Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act
1. From week 7 assignment, I learned that dreams result from various situations and body parts. For example, dreams can be wishes or dreams can result from physiological processes in the brain. This is according to various theories that are used to explain dreams. The theories include Freud wish fulfillment theory, information processing theory and physiological function. Another theory is activation synthesis theory. Freud wrote the wish fulfillment theory to help interpret dreams. The author argued that all dreams represented wish fulfillment.
The dreams represented desires that are repressed. In wish fulfillment theory human beings represent unconscious desires, thoughts and even motivation. The author argues that people are motivated by sexual instincts that are gotten from conscious awareness. Though people are not able to express the thoughts consciously, the thoughts are expressed through dreams. Freud argues that a wish is a kind of aspiration. He also states that a dream represents a state of activities as one would have wished them to be. Hence, the content of a dream is the fulfillment of the wish and the motive is the wish (William, 2007).
Apart from the wish fulfillment theory of dreams, the activation synthesis theory can also be used to explain dreams. The activation synthesis theory was developed by Allan Hobson. The author argues that dreams are caused by the physiological activities in the brain. The author claims that circuits in the brain are stimulated during REM sleep. This makes various regions that are involved in emotions, memories and sensations to be activated. For instance, it activates the amyglada and hippocampus. Then the brain processes the activity and interprets them. The brain also tries to develop meaning from the signals and this leads to dreaming (Kalat, 2010).
The theories above helped me interpret my dream. In the dream, I imagined living a stress free life as I had enough resources. For example, I had money and was happy. The dream was stimulated by various processes in the brain. In addition, the testimonies provided by different people about their financial freedoms stimulated the dream. This indicated that dreams are a wish (Kalat, 2010).
Week 8 assignment focused on war on drugs. The United States government has focused on fighting illegal drugs in the country. The illegal drugs include drugs that are taken without the prescription of a medical practitioner. Most people take illegal drugs for pleasure. The government has developed various policies to discourage consumption of psychoactive drugs. The psychoactive drugs have been used to treat various diseases. For example, they have been used to treat physical disorders and psychological disorders. From assignment 8, I have learned that people should not take drugs that have not been prescribed by the doctor, physician or any health officer.
This is because taking drugs that are not prescribed has more harm than benefits. First, it can lead to addiction. In this case, the person is not able to live without taking the drug. Second, taking psychoactive drugs affects the functioning of the brain and other body parts and can cause diseases. Hence, it is always good to take drugs that are prescribed. One should avoid taking illegal drugs like marijuana, cocaine and other drugs (Federal Food, Drug and cosmetic Act, 2010).
Week 9 assignment focused on individualistic culture and collective culture. From assignment 9, I learned the difference between collective culture and individualist culture. In individualistic culture, the relations between the family members and other people in the society are not strong. Most people focus on their goals, but not the common goal. In collective culture, the ties between family members and other people in the society are strong. In a collective culture, people are required to be loyal to the community values. The family is an important part in a collective culture and it should be respected. In addition, people are supposed to work together in a collective culture and ensure the community is health. Family members are required to help each other. They are supposed to sacrifice their needs for the sake of the community and family.
The selection of partners and careers should be in accordance with social norms. One is supposed to select a partner who will fit in the community. The community and family are involved in the selection of the partner. The career selected should be beneficial to the community. Hence, collective culture and individualistic culture differ in terms of norms and behaviors (Coon, 2009).
Lastly, week 10 assignment concentrated on aging. Aging is common in the society and people are not able to understand various challenges that elderly people in the society face. This has made it hard for people to take care of the elderly people. Elderly people undergo various development changes. For example, they are not able to see well and hear well as the ears and eyes do not function well.
In addition, elderly people find it hard to carry out their daily activities as they are unable to move from one place to another. Thus, most of the people rely on family members for support. In this case, elderly people should be given the necessary support so as to enable them live a happy life. The content from the four assignments can be applied in different areas in life. The content can be used to solve problems, situiations and make decisions.
What I have learned will be used to help me make the right decision about caring for different people in the society. Most people in the society are not aware of how to take care of aged people in the society and also advice people on drugs. In addition, people are not able to make the right decisions about drugs. In my case, the content learned will help in making decisions about drugs (Myers, 2004).
2. First, most people in the society take drugs that have not been prescribed by the doctor and this has affected them negatively. Lack of adequate information on drugs has made it hard for many people to make the right decision. For example, people are not able to differentiate illegal drugs and other drugs. Also, they are not able to get help from the health practitioners when taking drugs. Most studies have proved that psychoactive drugs have a negative effect on the body when not taken properly.
For instance, taking the drugs can affect the functioning of the brain and body. Drugs also lead to addiction as stated above. I have not been able to get enough advice from the medical practitioner when taking drugs. This is because is of ignorance and lack of knowledge. This has affected treatment of various diseases and resulted to complications. The information above has helped me make the right decision as I have decided not to take drugs that are not prescribed by the medical officers (Federal Food, Drug and cosmetic Act, 2010).
3. How I though about the decision before
Like other people in the society, I did not know the harm caused by illegal drugs. For instance, affecting the treatment of diseases and worsening the condition. I thought that people can take drugs so long as they are available. I did not consider taking drugs prescribed by the medical officers important (William, 2007).
How I think about it now
The content above has helped change my thoughts about drugs. Most of studies have shown that taking illegal drugs results to addiction and worsening of the health conditions. As a result I have seen the need to take drugs that are prescribed by doctors, physicians and health practitioners (Federal Food, Drug and cosmetic Act, 2010).
References that contributed to my thinking
There are different references that contributed to my thinking. This include the Federal Food, Drug and cosmetic Act.The federal food and cosmetic act helps people understand what are illegal drugs and the drugs that are considered illegal. It also helps one understand the effects caused by illegal drugs. The book ‘Psychology’ by Myers helped understand drugs and how they affect the body and functioning (Federal Food, Drug and cosmetic Act, 2010)
Reference
Coon,D.(2009).Psychology: A Journey. Cengage Learning
Federal Food, Drug and cosmetic Act. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/RegulatoryInformation/Legislation/FederalFoodDrugandCosmeticActFDCAct/default.htmon 12th April 2011
Kalat,J.W.2010).Introduction to Psychology. Cengage Learning
Myers,D.G.(2004).Psychology. Worth Publishers.
William,J.(2007).The Principles of Psychology, Volume 1. Cosimo, Inc
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