Lifes as a House Outline Essay

Erikson’s Psychosocial theory – How has the person matured? Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs – Where is he/she on the hierarchy? Albert Ellis’ REBT – What irrational beliefs does the character display? Stress Management – What techniques are used to manage stress? Freud’s Defense Mechanisms – Identify any defense mechanisms being applied to the character’s life. Communication strategies – Does the character use I messages, understanding, probing, etc. Family systems – rules of healthy and unhealthy families – how are they applied here? Addiction – Do you see any addictive qualities? Love and Relationships – How is love expressed? What would you say about the character’s relationships with others? What strategies did the character use? What does the movie illustrate about the importance of family across the generations? What does the move illustrate about healthy and unhealthy family systems? How can this film illustrate the phenomenological/humanistic principle that life has more meaning because it must end? discuss certain themes, concepts and issues and relate them to our studies in psychology. Pick a character in the movie and tell how this particular person learned (for better or worse) new behaviors and/or cognition. Use their experiences, both past and present and their relationships (family, personal, friends) with other people, to convey what made them learn and/or change. Discussion should include topics such as: Developmental stages of life, Conditioning, Motivation, Emotions, Personality, Psychological Disorders He was Goth and suicidal†¦ he was reckless with drugs and sex. He tried to hang himself in the closet. He was disrespectful to his family. But it’s hard to pinpoint what exact disorder he had. I would simply say depression. Possibly bipolar because there were times when he was okay in the movie and then he would go into a rage of reckless behavior. Psychological focus areas: mid-age and adolescent re-invention in response to grief / loss; parenting adolescents; facing death and working out what kind of a legacy to leave Sam goes through new changes in behavior. When the movie begun Sam was a rebellious young teen with negative feelings toward his father. Throughout the plot of the movie Sam goes through experiences with his father as they spend time together over the summer, which brings them closer together and allows them to have a better relationship. Sam’s acting out and unwanted actions were results of his parents divorce and not having a healthy relationship with his father. In Psychology, the basic concept of Nature vs. Nurture is said to Influence Development. Nature, according to Laura A. King (2010), includes â€Å"the individual’s biological inheritance, especially his or her genes† (p. 64). Nurture involves a persons environment and experiences. In her book King (2010) also states â€Å"early experiences are important contributors to development† (p. 266). In the movie you could easily understand the nurture side of Sam’s behavior. Knowing and hearing about what kind of people Sam hangs out with we can kind of understand why he dresses a certain way and why he partakes in certain activities, such as drugs. The people he hangs out with leads us back again to the divorce. Sam chooses to hang out with others like him who fell pain inside. His behaviors are a cry for help. In the movie Sam says â€Å"I like how it feels not to feel†. He does drugs to forget his problems and not feel pain. The emotions that young kids and teens go through when parents get a divorce usually include depression, anger, sadness, and the feeling that maybe they could have done something to have made the situation better. While some children and teens choose to hide their feelings, Sam didn’t. He acted out with disrespect and constant anger.