Toys are important for the development of our children?

Let's see where's my mind today...

One of the great challenges and occupations of parents is to give their children the best opportunities for development. Thus, one of the most controversial aspects of raising a child is the type and amount of toys that should have, especially in these times when the offer is vast and varied. Literally, there is no place we go with children and not find a toy section, from the park, supermarkets, squares and everywhere they appear.

It is common the idea that a toy serves only to entertain, but if we know that more attention can be great tools for knowledge and learning. Of course, this depends on the qualities and possibilities that has the object that our children interact. Reflecting on this aspect is vital because, through the decisions we make on this subject can contribute to a healthy development or saturation that hinder meaningful learning.

From neuropsychology, he states that action is vital to gain knowledge as the brain creates neural networks (synapse) that become learning through interaction, discovery, movement and handling; In this sense there are many toys on the market that hamper these aspects, in fact, the most popular are those that prevent the child be creative, print them imagination and thus generate knowledge. (Farias, 2013)

For example, action figures or toys that have sounds, lights, movement and many colors are very common but they only serve for the child to observe them in performing their multiple exploits, merely press a button to start the action . In these toys no chance of play, interaction or movement.

The same situation occurs with video games, which are highly stimulating and generate anxiety and stress, are unfortunately becoming more common and parents are turning to them in an effort that children are quiet but the resulting consequences are serious, since difficulties concentration, delayed learning and socialization problems.

Another key aspect in the development of the child and takes neuropsychology, is the game as a volunteer and desirable activity, ie, as a source of internal motivation of the child and to be so essential that it is a free play, full possibilities and where necessary to reflect to solve obstacles, this is possible with simple objects and often no cost, like going to the park and let our children to interact with their peers, allowing them to play with boxes, dishes and other items all have at home, drawing, molding clay; these games are set in the understanding that the simpler the toy, the more likely.

Moreover, the amount of toys they have at their disposal is also important, as proposed by Jonh Payne in his book Parenting with simplicity: “El número de juguetes que tu niño tiene a la vista, y que puede usar, deberá reducirse de manera radical”. This is because, the fewer objects to play with, increases the degree of care and the ability for deep play; the fewer toys have experience less disconnection and burden, this can observe when children have many elements of play and only take one after another without stopping at any giving the perception that they need more toys, because those available are not enough, what it leads parents to a circle of endless consumption.


Reference:  Farías, I. (2013) Imporancia de los juguetes para el desarrollo de los niños. Recuperado de http://psic.mx/index.php/conversemos/item/115-importancia-de-los-juguetes-en-el-desarrollo-de-tu-hijo-una-perspectiva-neuropsicologica

Enthusiasm Help You to Learn

Where's my mind today?... 

When we talk about learn, we mean that is a unique process of development and personal growth that involves complex mental operations. Recent advances in neuroscience show that positive emotions promote learning. (Rodríguez Ruiz, 2015) For the process of learning to occur it is necessary that learners want to learn, enthusiasm promotes learning. 

I thinks that the enthusiasm works as a stimulant for the brain, facilitates the connection between neurons and enhances mental operations and therefore learning. Ensure excitement in the act of learning is often turned into a very complicated task. It really is where the information is a unique address traditional education systems, and learning becomes a routine, a global process that must be equal for all. In these educational systems using obsolete methods, the individuality of each child is not respected, it is not allowed to discover content, explore, give meaning and make it yours.

In contrast, traditional systems become a machining learning act, and thereby denature the process. All this leads to a logical disappointment, lack of motivation, lack of enthusiasm and an absence of learning. Finally we find a panorama of school failure who do not know to put that solution and do not fully understand the causes, as we move away from the understanding of the learning process.

Reference: Rodríguez Ruiz, C. (2015) El esntusiasmo favorece el aprendizaje. Recuperado de http://educayaprende.com/el-entusiasmo-favorece-el-aprendizaje/

Our society... This is psychology

Where is my mind?...

Today want to focus on subjects that involves 

psychology. As I mentioned in my introduction, actually I am preparing myself in the psychology and mental health area. In general terms is known as the equilibrium status between a person and its social and cultural ambient which guarantees it laboral, intellectual and social activities to achieve wealth and a good lifestyle. Mental health is a term used more as an analogy of what its known as health or physical condition, but related to it, there are more complex dimensions than the organic and physical functioning of the person. This term has also been defined multiple ways because of studies from different cultures. Its concepts includes wealthiness, autonomy, competition, emotional potential, and some others. On the other hand, precisions of the World Health Organization says that there are no official definitions about what mental health is and that any definition given to it will always be influenced by cultural differences.

