Week 2 130– Writing Assignment

Gender Differences In Early Development

Chapter 12 in the course textbook discusses the impacts of caregivers and culture on gender development in early childhood. Based on the textbook chapter and one peer-reviewed journal article, write a paper discussing the gender differences in development from a psychoanalytic and systems perspective.

Your paper should account for or reply to each of the following:

· Identify a gender development-related issue of critical importance to individuals and society.

· Summarize a psychoanalytic and a systems perspective approach to, and related positions on, this issue.

· Compare and contrast the two theories’ views on how gender development occurs, identifying and explaining implications for scholarly and professional practice.

· Present and defend your position as to which theory is most relevant and valid with respect to your issue as you have explained it.

Your paper should be 1200-1600 words in length and support your thinking by citing and integrating at least two peer-reviewed journal articles and at least one real life example.

Instruction: Week 2

Introduction: Physical Development, Wellness, and Sexual Identity in Adolescence and Across the Lifespan

This week will focus on physical development, health and wellness, gender identity, and sexuality across the lifespan. Subject matter includes, but is not limited to, brain development in early childhood and the impact of the environment on it; patterns of physical growth; physical aging; nutrition and eating disorders; stress; sexual maturation; and social influences on gender development.

Required Resources

Required Text

Mossler, R. A., & Ziegler, M. (2016). Understanding development: A lifespan perspective. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

· Chapter 5: Physical Development: Brain and Body Section 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4

· Chapter 6: Health and Wellness

· Chapter 12: Gender and Sexuality

Required References

American Psychological Association. (2011). Practice guidelines for LGB clients: Guidelines for psychological practice with lesbian, gay, and bisexual clients (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/pi/lgbt/resources/guidelines.aspx (Skim and familiarize yourself with the 21 Guidelines for LGBT Clients.)

Finkelstein, S. (2006). 20/20: Exploring sexual orientation: Gay or straight, Part 1 (Links to an external site.) [Video file]. New York, NY: CBS Corporation. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoZoRbP-0WM

Finkelstein, S. (2006). 20/20: Exploring sexual orientation: Gay or straight, Part 2 (Links to an external site.) [Video file]. New York, NY: CBS Corporation. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTLAof9oXCI

Recommended Resources

Recommended References

American Museum of Natural History. (2011). Science bulletins: Understanding the essential bond (Links to an external site.) [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwxjfuPlArY

Khan Academy. (2014). Erikson’s psychosocial development: Individuals and society (Links to an external site.) [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIoKwUcmivk

Mercer, J. (2011). Attachment theory and its vicissitudes: Toward an updated theory. Theory & Psychology, 21(25), 25-45. doi: 10.1177/0959354309356136 (Available through SAGE Journals).

Siegel, D. J. (2004). Attachment and self-understanding: Parenting with the brain in mind. Journal of Prenatal & Perinatal Psychology and Health, 18(4), 273-285. (PsychINFO: 2004-17965-002).

thibs. (2009). The strange situation: Mary Ainsworth (Links to an external site.) [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTsewNrHUHU

Guidance Report

As aforementioned: This week will focus on physical development, health and wellness, gender identity, and sexuality across the lifespan. Subject matter includes, but is not limited to, brain development in early childhood and the impact of the environment on it; patterns of physical growth; physical aging; nutrition and eating disorders; stress; sexual maturation; and social influences on gender development.

As you can see, we have a LOT of topics to explore, so this week I will focus on eating disorders for our guidance report.

Psychology Students….Ponder this:

We read about popularity and rejection and this is just one of many areas that is persistent and children/adolescents cannot control it. Eating disorders have a lot to do with control. Let’s face it–kids can be cruel and the pressure in our society to be “perfect” or the ideal form of a female is not getting better through time and this can perpetuate a lot of the pressure that girls (AND boys) are under at this age. Home life and parenting style are also significant contributors to the onset of these disorders. In addition, there are certain personality traits that are more prone to eating disorders than others (obsessiveness, compulsiveness, shyness, etc.). You can probably identify anorexia by seeing the frame of the individual diminish overtime, but you will not be as likely to identify bulimia. First, the attending professional needs to identify which one he or she is dealing with in the individual’s case.

