This assignment started out by completing the unit 14 review sheet. After this, we had to look back on the first page of the course syllabus in the section titled “What will I learn in this course?” and remind ourselves of the 14 course objectives. After turning in the review sheet, I had to read a list of 17 skills that employers value, as all of these skills have been developed and worked on throughout the course. After doing this, I have officially completed the course!

As usual, the review sheet is cumulative, so I had to fill out the pages for units one through thirteen before tacking the page for unit fourteen. But, once I got to page 14, the first thing it asked me was to identify at least one way that secondary data can be mined from the Internet to answer a research question.

I explained that for an assignment this unit, I chose to explore the question “Can Tweets Provide Data about Heart Disease?”. In the study included, They mined secondary data, tweets, from Twitter, analyzing the tweet contents from each county, and measuring the heart disease mortality rates in each county as well. They found that expressions of negative emotion like anger or stress were associated with higher heart disease risk within each county. They also found that positive emotions such as excitement and optimism are related to lower risk levels for heart disease. If a social media platform is able to detect signs that help predict future disease, maybe social media and the internet in general can be used to help detect signs of other negative future outcomes and answer other research questions.

Next, it asked me to identify three previous predictions about the Internet, made decades ago, that have come true. The first prediction I am mentioning about technology that came true is from Nikola Tesla in 1926, in which he said that “We shall be able to communicate with one another instantly, irrespective of distance”. This did come true, as now we can message and call people around the globe. Second, in 1976, Arthur C. Clarke predicted that “we’re going to get devices which will enable us to send much more information to our friends. They’re going to see us, and we’re going to see them. We’ll be able to extend, exchange pictorial information, graphical information, data, books”. This did come true, as we can see others and they can see us through apps such as FaceTime and Skype, and we can share graphs and books and pictures through messaging apps. Finally, in 1993, AT&T predicted that we could receive “driving directions from a computer in the car’s dashboard” and take a meeting from a beach while your coworkers were stuck in the office. This came true, as through our mobile phones and car dashboards, there are GPS systems that can give us every direction we need to get to a certain destination. Also, with video chatting apps that I mentioned before, you can participate in a meeting from other locations if you cannot make it to the office.

After this, it asked me to identify three predictions that I have about the future of the Internet. First, I think that phones will be able to connect to more and more things around the house. For example, the internet will find a way to connect to things such as ovens, fans, blenders, and washing machines, so you can control these appliances without directly making contact with them. Second, I predict that the internet will continue to get faster and more efficient. There will be less buffering, you will be able to search for information more quickly, and things like this, because the internet is continuing to adapt and grow and improve. Thirdly, I predict that internet use will grow the most in developing nations. The internet is already so prominent in first-world nations, and with the passing of time, I think it will become more utilized by countries that are not so wealthy.

That section we had to reread on the syllabus explained that by the end of the course, I should be able to …

(1) Identify nine previous technologies or past-times that were previously feared — and appraise how those fears parallel fears about the Internet.

(2) Assess five principles of learning on which Internet-based higher education capitalizes.

(3) Evaluate five challenges that college students face today and how Internet-based education can tackle each challenge.

(4) Critique the claim that the Internet is making interpersonal communication briefer and less formal.

(5) Illustrate four intentional and four unintentional incidents in which the Internet has amplified mass communication.

(6) Connect the social psychological principle of similarity attraction to the popularity of online dating apps; connect interpersonal aggression to the phenomena of online bullying and trolling.

(7) Interpret how and why emotional contagion spreads through the Internet; hypothesize why there are so many photos, gifs, and videos of cats on the Internet.

(8) Identify how each of six sources of motivation can affect Internet use; describe five reasons why people binge watch (TV shows or movies).

(9) Adjudicate four reasons why the Internet is not changing our attention spans.

(10) Discriminate three primary decision-making heuristics and generate an example of how each applies to Internet use.

(11) Relate two positive effects of Internet use on aging and two on child development.

(12) Explain how much variance in Internet activities is accounted for by personality factors; describe four famous selfies made prior to the Internet.

(13) Evaluate whether Internet-based psychological therapy works as well as in-person therapy.

