mental health. The first of these looks at the organizations or frames of thought that comprise those who administer mental health care. The second item I want to look at is trying to determine which type of therapy would best suite members of this unique group. Lastly, I would like to take a look at Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. It would seem that if these people can’t even be sure of their basic needs then it would be hard for them to get very far as far as self-actualization goes. We will look at these three in the preceding paragraphs.
The first thing to look at is the organizations that administer psychological help. In psychology it all started back with Wundt and all the scientific research that he compiled and theories he came up with. However, at this stage there was not much help for the mentally ill. In the same way the US army is just getting on the wagon and is beginning to be proactive in their methods rather than reactive said Commander Boccieri. Although we may have compiled a lot of research and data about a subject it still remains relatively useless unless it can be applied to everyday life. This is one reason why I love living in America. We like practicality and will make use of anything that can help us better our day-to-day lives. In the same way psychology advanced in its practicality with James Cattell, Binnet-Simons, and Henry Goddard and the invention of mental testing and ultimately IQ tests. This was one of the first widely used applications of psychology in the US. From this we moved into much more modern and more helpful therapies such client-centered therapy and psychoanalysis. In these same ways hopefully the US military will continue to strive to continually make improvements for our veterans. There is no question; these brave people deserve excellent care.
The second thing we’re going to look at is trying to determine which type of therapy would best suite these unique populations. One example is Carl Rogers and his notion of client-centered therapy. This therapy included three parts, the first being that the therapist is genuine or emotionally healthy as well. The therapist must be able to model appropriate behavior. The second aspect of this is unconditional positive regard, which means that the therapist accepts the person as being valuable simply because they are a human being. This would include avoiding labels in order to make the client always feel accepted rather than thrown into some stereotypical subgroup. The last important tenant of this therapy is that it is necessary for the therapist to have empathy, the ability to see reality as the client experiences it and to relate to it. From my research I think that this would be incredibly useful for refugees who have just escaped some horrible event, genocide for example. These individuals have been hunted like animals and have been told that they are bad, useless, filth. By adopting this method it would greatly help them begin to attain a sense of worth again. According to the UN, this is the kind of invisible trauma is the kind that is damaging through generations. If we could help meet this need in the first generation then the feelings of worthlessness would be halted before they did too much damage.
The last thing that I want to look at is Abraham Maslow and his hierarchy of needs and how this would apply to soldiers and refugees. When looking at his model it is pretty clear that first you need to have your physiological needs met, then safety, the need for love/belonging, and the need for self-esteem before we can achieve self actualization. It is pretty clear to see that these categories of people don’t tend to get very high on this pyramid of needs. Refugees often are left wondering where their next meal will come from and wonder if they have truly escaped the horrors they left behind. Soldiers are almost always having their basic physiological needs being taken care of but as far as achieving a constant level of safety, forget it. Maslow discovered that self-actualizers tended to perceive reality accurately. From my research on the Resilience program, a new mental training method to help veterans return to civilian life and to cope with what they experienced, I found this quote. “We recognize that bad things do happen…but the resilience training teaches us not to get stuck in that negative feeling, like there’s no way out. We’re not trying to reach unbridled optimism, but rather realistic optimism.” This quote demonstrated the lasting impacts of having a lack of safety in their lives and how they must actively fight to maintain a healthy model of thinking. It would be even more difficult for soldiers to someday attain self-actualization than us as civilians.
Terms: Maslow, self actualization, empathy, carl rogers, client-centered therapy, unconditional positive regard, genuine, mental testing, IQ tests, James Cattell, Binnet-Simons, and Henry Goddard, psychoanalysis, Wundt

My forth source discussed one place where eugenics can still be seen today. A selective reduction can be used for population control. It’s also used to abort children who develop with characteristics that are unwanted by the parents.
The three things subtopics I chose to ride about are IQ and eugenics, eugenics in America, and eugenics today.