In our current society, this may be a little unrealistic with the preoccupation on the perfect female form, but it is a healthy and IMPORTANT example for mothers, sisters, aunts, and other same sex influences and role models to have a sense of self-acceptance and self-love that the daughters can emulate. My daughter is 18 now but she has been talking for YEARS about girls in her class watching their carbs so as not to get fat, counting calories because they are fat, etc., and literally she has been hearing this since she was 7. Some little girls have unfortunate role models at home and/or turn to poor role models in the media. What can schools do to address this for kids not getting a lot of guidance on this at home or getting the WRONG guidance?

Human Services students….Ponder this:

What do parents do if affordability is an issue? Lack of insurance? Also, what do you think of this possible correlation between eating disorders and income?

http://www.eatingdisordersonline.com/news/eating-disorders/there-may-be-a-link-between-eating-disorders-and-financial-income (Links to an external site.)

Unfortunately, treatment cost can be a major issue for many families regardless of insurance coverage. According to Alderman (2010), many insurance companies deny payment for eating disorder treatments due to a lack of clear treatment plan or medical diagnosis. For families in this situation, financial assistance is offered through many treatment programs, research trials may offer free treatment for qualified candidates, and case managers can assist families with insurance companies (Alderman, 2010). In addition, programs like the Eating Disorder Foundation offers free support groups to help individuals struggling with eating disorders.

The potential link between eating disorders and income holds merit, especially in relation to low-income ethnic groups. Many adolescents take on the burdens of their parents’ financial situation, but individuals from cultural groups that maintain importance of family over self may feel additional stress. According to Kail and Cavanaugh (2014), Latino Americans identify as a collective, family-first group. With this mindset, adolescents may feel unintentional pressure to support their family’s financial status by intaking less food.

But let’s get back to cost and what to do about it… So, what do you think of this?: The Elisa Project is a charitable foundation that aims to provide support, education, awareness and advocacy for families and loved ones suffering from an eating disorder. As you likely know from this week’s material and researching on your own—-treatment is very expensive! The Elisa Project has interesting suggestions for families who cannot afford treatment, which would really be MOST families. They suggest looking into psychiatric departments of nearby medical schools (and even psychology schools with PhD/PsyD students), as they would have student-run clinics and counseling at low or no cost. Participating in research studies for eating disorders is another suggestion, but a bit riskier. The site in regard to payment: http://www.theelisaproject.org/paying-for-treatment.cfm (Links to an external site.)

Alderman, L. (2010). Treating Eating Disorders and Paying for it. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/04/health/04patient.html?_r=1&ref=health

Kail, R. V., & Cavanaugh, J. C. (2014). Essentials of human development: A lifespan view. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth

ALL students….Ponder this:

Did you discover anything pertaining to the rise in statistics in our country related to anorexia and bulimia about 60+ years ago and where we are with this now? This diagnosis has obviously not been around from the beginning of time, so it would not be possible to compare to several hundred years ago. I don’t think it is a stretch to say our media and societal focus on perfection is doing a fine job of perpetuating this horrific diagnosis. It also extends to parenting style though… What are YOUR thoughts?

This is interesting. Check it out!:

McCombs, E. (2016) Woman Poses in varying pants sizes to make a point about body image. Retrieved from: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/woman-poses-in-varying-pants-sizes-to-make-a-point-about-body-image_us_5851f65ce4b0732b82feec30

Here is more on eating disorders:

Ekern, J. (2017). Eating disorders: Causes, symptoms, signs, & treatment help. Eating Disorder Hope (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from: https://www.eatingdisorderhope.com/information/eating-disorder

First, if you are not familiar with the Blue Zone research, I encourage you to investigate this. In short, the Blue Zone project – a years-long investigation funded in part by the National Geographic Foundation – focused on understanding what was going on, lifestyle-wise, in the “blue zones,” the areas of the world where people lived the longest, healthiest lives. Essential common factors were lots of daily activity (but not rigorous “exercise” in the American sense), strong social support systems, meaningful activities throughout life, largely plant-based diets, moderate consumption of alcohol, and a few other factors. You can learn about Blue Zone research from many books and articles; a good place to start is the website, https://www.bluezones.com/ (Links to an external site.). You can also get a nice overview from the TED talk, which can be found at https://www.ted.com/playlists/227/talks_to_make_you_feel_good_ab (Links to an external site.). All are worth viewing, but the one on Blue Zones (Dan Buettner’s talk) is the one to which I refer here.