There is a short relation between social psychology and mental health. In consequence of the instability of a person with a mental condition, it will be reflected in the society as well. We see how groups are created and communities inside of one big society, the divisions that occurs and how some groups are constantly marginated and left out. Social acceptance to people who suffers any mental condition is proven to be the best help and also the best way of prevention from mental disorders. Unfortunately, people with this kind of conditions are victims of discrimination, even from their own family, they are not accepted easily in the work nor the educational area or even in the community. The lack of knowledge about what a mental health condition means, it is another factor that has to do with marginalization. Young people have a high potential of minimizing possible disabilities if the social acceptance is big and if they receive the necessary help and services. Recuperation comes along with the social acceptance, as I mention before. Discrimination and stigma makes the process of recuperation a whole lot more difficult for those people with mental conditions.

Another of the subjects that relates the mental health and the social psychology is poverty. By this I do not mean that every poor person has a mental condition, but as it happens a lot in the explanation of the psychological phenomena's, the correlation between poverty and mental health follow a circular logic, making that the socioeconomic conditions levitate the chances of experimenting psychological problems, at the same time that the mental illness implies a bigger risk of social exclusion. Poverty suppose a composition of stressful situations, such as economic tensions, family conflicts, residence changes, unemployment, less educational opportunities, social discrimination, etc. Definitely, people who encounter this type of situations usually go through circumstances they hardly take control of, and their lives keep on going on on a constant life full of obstacles. This constant exposition to stressful events, has been related with negative consequences like for example, a higher incidence of depression, anxiety, postraumatic stress disease, addictions, social problems and delinquency, between many others. On the other hand, going around the circle, mental illness implies a higher risk of poverty. This way, psychological and social problems affect with the educational and laboral level that a person can reach, because a mental condition not treated implies, in many cases, a difficulty grade added. Also, people with mental health diseases, most of the times confront social stigmas and prejudices, which implies a barrier that maybe is more difficult to get through when it comes to finding a job and reducing the risk of poverty and exclusion.
We can observe that mental health themes has to do with many areas such as neuropsychology, developmental, social, educational and clinic psychology, etc. This way we can confirm that this is an area that has relevance, not only for the world of psychology and investigation, but it has big implications with the progress of of our society and the world in general. With out a doubt, this area is a present door open to the future.
Psychology is one of the most important sciences in the daily life of the individual, because it works with it behavior. Social and mental health, both helps people with problems that affects them like for example, violence, abuse, parent and child relations, communication and some others. The way of communication and social behave of the person or a group of people, are studies used to evaluate and treat the diseases and possible dangers that represents for society in general. Most of the mental diseases have a solution or at least a treatment which it can be effective if its applied on time.

Just like this, we want to break the vicious circle that unifies negative thing about social psychology and mental health, it requires a different focus, more flexible, and socially conscious among the health professionals. But, it also requires us to focus and establish our priorities as a society in those economical disadvantaged areas. We have to keep on mind that most of the people hold on and go through life conditions that risks their mental health. Remembering the increment of poverty, violence, abuse, etc. it is possible that the treatment of health problems that are associated to it, soon it becomes an emergency if its not the case already.

References:

De Carlo Santiago C, Kaltman S, & Miranda J (2013). Poverty and mental health: how do low-income adults and children fare in psychotherapy? Journal of clinical psychology, 69 (2), 115-26 PMID: 23280880
Madariaga, C. & Sierra, O. (2000). Redes sociales y pobreza. Barranquilla: Ediciones Uninorte.
Mebarak Moisés, et. al. (2009). Salud Mental: Un abordaje desde la perspectiva actual de la psicología de la salud. Psicología del Caribe. ISSN 0123-417x. N° 23: 83-112
Muñoz M, Pérez Santos E, Crespo M, Guillén AI. (2009). Estigma y enfermedad mental. Análisis del rechazo social que sufren las personas con enfermedad mental. Madrid: ed. Complutense.
Sica, C. (2014). Escuela para la vida. Centro de Altos estudios en Psicología Social. Recuperado de: www. contencionemocional.com/caeps/

Today I was looking about eating disorders. I found a short, simple and very interesting video. I consider it one of the saddest disorders for how affecting individuals and their families.