#1 - IQ and eugenics

Eugenics was brought around because of the development of intelligence testing. Binet developed the intelligence test, but claimed that it did not wholly measure intelligence and that intelligence could be changed in a nurturing environment. He argued against using it to label people. It was his belief that it should just be used to identify students who needed more help. Goddard brought intelligence testing to the United States. He used intelligence to argue that intelligence was heritable. Therefore, intelligence could not be increased and people who were feeble-minded could not be helped. He used it at Ellis Island to screen immigrants before they came in. People who didn’t score high enough were labeled morons and sent back to their countries of origin. Goddard wanted to keep America as an elite country, and therefore he could not allow in people who may pollute the gene pool with their unintelligent qualities. This was the beginning of eugenics in America.

#2 – eugenics in America

Eugenics in America began with Goddard’s use of the intelligence testing. Eugenics societies which spread the news of eugenics were created in America. In 1910 the Eugenics Record Office was founded in the United States. This was one of the most influential eugenics societies. In 1916, Margaret Sanger opened the first birth control clinic. I found this interesting because you don’t usually think of birth control when you think of eugenics, but she was a strong supporter. The idea of the clinic came from the eugenics’ beliefs that the population needed to be controlled. Margaret Sanger openly supported eugenics principles. Other famous Americans did also. In 1922, the American Eugenics Society was established. These societies were funded by these famous Americans. Rockefeller, DuPont, Standard Oil, and Shell are a few famous companies who contributed money to eugenics’ causes.

#3 – eugenics today

Eugenics today can be seen in the process of selective reductions. Selective reductions are most commonly used in pregnancies involving multiple fetuses. It can be used to reduce a pregnancy of 5 or 6 to that of 2 or 3. This process is usually used by couples using fertility treatments to become pregnant. It’s done to reduce the risks that come with higher-order pregnancies such as low birth rates and premature births. This is a form of population control. Prenatal diagnostic testing can also determine fetuses with genetic disorders or chromosomal defects. These fetuses are at a higher risk of developing a genetic disease. These are the fetuses who are commonly aborted. This would be a form of negative eugenics and selective breeding. Negative eugenics involves reducing the number of births. Selective reduction takes out fetuses with genetic defects. By aborting these fetuses, it is taking their genes out of the available gene pool. This is selective breeding.

TERMS: Binet, intelligence testing, Goddard, moron, selective breeding, eugenics, negative eugenics
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_reduction
http://www.eugenics.net/papers/murray.html
http://www.eugenics.net/papers/caseforeugenics.html
http://www.waragainsttheweak.com/

Topic: Hysteria
The forth source I found was another article from Psychology today. It was an article by Kelly McGonigal who is a professor at Stanford. This was a fascinating story about four women’s experiences with mass hysteria. It all began when a first woman, Anne dreampt she had a baby. Six days later, after morning sickness and a long labor another woman, Betty informed the doctor she had a baby. Two days later Kathy, who was helping Betty during labor had a baby of her own. A month later after eating for two and making a doll out of stockings, Edith had her baby. These women were all in a mental hospital when this happened. Dr. McGonigal speculated that perhaps these women had these babies as a need to connect with something in the world. I think this is so interesting, and how weird it would be to feel all of these things. It really blew me away that the mind can do all this.
One thing I learned is about the power of suggestion. I think this relates to both articles from Psychology Today because in both articles this was used (unintentionally) to create mass hysteria. This would potentially relate to things we have learned about consciousness. Things in our consciousness are automatic. Our minds fill in things for us, as is the case with change blindness and mental rotation. They happen automatically. I would say with our consciousness and unconsciousness, a lot of things happen that are way over our head. Instincts that take over in order to preserve our self-concept are really important to in our everyday lives. This relates back do Darwin in that our body is automatically programed to get us from day to day.
Another thing I learned is that hysteria is basically an overreaction. This can easily be seen in the case I found in my fourth source. This overreaction and over imagination of having a baby as a need to feel connected defines hysteria to a ‘T.’ It even said that people who suffer from hysteria complain of symptoms that can not be backed up medically. None of these women were actually pregnant and none of them actually had a baby.
I learned that causes of hysteria can be dependent on emotionally repressed issues. Freud would love this idea, and he would say that individuals with hysteria had a major case of the Oedipus/Electra complex.
Terms Used: Oedipus/Electra complex, consciousness, unconsciousness, Darwin, power of suggestion, change blindness, mental rotation