(14) Formulate two ways that secondary Internet-data (Facebook likes, Tweets, Wikipedia clicks, etc) can answer psychological research questions.

Finally, the list of skills that employers value included a variety of cognitive, technological, communication, social, and personal skills that psychology can offer. More specifically, it told us that all these skills have been developed through the assignments in this course.

Reflecting on this course, the review sheet was pretty standard. Since it was the last unit of the course, it allowed me to take one last look at the main points from every unit. Seeing and filling out all of the information one last time undoubtedly solidified a lot of the information into my mind. Now, if anyone is talking about things related to the internet, I can recall what I learned and what I talked about in these review sheets, and can confirm or deny the points they may be making.

Additionally, it was cool back to look at that early section of the syllabus, and see that the objectives coincided directly with the questions on each unit of the review sheet. I somehow had not put this together before, even though I had read the whole syllabus multiple times and interacted with the review sheet often! It was cool to see the connection here as the end of the course is here.

It was also cool to read the list of skills that are developed in psychology and this class more specifically. When completing each individual assignment, I do not often think I am developing skills. However, when piecing the whole semester together, there are so many different types of assignments I completed, and ways of completing them. So, when reading through each skill, I was able to confirm that I worked that skill in some way throughout the course.

This is my final assignment blog post…. It is crazy how fast the semester flew by, and that I am basically done with junior year. Looking back at this project, I truly believe that making extensive blog posts for every assignment really helped me take in the course material. Although it was often frustrating to make a post every single day, it forced me to interact with the course, to learn and review, and I think it was very valuable looking back.

I want to take this time to thank Professor Gernsbacher, my fellow classmates, and anyone else who may have stumbled into this blog. You all have helped me complete this course to the best of my ability, and I could not have done it without you. This is a great course and I am confident that it will continue to make a positive impact on many students in the upcoming years!

The only step in this assignment was to complete the end of course survey. On the survey, they asked about the features and principles of the course we liked, what we thought about professor Gernsbacher and the course content, and other questions regarding the class.

I praised the class by checking nearly all the boxes when asked about what I liked, and giving top ratings to questions about the course content and Professor Gernsbacher. This was not fake, I legitimately answered in this way because I truly felt that the content and teaching was very effective. I learned a lot, was treated with the utmost respect, and was given a lot of unique opportunities that were not a part of other courses.

Reflecting on this assignment, I enjoyed the opportunity to rate the course and professor Gernsbacher. Since I really enjoyed the experiences I had in this class, I was excited to share my positive thoughts with the survey.

Additionally, this had to be the most simple and quick assignment we have been assigned throughout the whole semester. This is appreciated because of all the other assignments and exams we have going on at this point in the semester.

There is not much else to say here. Since there was only one step and there was not any course material being learned, this accurately sums up the assignment.

This assignment revolved around turning in this blog, better known as my term project! I have 2 blog posts after this remaining, but I will complete those afterwards. Since my project medium was a blog, I had to embed the link in my discussion board post, following the directions give in the “Course How To”. Along with embedding the link, I had to write at least one sentence identifying both your Term Project and its medium.

So, I created my discussion board post, embedding the link to this blog. I made sure to identify the term project and its medium, stating it was a daily journal in which I itemize the course content along with my detailed reflections, through the medium of a blog on a website called Word Press.

Reflecting on this assignment, it felt great to turn in the term project. I have put so many hours into this blog, and it is so rewarding to know that the hard work is coming to an end, and I can sit back and be proud of myself.

It is true that I still have to complete assignment 5 and assignment 6, but I am so close to the end of this course. It is crazy to think about how fast the time has flown! I am thankful and sad with how quick it all went by. Either way, I can take away a lot of positive things from this term project and from this course, so I am glad I was a part of it.

Since this assignment involved no learning of course content, there is not much else I can reflect on, which is why this post will be much shorter than the majority of the assignments throughout the course.

This assignment gave us the opportunity to redo a previous assignment that we did not receive full credit on. We had to make a post on the discussion board, identifying which post we were redoing, why we chose this specific assignment, and posting the entire assignment we are redoing.

