Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Psychology and Sociology

Primary Methods for Studying Human Development

Various approaches are employed to understand how humans change and develop throughout their lifespan. Key methods include:

Longitudinal Studies

Advantages:

• Studies where a person or group is observed over extended time periods.
• Provides information on the stability of developmental processes.

Disadvantages:

• High long-term economic cost.
• Attrition (loss) of experimental subjects over time.
• Potential impact of research innovations during the study period.
• Loss of motivation among participants; potential problems with generalizing results.

Cross-Sectional Studies

Advantages:

• Compares groups representing different ages at a single point in time.
• Faster and more economical than longitudinal studies.
• Allows for the

Psychoanalysis explores the development of personality from the perspective of individual integrity.

Sigmund Freud's Personality Model

Freud's model helps understand the psyche. The topographic model indicates three levels of consciousness:

• Conscious: Perceptions, thoughts, and memories formed at any given time.
• Preconscious: Memories not currently in awareness but readily accessible.
• Unconscious: Memories and intentions largely inaccessible to consciousness, influencing behavior through experiences that create tension.

The structural model describes the interplay between biological drives and social desires, resulting in internal conflict. It comprises three areas:

• Id: The primitive, instinct-driven part of the personality, operating unconsciously

Cultural Diversity: Attitudes and Universals

One of the characteristic features of culture is its diversity. Two primary attitudes are taken towards different cultures: ethnocentrism and cultural relativism.

Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism

Ethnocentrism judges and assesses the cultures of other societies from an attitude of superiority, often leading to incomprehension and intolerance. It views one's own culture as the standard against which others are measured, frequently deeming them "lower."

In contrast, cultural relativism posits that any cultural phenomenon can only be appreciated and understood within its specific context. It asserts that there are no inherently superior or inferior cultures, only distinct ones. While promoting understanding,... Continue reading "Understanding Human Nature: Culture, Identity, and Evolution" »

Market Research Methods

Qualitative Research

Active with current market demand: Potential, Latent.

Focus Groups

• Composition: 6 to 10 participants with knowledge of the topic, unknown to each other. Homogeneous or heterogeneous group composition.
• Duration: 1 to 3 hours.
• Method: Interview with a moderator using a script.
• Stimuli: Sheets, videos, etc.
• Number of sessions: Usually 4 or 5 meetings.
• Data Collection: Audio recorded and transcribed.

In-Depth Interviews

• Nature: Psychological, using open-ended questions.
• Objective: Discover motivations, beliefs, attitudes, feelings, etc.
• Duration: Varies from 30 minutes to over 1 hour.
• Number of interviews: Typically 40 to 100.
• Key Requirement: Establish a climate of trust between interviewer and interviewee.

Projective

Leadership Dynamics

When members of a group feel weak or vulnerable and confidently place their reliance on a leader, the leader assumes a more responsible and necessary role within the group.

Key Features of Effective Leadership:

• Self-confidence
• Showing acceptance and trust
• Setting objectives
• Problem-solving
• Decision-making
• Motivating others
• Conflict resolution competence
• Talent in fostering group development

Types of Leadership:

• Authoritarian Leadership

  An authoritarian leader rigidly organizes and hierarchically orders tasks to be performed without considering alternative ideas. The social and emotional climate is typically negative, resulting in weak group cohesion.

• Democratic Leadership

  A democratic leader involves members, considers diverse ideas, bases

Social Problems Today

There are many social problems affecting people today. Here are some of the most pressing:

• Difficulties accessing housing: There is a shortage of rental housing, and prices are too high.
• Job insecurity: An abundance of "trash contracts" leads to unworthy working conditions.
• Loneliness: Many people feel alone. This sense of loneliness and emptiness leads some to fall into addiction.
• Individualism: There is a growing trend marked by its own interests, without taking others into account.
• Aggression and violence: This is a sad reality in our country.
• Anxiety: The level of stress we live with is also worrying.
• Discrimination: Those who are different from the majority have difficulty being included.

Poverty and Social Exclusion

The problems... Continue reading "Social Challenges in Spain: Poverty, Exclusion & Inequality" »

Medicinal Plants, Vegetable Drugs, and Herbal Medicine

Concepts: Current situation, place in therapeutics, advantages, limitations, and information sources.

Active Metabolites of Plants

Primary and secondary metabolites.

Collection of Medicinal Plants

Cultivation, improvement, collection, conservation, and storage.

Quality, Safety, and Efficacy

Quality control, identification trials, adulteration, counterfeiting, standardization, pesticide analysis, and biological contamination.

Preparation of Herbal Medicines

Raw materials, herbal preparations, solid and liquid forms, simple shapes, associations, solvent extraction, distillation, and expression.

Forms of Management

Preparations for external and internal use, dosing, and prescription in phytotherapy.

Aromatherapy

Therapeutic... Continue reading "Medicinal Plants: Uses, Benefits, and Applications" »

Early Concepts of Intelligence

In psychology, the concept of intelligence has evolved over time and is defined in different ways according to various authors.

Francis Galton: Biological Fitness

One of the first was Francis Galton (19th century), who defined intelligence as a general biological fitness, determined by genetic factors considered unmodifiable. Galton thus argued that education and teaching could not change this inherent intelligence.

Binet and Simon: The First IQ Test

In the 20th century, Binet and Simon published the first modern intelligence test. Its main objective was to identify students needing help to meet school requirements. In collaboration with Simon, Binet published revisions of his intelligence scale.

Factorial Theories

The Partner Perspective in Sports: Empirical Science and Society Studies

This collection series examines the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) and independent American and former French colonies. It explores the development of the 19th century, including societal changes like technological advancements, transportation, demographic growth, social mobility, and bureaucratization. Modern sports are a parallel phenomenon to social development, culture, and globalization. Distinct dimensions of sociology are considered:

• Functional (organic): Society as an interconnected system.
• Marxist: Focuses on the struggle between different interest groups.
• Figurative: Examines how conduct is regulated.
• Structuralism: Analyzes social classes.
• Symbolic

Understanding Affectivity

Affectivity is a set of emotions, feelings, and passions that individuals experience internally in response to thoughts, events, or during their lifetime.

Characteristics of Affectivity

• They are natural, subjective, and often difficult to communicate fully. All individuals experience affectivity, which is expressed verbally and through gestures.
• Affectivity oscillates between opposing poles, such as joy and sorrow, attraction and rejection, pleasure and displeasure.

Its external manifestations are evident in an individual's demeanor. For example, if love is the dominant affect in a subject's life at a specific moment, it reflects joy, optimism, and enthusiasm for change. If that love is unrequited, it shows decline, pessimism,... Continue reading "Understanding Affectivity: Emotions, Feelings, and Passions in Psychology" »