Customizing
My Emotional Spin Cycle
Psych
409a?Fall 2001?G15
Dr.
Leon James, Instructor
Date:
October 15, 2001
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Table of Contents |
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|
Introduction |
Emotions |
|
Feelings |
Threefold
Self (Affective,
Cognitive, Sensorimotor) |
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Hierarchy
of Motives |
Annotated Bibliography |
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References |
Links |
The overall project for this course, in my opinion, is to help us understand the emotional spin cycle, which was developed by Dr. Leon James. In order for us to understand the emotional spin cycle, we must first define it. This is the purpose of Report 1. In this report, we were to define emotions, feelings, the threefold self, and hierarchy of motives, using various sources from the web, news media and previous generations.
After "mastering" the definitions for the emotional spin cycle, we will apply this knowledge in Report 2 determining how society affects our behaviors in relation to the emotional spin cycle. By better understanding how society affects our behavior, we can change the way we act for the better.
The emotional spin cycle is a process in which everyone goes through daily. The goal is to be on the positive of the cycle (zone 3 and 4) everyday. To do this, we all need to think positive thoughts, and not blame others for their mistakes. This cycle all helps us all to understand ourselves better. The figure below illustrates the emotional spin cycle and the explanations for each of the zones. If you would like to learn more about the spin cycle, visit our instructions page.
Citation:
?General Instructions for Your Research Project.? Internet. October 4, 2001.
Available: http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/leonpsy15/g15reports-instructions.html
The upper half (zones 1 and 2) refers to others (and the world) while the
lower half (zones 2 and 4) refers to self. Zone 1 is the negative red zone and
is called Rage. Note that the zone includes the threefold-self: Feeling habits,
thinking habits, and sensori-motor habits. Zone 2 is the negative blue zone and
is marked Depression--also in three types of habits. Zone 3 is the positive blue
zone and is called Mastery (or Self-Confidence). It too operates in affective
behaviors (feeling), cognitive behaviors (thinking), and sensori-motor behaviors
(acting or doing). Zone 4 is the positive red zone and is called resolve or zeal
(or Compassion). Resolve or zeal is red hot like anger but it is more rational
and tolerant; hence anger is negative while resolve or zeal is positive.
Note that the 4 zones with the threefold-self in each make up 12 settings
arranged around a circle. This is called the emotional spin cycle because it
maps out the cultural norms of behavior we acquire in socialization and divides
them into these 4 main categories. It is like the spin cycle of a wash machine.
By changing the settings you change the behavior or function of the machine.
Similarly, to function as socialized individuals we acquire particular habits
that run themselves off according to prescription (also called "social
scripts" or "schemas"). We have the impression that we are acting
on our own from ourselves, not realizing that we are just running off the social
scripts we acquired as children and adults. We know this by comparing what
people feel, think, and do in specific situations, and seeing they are so
similar or equivalent. This proves that our feelings, thoughts, and actions are
learned and standardized, shared by many in a society.
The 12 settings are arranged in a circle from negative red, to negative
blue, to positive blue, to positive red. How well do you know your own daily
emotional spin cycle? There are two methods psychologists use to answer this
question. One approach is to ask you to respond to various questions (or
"personality scale items") and then comparing your answers to other
people's answers or to some standards already established. This method raises
reliability issues since the data depend on how accurate your responses are, or
how well they represent what you really do. A second approach is to have you
monitor your feelings, thoughts, and actions as they occur and make some sort of
record of it for later analysis. This approach offers a better promise of being
valid and comprehensive and is the method we will use for this report. The idea
in a nutshell is for you to monitor your threefold-self at certain designated
times during the day and recording which of the 4 zones you are in at the time
of the self-observation. By doing this several times a day over a few days, you
will be able to have the data on your emotional spin cycle.
Definitions
Emotions
For me, emotions are a way in which we express the way we feel. In everything we do, we express our emotions. Although some studies have shown otherwise, I think that expressing our emotions is important--by not expressing our emotions, others may not know how we feel about certain situations.
Feelings
I have always thought feelings came from within--they are innate. Like emotions I think all feelings should be expressed. Feelings help us to develop who we are and gives us distinct personalities. It adds variety to life. Without expressing our feelings, the world would be a dull place.
Threefold Self
The threefold self is made up of three parts--affective cognitive and sensorimotor. These three parts work together in the emotional spin cycle to get our desired reaction to situations. The affective is the feeling, cognitive is the thinking and the sensorimotor is the doing.
Hierarchy of Motives
In making our decisions in life, we call upon our values feelings emotions, etc. in trying to help us make those decisions. By combining these traits, in our hierarchy we make decisions that will better ourselves.
Emotions
This article lets everyone know its okay to express emotion. It focuses specifically on men in our society as being told from an early age its not okay to show sadness. In American society, negative connotations have been placed on the males who express sad emotions, such as crying, "Many men think that crying is not only a sign of weakness, but letting themselves go emotionally might lead to a nervous breakdown." It is disappointing to think that men feel this way?I have always felt that a man who can express their emotions is more than a man who does not express emotion. This article lets everyone know that it is important for emotions to be shown.
