#PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet

[asynchronouslove]

What does it mean to be attracted to someone?

Interpersonal attraction is defined as an attraction between people that leads to a platonic or romantic relationship. Interpersonal attraction is a force that acts between two people, drawing them together and resisting their separation.

This is different from physical attractiveness because it doesn't necessarily involve views of what is and isn't considered beautiful or attractive. Rather, it's related to how much someone likes, dislikes, or hates someone.

PSY 532: Psychological Effects of the Internet, Unit 6: Socializing on the Internet

#psychology #interpersonal attraction

[jrwagner22]

Unit 1, Post 1

Society has always feared new technologies. In the past, things now considered great ways to spend time, such as chess, reading, and writing, were once considered dangerous and bad for you. This is reflective of people's fear of change, not the actual inherent danger in the technologies. Similarly, modern fears of the internet have no basis in actual science.

#Unit1Post1 #Unit1 #Welcome to the Internet #UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet

[hahatheoops]

Unit 1: Welcome to the Internet

My first week of being in Psychology 532: Psychological Effects of the Internet I have learned the inner workings of this class. I read the course syllabus and the course how to. I learned that it is important to follow instructions precisely or else I get points taken off for not following the instructions. I also learned about how to ask questions by asking the professor through email using a subject line (PSY 532: Question). Also, I learned the flexibility of this course along with many other things.

I learned how to adjust and control the size of the display screen, and how to access the course website that has the instructions for this course. I realized that it is important to bookmark this course website since I will be using it a lot. I also learned to upload a photo to my account on canvas by accessing my account settings page. In addition, I learned about how to access the transcript of YouTube videos and how to write a proper discussion post while embedding a URL and a YouTube video. 

Another thing that I learned in this course is how to make a unique screen name. In making a unique screen name you can use your life as a template, or use things that you like, or use other languages and more. So, the unique screen name that I came up with was hahatheoops. I took parts of my name and added oops since I am clumsy. Also, I found it interesting to find that having a screen name is a good Internet skill to learn. 

According to the Course How To, I learned how to properly respond to another student’s discussion board post by including sentences that start with “I like….” or “I agree…” or “I wonder...” I have to include at least two sentences that either start with the ones I listed. Then I wrote replies to my classmates and I got to learn about their schedule for this class and their favorite video and website along with many other things. 

During this week’s unit I got to watch a video that Professor Gernsbacher made called On the Internet? Seriously? The video described the basics of the Internet. Basically the Internet is the craze currently along with video games. Although the Internet is a huge part of our lives now there are many unknown parts of the Internet that people fear and think the Internet is dangerous. For instance, in the lecture video it talks about how googling things cause us to be forgetful and people stop using their own memories. 

However, even before the Internet people were scared about a lot of things. For instance, one of the articles I read called Why Chess Will Destroy Your Mind by Thompson stated that people were scared of playing chess because of the consequences it may have (causes children to spend less time playing physical games). Another shocking thing that I learned was that people used to be scared of books! I learned about it in this YouTube video. 

In another article, The Digital Age Is Making Us Smarter and the Kids Are Still All Right, by Thompson further explains that people are just scared of things that they are unfamiliar about. In this article it also describes that people were even scared of phonograms and radios because if they listened to recorded music there would be a decrease in human touch and turn those who listened to recorded music into emotionless humans. I learned from this article that the Internet does make us smarter though in various ways. We’re able to find information about anything in a blink of an eye.

Another thing that I learned in this unit was skills and strategies that would help me succeed in this class and future classes. The skills that I decided to pick were critical thinking, analytical thinking, and creativity. I learned that these skills would help me in many situations. For instance, in the healthcare field I can come up with a diagnosis and give proper treatment to cure the patient. Then the next three skills that I chose to develop are asking questions, managing goals and time, and communicating clearly. These skills are important and can help in the real world. For instance, when holding a career it is important to get your work done in a timely manner and communicate with others clearly to avoid confusion. Furthermore, it is important to ask questions when there is something you are confused about and unsure about to properly finish a task. Unfortunately, the real world does not stop for anyone and it is constantly moving.

The three strategies that I chose to develop were printing out all the assignments for that unit onto a paper, focusing on one assignment at a time, and then highlighting each and every word of an assignment when I am sure I am done with it. I learned that these skills can help me achieve my goals in this class. Also, I learned that by developing these skills I can help better myself.

Reflections

As I reflect on the things that I have learned in this unit. I think these are great skills that can accompany me when I use the Internet. I also think that there are several skills and strategies that will definitely help me in the future. For instance, asking questions can help me do my work properly and efficiently. In addition, I think that developing these skills and strategies properly can help others. By developing skills and strategies it allows for those too succeed in life or get to a place in life that they feel fulfilled. 

It was interesting to learn about the Internet and other things before the Internet that people were scared about. I was surprised to find that people were scared of a lot of things that they are unfamiliar with. As I continue to reflect I realize that people aren’t scared of the unknown, they are scared of the consequences that will happen because of the unknown. They are unsure what will happen when we start to use something that is unknown and unfamiliar.

[psych-eff-blog-uwmad-blog]

How to Email a Professor:

Adapted from Professor Gernsbacher’s PSY 532: Psychological Effects of the Internet lesson on How to Email a Professor. 

