Category: Mind

Introduction

The purpose of this project is to evaluate certain problems of the mind and provide their matrix. The matrix provides information on how problems of the mind can be identified through causes and symptoms as well, as possible treatment regimens. Besides, gender and cultural influences are also noted. Understanding and improving mental problems are vital for patients and psychologists. Given the diverse nature of problems of the mind, it is imperative to explore them in isolation to determine various variables that influence them.

Conclusion

The project has covered schizophrenia, anorexia, and somatoform as a few problems of the mind. It shows that most of these conditions are related to mental conditions rather than medical ones. Consequently, an effective evaluation must focus on thought patterns to determine the underlying causes of a given disorder. Also, treatment options vary, but therapies, especially Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, have been noted to be most effective in most conditions. Gender and cultural variations are noted across cultures, while women are more prone to most of these conditions relative to men.

References

Hotopf, M., Wadsworth, M., & Wessely, S. (2001). Is “somatisation” a defense against the acknowledgment of psychiatric disorder? Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 50(3), 119–124. Web.

Picchioni, M., & Murray, R. M. (2007). Schizophrenia. British Medical Journal, 335(7610), 91–5. Web.

Smink, F., van Hoeken, D., & Hoek, H. (2012). Epidemiology of eating disorders: incidence, prevalence and mortality rates. Current Psychiatry Reports, 14(4), 406–14.

Introduction

The purpose of this project is to explore separation anxiety disorder as a mental health disorder, particularly in children and adolescents. The disorder is considered as a usual stage of development that normally starts during childhood, and it is depicted by anxiety that is out of proportion when someone close leaves home temporarily or simply separates from people close to him or her. Many children and adolescents experience a separation anxiety disorder at some point during childhood. Some notable examples may include refusal to engage in work, sleep, and verbal complaints. It mainly affects children from close-knit families, but the disorder may be controlled through professional counseling.

The behaviors associated with the disorder

Abnormally inappropriate and too much anxiety associated with separation in a close-knit family or from individuals to whom one is attached could be indicated by three or even more of the following behaviors.

In most instances, children often have persistent, too much sorrow when individuals separate from home or when significant emotionally attached persons leave or anticipate leaving them. Children may also depict regular and extreme anxiety regarding losing or show potential harm happening to the significant attachment persons. Affected individuals may also depict the disorder through constant and disproportionate anxiety if an unpleasant event may cause separation from the emotionally attached individual, for instance, one may worry about getting lost or kidnapping that causes separation.

Children or adolescents may also show regular unwillingness or avoidance of going to school or any other place because they fear separating from their emotionally attached figures (Suveg, Aschenbrand, & Kendall, 2005). Also, separation anxiety disorder could be exhibited through persistent, abnormally fearful behaviors associated with being alone. The case is severe, particularly in the absence of a significant attachment person.

Further, the affected individual may demonstrate persistent unwillingness to sleep in the absence of a significant figure of attachment. Refusal to being away from home could also show such behaviors. Individuals may experience constant nightmares regarding the main fear or concern about separation. Finally, the disorder may also be indicated through physical signs, including headaches when affected individuals expect parting of the attachment individual or when it takes place.

Serious cases could lead to clinically imperative impairment in various spheres of life, including academic or work, social, or any other fundamental aspects of normal individual functioning. It is imperative to note that the disturbance observed in separation anxiety disorder may not take place exclusively.

The range of impairment for this disorder

As previously mentioned, impairment is noted in social, academic, and other normal functions in individuals with a separation anxiety disorder. Separation anxiety disorder is extreme and, thus beyond normal expectations for a given child or adolescent’s development stage. Notably, anxiety, avoidance, refusal, or fear could be constant, and could even extend for more than four weeks in affected babies and adolescents while adults display abnormally long periods of six months or more. Family relation, particularly close-knit one, is often associated with the disorder. Therefore, when separation takes place, the affected persons could display constant cases of social withdrawal, agony, apathy, or challenges with normal functions, including academic, play, or work, which impair their normal functioning.

The disorder disrupts normal school attendance and involvement in learning activities. Relative to normal children, kids with the disorder face more difficulties in learning. They tend to adjust and relate concepts poorly at school. In severe cases, children with the condition may disrupt learning or refuse to go to school completely (Doobay, 2008). This situation causes overall poor performance, fall behind, while some children could even resist resuming learning.

A separation anxiety disorder may co-occur with other disorders such as mood disorder and generalized anxiety disorder, and further complicating learning outcomes.

Avoidance tendencies could even persist into adulthood. Dewa and Lin (2000) had observed that several cases of poor mental health have been reported in workplaces, and they have negative impacts on productivity. Generally, it is now a frequent issue in adults, and a significant percentage of employed people will experience a mental condition in a lifetime. It leads to poor productivity, while people diagnosed with the disorder normally have significantly impaired levels of outputs shown through increasing rates of absenteeism, partial work periods, and procrastination of tasks (Dewa & Lin, 2000).

