Week 6 – Perspectives on Therapy & Positive Psychology
Week 5 – Mental Health and Mental Illness
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Week 4 – Sleep and Dreams
Why do we sleep and why do we dream? Two big questions that have intrigue humans for thousands of years…
Good quality sleep is essential for a healthy life, both mentally and physically. Scientists have made many interesting discoveries in recent years, yet many questions still remain. When it comes to dreams we are all intrigued. I look forward to opening up this fascinating world…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Week 3 – Problem Solving
See Home Page for the steps we used in class which I’ll go back over on another date. (Also posted below)
I begin these notes with some input about goal directed problem solving. This is the most commonly used approach. It’s easy to follow and is familiar to most people. Most businesses and professions tend to use it to deal with everyday problems. It’s a well used practice. However, quite often we’re called upon to solve ill-defined problems, issues for which we have attempted to find solutions, but somehow failed to find a satisfactory solution.
In our times, and especially when problems are ill-defined, we can focus on finding the best solution rather than spending too much time focusing on the problem. In our Tuesday class, we focussed on Solution based problem solving. Cognitive psychology researchers have found that successful problem solvers often work forward in solving problems. Instead of setting goals, they consider possible solutions, then they select one and attempt to use it to solve the problem. We discussed using the example of a teacher having a disruptive child in their class. We attempted to follow a strategy that involved consulting with relevant people to gather more information and insights, and also considering the available resources. We discovered there were serious issues in the family and it was best to contact child welfare services. This was a fictitious example and an imagined outcome. In reality, there are several more possible outcomes that are more likely.
First, you might like to have a look at the goal oriented approach, or scroll down for the steps in a working forward strategy.
Goal Oriented Problem Solving
Solution oriented Problem Solving Cycle
1. Problem Identification
a. something’s gone wrong!
b. present situation is undesirable!
c. there is a goal you would like to achieve…
2. Defining the problem
There are different ways to represent the same problem e.g.
problem people > my husband is an alcoholic
people problems > how can I live with an alcoholic/ disruptive pupil / bad neighbours (compromise?)
owning a problem (separating your problem from the other person’s problem) > my nerves are gone because of issues with my neighbours
Can you share the problem? /work through the problem solving cycle together… or with friends/ family
3. Strategy Formulation
Brainstorm on as many possible solutions as you can think of (divergent thinking)
Organise the solutions in order of preference
At this stage, don’t eliminate any possible solution no matter how absurd or undesirable
Select the solution you feel is most desirable and achievable (convergent thinking)
Keep your list somewhere safe because you might have to go back to it if your chosen solution fails…
4. Organising Information
Note down your own knowledge and skills in relation to the solution
Gather more information > talk to people/ find out what they know/ their views
Go online/ find a book etc. > gather some expert information/ diverse views
Consult an expert if necessary/ GP/ Spiritual advisor/ Student counsellor etc.
5. Resource Allocation
Weight up the costs (Cost/Benefit Analysis):
Time
Money
Equipment
Space
Support
Emotional energy
Available expertise and support
6. Monitoring
Keep an eye on how things are going as you begin to implement your solution:
Are you getting closer to a resolution
Are things going according to plan
Are there new problems cropping up
Do you still think that your solution will work
Have you learned more about your problem
Do you need to re-define or re-frame the problem
7. Evaluation
Assessing the outcome > have you reached a satisfactory solution
Ongoing evaluation > involves monitoring your solution to ensure that it continues to work
Identify new problems/ new resources/ new strategies
Am I gaining new insights into the nature of the problem?
Have I discovered my own blind spots?
Are there things about myself that I can change to avoid such issues in the future?
Can I see how I might have played a role creating the problem by how I react?
Am I gaining wisdom and what is wisdom anyway?
Does your problem need to be re-defined?
The problem solving cycle can begin again if you learn more about the problem or discover more changes are needed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Week 2 – The Ecology of Human Development
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
martinacarroll 