Citation: ?Expressing Emotion.? Internet. October
9, 2001. Available: http://www.angelfire.com/oh/UnderstandingGrief/emotion.html
"Emotional release comes at about the time it begins to
dawn upon us how dreadful the loss is. Sometimes without warning there wells up
within us an uncontrollable urge to express our grief. And this is exactly what
we ought to do ~ allow ourselves to express the emotions we actually feel. We
have been given tear glands, and we are supposed to use them when we have good
reason to use them.
In
our society it is very difficult for men to cry, because they have been taught
as little boys that boys do not cry. When a little boy falls and skins his knee
and cries out in fright and pain, someone picks him up and says, "Now, now,
little man, don't cry!" And when he is eight years old and hurts himself,
he does not dare to cry, nor at eighteen when something happens about which he
ought to cry. At thirty-eight when some great loss is suffered, he cannot
cry.
Many
men think that crying is not only a sign of weakness, but that letting
themselves go emotionally might lead to a "nervous breakdown." This
has been disproven for years, yet men don't seem to understand that it is the
person who holds himself tense, who refuses to let go who may be in for trouble.
The Scriptures clearly show that when great calamities came to the hardy men of
faith they wept bitterly, their "tears were with them all night long."
When
we speak about emotional release it reminds us of the whole subject of emotions
and our faith. To some people it may sound strange in a day of scientific
objectivity and coldness that we should encourage the expression of emotions.
Are we saying that religion should advocate emotionalism? No, but neither are we
in favor of an emotionless religion. Emotion is essential to man and to try to
repress it is to make him less than a man.
For
us to imagine we can live fully and deeply without emotion is pretty ridiculous.
We are not talking now about emotionalism. We are talking about the emotions
which provide the motivation for everything we do."
Following the above definition of emotion, this next article supports the same definition. According to this article, ?For young children, emotions cam be powerful, even overwhelming?but not easy to verbalize.? The study had children of various ages to either draw out or talk about their emotional experiences. The results of the study showed that when children drew out their emotions, they were able to express their emotions better. If they are able at that young age to express and let out feelings, imagine how stable their emotional spin cycle will be when they get older.
Citation: ?Drawing
out Emotions.? Internet.
October 9, 2001. Available: http://www.findarticles.com/cf_0/m0838/1998_Nov/54309000/p1/article.jhtml
For young children, emotions can be powerful, even overwhelming ?
remember your two year old's tantrums? -- but they are not easy to verbalize.
However, a study published in the June issue of the Journal of Experimental
Psychology: Applied found that youngsters who draw while talking are able to
describe their emotions in much greater detail.
The study's authors admit they're not sure why drawing helped the children to remember. Part of the reason is surely that drawing helps children organize narratives in their minds. It also, at a practical level, slows the child's thinking and verbalizing, providing those essential extra moments of calm that, in a three or four year old, can lead to clarity.
After going through numerous articles about emotions, and how to express emotions, I realized how important art was when expressing emotion?especially in young children. Since it is difficult for children to describe how they feel, art is a possible way to do it. This article writes about how children were able to draw out their feelings of the September 11th attacks and how these drawing brought healing to the victims families.
Citation: ?Following Attacks, Children Express Emotions
Through Art.? Internet.
October 8, 2001. Available: http://www.cnn.com/2001/fyi/teachers.ednews/10/01/childrens.art.ap/index.html
"When
second-grader John Marlin of Ennis, Texas, drew a picture about the attacks on
the World Trade Center in New York City, he did not show the people falling down
from the towers. He drew them floating up, on angels? wings.
Others
drew tears, or dark confusion, or a bright sunny day. Kids in different places dipped their hands in red and blue
paint and made big American flags on canvases of white.
"Young
children need to do something to express their grief, even though they may not
really understand all that has happened," says the National Association of
School Psychologists.
"Drawings -- to hang up in the school hallway, to send to the firemen and policemen who helped victims, to send to schoolchildren in the disaster areas -- are an excellent way for young children to express and share their feelings."
We have all heard the saying, ?Laughter is the best medicine.? This article says that laughing may not only be good for us, but for others as well. Further, it says when we laugh, not only do we change our mood, but the mood of our listener as well. I do not know about anyone else, but when I laugh, I feel ten times better than when I do not laugh. A friend of mine used to always tell me, ?Laughing gives off good hormones,? and after reading this article, this is truer than ever. When I hear others laugh, or vice versa, everyone feels good. Thus, we all move over the positive side of the spin cycle.
Citation:
?Research into Laughter is Serious Business.?