The implications of this disorder on society

While discomfort that arises from separation for children aged between eight and 14 months is considered normal, it has serious implications for children beyond this age group, adolescents and adults. Separation anxiety disorder occasionally causes nervousness among children when they encounter strange people or visit unfamiliar places. The behavior could persist beyond the age of six and last for several weeks.

Parents and care providers have additional responsibilities for children with a separation anxiety disorder. Consequently, they may respond poorly to any form of alleged anxiety in their care providers. The case could be complicated when adults who have a similar condition take care of the children because they may not be willing to confirm it. Therefore, families and care providers must recognize their conditions and feelings and evaluate them effectively for any eventual separation.

Society has often considered individuals with a separation anxiety disorder as demanding, pushy, and in search of regular attention. On this note, constant, extreme demands could be a cause of annoyance for care providers and families, which could cause anger and disagreement within the family. In some cases, kids with the conditions may be defined as oddly careful, compliant, and excited for recognition. Determining the condition itself could be a burden for the family.

Besides, prolonged mental conditions and related consequences associated with a separation anxiety disorder could be devastating to families. It is a critical factor for the vulnerability of affected individuals and is responsible for developing a psychiatric disorder in individuals aged between 19 and 30 years. The condition complicates mental issues when it co-occurs with other disorders.

Psychologists must always strive to diagnose the condition earlier to treat it. This is imperative to inhibit later complex stages in life. Besides, discussing the condition and possible separation could help in controlling unwanted outcomes.

Possible treatment options for the disorder

Separation anxiety disorder is treatable using one or more treatment options. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) has been identified as an effective means of assisting children with a separation anxiety disorder. The method involves exposure to possible separation situations to control thought processes associated with the condition. Psychologists have applied various phases of CBT, including patient education, application, and control of potential relapse.

Patients are educated on the extreme impacts of anxiety on both their physical and mental well-being. Psychologists ensure that patients understand and apply learned concepts to identify their situations and manage to control and successfully lessen overall negative reactions (Bogels & Zigterman, 2000). Cognitive treatment regimens are effective in much older children and adolescents who have the disorder. The overall goal of cognitive procedures is to help children to identify realistic risks associated with the identified cause of anxiety and then develop a strategy to cope with it. Thus, negative thought processes are destroyed in the process (Bogels & Zigterman, 2000).

Pharmacological interventions are also available to manage the disorder. The treatment is referred to as pharmacotherapy. This treatment option is applicable in cases of severe disorder, especially when other intervention options have been applied but produced poor outcomes (Waslick, 2005).

It is imperative to note that interventions with medications have yielded mixed outcomes and therefore could be difficult to justify in some cases. Also, no specific medication has been identified as more effective for the disorder relative to others (Suveg et al., 2005). Nevertheless, most medications demonstrate positive outcomes for patients.

Behavioral therapies are also effective means of treating separation anxiety disorder. Patients are exposed to possible separation situations gradually to control anxiety. Behavior is the most important factor for consideration with this treatment option.

Conclusion

The purpose of this project was to explore various aspects of separation anxiety disorder. It shows that the condition is common mainly in close-knit families among children but can also extend to adulthood. The disorder is associated with significant disruption in the lives of individuals. It affects social, education, and other aspects of normal functions. It can disturb normal schooling among children and affect working periods among adults.

Treatment options are available for the disorder. They include cognitive-behavioral therapies, pharmacotherapy, and behavioral therapies. These treatment options have provided positive outcomes based on the condition of the patient.

References

Bogels, S. M., & Zigterman, D. (2000). Dysfunctional cognitions in children with social phobia, separation anxiety disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 28(2), 205–211.

Dewa, C. S., & Lin, E. (2000). Chronic physical illness, psychiatric disorder and disability in the workplace. Social Science & Medicine, 51(1), 41–50. Web.

Doobay, A. F. (2008). School Refusal Behavior Associated with Separation Anxiety Disorder: A Cognitive-Behavioral Approach to Treatment. Psychology in the Schools, 45(4), 261–272. Web.

Suveg, C., Aschenbrand, S. G., & Kendall, P. C. (2005). Separation Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, and School Refusal. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 14(4), 773–795. Web.

Waslick, B. (2005). Psychopharmacology Interventions for Pediatric Anxiety Disorders: A Research Update. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 15(1), 51–71. Web.

In her book, “there is nothing with you,” the American psychologist and teacher Cheri Huber examines conditioning and conditioned mind based on an observing children’s behavior. I find that she argues that at birth, children are socially conditioned, claiming that they are born in “the lightroom.” She thinks that children are “present to anything that is in the moment.” I believe her perceptions are based on her experience with children. I also tend to believe that her early life experiences, especially when taking Zen classes under Jay DuPont, have a major influence on her perceptions (Brady 37). Most of her perceptions of conditioning and conditioned minds are based on observing small children.