I chose to re-do Unit 1: Assignment #5. The reason that I have chosen to redo this assignment is because this is the one assignment in the course in which I did not earn full credit.

I received a 1/3 initially and then I made adjustments to get back to 2/3. Since I initially received a 1/3, I could not get back to full credit, even when I made the adjustments to make sure I followed all of the directions for the assignment. So, here I am posting my adjusted assignment that follows all of the necessary instructions. 

This assignment involved reading a large handful of articles, handouts and infographics that included learning about many skills and strategies that may be good to work on and master in this course and in life in general. After this we had to choose the skills and strategies we wanted to work on in particular, and to talk about these skills with someone we know

The 3 skills I chose from a-d were creativity, computer skills, and self-confidence, because I find these very important, and I think I need improvement with them. Creativity is important because it allows you to solve problems, create ideas, and adapt to unexpected situations. Computer skills are important is our world is becoming more and more focused on technology with each passing day. Self-confidence is critical because when you truly believe in your abilities, the sky is the limit for what you can accomplish. 

The 3 skills I chose from e-h were problem-solving, asking questions, and taking risks, which are all things I want to get better at. Problem-solving is vital in any job because things do not always go as expected, and you have to be able to think on the spot and resolve issues. Asking questions is important because no one knows everything, and being able to ask for help is the first step to learning something new. Taking risks can be important because it can lead to new discoveries and can teach important lessons. I plan on improving these skills in the environment of this course.

The 3 strategies I chose from i-m were taking initiative, working ahead, and paying attention to details. Taking initiative is important because it is something that every good leader does, and it shows others that you care about the job you are doing. Working ahead is something I do sometimes, but I should do it more because it allows you to be prepared if something unexpected occurs in life. Paying attention to detail is key, as it applies to all facets of life, and ensures that you aren’t missing out on anything important. 

These 3 strategies I just mentioned are things I will do to perform well in this course. I will take initiative by making sure all of my assignments are fully completed and submitted on time, and asking for help from the professor if need be. I will work ahead by completing assignments well before their due dates. I will pay attention to detail by copying all assignment instructions into a word document and highlighting steps as I complete them. Following these strategies will allow me to succeed in this course, while also allowing me to grow important skills!

I told one of my best friends at school, his initials are DC, about the skills and strategies I have chosen. I decided to tell him because we often have conversations about life, and how we can be the best versions of ourselves. I figured that by telling him, he could hold me accountable as I try to improve, and maybe he will try some of these skills and strategies too!

Reflecting on this assignment, I thought it was a very good idea. It makes sense that throughout a whole semester, there are chances for each student to hit some obstacles along the way and not perform as well on an assignment as they wanted to. So, giving us the chance to correct one of these assignments was appreciated. The assignment I messed up on occurred very early on, when I did not know the course well, so it was nice to be able to go back and fix the problems I had encountered previously.

I also really appreciated the simplicity of this assignment. Essentially, we were just told to go back and fix an assignment, and post the new, completely fixed assignment on the discussion board. This made everything very easy to follow. Additionally, as mentioned before, with finals season coming up, it is nice to have some easier assignments, so we can put more focus on things we may be more stressed about currently.

This assignment started out by reading and watching a handful of articles and videos relating to predictions about wireless communication and the internet. These predictions spanned from 1926 until the modern day. Following this, we had to make a discussion board post in which we identified 5 previous predictions that have come true, and to make 3 predictions myself about the future of the internet.

I am not going to explain every prediction article, because the majority of the big predictions that were mentioned are listed in my discussion board post recap, which is located below. However, I will briefly touch on the videos and articles that did not include predictions.

There is a video of Katie Couric resisting the internet back in 1995. She claimed that she already had enough ways to get information, and that the internet could be annoying because it is not always great to have too much information on your plate. However, we learned that ironically, she ended up being global news anchor of Yahoo News, which is a completely Internet-based news outlet.

An article by Douglas Adams was written when the internet was new. He explains a concept we have talked about before, that new technologies are feared, especially by people who are over 30 years old when it was invented. He reinforces that since the internet is new, no one really understands it yet, but that we have to try to, and that it could bring people together.