Second, I would like to explore the impact of poor nutrition – an environment stressor, although most people do not think of what is in their pantry as a source of stress – on mental health. For many years, we in the mental health professions have been well aware of the importance of adequate Vitamin D, Magnesium, DHA and EPA, in particular, on good mental functioning. It’s a hard sell in a world where clients want a quick fix via a prescription; suggesting that good nutrition, adequate sleep, physical activity and, yes, mindfulness training and CBT, will in fact actually heal depression, anxiety, OCD, and other diagnoses means taking personal responsibility to implement changes. I’m not suggesting anyone just toss their medications; I am stating that research clearly supports that systemic changes in lifestyle support good mental (and physical) functioning. In January 2017, research was published actually using healthy nutrition, versus the patients’ prior diet (which the researchers called the “beige diet” or the “12-year-old boy diet”). Instead of processed grains, pasta, pizza, bread-heavy, fatty foods, patients ate a well-balanced diet with ample healthy fats, minerals and vitamins, especially the B vitamins. The results were impressive – and quick.

In reflecting on things like adequate strong social support, ample opportunity for sustained activity (not strenuous activity, but instead an active overall daily lifestyle), and proper nutrition, the implications for difficulties in impoverished areas or even for average income, working people in urban areas are significant. Crowded conditions, chronic exposure to noise, the effects of crime/the threat of crime on physical activity and inadequate affordable healthy food options are all environmental factors that combine to create chronic stress on people, starting early in life. The Blue Zone experiment in which an entire town signed on to making lifestyle changes is an example of how reduction in these stressors can have some immediate good effect.

More than just advice for already-healthy people, research points to the impact of diet, exercise and stress management on well-being even for those in crisis. Consider these recent findings:

Exercise is shown to reduce brain inflammation in persons suffering a first psychotic episode (Congress of the Schizophrenia International Research Society (SIRS) 2019: Abstract F12. Presented April 12, 2019).

Persons diagnosed with certain immune factors leading to gluten sensitivity and diagnosed with schizophrenia, when put on a gluten-free diet, had markedly reduce symptoms of schizophrenia within five weeks. Most notably, the almost impossible-to-treat negative symptoms such as anhedonia and blunted affect, were significantly reduced in that short time period (Congress of the Schizophrenia International Research Society (SIRS) 2019: Plenary Session. Presented April 12, 2019).

Psychology is nearly useless if it is just theoretical speculation. Reflect on the implications of Blue Zones research for your own life; how can you put scientific information on the effects of stress to work to improve your well-being and the well-being of those close to you? What small steps are practical and meaningful for you? How would you measure whether or not making the effort to consistently make these changes was worthwhile? If these changes make a positive difference, what change might you consider adding next?

References:

Congress of the Schizophrenia International Research Society (SIRS) 2019: Plenary Session. Presented April 12, 2019.

Congress of the Schizophrenia International Research Society (SIRS) 2019: Abstract F12. Presented April 12, 2019.

Week 2 – Assignment

Gender Differences In Early Development

Chapter 12 in the course textbook discusses the impacts of caregivers and culture on gender development in early childhood. Based on the textbook chapter and one peer-reviewed journal article, write a paper discussing the gender differences in development from a psychoanalytic and systems perspective.

Your paper should account for or reply to each of the following:

· Identify a gender development-related issue of critical importance to individuals and society.

· Summarize a psychoanalytic and a systems perspective approach to, and related positions on, this issue.

· Compare and contrast the two theories’ views on how gender development occurs, identifying and explaining implications for scholarly and professional practice.

· Present and defend your position as to which theory is most relevant and valid with respect to your issue as you have explained it.

Your paper should be 1200-1600 words in length and support your thinking by citing and integrating at least two peer-reviewed journal articles and at least one real life example.