According to her, children tend to obtain a wide range of information from the immediate environment, which contributes to brain conditioning. For instance, Huber calls these pieces of information “specifics that lead to conditioning.” She takes an example of the normal teachings given to children in early life, especially at home. For example, things that children hear every day, including warnings, advice, encouragements, and other conditions normally given to them, are specifics that condition their minds.

I tend to agree with Huber on a major point. Although her thinking is based on a teacher’s point of view, it is clear that she examines things that shape children’s behavior at an early age. As far as I am concerned, it appears that Huber is a behaviorist whose main area of research is the development of behavior in children. Huber seems to be heavily relying on child development and behavior more than the general human behavior. As far as I am concerned, she seems to be basing her theory or observations on the previous work by behaviorists such as Badura, Skinner, and Watson.

Her sentiments are taken from Badura’s perspectives on child behavior. In fact, by arguing that the information that condition a child’s mind is obtained from the people who interact with the child, it is evident that her claim is correct. Nevertheless, her claims are not new to the field of science. She excels in the application of other theorists into her own observation to develop a new topic about mind conditioning. To me, this is an excellent idea in research, which is worth credit.

I find Huber’s analogy of the “Lightroom” and “Darkroom” quite convincing. She claims that a child is born in the “lightroom”, but pushed “to the darkroom” by interacting with people who confer information that condition the mind. The analogy attempts to simplify a relatively difficult theory. To Huber, socialization is a process that aids conditioning in pushing the child from the lightroom to the darkroom. I believe that her claims on this issue are relatively convincing, especially because she uses a simple and common example to drive home the claim. She claims that the process of socialization makes the children believe or assume that something is wrong with them, which forces them to look for flaws in themselves.

Then, the children tend to judge the flaws when they believe that they have found some. If one compares himself or herself with others, the flaws become evident, which makes a child start hating “the self” for being the way he is. Then, Huber claims that one starts to experience “self-punishment.” This claim does not appear to be empirical in nature. By claiming that people tend to undergo this process during childhood, Huber might be basing her argument on observations made on adolescents. This claim seems to assume that small children are aware of what other people think about them and how they should be. By examining children aged less than five years, it is possible to prove this idea wrong.

For instance, most children tend to think they are right or are the best, as proved by Jung’s theory of self. Quite evident, Huber seems to borrow her ideas by refuting some of these claims, especially the theories developed by Carl Jung and Kohut, rather than developing her empirical research to argue from its perspective. As far as I am concerned, it is ethically and academically right to develop a theory by refuting the existing theories. Nevertheless, her theory of observation of the growing children seems to have a number of flaws, which can be filled through additional research.

I think Huber draws her ideas from her experience as a teacher, mother, and enthusiast of Soto Zen. She seems to base her claims on the old Indian philosophies common in Indian religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism. Quite evidently, her claim about the conditioned self is based on a single observation of a child put in the dark, and his need to have the right denied (Ford 56). She claims that children tend to develop a mechanism for meeting their needs on their own instead of getting used to the condition. In other theories, the behavior is obtained when the denying condition prevails over a long period. This is in contrast to Huber’s perceptions. In conclusion, I would say that Huber has based her argument on observing older children or adolescents rather than the developing children commonly used in behavioral studies.

Works Cited

Brady, Mark. The Wisdom of Listening. Wisdom Publications, 2010. Print.

Ford, James Ishmael. Zen Master Who?: A Guide to the People and Stories of Zen. New York: Wisdom Publications, 2009. Print

This presentation is aimed at discussing the following questions:

1. Definitions and various interpretation of the mind-body problem;
2. The relevance of this problem to various fields of psychology;
3. Current research that is related to the mental activities and physical processes;
4. Possible directions for future research.

The Reasons why This Topic Has Been Chosen

I decided to focus on the mind-body problem for several reasons:

1. It is related to many areas of study such as psychology, neuroscience, philosophy , ethics, or computer science;
2. This problem can practical implications; for instance, the development of artificial intelligence.
3. This question is still open to debate the relations between the physical body and mental life have not been fully examined. So, it is inherently interesting.

The Definition of the Topic

The mind-body problem can be formulated can be defined as a series of questions:

1. What are the relations between mental life and physical body;
2. What are the mechanisms that govern people’s sensations and perception;
3. How do different structures of the brain affect mental events such as perception of sound or color;
4. Is it always possible to trace a connection between physical life and mental events.