Internet. October 8, 2001. Available: http://www.cnn.com/2001/HEALTH/10/07/laughter.research.reut/index.html
??laughter
might not be a method to express one's own emotions at all, but rather a way to
influence the emotions of others. "Perhaps the function of laughter is not
for the laugher to be conveying information about one's emotional state to the
listener, but rather the laughter is being used as a kind of a tool or a
strategy by which a laugher can change the emotional state of the listener??
A peer group, or a bunch of friends has always helped me in times of
need. Friends and peers understand
what goes on inside of you, and can help you through most anything.
That was the concept behind Dr. Leon James? s ?Quality Driving Circle
(QDC).? In Marissa?s report #1, ?My QDC Report: How to become a
Better Driver,? she discusses how a group of drivers would get together and
talk about their driving experiences. Marissa goes over her self-witness
reports (SWR) and goes on to explain these reports. Her SWR's contain her
driving experiences and how she reacted to them. In the end, these QDC's
and SWR's help her to become a better, more aware driver.
I
thought that this type of activity would get them out of Zone 1, negative red,
and into Zone 4, positive red. By
letting out their negative emotions about driving, and discussing those
emotions, those individuals can think more rational thoughts.
Citation: "My QDC Report: How to become a Better Driver." Internet. October 8, 2001. Available: http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/459s2000/muraoka/report1.html
A Quality Driving Circle (QDC) is the newest traffic
psychology approach to spread driving awareness. Developed
The first online QDC I participated in is a good idea, and
has potential for success. The
gathering of ideas,
In his report, Craig writes about his own experiences as he tries to
understand his rage about people cutting him off while driving to school.
He did a mini self-modification experiment where he had his passengers
monitor his emotions when people cut him off.
His conclusion? He would feel himself getting upset, but as the experiment
went on, he realized that he couldn?t control other drivers, and it was better
for himself to just let those negative emotions go. I thought that this was the type of attitude all drivers
should have. If all drivers had
this type of attitude, the roads would be much safer.
Citation: ?Driving Personality Make-overs: Is it for Me? Looking into the Mirror.? Internet. October 12, 2001. Available: http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/459f98/kawamura/report1kawamura.html
What is a driving personality make-over?
Driving personality make-over is the process where we feel
(affect), how we think (cognitive), and what we
Psychological
concepts
There are many different things going on while a person is
driving. Such things affect how a person feels,
First a person must understand what is going on where
driving norms have a dominant role. The dominant
Knowing the norms of the road help a person understand why
in some places people drive a certain way.
More and more a person will look at how he or she is driving
and see when and where they are driving badly and endangering others in the
process, with this knowledge a person has two choice into whether to change or
not to change and disgard the norms of the road. These people are forming self
serving biases, which their behavior is only good for themselves and if others
are in the way they "step" all over them.
The mini-self modification experiment that was implemented
was to improve on behavior behind the wheel
Observation
Everytime I drive in the morning I drive through some
light traffic to arrive at school, during this time I get
Each day that I drove I noticed that I did get very upset
each time someone cut me off forcing me to break.
Conclusion
My solution to the situation is that I found that
acknowledging that I get mad at other people for cutting me
I think that using self-modification of knowing that I do
something wrong or hazardous and changing the way
For future generations
Suggestions to future generations is that everyone has a
flaw that they do and with this flaw if you take it
In my opinion, feelings come from the inside?from your soul.
Feelings are just there. As
said by Elizabeth Crary, ?Feelings just are.?
In her presentation to child care workers, Crary says feelings have three
components, ??emotional, physical, and behavioral.?
She explains to us we need to help children understand the various forms of
feelings and ways of expressing those feelings. By doing this, children
will know we are all different. I chose this article because as a future teacher, it helped me to see how
children express their feelings and how important it is for children to have
their feelings heard.
Citation: ?Mad is not Bad: Helping Children Deal with their
Emotions.? Internet.
October 9, 2001. Available:
http://www.frontiernet.net/~manage/ccni/emotions.html
Elizabeth Crary, a parent
and educator from Seattle, addressed an audience of professional child care
workers at the [1994] National Association for the Education of Young Children
conference in Anaheim, California. Crary's session dealt with the emotions of
young children and was entitled "Mad Is Not Bad." She focused on the special needs which children have in
responding to their feelings.
Crary stressed the point
that feelings in and of themselves are neither "good" nor
"bad." Feelings just "are."
All feelings have three
components: Emotional, physical, and behavioral. Each person chooses one of
these components to express his/her emotions. Children also need to be
developmentally ready to deal with feelings. They need to have vocabulary
skills, an understanding of the nature of feelings, and an awareness of
alternate ways to respond to feelings.
What can child care
providers do in order to promote positive growth as children confront their
emotions?
First, Crary recommends
introducing different words in our language to children, words that help express
feelings -- "happy," "sad," "mad,"
"angry," or "hurt," for example. As a child care
professional, you should focus on paying attention to the ways in which children
wish their feelings to be expressed.
