Women Contribution to Psychology Essay Example for Free

Women Contribution to Psychology Essay The essay is written about Margaret Flow Washburn. The essay speaks of her background from her early teenage years and progressing through her career as a psychologist, her battles of a woman during an American period where women equal rights of educational progress was not the same as men. The essay also speaks on the contributions to her field of psychology presenting theories on the animal mind and her motor theory. Women Contributions to Psychology Margaret Floy Washburn started out as a decisive student who attended Vassari College upon graduation was divided between science and philosophy. Margaret Floy Washburn would go on to be a one of the few Pioneers for women who would go onto be successful Psychologist. Today Margaret Floy Washburn is known best for her work in comparative psychology and her book The Animal Mind would go to be four editions, become the standard textbook of its day (Goodwin, 2008). Her experimental research and focus toward cognitive process of perception, attention, and consciousness of various species would go on to be groundbreaking, contributing to scientist of today experimental theories. As with any Psychologist of past time her theory or experiments should be looked as steppingstones, to apply corrective action to information they may have missed or did not at the time have the capabilities of requiring. Margaret Floy Washburn Throughout this essay briefly discussing on Margaret Floy history, struggles as a woman trying to break the barrier, and her some of her best known work as a psychologist below. Brief early history of Margaret Floy Washburn Margaret Floy Washburn was born July 25, 1871 in New York City Biography of Margaret Flow Washburn, Para. 1). At the age of 15, she attended college at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie and soon became a member of Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority. Ladd-Franklin had also attended the same college many years before Margaret and soon after Margaret graduation she applied for graduate studies at Columbia University. Women were not permitted to study at Columbia at the time, she had entered the college only as observer where she was noticed as a serious student by Cattell but could only attend his classes unofficially (Goodwin, 2008). Cattell recommended her to apply at the Sage school of Philosophy at Cornell because they were accepting women graduate students and seen the un-keen potential in her. Margaret would encounter E. B. Titchener, who accepted Margaret into his laboratory, and she would go on to be responsible for experiments and research under E. B. Titchener. Margaret will go on to be the first woman to earn a PhD in Psychology in 1894. During the rest of her adult life, Margaret taught at several colleges, including Sage College, Wells College, and University of Cincinnati and in 1903 returning to her Alma mater as Associate Professor of Philosophy for Vassar up until her retirement in 1937 (Biography of Margaret Flow Washburn, Para. 1). She died on October 29, 1939 at her home in Poughkeepsie, New York. Breaking through the Barrier Margaret Floy Washburn fought many battles as woman trying to break into Psychology. First, she had been accepted into the graduate school of Columbia University as only a â€Å"hearer† because women were not permitted entry into Columbia University graduate program. She only attended Columbia University for a year before applying at the Sage School of Philosophy at Cornell University where she became the first woman to obtain her Ph. D. in Psychology in 1894. Margaret Floy Washburn was considered a pioneer for her fight for equal educational opportunities for women. She initially had encountered resistance to her academic pursuit at Columbia University. Margaret had to wait three months before convincing the trustees to let her attend Cattell’s classes at Columbia. Some say Margaret success came because of the contributing factor that her family was financially and emotionally supportive of her academic pursuits and Rodkey (2010) stated, â€Å"the large family inheritance allowed for her to attend private school, and which in turn led to her rapid completion of public school. † Margaret was pushing her career to limits during a period in American history when women were excluded from many academic programs and did not hold prestigious positions. This was a reason she never married. Women who married during this American period who worked in the academic field would be expected to resign their position upon marriage. Not marrying put Margaret at advantage over other women psychologist who did marry. This allowed her to hold numerous positions during her career, becoming a well respected teacher and researcher. Margaret positions were assistant professor of the Department of Psychology, professor of psychology, philosophy, and ethics, lecturer for social, animal psychology, and undergraduate psychology professor. Not only did she hold different positions through her pursuit as Psychologist she also published 69 experimental studies, and ranked top 50 psychologist of in America (Rodkey, 2010. ) Margaret became well known for her argument against Titchner’s structural psychology. After had already backing Titchner’s view’s early in her career. Margaret Floy Washburn went on the record of stating that Titchner’s views were worth while to describe conscious states, but not, in describing them, to turn them into something unrecognizable (Pillsbury, 1940, pg. ). Psychological Research and Views As stated above Margaret Flow Washburn psychological research views became unique as, she progressed in her career. With the development of her own system she would provide others with skepticism of their own formulas between the relationship of sensation and attribute and also of the exclusive use of introspection as the method of psychology. Motor Theory. She stated â€Å"While consciousness exists and is not a form of movement, it has as its indispensable basis certain motor rocesses, and†¦ the only sense in which we can explain conscious processes is by studying the laws governing these underlying motor phenomena† When discussing Margaret earlier work, she attempted to find a common ground with Tutchener, by coming up with the motor theory. Her theory argued that bodily movement and thought are similar, and cannot use one without using the other; the consciousness would arise when movement is inhibited by a tendency toward another move ment. Learning is associated with movement with a set of regular series and combinations. The motor theory is about thoughts traced back to bodily movement. This theory was presented in her early papers and chapters of her books â€Å"Feelings and Emotions: The Wittenberg Symposium and Psychologies of 1930† and Movement and Mental Imagery: Outlines of a Motor theory of the Complexer Mental Processes† (Wikipedia contributors, 2013, Margaret Floy Washburn, Para. 11). The Animal Mind. Margaret Floy Washburn would best be known for her work in comparative psychology. Her well-known text, â€Å"The Animal Mind† published in 1908. The textbook was a compiled research on experimental work in animal psychology, and covered a range of mental activities. The textbook was written during a time when research was done predominantly on rats. Margaret had cover more than 100 species, including the simplest of animals. She would look into their sense of perception; this includes hearing, vision, kinesthetic, and tactual sensation. Her main focus of the textbook is animal behavior. Her textbook would go through four editions (1917, 1926, and 1936) and became the standard textbook of its day (Goodwin, 2008). In her chapters of â€Å"The Animal Mind† suggested the animal psyches contained mental structures similar to that of human being and suggested that an animal consciousness is not qualitatively different from that of human beings. Margaret stated in her words â€Å"Our acquaintance with the mind of animals rests upon the same basis as our acquaintance with the mind of our fellow man: both are derived by inference from observed behavior. The actions of our fellow man resemble our own, and we therefore infer in them like subjective states to ours: the actions of animals resemble our less completely, but the difference is one of degree, not of kind†¦ We know not where consciousness begins in the animal world. We know where it surely resides—in ourselves; we know where it exists beyond a reasonable doubt—in those animals of structure resembling ours which rapidly adapt themselves to the lessons of experience. Beyond this point, for all we know, if may exist in simpler and simpler forms until we reach the very lowest of living being† (Wikipedia contributors, 2013, Margaret Floy Washburn, Para. 10). Conclusion Margaret Flow Washburn has been viewed as pioneer because of her push to become equally accredited for her success a woman, argumentative theories with Tutchener, and the development of her successful textbook â€Å"The Animal Mind. † She has been viewed a woman of success when encountered by obstacles would find ways to bi-past them and continue with her drive. Margaret Flow Washburn is an influential woman who has successfully set up all women after her pursuing a career in psychology to be successful and to have the same educational rights as men. This resulted in Columbia University to start Faculty of Philosophy who admits women to classes with instructor permission; authorizes the awarding of PhDs to women. Margaret has gone on to be one the most respected female Psychologist of her time and present day.