Finally, there was a video of Steve Jobs introducing the first iPhone. People gave thunderous applauses as Jobs introduced the iPhone as a combination of an iPod with touch screen controls, a revolutionary mobile phone, and a breakthrough internet communicator.

The first prediction I am mentioning about technology that came true is from Nikola Tesla in 1926, in which he said that “We shall be able to communicate with one another instantly, irrespective of distance”. This did come true, as now we can message and call people around the globe.

Second, Nikola Tesla in 1926 also predicted that referring to phones, “A man will be able to carry one in his vest pocket”. This came true, as mobile phones have developed and now nearly everyone has one and carries it around in their pockets everyday.

Third, in 1976, Arthur C. Clarke predicted that “we’re going to get devices which will enable us to send much more information to our friends. They’re going to see us, and we’re going to see them. We’ll be able to extend, exchange pictorial information, graphical information, data, books”. This did come true, as we can see others and they can see us through apps such as FaceTime and Skype, and we can share graphs and books and pictures through messaging apps. 

Fourth, in 1976, Arthur C. Clarke also predicted that we will be able to “tell the machine, I’m interested in such and such items, sports, politics, or so forth. And the machine will hunt the main central library and bring all of this to you, selectively”. This did come true, as we can search for any specific information on sites such as Google, and we can even ask “Siri” certain questions, and she will search online for what you asked for.

Fifth, in 1993, AT&T predicted that we could receive “driving directions from a computer in the car’s dashboard” and take a meeting from a beach while your coworkers were stuck in the office. This came true, as through our mobile phones and car dashboards, there are GPS systems that can give us every direction we need to get to a certain destination. Also, with video chatting apps that I mentioned before, you can participate in a meeting from other locations if you cannot make it to the office. 

As for my own predictions about the future of the internet, first I think that phones will be able to connect to more and more things around the house. For example, the internet will find a way to connect to things such as ovens, fans, blenders, and washing machines, so you can control these appliances without directly making contact with them.

Second, I predict that the internet will continue to get faster and more efficient. There will be less buffering, you will be able to search for information more quickly, and things like this, because the internet is continuing to adapt and grow and improve.

Thirdly, I predict that internet use will grow the most in developing nations. The internet is already so prominent in first-world nations, and with the passing of time, I think it will become more utilized by countries that are not so wealthy. 

There are definitely so many more things that can change in the future of the internet, but these are just 3 of my predictions. It would be cool if they came true!

Reflecting on this assignment, the first thing I think is that it is cool how so many technological feats regarding the internet were accurately predicted! I was surprised that these correct predictions went all the way back to 1926 with Nikola Tesla, but it was exciting to read about. This goes to support the thought that if you can dream it, you can do it. People really want certain accomplishments to be reached, and they worked hard enough to make these things happen.

Reading the articles regarding the internet being worried about were not surprising. Throughout the course, it has been often emphasized that people often fear or scoff at new technology, and claim it will just be a fad or will have negative consequences on society. So, the internet is no exception, and seeing what people said about it back when it was new was not surprising, but kind of funny thinking about it knowing what we know now.

The part where we had to make our own predictions was interesting, and was actually much more difficult than I thought it would be. The internet has already accomplished so many feats, so it was hard to think of things that it has not accomplished yet! However, even though it was hard, it allowed me to think critically and creatively, so it was a valuable step to include in the assignment!

This assignment started out by reading 2 abstracts describing how internet-based data can be used to answer research questions. Following this, we had to choose to answer one question from a list, and complete its associated activities. I chose “Can Tweets Provide Data about Heart Disease?”, which involved reading 2 articles. After this, we had to create a discussion board post, answering the question we chose by referring to information from the articles, and explaining why we chose to answer that specific article.

The first abstract discussed using social media to study large patterns of behavior. It discussed that having access to massive social media datasets has allowed population structure and human behavior to be measured on a large scale. The second abstract discusses the connection between large amounts of data and public health. It says that information can be translated into societal well-being, and that it may be challenging, but possible.

