Career Choices Essays - Applied Psychology, Behavioural Sciences

Career Choices CAREER RESEARCH PROJECT Up until recently I did not know what I wanted to do with my life. I was going to school but I really had no idea what I wanted to study. Recently, after contemplating multiple career choices, I have decided that I want to become a psychologist. Psychologists study the human mind and human behavior. Like other scientists, psychologists make hypothesis and then perform experiments to test these assumptions. Their research methods may differ depending on what topic they are studying. There are numerous research methods in which psychologists gather their data. Sometimes they gather information through controlled laboratory experiments. Psychologists also administer personality, performance, aptitude and intelligence tests. Other methods include observation, interviews, questionnaires, clinical studies and surveys. Psychologists use their knowledge in a wide variety of settings including health and human services, management, education, law and sports. In addition to the variety of work settings, psychologists usually specialize in a single aspect of their growing field. Some types of psychologists include clinical, counseling, school, industrial, developmental, social and experimental or research psychologists. There are two categories of psychology that I am interested in, they are clinical and industrial. Clinical psychology is a branch of psychology that deals with applying research findings in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. Clinical psychologists classify their work under three major headings: assessment, treatment and research. In assessment, they give and interpret psychological tests. These tests are given to determine the patients intelligence or to determine their mental characteristics. Another way to determine these characteristics is in an interview, where the psychologist questions and interacts with the patients. For the treatment stage the psychologist may use several types of psychotherapy. Lately psychologists have been concentrating on the electric approach but there is also behavior therapy, group therapy and psychoanalysis. Research is an important aspect to most psychologists. Clinical psychologists are often participants in research projects that have a bearing on mental-health care. A doctoral degree is usually required to be a licensed clinical psychologist. Areas of specialization within clinical psychology include health psychology, neuropsychology and geropsychology. Health psychologists promote good health through counseling programs designed to help people achieve goals such as to stop smoking or lose weight. Neuropsychologists studt the relation between the brain and behavior. Geropsychologists deal with the special problems faced by the elderly. The growth of these specialities reflect the growing need for psychologists that deal with particular situations and conditions. Industrial psychology is the application of various psychological techniques to the workplace and industry. These techniques can be in the form of job analysis and performance appraisals. It relates to the efficiency of the organization through appropriate use of their human resources. Organizational psychology goes hand in hand with industrial psychology. Organizational focuses on the development and understanding of people in the organization. Psychologists in this field advise businesses and organizations on the selection of workers and how to promote efficient working conditions. Also how to boost morale, productivity, and job satisfaction. Industrial-Organizational psychology (I-O psychology) was first developed in the US and became prominent during World War II, when it became necessary to recruit and train the large number of workers who were needed to meet the expanding economy. An I-O psychologist might work with management to reorganize the work environment to improve productivity or the quality of life in the workplace. They frequently act as concultants, brought in by the management in order to solve a particular problem. As opposed to other fields of psychology, a person only need s a masters degree to become an I-O psychologist. A psychologists working conditions are determined by their specialty and the environment they work in. Clinical, school and counseling psychologists mostly have private practices and set their own hours. However, they often have to work nights and weekends to accommodate their patients. Psychologists that are employed in hospitals and other health facilities work in shifts while those that work in clinics keep normal hours. Increasingly, many psychologists now work in teams. These teams are composed of other psychologists and some professionals. They use these groups for research or strictly for consulting. Travel is also a part of a psychologists working condition. They often have to travel around the country to attend different seminars and conduct research. An important fact to note is that one half of all psychologists are self-employed. This statistic is about five times the average for a professional worker. Educational institutions employed the greatest number of psychologists, four out of ten. The next highest number was in health