Relevance to the Field of Psychology

ÒMind-body problem is related different branches of psychology, for instance, one can mention clinical psychology and psychiatry since thise disciplines examine such issues:

1. The distortion of perception such extremely low self-esteem or phobias,
2. Delusions and hallucinations.
3. Various personality disorders (Wiber, 2000, p. 249).

These are mental events and it is necessary to determine whether they have only biological or maybe there are certain social explanation. These questions are related to the mind-body problem. By answering them researchers can better help many patients.

Mind-Body Problem and Cognitive Psychology

ÒThe relations between the mental events and physical reality are of great interest to cognitive psychologists. Here are some of the questions of that one may consider:

1. The effects of different external stimuli on people’s perception;
2. The interaction of various receptors and their effects on perception;
3. Biological mechanisms that effect emotions and memory.

This issues essentially come down to the relations between the mind and the body.

The Mind-Body Problem and Learning

The study of the mind-body problem and perception is related to educational psychology. Here are some of the questions that may be considered:

1. The perception of information, its processing and retrieval.
2. The development of skills;
3. The brain structures that are responsible for perceiving information, learning or forgetting.

Current Research Related to Mind-Body Problem

The mind-body problem and perception play an important part in modern psychological studies. For instance one can mention the article written by Patrick Haggard . The author examines such questions as

1. Mental states that physical that cause physical movement of the body. In other words, he is interested in the influence of the mind on the body (Haggard , 2001, p 113);
2. The way in which different external signals are processed by the brain in order to generate an action;
3. Different parts of the brain that are involved in the processing of the information and decision-taking.
4. The author argues that mind-body problem requires a multi-disciplinary approach combining psychology, neuroscience, and philosophy.

Mind-Body Problem: Psychology and Biology

The article written by William Meissner (2006) discusses the mind-body problem from psychological and biological perspectives.

1. The author discusses the use of neuro-imaging while studying different forms of behavior;
2. In particular, he speaks about the processing of external signals by different parts of the brain.
3. Overall, the main point of this article is that the mind-body problem can be better understood by examining the specific functions of the brain and corresponding mental activities (Meissner, 2006, p. 97).

Future Research Needs

The mind-body problem gives rise to a variety of questions that researchers may be of great interest to researchers:

1. The brain processes that are associated with the perception of various external signals like color, taste, or smell;
2. The way in which brain can affect various physiological processes within the body.
3. The connection between different types of external stimuli and responses of the body.

Overall, physiological discussion of the mind-body problem should be rely on the finding of biologists and neuroscientists.

Conclusion

Overall, this discussion leads to several important conclusion, namely:

1. The study of the mind-body problem should be rely on the methods of different disciplines like psychology, biology, or cognitive science;
2. The mind-body problem is closely related with perception, behavior, and mental disorders;
3. At the given moment, the majority of scholars concur that physical and mental activities should be seen as a unity since both mind and body are governed by the brain.

Reference List

Haggard, P. (2001). The psychology of action. British Journal Of Psychology, 92(1), 113 -128.

Meissner, W. W. (2006). The mind-brain relation and neuroscientific foundations: I. The problem and neuroscientific approaches. Bulletin Of The Menninger Clinic, 70(2), 87-101.

Wiber, K. (2000). Integral Psychology: Consciousness, Spirit, Psychology, Therapy. New York: Shambhala Publications.

To what extent does the mind play a role in the healing process?

The role of the mind in the healing process is thoroughly examined by scholars. Meanwhile, there is a common characteristic in their works, which is the confirmation of the link between stress, which can be eliminated through promoting mindfulness, and severe chronic conditions (Maric et al., 2021; Tang et al., 2017). Their particular attention to the former, which is viewed as the leading risk factor in emerging diseases, determines the extent to which the mind is significant for planning the care for patients. In other words, its action, as per the recent studies, is limited to the health issues, which appear due to the increased levels of stress (Tang et al., 2017). Therefore, specific techniques, such as meditation, guided imagery, or progressive relaxation training, are applicable mostly to these cases. Even though it is clear that healing with the help of the mind can be useful in other situations, the lack of evidence confirming this stance does not allow expanding its usefulness. Subsequently, it is too early to claim the suitability of related practices to any type of problems.

At the same time, the importance of the mind in stress-related states is impossible to underestimate. For example, the recent attempts of researchers to find a method for patients to cope with COVID-specific mental health issues alongside the threat to physical health implying chronic conditions are based on mind-body medicine (Maric et al., 2021). In the study, they emphasize the impact of stress on the health status of the population and conclude on the capability of the suggested approaches to mitigate it (Maric et al., 2021). Similar measures are proposed by scholars who claim that attention control, emotion regulation, and self-awareness can be improved by adopting the mindfulness concept in healthcare (Tang et al., 2017). The similarity in the methods developed by the specialists complemented by these examples leads to the conclusion that the described treatment plans for stress-related conditions will be more advantageous than the previously applied solutions.