As mentioned previously, for this assignment, the question I chose to explore was “Can Tweets Provide Data about Heart Disease?”.

After reading the two articles, the answer I have for this question is simply yes.  The Eichstaedt et al.’s (2015) article was a research article discussing the question. In the study, they examined the tweets from people from 1347 US counties, measured for “anger, anxiety, positive and negative emotions, positive and negative social relationships, and engagement and disengagement”, and measured heart disease mortality rates in each county.

According to the Penn News’ (2015) article, expressions of negative emotion like anger or stress were associated with higher heart disease risk within each county. They also found that positive emotions such as excitement and optimism are related to lower risk levels for heart disease. 

I chose to answer this question because I had truly no idea that Twitter or a social media site like that could help predict who may contract heart disease. However, it caught my eye and I thought it sounded super interesting. If a social media platform is able to detect signs that help predict future disease, it is big news, and maybe it can be used to help detect signs of other negative future outcomes. 

Reflecting on this assignment, the first thing I want to say is that I once again appreciate the choice the students were given. There was a list of 8 questions, and we got to choose which one we wanted to learn about and answer. Having the choice made me more excited about learning, and more engaged throughout the reading and discussion board process. It is nice that there seems to have been at least one assignment per week that we received a choice like this.

Additionally, I found the topic I explored to very very interesting. Honestly, I really had not considered the possibility of social media posts being related to disease prevalence rates before. However, thinking about it, it really is a brilliant idea, and showcases the point of the assignment, that data can be used to answer research questions. Especially when this may help identify things related to disease, it is not only interesting, but important to learn more about this topic.

I also appreciated the simplicity of the assignment. Professor Gernsbacher mentioned in an email that since we may be stressed because of finals coming up, she made this unit easier compared to the other units, so we would be able to succeed while not being overly stressed. It was a very classy move by the professor, and it did not go unnoticed by me. The students appreciate this move for sure.

This assignment started out by completing the unit 13 review sheet. Following this, I took a screenshot of the overview of my current unit for the term project, and included it in a document in which I explained the work I have done so far for my term project. After completing these things, I had to upload them to canvas through an assignment link.

As the usual assignment goes, the review sheet was cumulative. So, before completing the page for unit 13, I first had to fill out the pages for units one through twelve. Once I arrived at the 13th page, the first thing I asked me was to briefly explain why psychiatrists are unsure whether there is such a thing as Internet addiction.

I stated that according to the lecture video from assignment 1 of this unit, there is considerable debate about if internet addiction exists, the first reason being because all new technology has been feared. She describes that something new comes along, people do not think it will catch on, but when it does, it is called a fad, and when this fad becomes very popular, people call it an addiction. For example, we have talked about how people have feared things such as novels, television, and the telephone to be addictive, when in reality, this does not seem to be the case.

Additionally, even if people are addicted to things on the internet, the internet acts as a medium, rather than the addiction itself. For example, some people are addicted to internet shopping, internet gaming, internet gambling, and internet pornography, but these people were likely addicted to the offline versions of these activities beforehand. The internet is likely not the addiction, but just the way people can access other addictions.

For these reasons, even though the internet is very popular in today’s society, it seems unlikely or at least questionable that internet addiction is a legit thing.

Next, it asked me to briefly describe what Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is. I said that according to an article and a video from assignment 3, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is a form of mental health counseling that includes attending a limited number of sessions, helping you to become aware of inaccurate or negative thinking, and sometimes helping to treat mental disorders. It does not always work, but can generally help people manage difficult life situations.

CBT allows people to change the way they think about things, which in turn can affect the way we behave. This is why it is called Cognitive-Behavioral therapy, because our thoughts and behavior can affect one another.For example, you may have a negative thought about a certain aspect of your life, which could lead to negative behaviors, and over time this turns into a cycle. The goal of this therapy is to break the cycle, to change the thinking and the behavior, leading to an improvement in mood. CBT can be hard work, and it is not for everyone, but it can be helpful for many. CBT can take place either in person or online.

Finally, it asked if internet-based Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy works as well as in-person administered Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy. To this I answered yes, which we learned based on the abstracts of 2 meta-analyses from assignment 3.