Susan Isaacss Critique of Ntozake Shanges Sassafrass, Cypress, and Indigo :: Sassafrass Cypress Indigo

Susan Isaacs's Critique of Ntozake Shange's Sassafrass, Cypress, and Indigo Susan Isaacs believes that Ntozake Shange's first novel, Sassafrass, Cypress & Indigo, is mildly entertaining and enjoyable, but her writing, "sometimes loses a thread and makes a mess" (395). Isaacs praises Shange's style, while finding fault with some of the techniques she employs. The main character that is introduced to the readers in Post Modern American Fiction's excerpt from Shange's novel, Sassafrass Cypress, and Indigo, is Indigo, the youngest of three daughters in the story. Indigo's character borders on the mystical. She has dolls she still talks to, and a fiddle that Sister Mary Louise, a friend of Indigo's, remarks, "Too much of the Holy Ghost came out of Indigo and that fiddle" (Shange, 44). One of Isaacs's criticisms has to do with Indigo's use of magic. Indigo is an avid fiddle player, she, "had mastered the hum of the dusk, the crescendoes of the cicadas, swamp rushes in light winds, thunder at high tide, and her mother's laughter down the hall" (Shange, 45). The technique of mixing magic and fiddle playing does not sit well with Isaacs, who states, "It's an intriguing idea, but it fails because although the author tries to present Indigo as a wise innocent, a mystical power, a joyous embodiment of the black spirit, the rhetoric of her musings is earthbound radical-feminist, predictable and silly..." Isaacs continues her criticism of the notion that Indigo has any magical abilities, and the use of magic as a story line and as a part of Indigo's character, saying, "And if Indigo's black magic is real,...How can she and her people-a people with such potent magic-tolerate the evils the author catalogues so movingly?" (396). Isaacs wonders about the reason for Indigo's magical, mystical qualities, and continues along this track, wondering if the magic might be a metaphor, a fantasy of Indigo's, or Shange's own portrayal of black folklore. Regardless of the intended portrayal of Indigo's magical qualities, Isaacs believes that, "it is not presented with enough clarity. The reader remains mildly fond of Indigo--people who talk to dolls can be enchanting--but it is nonetheless befuddled about her role in the novel" (394). Despite Isaacs' problems with the structure of the novel, and some of the devices and techniques Shange used in her character development, she does praise Shange as a novelist, comparing her art to weaving, a skill shared by both the mother and the eldest daughter in Sassafrass, Cypress, and Indigo.