Should mind-body techniques be routinely integrated into healthcare processes?

As follows from the data above, mind-body techniques are beneficial for improving the efficiency of healthcare processes. Therefore, they should be integrated into the basic operations of hospitals and, more specifically, into the long-term initiatives intended to affect the population’s health in general positively. This stance is confirmed by the study’s findings, according to which these treatment methods can be positive not only for the wellbeing of patients but also for the personnel in hospitals (van Vliet et al., 2018). In turn, the latter is capable of providing healthcare services of better quality since the “connection on a deeper level with others” correlates with this statement (van Vliet et al., 2018, p. 1). In addition, the previously discussed effects related to stress at the time of COVID and its physical manifestations, in general, add to the necessity to integrate practices connected to mindfulness (Maric et al., 2021; Tang et al., 2017). Thus, this decision will increase the overall efficiency of hospitals’ work regardless of external circumstances.

Meanwhile, healthcare providers should approach these innovative measures with caution and avoid relying on them in cases when their feasibility as applied to specific conditions is not proved by any studies or corresponding experiments. Even in the situations when they are confirmed by findings of scholars, such practices should not be viewed as a substitute to formal treatment. This principle should be explicitly explained to medical specialists and nurses and applied to the discussions with patients. Its significance is conditional upon the fact that people with health issues should develop a proper understanding of the role of mindfulness in the healing process. In turn, the adverse outcome would be their erroneous belief in the sufficiency of meditations and similar techniques for treatment and the avoidance of hospital visits on this basis.

References

Maric, V., Mishra, J., & Ramanathan, D. S. (2021). Using mind-body medicine to reduce the long-term health impacts of COVID-specific chronic stress. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 12, 585952. Web.

Muir, K. J., & Keim-Malpass, J. (2020). The emergency resiliency initiative: A pilot mindfulness intervention program.Journal of Holistic Nursing, 38(2), 205-220. Web.

Ornoy, A., Becker, M., Weinstein-Fudim, L., & Ergaz, Z. (2021). Diabetes during pregnancy: A maternal disease complicating the course of pregnancy with long-term deleterious effects on the offspring: A clinical review.International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 22(6), 1-36. Web.

Tang, Y. Y., Jiang, C., & Tang, R. (2017). How mind-body practice works – Integration or separation?Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 866. Web.

van Vliet, M., Jong, M. C., & Jong, M. (2018). A mind–body skills course among nursing and medical students: A pathway for an improved perception of self and the surrounding world.Global Qualitative Nursing Research, 5, 1-13. Web.

Some academics argue that mind-uploading is completely impossible, with hypotheses such as the fact that a mind can only exist in its original environment or that the upload will only appear as a frozen copy from one specific second of time. And as such, I have to ask whether an incomplete and non-human iteration of a mind or a segment of an individual is capable of being that individual and predicting their behavior.

The core of behavior interpretation relies on understanding how patterns, interests, experiences, and personal traits dictate choices, decisions, and actions. Such strategies are implemented in psychology all the way through current advertising on the internet based on previous searches, private data, and other fragments we leave every time we use our devices. It is currently being used for and against us, but not to perfection. As such, I think computer simulation will be able to generate consistent and generally accurate predictions; after all, it is in possession of vital information. Perhaps we are not even conscious of some of the data it will receive.

However, the predictions will be incomplete, either due to the lack of usual external factors or the imperfect recollection of the past. As such, does such a model allow for the free will of this computer? The free will of us within the universe cannot be stated with certainty, but free will in relation to us understanding our own consciousness is possible. As we are conscious, we often believe that it allows for freedom of choice, and as such, if the computer emulation claimed to be conscious, would it make it so? It may have the capabilities to make this claim, but is there any way to test it? I think that our understanding of free will is still very hypothetical, as there is the possibility that every aspect of our lives is driven by norms taught to us, deities, butterfly theory, or something completely unknown to us still. The chance of complete free will is just as likely.

Peace is a phenomenon that has the dove and an olive leaf as its symbol. The sense of harmony that has to exist in every heart is born out of the ashes of the spirit of regeneration of humanitarian concerns. The human heart vibrates to the string of harmony. Hence, peace is a value that is possessed by a tranquil mind. It exhibits felicity of expression and a balanced disposition. It is impartial and does not take sides. To seek peace is to seek a magnanimous heart which spreads the blanket of being pacified or to pacify any unfavorable occasion.

The reason why peace is considered a value is because it creates an atmosphere genuinely accepted by all as favorable. A person who cherishes values in life will be principled and it would give him an understanding of the worth of humanity. Peace is considered to be one of the values in life because it directs a person who can be misguided. Cultivation of values in life prevents a person from nurturing an attitude that would generally be unacceptable. A speck of incertitude would blemish the superior position of the value as it is regarded as the highest form of expression. Nelson Mandela, in spite of leading an imprisoned life didn’t turn out to be an embittered person. He advocated peace.