Moving on to the term project document, I explained that my term project is a daily journal that includes itemizing the course content along with my detailed reflections, through a blog on this site, Word Press. 

Documenting the work I have done so far, as of today, I have made 77 blog posts. There is one post for every single assignment throughout the entirety of the course. These blog posts have occurred at a rate of at least one per day, and earlier on in the project, I would often make 2 to 3 posts a day. 

Now that I have caught up to the current unit and assignment, I generally just make one post each day. If I have already blogged about all of the assignments, I create a unit review post, which I had to do for the first time in unit 12. 

As always, I spend more than 2 hours per unit on the term project, as each blog post is carefully thought out and constructed. At the bottom, I added the screenshot of the list of recent blog posts, which includes the post titles as well as when they were each posted.

Reflecting on this assignment, the review sheet once again was a good way for me to review both some main points from this unit, as well as some big points we were supposed to learn each unit along the way. Seeing them again and again each week does a great job to ensure that this material enters our brain each week, which in turn will likely lead us to remember it for longer. Even though it can get boring to type the same information each week, it still serves a specific, productive purpose.

As for the term project document, this is even more similar each week, since it just asks for my progress. So, essentially, I give an update of the number of total blog posts I have made, and make some minor adjustments when explaining my project and what it is like. However, as I have said before, it is cool to see the updated number of blog posts. 77 blog posts is a lot, and a lot of time went into each one. It makes me proud of all the work I have done!

It is crazy to think that one week from now, I will be submitting my last review assignment and making my last blog post! It has been quite the semester!

This assignment started out by reading 3 articles about using cognitive-behavioral therapy tips in order to achieve positive outcomes. After reading these, I had to meet with my chat group for one hour. In the chat group, we first had to each chat about our term projects, including our progress and how we are feeling about it. Next, we had to act as CBT therapists, and discuss some techniques we learned from the articles that we thought may help our other chat group members get through their anxieties and stresses regarding their own projects. We ended by saying goodbye to our chat groups, since this was the final chat we had with them, and in the course in general!

The first article discussed cognitive restructuring exercises that can help improve mood and reduce stress. The exercises they included were practice noticing when you are having a cognitive distortion, track the accuracy of your thoughts, behaviorally testing your thoughts, evaluating evidence for and against your thought, mindfulness meditation, and self-compassion. They suggested that following some of these techniques will be successful in overcoming your mental struggles related to a stressor!

The second article discussed self-help related to CBT. It suggested using realistic and balanced thinking, rather than unrealistic and unhelpful thinking. It says that being more of your own thoughts is important, and to notice changes in emotion.It finally suggested to right down some realistic thoughts and coping statements, so you can look at them if you are ever feeling too distressed.

The third article discussed how to use cognitive-behavioral therapy to avoid procrastination. It discusses that when someone is practicing avoidance behaviors, and it is easy to get overwhelmed, but there are ways to get through this. They suggest setting SMART goals in order to break down your goal into achievable steps. SMART is an acronym for specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time bound.

For my group’s final chat, we started with talking about our term projects and how we were feeling about them.  Erin started by telling my group members that I chose the deep dive option with the media being a tumblr blog.  Her research question was “how is the internet affecting our attention.”  Since she already turned in my term project, she was mostly feeling anxious about the choices she made with her blog, and anxious that she didn’t do enough to fully answer the research question. 

Seraph suggested that if Erin had any concrete changes she wanted to make, she might still be able to do that.  I said that hard work pays off and is recognized. 

Seraph said that her term project was the whole course option.  She chose to write summaries with high school students as her audience, and right now she’s working on finalizing everything and making sure to not sound too dogmatic.  She is also trying to find pictures and gifs that she can add to make her blog fun.  Overall, she’s just feeling overwhelmed about all her other course assignments. 

I did the whole course option and made daily blog posts with my reflections on the course content.  So far, I am about 80 posts in and am hoping to finish as soon as possible.  I am feeling very good about his project and feel good about the amount of hard work and detail that has gone into it.  In the beginning, I felt a little stressed because I was falling behind, but when I caught up, it was fine.