Second, we can help
children to label -- or name -- their feelings. Ask several questions: What is
the child doing at the time? How does the child look or appear? What does the
child say? What does the child not say?
Children need to know that
feelings are not for "always" and that feelings do change. They also
need to know that often people will feel differently about the same thing, and
that is OK.
When children express
feelings, help them to know that feelings are on the "inside" and
actions are on the "outside." Actions can be changed if that is needed
or desired. To get rid of feelings, it helps for the child to calm down and
substitute another action. Crary suggested several possible alternative actions
during times of anger. The child can redirect energy by tearing newspapers,
stamping feet, or dancing.
Studies show that short
movements such as hitting actually keep the emotion of anger at the same level,
or even increases it. Long physical movements (such as running, swinging,
twirling, or dancing) decrease anger.
Ways for children to
express their feelings verbally can include writing a story, singing, growling,
or using a mean voice. Visual/mental techniques can also be used by counting to
ten, deep breathing, finding a place to go when angry, or listening to relaxing
music.
As child care providers,
Crary suggests simply listening to the child, acknowledging the child's
feelings, setting limits to their actions, and offering to help the child
redirect anger.
Finally, it is very important to remember that you are a role-model for the child. In this way, you can help teach the child that calmness and clear thinking about behavior are vital factors in expressing feelings appropriately.
This article, which reiterates Crary?s definition of feelings, everyone, including adults, should express their feelings. All feelings you face are, ??normal emotional responses.? Much attention is given to children when it comes to expressing feelings. This article reminds us that adults do have feelings which need to be expressed. In summary, this article states that its important for us to express our feelings. By acknowledging our feelings, we get onto the path of normalicy. Children watch adults go through the emotional spin cycle?don?t you think it is important for the children to see their parents in all zones so that they can develop into healthy, feeling, adults?
Citation:
?Whatever You?re Feeling Right Now, It?s Normal.?
Internet. October 8, 2001. Available: http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2001/Sep/13/il/il02a.html
?You are angry.
You feel vulnerable. You
feel like screaming or crying. Maybe
you even want to laugh, though you don?t know why.?
?Go ahead, say
Hawai?i?s counselor?s and professionals.
Those are all normal emotional responses??
?While much attention has
been focused on how to help children understand and get through this crisis,
adults should realize they may be affected too, and that there is no shame in
this.?
?No feeling is incorrect.?
Until I took this class, I never realized how many types of feelings there were in the world. It is important to understand the types of feelings so we are aware of it, and we can move from the negative to the positive side of the spin cycle. Mary Sheedy Kurcinka helps us to become aware of the various feelings we have and helps parents teach their children about their feelings. She does this by helping parents create a "feelings" his in which children can use to define their feelings.
Citation:
?It?s Okay to Express Feelings.?
Internet. October 9, 2001.
Available: http://www.district196.org/ec/Parents/feelings.html
I never realized there were so many words
to describe feelings. a dad responded. "Either did I" a mom offered.
"In fact, I took another class and the instructor advised us to teach our
kids to describe their feelings with words, instead of hitting or biting. I
realized though, that I couldn't teach my kids the names of their feelings. I
didn't know what I was feeling! Fortunately the instructor gave us a handout, a
list of feelings. I hung it on my refrigerator, Every time I felt something, I
ran down the list to find the word I thought that described it. It took me two
months to figure it out, but I did. Then I taught my kids what they were
feeling!"
"fine tuning!"
Few of us have grown up in homes where feelings were easily or comfortably expressed. It just wasn't done. Of course we know frustration, anger, happiness. sadness -- the big feelings. Many, however are unfamiliar with the more subtle feelings, like pressured, mellow or groggy. Teaching kids about feelings, means helping them to become aware of their feelings before they become over powering. That's why we need to understand and be able to describe "irritated" before it becomes "rage," "melancholy" before it becomes "depression" or "anger."
In an interesting report on unspoken signals, Corey gives examples of tailgating, switching lanes, honking and racing, and how unspoken signals come into play in these situations. In all of these driving events, we all, at times, have negative red thinking because we have to force ourselves into the next lane, or follow a really slow driver. He gives us reasons for this, and explanations for how we can curb it.
Citation: ?Report on How Drivers Communicate: Unspoken Signals.? Internet. October 12, 2001. Available: http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/459f99/egami/report1.html
As we drive on the road today we are all communicating with each other in a dance. Most of the time we are unaware that we are doing it but other drivers will be able to pick it up. The way we drive is like a moving billboard to our personality. We can make snap judgments about people just by how they move in and out of lanes. We all do this. We get angry at the person in front of us who is moving too slow and is holding you back in traffic. We feel unnatural rage toward that person without having said one word to them. So what kind of signals do we send. I have broken them down into two categories. Signals that we send by example ( the way we drive) and those that we relate to other drivers (ex. a wave of the hand).