In order to substantiate that peace could be possessed only by a tranquil mind; a contrast between certain personalities can be analyzed. Osama Bin Ladan was labeled a terrorist while Martin Luther King was glorified for his egalitarian outlook. While Bin Ladan is a fanatic, King receives universal acclaim for a just cause. The difference between them is that though both of them fought for specific ideals, Bin Ladan could not develop the harmony within himself with which he could win the support of the masses. But King was just and there was perfect harmony between him and the people. In spite of having varied dimensions, the individual often exhibits the trait of the dominant character in him. Peace is the value that spreads a certain calm to a disturbed mind.

The human mind is an amalgamation of complex emotional states that appear and disappear at irregular intervals depending upon the mindset of the individual. A mind incapable to accept or move against a situation creates disharmony with his natural temperament. It cannot be proved that a person reacts due to his inherent frame of thinking but also depends upon the environment in which he is brought up. A person with the motive of revenge succeeds in bringing about instability in his disposition. It is not a deranged mind that is hinted at but a mind that is unable to accept the reality of the situation.

The above paragraphs evidently support the view that peace can be cultivated in a mind only if it is in tranquil. It is regarded as one of those values which can create a mature outlook of life.

Good sleep is essential for good condition of a human body. People who constantly fail to have a good and successful sleep often become irritated and reduce the abilities of memory and attention. Academic performance is reduced as well. Sleep affects logical thinking processes and the ability to make conclusions.

The conducted research should focus on various psychological limitations people are sure to experience if they do not have good sleep at night. Conducting a research project devoted to human sleep habits in children and the affects on their confidence as adults, the existing data should be evaluated, and the conclusions are to be drawn in the sphere of sleep habits and its impact on human mind activity.

Human confidence is a result of human performance. Depending on the quality of the performed tasks and completed issues, on the personal and general feelings, and on the ability to draw conclusions, people may be either confident or not. Bad sleep habits, such as a short length of sleep, late going to bed, and bad quality of sleep at childhood reduce human confidence and make people be uncertain in personal actions at the adult age.

Considering this problem, it is important to understand what a notion of ‘confidence’ means. According to Cambridge Dictionary, ‘confidence’ is defined as “the quality of being certain of your abilities or of having trust in people, plans, or the future” (Cambridge Dictionary, 2011).

Thus, confidence depends on personal feelings in relation to others and to self. This paper aims to conduct a literature review considering the research in the sphere of the sleep habits in children that affect them and their confidence as adults.

Psychological Dependency on Sleep Habits

Wolfson and Carskadon (2003) conducted a research where they tried to test human psychological abilities and dependency on sleep habits. The researchers paid attention to the quality of sleep and mentioned such characteristics as the time of going to bed and waking up, the duration, and quality of sleep.

The research results show that “those who went to bed late and got up late, those whose sleep was short and those who could not sleep the whole night being constantly woke up reduced their academic performance. These people were irritated and could not focus on one and the same problem” (Wolfson & Carskadon, 2003, p. 493).

Additionally, those people failed to think logically, perform the easiest tasks at colleges, follow the teacher’s ideas and respond to questions. Bad performance at school reduces students’ self-assurance as they feel personal failures.

Moreover, when people fail to present good results at colleges, they understand that they fail to meet the expectations of the others, and it also affects confidence. Using this research as the basis for the future hypothesis, it may be stated that influencing students’ academic performance, bad sleep in childhood affects their literacy and as a result the future adult life and having lack in knowledge, people are going to lead limited lives.

Sleep Problem Impact

Blagrove and Akehurst (2000) performed a research that shows “people who have sleep problems also have difficulties in logical thinking and eyewitness memory” (p. 72). The research is rather effective as it helps to conclude that people who have memory problems and those who are unable to complete the logical tasks have lower confidence than others.

In addition, such people are not sure whether all the tasks have been completed and whether everything is delivered. People who have bad sleep habits often forget multiple things and cannot correctly express their point of view. Furthermore, they fail to create connections between ideas because it is rather difficult for these people to build the chains between the objects and images with references to the situations and circumstances during which these images were perceived.

It is important to note that those people who suffer from the regular sleep deprivation have problems not only with the eyewitness memory but also with creating the logical chains and logic reasoning for explaining definite events or phenomena. These factors affect the level of the person’s confidence negatively because they influence the individuals’ self-esteem.

The Connection between Sleep Problems in Childhood and in Adulthood

It is necessary to pay attention to the fact that when children have bad sleep habits in childhood the development of these habits can influence the problems with sleep in adulthood, and, as a result, these aspects can affect the person’s confidence. The speech of those children who suffer from sleep problems is often confusing and illogical because they experience fatigue caused by the constant sleep deprivation.