I am is feeling stressed about another class where I haven’t heard back about a paper grade yet.  Seraph and Erin agreed that not hearing back about grades can be really stressful.  I started out by saying that Erin’s anxieties might stem from cognitive distortion, and she should track the evidence for and against my thoughts.  I suggested writing 2 columns as exemplified in the Anxiety BC article. 

Seraph suggested that Erin try to do self compassion.  Next, Seraph seems to be on a really good track with her term project, so we didn’t need to go over SMART goals, but she suggested that she could try mindfulness meditation to ease the overwhelming feeling of finals.  I suggested she could try self-compassion and remind herself that she is probably doing a great job, and shouldn’t worry too much about a minor area. 

Erin suggested that I try to challenge any negative thought about getting his grades back and writing out why he might be worried and why those feelings might not be rational.  Seraph suggested tracking the evidence of the negative thoughts and possibly emailing the professor or TA for updates.  She also suggested mindfulness practice and working on focusing on the present. 

We concluded the chat by thanking one another for our participation and hard work throughout our time together.

Reflecting on the assignment, I thought it was cool to read the three articles on CBT. Usually, when I think of CBT, I think of it involving a therapist, rather than trying to change things on my own. However, this broadened my horizons, and included some great suggestions for if I end up being stressed. I thought it was especially smart to include the article on procrastination, since college students face this issue quite often generally.

Additionally, the last chat group chat went very well. We all did a great job explaining our term project situations and giving advice to one another on how to improve our mental situations regarding the project and other stressors.

It is bitter sweet that this was the last chat. I am thankful that the semester is nearing an end because I have worked hard and want summer to come. However, I have enjoyed chatting with my chat group each week. They are both very kind people and made the chats more enjoyable than I expected going in.

This assignment started out by reading all of our classmates’ discussion board posts from unit 13 assignment 2, which was about internet-based therapy. Following this, we had to remind ourselves from the course syllabus of the best way to reply to someone else’s discussion board post. Finally, we had to reply to two students’ discussion board posts, including one post of someone who read the same article as us, and one who read a different article than us.

No one in my section ended up reading the same article that I did, so I responded to 2 students who read different articles than myself. The first response was to a girl named Stella, who read an article about alcohol screening and intervention.

I started out my response by saying that I have a connection with her, as I also drink alcohol and had to do the AlcoholEdu program. Similarly, that program failed to impact my drinking habits for the most part, at least to my knowledge.

I agreed with her point that the information provided through this UW alcohol course was a positive thing. Even if it does not necessarily effect how much you choose to drink, I do think that it is advantageous to know about the effects alcohol can have, so you can have the knowledge if you end up needing it later.

I like how she explained the study. She gave thorough information about the procedure, the participants and the results, leading me to become confident in my understanding of the article. Her explanations also made me confident that she took the time to read the article thoroughly.

She mentioned that the alcohol intervention from the study only resulted in minor successes. I wonder what could be changed in the intervention for it to become more successful. It is an important topic, as alcoholism or unsafe amounts of alcohol consumption can have major negative effects.

The second student I responded to was a girl named Taylor, who read an article about texting intervention effects on quitting smoking.

I started off my response by thanking her for sharing her experience about someone in her life who has failed to quit smoking. I have a connection to this, as I have also seen some of my friends try to quit smoking and fail. 

I really liked her explanation of the study. She provided so much information that I feel like I just read the article myself! I appreciated the time she put into reading the article and making this post, because it certainly helped me grasp the necessary information about this study. 

She thought that the intervention was mostly successful, which I agreed with. Quitting smoking seems very difficult because it is addictive, but in this study, the intervention group was much more successful than the control group, even if it was not statistically significant. Even if these programs cannot dramatically improve quitting rates, even a modest change in rates would be worth it, because smoking can be so damaging to a person’s health. 

I wonder if there is anything that can be changed about the study design or procedure that could raise the rates of quitting smoking even more. Maybe if the texts were sent more frequently, it could be more effective.