Stereotypes exist in our lives from cradle to our dead, and is due largely to the media and other forms of education. We women should feel proud for what we are and not for how we look. We are more women so we lived, not because we have the flat stomach. They must love ourselves and accept us for our personality and soul, not by the size of our breasts. Nor should we judge those who need flat stomach to feel beautiful, to feel more woman without wrinkles on the face and to large breasts who wants to walk eating the world. As Lydia Aquino says: "Up tits, up teeth and keep quiet complex above the Percocet that numbs the pain of not being happy staring in the mirror!"

But remember: If is a desorder, we should give help. Please, it is a desorder very dangerous!!

My first fight behind bars... giving love and help. (Week One)

Where's my mind today? Let's see...    

                                                         

I want to talk about when I have the opportunity of learn social psychology. The learning process was well enriching and the reality of it is that helped me a lot in my personal development.To get to know better why and how is it that people (including ourselves) think, feel and behave, social psychology gives us the answer to many questions, because we are difficult to explain and understand. I learned that to get work with social problems, not only we have to comment or present possible solutions, but we also have to give the necessary tools to achieve what that person wants to.

As people say: “Service is the act of give”; it is a satisfactory vocation that gives joy as much as the person who gives as to the person who receives it. The social psychology practicum, was indeed an important and necessary piece in my life. It was one of my biggests challenges, full of knowledge and opportunities to help and give my services to others. During this process, there were a lot of difficulties and feelings going through. Working with confined was a goal I always wanted to achieve. I am proud enough to say that I was able to make it; I finally got to work with confined people wich is an amazing population. To make the prevention program that our professor asked for, I had to overcome one of my biggests fear, comunication. This whole process required basically comunication, with my working group (classmates), comunication to do the necesity study, with the Correction and Rehab Department of Puerto Rico, with the professor, and so goes on. Why does this represent such a difficulty for me? I have never felt very comfortable insisting, calling and bothering other people to get somenthing I need. Most of the times I feel like I am making other uncomfortable or maybe it is not the right moment to call them and so I used to fail getting them. But, this time was the one I had to insist the most, just because if they gave me the opportunity to enter any penalty institution I had to take it and give the best of me to them. That was exactly what I did, I called and drove multiple times to get all I need it.

One of the biggests difficulties I dealt with was my working group, it did not worked the way I expected. I Think maybe they were not as interested as I was or they just wanted to pass the class and nothing else; the truth is I do not know the answer to that. Thank God and the proffesor, this little inconvinience could not stop the work from continuing, in fact, when we had to give our presentations, my group worked very good and the information they gave fluctuated propperly. I am also happy because I learned how to change my way of seeing things, I bacame more optimistic and now I know what I am capable of.I was able to get the aprobation of our program from the Correction and Rehab Department of Puerto Rico. Once we got there everything was different, an unique experience, the personal treat was great and we learned so much form them. And lets not forget about the confined… I mean WOW! My point of view changed completely, the group of confined they gave us to work with was amazing. It is sad to see educated people, respectful and with goals they want to complete, stay incareated because they failed to the society somehow. Obviously we can not generalize, I am not here to say all confined are good persons but I am not here to judge. I strongly believe in second chances and that is why I wanted to show you that even when obstacles come in the way, there are opportunities out there, its just that it gets a little bit harder to get. Optimmism and perseverance are the key, I can tell you, it is not easy but with help and effort you can make it through. It was very satisfactory to see people who has lost their hope, regain it just because we talked to them with our hearts, because we told them: “we are here because we believe in you” “I do not care about your past, I only care about your desire to achieve your goals” “I do not guarantee anything, but I am here to help”. It is even more gratefull to receive a “thank you” form someone who you have helped.

On the other hand, and to conclude, I must admit I am truly happy with the work I did and I am sure this will help me with my future. It is fundamental to adquire this kind of skills and develop everytime more and more as a better person. Also, I want to thank to Dr. Laurimar Reveron for her excelent work, she never denied me any kind of help, she is a role model. I want to finish with one word that describes my experience in this practicum: enriching.