Getting used to doing something new takes a lot of time and energy. Glen talks about how he got through the difficult time of finding newsgroups on the internet. This was his first time in a long time using a computer and the internet. He talks of his trials and tribulations of being on the internet. Being that is my first time doing this type of report online, I thought this might be useful for other like me. It helped me get through this project in a less stressful way because I knew there were others out there like me.
Citation: ?Social Psychology of USENET Newsgroups: Cyperspace: A Gateway to Outdoor Activities.? Internet. October 12, 2001. Available: http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/409bs97/gacierto/gaciertoreport1.html
This semester has been my first
experience with using computers in a very long time, so everything about
computers now was practically new to me. I have kept a strong interest in
computers and tried to keep myself updated as to the latest developments, but I
have not actually touched a computer keyboard in a long time. Upon doing so at
the beginning of this semester, I was overwhelmed with how far computers have
come. I was lost and confused, but with lots of help from my fellow classmates,
I now consider myself pretty much "on-line" when it comes to computer
literacy.
I first heard about newsgroups
through a friend of mine (who happened to still be in high school). We were both
interested in the (new to Hawaii) sport of paintball and we wanted to know more
about how to get started. He told me about how he could get that kind of
information on the internet and before I knew it, he gave me a printout from a
newsgroup that detailed one place in Hawaii that sold paintball equipment. To
make a long story short, I am now an avid paintball player!!!
When I finally got to use newsgroups through this PSY 409b class, it really sparked my interest. Now I could go off on my own, explore, and find out all kinds of information for myself. The amount of information out there is AMAZING. Newsgroups were a perfect way to keep abreast of the latest developments in equipment, events, and tips from the more "seasoned" paintball players and mountain-bikers. It is one of the many "on-line" tools that I plan to utilize in the years to come.
One of the major feelings that everyone experiences is stress. By understanding our stress as a feeling, we will be able to better ourselves and move from the negative side to the positive side of the spin cycle. This article describes what causes stress and helps us to understand long and short term effects of stress and various ways to manage our stress. Short term stress can interfere with "clear judgement, reduce enjoyment of work, etc." Long term stress can "cause depression, helplessness, hostility, etc." Being a full-time college student and part-time worker, I felt this was a pertinent topic to address.
Citation:
?Coping with Stress.? Internet.
October 9, 2001. Available:
http://www.allsands.com/Health/Alternative/copingwithstre_yrb_gn.htm
Stress is how your body
responds to a change in emotions. During
this time, the body experiences what is known as the ?fight or flight?
response. The heart beats faster, the adrenaline races through the body,
breathing gets quicker, and blood is sent to the heart and muscles. Stress can
cause a person to work harder or give a great performance, but it can also make
one sick, depressed, or burned out.
What Causes Stress?
Many things cause stress.
Some of more prominent ones are as follows:
* Promotions
* Death in the family
* Marriage
* Pregnancy
* Mortgage
* Divorce
* Separation
* Illness
* Business readjustment
* Change to a different
line of work
* Setting too high of
standards for oneself
What Can Stress Do To A
Person?
Stress can lead to many
things. It can cause depression and burnout. It also has short- and long-term
consequences. Depression is caused when a person is extremely tired, doesn?t
feel that he/she can accomplish a task that is given to him/her by the boss, or
is bored with the job that he/she is doing. Burnout happens when a person only
thinks negatively, does not know when to say "no," has no sense of
purpose, or is a constant emotional leaning post for those around them.
Short-term stress can
interfere with clear judgement, reduce enjoyment of work, and damage the
positive frame of mind that you need. The symptoms are faster heart rate, rapid
breathing, tense muscles, feelings of nausea, etc.
Long-term stress can cause
depression, helplessness, hostility, becoming more lethargic, and or a drinking
or smoking increase. The person can become fidgety or be in a constant bad mood,
doesn?t care about personal appearance, or changes
his/her work habits.
How Can I Manage Stress?
Stress can be handled in
many ways. There are many stress management techniques to help the individual
overcome this problem.
* Deep breathing: This can
be done at any time. Remember as you breath in, your stomach expands. When
exhaling, breathe out until your lungs feel "empty."
* Autogenics: Here you
teach your body and mind to respond to your mental commands to relax
efficiently.
* Self massage
* Deep breaths
* Laughing
* Going out with people
with whom you can have fun
* Read a book
* Go to a movie
* Listen to music
* Take one thing at a time
Try not to become a superhero. If something is too much to handle, step away from it for awhile and re-evaluate what you will do next.
In another article relating to stress, a Health Tribune in India gives more ways to reduce stress. For example, taking control, being realistic, exercising, etc.
Citation: ?Coping with Daily Stress.? Internet. October 9, 2001. Available: http://www.tribuneindia.com/20000719/health.htm - 2
Everyone experiences stress
at certain times in one?s life, often due to events beyond his control.
Whatever the sources of stress in your life, however, you can learn to control
its effects on you.