10 Tips for Getting Rid of Fruit Flies

10 Tips for Getting Rid of Fruit Flies Fruit flies are one of the most persistent kitchen pests. These tiny winged marauders procreate quickly and stick around long after youve tossed the fruits and veggies that first attracted them. If youre at your wits end with these nuisances, dont despair. Getting rid of them requires patience and smarts but these tips will help you eliminate any potential fruit fly breeding grounds in your home so youll be able to make them go away- and keep them from coming back. 1. Dispose of Any Rotting Fruits and Vegetables First things first: The minute you see even a few fruit flies, its time to purge your unrefrigerated produce. Anything thats beyond ripe, oozing liquid, or has been cut or broken open must go. Dont just throw things in the garbage or compost bin, either- unless your compost bin is outdoors and located a distance from your house. Bag everything up and take it outside to the trash. And be sure to clean up any residual mess left behind on countertops or in containers. 2. Scrub Your Recycling Cans Anything thats sweet or fermented or has a little moisture is a suitable habitat for fruit flies. Empty soda cans, wine bottles, and beer cans completely and rinse them out. After youve taken all bottles and cans out for pickup, give the bin a thorough scrubbing to remove any beer, wine, or juice residue. 3. Take Any Compost Scraps Outside If you compost kitchen scraps and find you have fruit flies buzzing about, its time to clean out the compost bin. Until you get the infestation under control, youll need to take produce scraps directly to your outdoor compost pile. Empty any indoor compost containers and give them a good scrubbing, too. 4. Replace Old Sponges, Mops, and Dishrags Did you know that fruit flies can breed on sour sponges, mops, and dishrags? If you havent changed your kitchen sponge or your mop refill recently, replace them. Throw any reusable dishrags in the wash and put disposable ones in a sealed bag. 5. Clean Your Dishes Immediately Dont wait until the end of the day to wash your dishes, especially if they have residue from things like jelly or wine. At the very least, give the dishes a good rinse to remove any food or beverage remnants. When you scrape leftovers into the garbage, be sure to take the trash outside promptly. If you have a dishwasher, rinse food particles from your dishes and run the load as soon as you can. 6. Check Potato and Onion Storage Bins Most people store potatoes, onions, and other root vegetables in a cool, dark bin or cupboard. If fruit flies persist, be sure to check these storage areas for old, rotting produce. Just one old potato is all it takes to keep a fruit fly population going. Dispose of any soft or mushy potatoes or onions, and give the bin a cleaning before putting in fresh ones. 7. Set Vinegar Traps in Problem Areas Sometimes the quickest way to eliminate a population of insect pests is to wipe out the reproductive adults. Fortunately, fruit flies arent all that smart. If something smells remotely like fermenting fruit, theyll dive right in. Place a few cider vinegar traps around problem areas in your home, and you can quickly get rid of large numbers of fruit flies. You can make a vinegar trap in just a few minutes with things you probably already have in your home. 8. Fix Slow Drains and Keep Plumbing Clean Fruit flies arent above living in the muck, and that includes the muck inside your plumbing. If you have any slow-moving drains in your house, there may be enough organic matter hanging out inside your pipes to support a breeding population of fruit flies. Tape some plastic wrap over suspect drains for a few days to check for fruit flies. If you see adults on the underside of the plastic, theyre breeding in your drain. Fix any drainage issues. Pour boiling water down problem drains to help loosen accumulated deposits. If accessible, you can also use a firm brush to scrub the inside of the pipe to free it of debris. 9. Give the Kitchen a Thorough Cleaning Youd be surprised where food bits can accumulate in a kitchen. If you have a particularly stubborn fruit fly infestation, it may take some elbow grease to eliminate all of their food sources. Check the lip of your kitchen sink. There could there be food bits underneath it. Clean the burner drip pans and lift the stovetop, if possible, to remove spilled food, and check under the refrigerator for sticky spots where juice may have spilled. 10. When Canning, Make Sure Jars are Sealed Securely Not everyone is into home canning but if you are, you should know that a fruit fly infestation can sometimes be traced to even one improperly sealed jar of fruit preserves. If you keep a supply of homemade jellies or sauces on hand, take some time to doublecheck that all the seals are closed tightly. As much as a fruitfly would take delight in supping on something youd inadvertently left open, you wouldnt want to dine on anything that came from an improperly sealed jar anyway, right?

Response to Intervention Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Response to Intervention - Research Paper Example The promoters of RTI claim that this olden method brings more confusion to the individuals with disabilities. However, Response to intervention teaching method provides clear and simplified identities to the students with learning disabilities and friendly to the subject. Response to intervention is a process that aims at shift of educational resources toward the delivery and evaluation of instruction, which are comfortable for the relevant student. It works away from the classification of the disabilities through instructional approach. This method has gained credibility in the recent years as an alternative for students with special education criteria for the case of students with incidences of disabilities (Mark and Brown 39). The model is very eligible to the disabled students. It provides data based decision-making for any student in deed of extra interventions in order to improve his or her performance. The introduction of the RTI was after the change of definition for the disa bled. Disability has changed its definition to mean the persons who have one or more psychological complication, which may dominate in the listening, thinking, reading, and writing or in mathematical calculations. These brain disorders may include some conditions like brain injury, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. This definition has changed a little to term disorders as those with basic psychological misunderstanding of language, whether in speech or written and exhibits majorly on the reading and writing difficulties. A child may be termed as disable if he does not achieve the common measure of knowledge following parameters like age and ability level. The child could also have a discrepancy between achievement and intellectual ability in areas like oral expression, listening and understanding and the basic reading skills. Response to intervention model is a know method of problem solving which is a variation of the scientific method but used to study natural phenomenon. The f irst step in the response to intervention method is clearly defining the difficulties experienced by the student. Clarity and precision are essential for developing hypothesis of knowing how to treat the affected individual. Reliability of assessment for the underlying behaviors is typically low but the perceived behavior has more accuracy. After identification and definition of the problem, the teacher is now in position to change the instructional intervention to cater for the child (Roth and Worthington 412). The response intervention model has a very important component of evaluation whether the child is making progress. This evaluation process is oriented to instructional decisions that help to design the appropriate programs for the student. The effectiveness of the RTI strategies The individuals with disabilities have greatly benefitted from the response to intervention practices since its authorization in United States. The government of the states funded the 12.5 billion US dollars project that supported the early intervention services for infants and toddlers with special education requirement. The program has