It is difficult for these children to follow discussions, and they speak by separate sentences and thoughts which are not connected. This fact can contribute to creating a number of complexes which children experience, and they cannot get rid of them easily. Children’s complexes can be discussed as the results of the childhood psychological traumas, and such issues are difficult to be treated successfully.

Thus, first of all, sleep deprivation influences the human memory and abilities to make the logical conclusions (Blagrove & Akehurst, 2000). That is why, having bad memory affected by the sleep problems in childhood, these people are going to have worse memory performance in the future as mind abilities reduce with age. Becoming older, the human mind becomes less flexible and it is more difficult to get rid of the consequences of sleep problems.

Therefore, the effect of bad sleep in childhood becomes higher in adulthood that creates many difficulties. It is necessary to focus on the fact that people with bad memory and the lack of strong logical thinking abilities cannot gain high goals successfully. That is why, the level of their self-esteem is comparably low. Moreover, staying at one and the same level of the personal development, these people cannot feel self-assured and satisfied with their achievements.

Sleep Deprivation Impacts on Confidence

Baranski’s (2007) research is devoted to the problem on how sleep deprivation affects confidence. However, being limited just by one sleepless day the impact of sleep deprivation on confidence cannot be considered effectively. People did not feel serious inconveniences and their confidence remained the same. The result could be predicted. Nevertheless, the importance of this research is in the measures used.

Judging confidence, the research referred to three tasks such as “perceptual comparison, mental addition and general knowledge” (Baranski, 2007, p. 184). To make sure that both objective and subjective visions of the issue have been measured, such methods as meta-cognitive judgments, examination of indicators of confidence-accuracy relation, and accuracy of pre- and post task estimates of performance were used.

Even though the research has limitations such as the concise duration of depriving from sleep, this method may be used for planning my research. Using the methodology and measures of the confidence discussed in this article, the duration of sleep depriving, reduction of sleep quality and increase of the cases of late going to bad and late waking up lead to the reduction of confidence as people are unable to perform the usual tasks. Additionally, this research will expand to children to assess the effects of sleep on their confidence as well and follow the changes in the adult age.

The Connection between Sleep, Mood, and Stress

Lund, Reider, Whiting, and Prichard (2010) have conducted a profound research aimed at considering the relations between sleep, mood, and stress. The researchers referred to such measures as the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Subjective Units of Distress Scale (SUDS), the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), the Profile of Mood States (POMS), and the Horne-Ostberg Morningness Eveningness Scale (MES).

Measuring the PSQI, children were asked to respond to the following sleep aspects, “subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, sleep duration, habitual sleep efficiency, sleep disturbances, use of sleep medication, and daytime dysfunction over the past month” (Lund, Reider, Whiting, & Prichard, 2010, p. 125). ESS measured the activities which were going to make children asleep. MES referred to the time period of children’s activity, either day or night.

SUDS measured the level of stress after good and poor sleep and POMS measured children’s mood after poor sleep (Lund et al., 2010, p. 126). Therefore, the measures conducted in this research help create the general picture of the poor sleep impact on children. The further research may help understand the level of impact of these outcomes on children at the adult age.

The Correlation between Sleep and Confidence

Confidence is a state of mind when people are fully satisfied with performance and results of their activities. Bad sleep habits can ruin human plans because of the feeling of constant fatigue and make people behave differently. Furthermore, bad sleep habits can influence not only the human emotional state but also reduce the brain activity, and that fact can lead to the reduction of self-assurance because people begin to concentrate on their inabilities to cope with different tasks successfully.

It is also useful to determine such an important factor that poor sleep habits in childhood can negatively affect the human organism and its development. Therefore, the effect can be so strong that becoming adults, people still experience the consequences of bad sleep in childhood.

Sleep deprivation and bad sleep habits influence the physical development of an organism and can cause different problems with health. Moreover, problems with health, memory, logic and analytical thinking can affect the human reduction of confidence.

Thus, it may be concluded that much research has been conducted in the sphere of sleep and its impact on human mind. Some of the researches involve the discussion of confidence, others do not, but all the researches connected to the human mind may be used as the supportive arguments or contradicting ones.

The research results discussed in this paper may be used as the supportive arguments and the basis for the research devoted to the consideration how the sleep habits in children affect them and their confidence as adults. Being children, people may experience bad sleeping habits that affect behavior and thinking processes.

Absence of the appropriate treatment for sleep issues can have significant impacts. That is why, its effect on adult life is inevitable. The research conducted on the basis of the results discussed in this literature review should focus on the effects of the consequences of poor sleep of children having become adults. The long-term disorders are going to be identified as the health problems, which occur in childhood and transfer to the adult age.