A number of simple
measures, such as meditation or confronting the source of your problems, can be
used to ease tension. Learning and carrying out these anti-stress techniques can
improve your ability to cope with stressful situations.
Reducing your stress level:
Identifying what is causing your stress is the first step to reducing it. Taking
almost any action to relieve it will help because this is a sign that you are no
longer prepared to endure an unacceptable level of pressure.
Taking control: Organise
your time to reduce your stress levels ? plan ahead, do not over-schedule
yourself, and leave time for relaxation. Make a list of all the things that have
been troubling you, putting them in order of priority. Then, beginning with the
problem that causes you the greatest irritation, anxiety, or stress, work out a
way to solve it or deal with it. As you solve each problem, move down
your list, tackling only one source of stress at a time.
Talking through problems:
Discussing what is bothering you is often a good way to find a solution. Once
you have decided who or what is at the root of your anxiety, talk the issue
over, either with a friend or with the person who is causing the problem.
Admitting that you cannot
handle a problem alone may be an embarrassing or awkward confession to make, but
involving another person in your troubles at an early stage can speed up the
process of finding a constructive solution.
Coping with a life crisis:
No matter how well planned your life is, or how healthy your mind and body are,
a crisis can bring on stress. The following strategies may help:
Learn to recognise a crisis.
Seek and listen to advice.
Do not brood about past events or blame someone else.
Do not worry over future events that are beyond your control.
Consider each problem separately.
Make a list of your worries; they will seem less overwhelming.
Stick to a daily routine to create a greater sense of security.
Take your mind off your worries through a leisure activity or exercise.
Do
not try to work out solutions to your problems just before bedtime.
Consult a doctor or a counselor before stress builds up to an intolerable
level.
Tranquillisers: Although
tranquillisers can prove helpful in cases of extreme stress, such as
bereavement, they are not a
long-term solution. Only take tranquillisers for the
shortest possible time to avoid the problem of becoming dependent on
them. This will also give you the
chance to build up your own ability to live with and fight against the pressures
you are under.
Giving and receiving
comfort: Turning to friends and family for help and support can ease your
difficulties, making them less stressful.
Ways to control stress:
Stressful situations may be inevitable and beyond our control, but the anxieties
that they arouse can be relieved by using the following anti-stress techniques.
Take regular breaks: A
short rest period during the day will help to relieve pressure and refresh your
mind after a session of concentrated mental or physical effort, or if you have
become frustrated with a project.
Plan each day: Listing what
you need to accomplish in order of priority, setting realistic goals, saying no
to unacceptable or impractical deadlines, and finishing one task before you move
on to the next can help you feel in control.
Be realistic: Try not to
take on too much. Sometimes, to relieve a tight schedule, you may need to change
ideas or arrangements; do not feel guilty about doing so.
Take care of your social
life: It is important to develop interests outside your career or family. Do not
always neglect friends in favour of work or family commitments.
See your doctor: If the
stress in your life has become intolerable or is causing physical symptoms or
depression, counselling may help make your lifestyle less stressful.
These techniques work by
helping you to avoid or reduce the stresses of daily life, to release
accumulated stress, and to spot stress warning signs.
Exercise regularly:
Physical activity reduces tension, helps you sleep better, releases pent-up
emotions, and takes your mind off your worries.
Relax: This will relieve
warning signs of stress such as headaches, muscle pains, or difficulty in
sleeping.
Talk about your problems:
Your partner, a friend, or a family member may be able to help you find a
solution, but even if not, just discussing your feelings can often help.
Take holidays or short
breaks to unwind
It is better to get away from home if you would otherwise begin stressful home activities, like spring-cleaning or redecorating. Avoid making too many changes at once.
The
Threefold Self
The threefold self is made up of three components, the affective (feelings and emotions), the cognitive (interpretations and decisions), and sensorimotor (sensations, perceptions and verbalizations). According to Dr. Leon James, author of Data on the Private World of the Driver in Traffic: Affective, Cognitive and Sensorimotor, ?All skills at any level of expertise contain affective, cognitive and sensorimotor features.? In other words, all three branches are intertwined. In his study of drivers, he looks at these three domains and shows how all three levels interact.
Citation:
?Data on the Private World of the Driver in Traffic: Affective, Cognitive and
Sensorimotor.? Internet.