1. Use your university email account- Professors email accounts are widely available and are found on several directories, personal websites, research articles and so on. A personal account could possibly get deleted by your professor’s spam detectors. Don’t let your email get thrown out just because you sent it from your gmail account you’ve had since 6th grade. 

2. Use your professor’s last name in your greeting- Addressing professors in a formal and conscientious way reflects well on you, and many of them prefer to be addressed as Professor (LAST NAME). This is also important, as many professors deeply dislike just being referred to as “Professor”

3. Start with a new message- Do not go back into your inbox and simply find an email to reply to in order to send a message to them. It is more convenient, but it makes it seem like you are replying to a topic that you emailed them about several weeks ago.

4. Write an informative subject heading- This is especially important if your instructor tells you to use a specific subject heading when emailing them. Otherwise, make sure the subject line is descriptive and tells your professor what you are emailing them about. “Hello” and “A Question” are not really appropriate.

5. Do not address your professor by their first name unless you have been explicitly told it is okay- Some professors (and TAs) will allow you to use their first names to address them, but unless you have been given explicit permission always use the format in Tip #2. 

6. Write grammatically, spell correctly, and use appropriate capitalization- This goes without saying. 

7. Use paragraph breaks to help organize your message- Nobody wants to read a wall of text, and this may help you organize your ideas (especially if you have multiple questions).

8. Do not use your email to rant or whine- These are not enjoyable for anyone to read. They also elicit the opposite effect. If you have to get out any emotions, make sure you do them without hitting “send.” Simply delete the rant-filled email and try again. 

9. Write the body of the email message first and then add the recipient- This is a good guard against possibly sending an email with a typo or an email that is full of rants. 

#unit 4 #communicating via the internet #coursework #assignment #tumblr tags #college #emailing a professor #email etiquette

[psycheffectsoftheinternet-blog]

Welcome! For the past seven weeks, I’ve been immersing myself in UW-Madison’s online course, PSY 532: Psychological Effects of the Internet. Below you will find nearly two months of daily journal entries detailing what I learned on the given day, as well as my personal reflections on the material. Enjoy!

[jrwagner22]

Unit 13, Post 3

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is training your brain to recognize negative thoughts and reframe them positively. For example, if you burn dinner, you might think that you're incompetent or stupid or whatever. Reframing that as 'I made a mistake' is much better for your mental health.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Clinical Psychology on the Internet #Unit13 #Unit13Post3

[jrwagner22]

Unit 1, Post 2

Digital literacy skills, creativity, critical thinking, and people skills are considered some of the most vital skills for the evolving job market.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Welcome to the Internet #Unit1Post2 #Unit1

[jrwagner22]

Unit 2, Post 1

Online classes benefit learners in their asynchronity. I can take this class at any time of day, learning when my brain is most suited to it. I take it during the morning hours because that is when my ADHD medication is most effective. By about 5 PM, it will have worn off and I will be much less productive.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Unit2Post1 #Unit2 #Learning via the Internet

[jrwagner22]

Unit 2, Post 2

Online classes have a huge advantage over in-person schooling because they can reach massive numbers of people at a fraction of the cost. Khan Academy is free and tons of people learn from it. Stanford offered a class on AI free online and over 10,000 people enrolled.

#Unit2Post2 #Unit2 #Learning via the Internet #UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet

[jrwagner22]

Unit 2, Post 3

People think that online classes are the future because they are free and more accessible. Professor Gernsbacher's article implies that online learning is more effective for students. However, this has been the experience of exactly no one I've ever spoken to. I find Professor Gernsbacher's course to be very biased towards her beliefs.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Learning via the Internet #Unit2Post3 #Unit2

[jrwagner22]

Unit 3, Post 1

Traditional lectures don't engage students in the same way that online classes can. Online classes can also be cheaper, have less time commitment (no commute), and can be taken at the time that best suits each individual student's cognition.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Educating via the Internet #Unit3Post1 #Unit3

[jrwagner22]

Unit 3, Post 2

A meta-analysis from the Department of Education found that, across subjects, students performed better on online classes. Further, this held true for all different learner types.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Unit3Post2 #Unit3 #Educating via the Internet

[jrwagner22]

Unit 3, Post 3

Students perform better on online courses, especially online courses in which the students collaborate with each other or are directed by their instructor. When you sit a student down in front of a computer to do their coursework, if they are just told to learn about something, it won't be as successful as if they are guided.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Unit3 #Educating via the Internet #Unit3Post3

[jrwagner22]

Unit 4, Post 1

There are a number of guidelines for emailing professors that we covered this unit. All of them were things that I (and every college student I spoke with) already knew, such as using your school email.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Unit4 #Unit4Post1 #Communicating via the Internet

[jrwagner22]

Unit 4, Post 2

When surveying people over the internet vs. over the phone, you get different answers. People are more honest over the internet when there isn't a person on the other end that they feel is judging them.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Unit4Post2 #Unit4 #Communicating via the Internet

[jrwagner22]

Unit 4, Post 3

Texting (including the use of "textisms," such things as lol or gr8) don't actually hurt children's grammar. In fact, a study found that there might be a slight possible correlation between use of textisms and improved grammar performance.

#UW-Madison #SummerClasses #PSY532 #TermProject #College #ProfessorGernsbacher #Psychology #PsychologyOfTheInternet #School #PSY 532: Psychology of the Internet #Unit4 #Unit4Post3 #Communicating via the Internet