A Case Study of Hong Kong’s Financial Crisis

The Asian Financial Crisis was a result of massive speculative attacks in the foreign exchange market on local currencies, specifically on East Asian currencies. The problem started with the devaluation of the Thai baht in 1997 which then spread to speculative attacks on other Asian currencies. This resulted in economic crises in Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Korea, Singapore, China, and Hong Kong. (Kawai, 1998)The reasons for the spread of economic decline in the countries were easily traced and the resulting effects were similar although varying in the degree of intensity. A clear difference between Hong Kong and the other Asian countries affected by the 1997-1998 economic crisis, however, was in the way that Hong Kong handled the threat to its economy.Compared to the other Asian countries, Hong Kong was able to maintain its peg when the financial crisis first broke out. This was, however, maintained at a great cost. Monetary authorities of the country spent approximately US$ 1 billion in order to defend the currency. Although other countries also undertook mass efforts to defend their currencies, Hong Kong was the only one to be able to maintain its peg. This, however, was only short-term.The economic attack continued and Hong Kong found itself needing to increase its inflation rates. Other countries such as the Philippines resorted to this strategy as well in order. What made Hong Kong different in its strategy, however, was the government’s role reversal from being a passive regulator to an active market participant.The government ended up using approximately US$15 billion in buying shares, blue-chip shares, in various companies. This active intervention insured the relative stability of the Hong Kong market as compared to the other Asian markets during that time.2) Hedge funds, by their very nature, utilize opportunistic trading strategies on a leveraged basis. For a market with a limited liquidity, such as that of Hong Kong’s, a small g amble on the part of a large hedge fund could result in a large transaction that could have large-scale effects on the said market.For Hong Kong’s economy, there have been numerous instances wherein hedge funds have tried to exploit the local market. This is not to say, however, that Hong Kong has not put up a valiant effort to protect and maintain the stability of its vulnerable market – owing to its small size and low liquidity status.According to Kara Tan Bhala (1998), the mechanism employed by hedge funds to try and make money out of Hong Kong involves two steps. Initially, Hong Kong equities and stock-index futures are sold short by speculators.Next, the speculators resort to short-selling the Hong Kong dollar. Short-selling the dollar will force the Hong Kong Monetary Association to try to maintain the peg of the Hong Kong dollar to the US dollar. This would mean resorting to an increase in interest rates and to buying the local currency.Share prices on the stock market thus decrease in value. In these instances, it is clear that all that hedge funds aim to do are to gain profit for themselves rather than to contribute to the greater scheme of advancing Hong Kong’s economy. They gain profit first from the short selling of the equities and stock-index futures.They gain the difference from the higher priced short-selling of the instruments and the resulting lower cover prices. Hedge funds gain profit secondly from a probable depreciation in the Hong Kong dollar. Again, the difference between the short and cover prices. (Bhala, 1998)Although not all hedge funds are to be frowned upon, as the presence of hedge funds is not an absolute evil on the market, these instances serve as a warning to the fact that there are markets that can be put under great threat as a result of the presence of hedge funds.ReferencesKawai, M. (1998). The East Asian currency crisis: causes and lessons. Contemporary Economy Policy, 16, 157-172Bhala, K. T. (1998). In Praise of Intervention. Far Eastern Economic Review, 9

Global Current Event That Can Improve The Mortality And...

Summarize findings from one global current event, within the last six months, that relate to an innovation that can improve the mortality amd morbidity rates of cardiovascular disease in developing countries. After years of what sometimes seemed painstaking slow efforts to bring a less invasive approach to managing mitral valve (MV) disease, things are finally moving forward on several fronts. It s likely a response to the eye-opening clinical success and rapid adoption of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). The success of TAVR has reinvigorated efforts to develop less invasive approaches to the other heart valves. It has not been easy, but the transcatheter revolution marches on. Vavular heart disease has been called both The next epidemic and the forgotten epidemic. It is responsible for more than 24,000 deaths and 85,000 deaths hospitalizations each year in the United States, with those numbers increasing as the population ages and life expectancy rises. While approximately 2.5% of the populations has moderate or severe valve disease,1 the prevalence in those 75 years of age and older ranges between 11.7% and 13.3% depending on the source. 1,2 The TAVR market is expected to generate close to $4 billion in business by 2020, according to a report released in February by Technavio, a global research and advisory company. The report considers revenue generated from the sales of trancatheter aortic valve implants to determine market size. TheShow MoreRelatedObesity Is The Type Of Disease That Is Infectious1248 Words   |  5 PagesObesity may not be the type of disease that is infectious. However, it has reached heights of epidemic proportions and poses a public health challenge, not only in Australia but globally. 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