October 9, 2001. Available: http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/leonpsy/instructor/driving1.html
IN CONNECTION WITH A SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY FIELD EXERCISE, COLLEGE STUDENTS MONITORED THEIR OWN DRIVING BEHAVIOR AND THEIR PERCEPTIONS OF OTHER DRIVERS. WHILE DRIVING ON THEIR DAILY ROUTE, THEY DICTATED INTO A TAPE RECORDER THEIR SELF-WITNESSING REPORT ON THEIR OWN DRIVING BEHAVIOR IN THREE PRE-DEFINED AREAS OF THE SELF: AFFECTIVE (FEELINGS AND MOTIVES), COGNITIVE (INTERPRETATIONS AND DECISIONS), AND SENSORIMOTOR (SENSATIONS, PERCEPTIONS, VERBALIZATIONS). CONTENT ANALYSIS OF THESE REPORTS INDICATES THE PRESENCE OF A PATHOGENIC-LIKE SYNDROME IN THE MENTAL HEALTH OF THE ORDINARY DRIVER. THIS INCLUDES MOTIVATIONAL OR EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCES, COGNITIVE MISATTRIBUTIONS OR IRRATIONALITIES, AND SENSORIMOTOR DISCOORDINATIONS, IMPULSIVE ACTIONS AND ABUSIVE VERBALIZATIONS. A THEORY OF DRIVING BEHAVIOR IS SKETCHED OUT SPECIFYING THE DEVELOPMENTAL STAGES OF BECOMING A MATURE DRIVER. THE SELF-WITNESSING METHOD IS PROPOSED FOR FUTURE RESEARCH INVOLVING BASELINE-INTERVENTION TECHNIQUE WITH RANDOM ASSIGNMENT OF SUBJECTS TO INDEPENDENT CONDITIONS.
Rowney Martinez, from Generation 3, writes about the threefold self and how the affective, cognitive, and sensorimotor are related in her weight training. This article clarified for me the connections between the three levels.
Citation:
?Personality Concepts And Behaviors in Weightlifting.?
Internet. October 9, 2001. Available: http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/student3/dkawamot/erep1.html
The intensity of a personŒs behavior to satisfy a need determines their degree of satisfaction (Carver & Scheier, 1988, 102). In other word, satisfying a need depends upon the personŒs willingness to accomplish the intended goal. For example, on some days I feel less motivated to work out. Therefore, my performance will not be at optimum level. For this reason, I may only achieve a certain amount of the goal for which I am trying to accomplish. Because of this, I may experience feelings such a inadequacy and failure. Having these negative feelings about myself affects my cognitions. I start to think that I will never reach my goal or I will never satisfy my needs. These types of negative attitudes affect my self-concept and lowers my self-esteem. On other days, I am extremely motivated which can be seen through the intensity of my work out. I feel a sense of gratification and accomplishment during this type of work out. These feelings also affect my cognitions. I start thinking of ways to further enhance my competence and persistency of the rewarding feeling that I receive. Thus, motivation starts from the affect and creates the cognitionŒs which in turn produces the behavior (Dr.James, personal communication, June 17, 1994).
Hierarchy
of Motives
In life, we are constantly faced with making decisions. We go through steps, a hierarchy of sort, to get to these decisions. Dr. Leon James and Dr. Diane Nahl, co-authors of Principles of Driving Perspectives, say we use or situational cues along with our attitudes, habits, values, emotions, etc. to get to our final action. In this report, Dr. James and Dr. Nahl help us to see situations in different ways by having attributions. By looking at the situation, rather than the person involved, we are able to make rational choices.
Citation:
?Chapter 11: Principles of Driving Psychology.?
Internet. October 9, 2001. Available: http://www.aloha.net/~dyc/ch11.html
What's Going on in Traffic
Psychologists study what
people do in different social situations and then develop explanations for their
actions and reactions. In this sense we all have to be like psychologists, since
our ability to carry out the daily tasks in our lives depends on our
understanding of ourselves and others. For example, suppose you agreed to meet a
friend for lunch in a designated restaurant. You have been waiting for half an
hour at the table and your friend has not shown up. You have to make a decision.
You see several options. Eat lunch by yourself and go back to work. Use the
phone and try to contact the person. Leave and go look for your friend. Continue
to wait and not order lunch.
As you review these
options, you also have various reactions. Perhaps you are irritated, or worried.
Thoughts occur that possibly the person had an accident. Or maybe you find
yourself criticizing your friend and recalling a past pattern of unreliability.
You might question this person's character. Finally your friend shows up. You
are relieved, but still peeved.
Decisions, options,
reactions, and explanations constantly go on in our mind moment by moment as we
cope with life's changing events. Psychologists
call this activity making attributions. Let's apply this idea to traffic
psychology. While we drive, we constantly have to figure out what's going on,
what other drivers are doing. Some events are easy to recognize because they are
accompanied by official signs like turn signals. Other types of communication
signals may not be official, but they are traditional, like motorists waving to
you after you made an opening in your lane to let them in.
But there are many other
cues we need to pick up in traffic which are incidental rather than
communicative. For example as you're coming down a hill you see a car backing
out of the driveway. You have to make a quick decision: do you proceed or do you
stop? Your decision depends on your "causal attributions," or the
explanation that you have for that situation. For instance: That woman better
wait for me to pass. I have the right of way now. She looks like she's coming
out fast, she might not stop for me. I'll speed up so she knows I'm not giving
her room to back out now. She knows she should wait for me. There, she waited.
Good.