References

Baranski, J. V. (2007). Fatigue, sleep loss, and confidence in judgment. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 13(4), 182-196.

Blagrove, M., & Akehurst, L. (2000). Effects of sleep loss on confidence-accuracy relationships for reasoning and eyewitness memory. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 6(1), pp. 59-73.

Cambridge Dictionary. (2011). Web.

Lund, H. G., Reider, B. D., Whiting, A. B., & Prichard, J. R. (2010). Sleep patterns and predictors of disturbed sleep in a large population of college students. Journal of Adolescent Health, 46, pp. 124–132.

Wolfson, A. R., & Carskadon, M. A. (2003). Understanding adolescents’ sleep patterns and school performance: a critical appraisal. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 7(6), 491-506.

Obsession is a state of mind whereby an individual is preoccupied with illogical reasons for doing something. It often does not give room for reason. Obsession is involuntary and occurs to individuals unconsciously. The person affected by obsession is often said to be obsessed. These illogical thoughts become persistent and can last for as long as a year and over. As a result of this persistence an obsessed person will more often be depressed.

As such an individual who is obsessed has this pressing feeling towards something or someone. The feeling is so strong that the person may do anything possible even if it means losing his or her life to have what he wants. An obsessed individual often will appear confused from the word go. Some of them end up boycotting or abandoning their duties as a result of the obsession. An obsession will disrupt the normal order and function of the individual’s brain and retrieving the data from the long-term memory becomes a problem.

Obsession is characterized by invasive and disturbing thoughts. It is so gripping that forces the individual to pay much attention to it at the expense of other things. The individual is therefore compelled to do crazy things that end up consuming a lot of time. As a result the obsessed individuals will often tend to keep these behaviors within so that other people do not realize.

There are several things that may obsess individuals, among them food, people, machinery, books, vehicles, and cutlery. My list thus encompasses every other thing that exists in the world. Anything can make someone obsessed. This therefore only varies from individual to individual. Somebody who is obsessed by something will always have a strong passion for that thing. For instance a person who is so obsessed about his or her car will go crazy if this car was withdrawn from existence. His or her affinity for the car is so strong that withdrawal will mean putting a stop to life. As a result the person will often find peace with something or someone that has obsessed him or her.

Ever thought of an individual who would spend more time in the car than in the house? Such a person will even prefer sleeping in the car than in their own houses. As such they will do such irrational things as washing the car more than ten times a day since they can never get convinced that the car is clean. They will spend a lot of time exploring and doing crazy things with this car hence withdrawal of the car means putting a stop on their daily lives.

Nonetheless this individual will develop a disorder called obsessive compulsive disorder. This is a mental disorder that is characterized by unreasonable thinking and natural push to doing some irrelevant and quite irrational things.

These activities are quite voluntary and the victim does them consciously. As a result an individual ends up doing things that consume a lot of time and are quite fruitless. These activities are done by the individual to ease him or her from the anxiety that is brought about by this compulsion. Doctors have since rated obsessive compulsive disorder as the fourth most noticeable disease of the mind in the world. This was reached when over 20,000 adults were diagnosed as suffering from the disorder in the early 1980s.

Obsession is thus so common and medical counseling should be given to those people diagnosed with the disorder.

Introduction

The chance to have a superpower opens various opportunities for the realization of both positive and negative goals. I would like to have a superpower – Mind Control, which allows you to control people and various objects without using physical force. I would use my new abilities to make the world a better place: to help people, solve global problems and implement progressive ideas.

Realizations of the Supernatural Power

In fact, the presence of such a superpower allows its owner to influence people directly, penetrating their consciousness. That is why I would like to have it, as it will help in the simplest way to inspire certain ideas in different people that will be associated with exclusively positive qualities and emotions. Mind control is the ability that will become the basis for solving many existing problems, the source of which is the negative motives of each of us.

In our world, there are many different problems associated with wars, revolutions, and conflicts. All this negatively affects people, denying our high moral aspirations to create a stable and secure world. The ability to control the mind would allow me to inspire ideas in many people so they would realize the wrongness and cruelty of their actions and motives. Thus, it will be one of the steps towards a more harmonious coexistence and mutual support, not destruction.

On the other hand, such a supernatural power shows a lot of negative ways for its owner to realize. However, for my part, I would do everything possible to influence people exclusively from the positive side. Thus, this power will manifest itself in the promotion of caring for each other and the environment, as well as in helping to implement the most advanced and technological ideas.

Conclusion

Summing up, it should be noted that supernatural strength is the key to the realization of positive ideas that are difficult to promote in the existing reality. Mind control will allow me to have a significant influence on people, their thoughts, and their ideas. Therefore, being aware of my responsibility, I will strive to promote only what has a creative effect on the harmonious and safe development of humanity.