Reflecting on this assignment, this was the first time I completed an assignment like this in which no one read the same article as me. So, responding to two different articles was interesting, because it allowed me to learn about more studies than usual! In this case, I got to learn about alcohol intervention and smoking prevention, which are both significant and interesting topics.

Additionally, these types of assignments are cool because they allow me to interact with other students in the course that I usually do not get the chance to do that with. For example, I have never been in a chat group with Stella or Taylor, the students I responded to, or have not met them in person. So, reading about their thoughts allowed me to get to know them a little bit, through their writing styles and life examples they shared.

I also enjoy the simplicity in the steps that this assignment was made up of. It made me more motivated to complete the assignment, because there was not a long laundry list of tasks I had to worry about. And just because it was simpler does not mean that it was not valuable. I always take away a lot from these assignments, because I learn new information about other articles, and about the lives of some fellow students. I am glad that these assignments were included in many units of the course.

This assignment started off by reading about the difference between “behavior” and “behaviour”. After this, we had to learn about cognitive-behavioral therapy by reading a definition of it, watching a video about it, reading a meta-analysis abstract about it, and reading one more abstract comparing online CBT to offline CBT. Next, we had to read the brochure for the SilverCloud app, an online CBT app that is free for those who attend UW Madison. After this, I had to tell one person I know what Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is, that the meta-analyses show that Internet-based CBT is as effective as face-to-face CBT and is more effective than doing nothing, and explain what the SilverCloud app is. Finally, I had to make a discussion board post, merely stating:

1. I understand what Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is.
2. I’ve read the abstracts of two meta-analyses that show that Internet-based CBT is as effective as face-to-face CBT and more effective than doing nothing.
3. I know that SilverCloud is a CBT app that is free to UW-Madison students, faculty, and staff.
4. I’ve told one other person 1, 2, and 3 above

From the first article, I learned that behavior and behaviour mean the same thing. The only difference is that American English prefers behavior, whereas behaviour is preferred everywhere else.

The article defining CBT described that it is mental health counseling, attending a limited number of sessions. It helps you become aware of inaccurate or negative thinking, and can help treat mental disorders. It does not always work, but can generally help people manage difficult life situations.

Moving on to the video, it discusses that CBT allows people to change the way they think about things, which in turn can affect the way we behave. For example, you may have negative thoughts which lead to negative behaviors, and over time this turns into a cycle. The goal of this therapy is to break the cycle, to change the thinking and the behavior, leading to an improvement in mood. CBT can be hard work, and it is not for everyone, but it can be helpful for many.

The first meta-analysis examined the effects of computerized CBT (cCBT) compared to traditional CBT. The results showed that the efficacy of cCBT was just as good as for CBT, and much better than waitlist control conditions. The second meta-analysis explored the same general comparison, guided for psychiatric and somatic conditions. They also found that there were equivalent overall effects for the online and offline treatments.

The brochure about SilverCloud explained that it is a space that offers online CBT programs, and that it has high improvement rates for depression, anxiety, and stress. It also explains where you should go if you want to learn more about the programs.

I chose to tell my friend Danny about CBT as well as the SilverCloud app. I also made the discussion board post in which I listed the things I included at the end of the first paragraph.

Reflecting on this assignment, it was nice to review the concept of cognitive-behavioral therapy. I have learned about it many times and I understand it, but it is nice to have it framed in different ways through certain articles and videos.

Additionally, it was cool to examine the effects of online CBT versus offline. As I mentioned, I knew what CBT was before this already, however, I always imagined it being offline, not online. This opened my mind to the possibility that it can take multiple forms. Not only this, but the meta-analyses showed that these methods were just as effective as offline CBT, which I would not have expected!

Building off of this, it was nice to apply these concepts to a space where we can use these techniques. Learning about the SilverCloud app was really cool. Even if I do not need these programs myself, it is very valuable to know that these resources are available. I can share them with friends and classmates, so they can take advantage of these opportunities if they are struggling.

I was very surprised that the discussion board post included simply stating the four statements included in the instructions. However, I do not actually think this was a bad thing, because these four statements reinforced the main points from the assignment. It was nice in a way, because I got to leave the assignment by looking at those, and reminding myself that I understood what the assignment materials were trying to teach me.