Raymond Lowe's Archive

Third Force Psychology focuses on the humanistic side of psychology. This approach deals with self-determination and free will. In North America free will is a very strong a prevalent topic, one that has been positively present in our culture. Third Force Psychology is actually being used in the classroom in order to change the current state of the children’s belief system. Beyond that is it being used as well for sensitivity training. It is all about changing the current mindset into something better; something more productive. With third force psychology this is possible. Another aspect that this effects is conflict resolution. With these being implemented in the school, children have a chance to receive a better education while still in public schools.

An example of Psychoanalysis in every day life is seeing a psychiatrist. Their job is to analyze the patients situation based on what is said. By asking the right questions the psychiatrist is able to find out what is the root cause of the problem. This can be done both consciously and unconsciously. Some psychiatrist even use hypnosis, but not all of them use that procedure. Through this it can be discovered that the patient has deep seated issues with his/her father or mother, or even that a grandparent is the cause of the now present trauma. Psychiatrists find out the present problems by searching into and analyzing the patients past experiences.

Behaviorism has been an intriguing topic of study for me since I am not a Psychology major and have, up to this point, never extensively studied this area of psychology. What I find most interesting about it, is how, through this, people and animals can be “trained”. The example of the Pigeon with B.F. Skinner was fascinating to be, especially with how he was able to train the bird to turn a full circle in under 2 minutes. Also, I agree with this form of Psychology in that I believe that it is the observable that can best be studied and evaluated, not the unobservable which cannot even be seen. The only thing I can see, at least in my life, that goes against this is religion, which can not always be seen. Faith is, believing in things not seen. Outside of that I strongly consider only things that can be seen and observed to be truly valid. This is why I agree so much with the idea of Behaviorism.

I thought that the concept of Evolutionary Psychology has a lot of merit, but that it lacks in other areas. The best example that I noticed came from last classes reading. My article said, “Evolution may explain our capacity to hold these principles [systems of morality and meaning and purpose] and beliefs, but it does not explain the principles and beliefs themselves. This was an important explanation for me, because it gave up the idea that the theory was perfect. Plus, it is an easier way to explain and understand the idea of what Evolutionary Psychology is and what is has to offer. Knowing the evolution of the brain and how it developed is critical, but understanding that it does not explain the evolution of thoughts, which adapted from different times, cultures, and races, is just as crucial. As psychology continues to advance, then maybe someday thoughts can be integrated into Evolutionary Psychology in a way that is both logical and rational. But for now, we must suffice for the current state of EP.

It is obvious that the Greek way of thinking is different than our own. One way that our thought differs is that the Greeks had to spend more time in discussion to find and solve problems when now days I can just jump on to google and read what other people have written in order to solve my problem. Face-to-face conversations are not a necessity today to find an answer like it was in the time of the Greeks. Something else that I have observed is that deep conversations, at least in college, do not revolve around issues like the position of the earth relative to the sun and the capacity of the mind. More often than not deep conversations today revolve around mistakes and relationships rather than world issues. There is no real problem with this difference, its just a distinction that I have observed. The reasoning behind this is that since we have the internet we do not have to stress to find the answer to any question we type. Therefore we tend to focus on other issues, issues that cannot be strictly solved doing a google search. One last observation that I have is that the Greeks tended to spend more time in discussion than we currently due.

“The Good Life” is a very common phrase used mostly by those with a desire to appear above, or better, than others because of their financial stature or position in society. I view a good life being one of peace, fulfillment, and love. My “good life” is one filled with family and friends, where nothing matter but the fact that you are all together. It is being able to nurture and raise a family that truly creates an accurate portrayal of “The Good Life” in my mind. But just as people are different, so are their thoughts, and I understand that others will interpret and evaluate this idea in many different ways. I still stick to my own view, that “The Good Life” is one filled with family and friends.