If you figure that the
driver of the other car is cautious, and you expect to have been noticed, then
you decide to proceed. If you think the driver has not seen you, you might slow
down, honk, or stop. All sorts of situational cues can influence your
explanation, expectation, and decision:
* Is the driver male or
female, old or young, well dressed or not?
* Is the car new or old,
fancy or average?
* Is the visibility good or
obstructed?
* Is the car proceeding
slowly with hesitation or is it coming out fast?
These situational cues
combine with your own attitudes and habits to produce your decision or action.
Your driving decisions and actions express your personality style and character.
How you act and react, how you think and feel, are the automatic result of what
you see, what you believe, and what you have learned to do by habit.
You can consciously modify
your driving personality by controlling what you look at in traffic, what you
believe about other motorists, and the new driving habits you practice.
Self-witnessing efforts reveal to you what you look at, what you focus on, what
kind of thought-habits you have acquired, what quality of emotions surround you
in traffic. The emotion is the result of your habits of thought and feeling as a
driver. You are helpless in changing your emotions by an act of will or
resolution. But you can use systematic self-modification techniques to suppress
the habits of thought and feeling you observe in yourself. You can substitute
for them new and healthier mental patterns and thereby permanently improve the
quality your traffic life.
Why Did You Do That?
How do you control what you
believe about other drivers? One technique is to examine your driving
attributions. Consider, for instance, a slow moving car in your lane. Why is the
driver going so slow? You can attribute the cause to several elements:
(1) the driver's
disposition. You might think that the person is inconsiderate, incompetent,
stupid, dumb.
(2) the driver's
appearance, such as race, gender, age, or ethnic background.
(3) the traffic situation.
You might think that the car is old or malfunctioning, or perhaps there is a
child in the car, or someone is sick.
The first two causes are
called "dispositional attributions" while the third is known as
"situational attributions." Social psychologists have found under
experimental conditions, that when people make a dispositional attribution ,
they react with negative emotions. On the other hand, when people make a
situational attribution, they feel more tolerant or even positive.
Getting back to the slow
moving driver in your lane. You have a choice whether you are going to make a
dispositional or a situational attribution. You know that you are making a
dispositional attribution when you witness yourself thinking derogatory terms
about the slow driver and his or her gender and race. The result is that your
mind is getting polluted with negative emotions. You are opening a line of
communication with hellish feelings. You are victimizing yourself. But you a
have a free choice. You can switch attributions !
You can attribute the cause
of the car's slowness to something in the situation -- there is a malfunction,
an illness, special cargo, and so on. Now you free yourself to experience
healthier emotions --
* compassion ("I
better be careful not to threaten them.")
* patience ("This
won't last very long.")
* prudence ("Let me
see if I can pass this car.")
* tolerance
("Everybody's got the right to be here."), and so on.
Drivers' Self-Serving Bias
Traffic witnesses
discovered that there is a self-serving bias in the way they make attributions
on the road. For example, when other drivers cut them off in a lane switching
incident, they felt outraged when making a dispositional attribution: "How
annoying. They're being inconsiderate, rude, aggressive." But when it is
our turn to cut someone off, we make a situational attribution: "I had to
do that because I have to take the cutoff ramp soon," or, "because I
am in hurry today." Consider these two opposing ways of explaining things
to yourself.
Dispositional Attributions:
Looks like that sports car is going to try to get in ahead of me. It's
coming real fast. I gotta close that gap to keep it out...(speeding up to the end of the line
to keep him out). He's still coming fast, no, no, you bastard hog! Weaseling in,
forcing me to jam the brake down. You don't deserve to have a nice day.
You did it because you're such an evil person.
Situational Attributions:
Looks like that sports car is going to try to get in ahead of me. It's
coming real fast. I gotta close that gap to keep it out. Let
him come in behind me. (speeding up to the end of the line to keep him
out). He's still coming fast, OK, I have no choice but
to let him in. He is forcing his way into the lane. Maybe he is in a
desperate hurry to get somewhere. I suppose I would do the
same. Maybe I should've let him in in the first place.
The dispositional
attribution ends you in negative country while the situational attribution takes
you out of it, affording you positive, healthy, community-building occasions
with other road users.
A common fear of drivers is
that they will break the unspoken rules of the road and thus cause others to
hate them. When we inconvenience other drivers, we expect them to react with
negative thoughts and emotions aimed at us. In traffic, as a rule, we cut each
other no slack, and we attribute negative reactions to all other drivers. How
close is this imagined response to reality? The drivers we talked to admitted
that they don't always think negatively about other drivers, though it's routine
to do so. So, much of what we imagine others are thinking of us as drivers is
just fantasy. But these fantasies are standard attributions we make in traffic,
and they are knitted into the fabric of our thoughts and feelings while driving.
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Citation:
?Chapter 11: Principles of Driving Psychology.?
Internet. October 9, 2001. Available: http://www.aloha.net/~dyc/ch11.html
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