Exercise 3

1.   burying my feet in the sand

2.   eating chocolate

3.   hanging out with my friends

4.   apple picking

5.   petting my dog

6.   baking

7.   going for a run

8.   taking a nap

9.   painting my nails

10.  wearing fuzzy socks

11.  cracking my back

12.  the smell of a new car

13.  reading a book for pleasure

14.  acing a test

15.  sitting in a hammock

16.  visiting family in Montreal

17.  watching a comedy

18.  wearing clothes that just came out of the dryer

19.  scented soap

20.  smelling flowers

21.  wearing sweatpants

22.  (attempting) to skip rocks

23.  scrapbooking

24.  jumping on a trampoline

25.  singing in the shower

26.  kayaking

27.  making people laugh

28.  going for a hike

29.  spending time with my family

30.  playing field hockey

31.  cuddling with my dog

32.  sleeping in late

33.  going shopping with my mom

34.  going out to dinner

35.  having a picnic

36.  playing board games

37.  drinking hot chocolate

38.  sitting by the fire

39.  shopping online

40.  having a sleepover with friends

41.  walking to Crescent Ridge

42.  falling asleep to the sound of rain

43.  collecting sea shells

44.  cleaning my room

45.  writing on my whiteboard

46.  driving my car

47.  listening to music

48.  carving a pumpkin for Halloween

49.  watching my favorite television shows, Modern Family and That 70’s Show

50.  reading outside in the sun

51.  rock climbing

52.  jumping off of a swing

53.  building a fort

54.  having a snowball fight

55.  making snow angels

56.  taking a hot shower

57.  going for a long bike ride

58.  writing calligraphy

59.  jumping in a pile of leaves

60.  when a song I like comes on the radio

61.  wearing my favorite outfit

62.  drinking Gatorade after a field hockey game

63.  shopping at Target

64.  successfully merging on the highway

65.  eating dinner with my family

66.  jumping on my bed

67.  sampling food at Costco

68.  being on time

69.  being first in line (anywhere)

70.  looking through old photo albums

71.  watching lightning

72.  playing Solitaire on my iPod

73.  receiving a magazine or catalogue in the mail

74.  sun tanning on vacation/in the summer

75.  seeing my old camp friends

      After going through one day trying to incorporate as many simple pleasures as I could, it turned out to be one of the best days I’ve had in a while. The simple pleasures that I incorporated included: hanging out with my friends, petting my dog, painting my nails, cracking my back, eating chocolate, watching my favorite television shows, receiving a magazine in the mail, singing in the shower, sleeping in late, going out to dinner, shopping with my mom, cleaning my room, driving my car and successfully merging on the highway, and listening to music. My day was so great because by doing all of these little things that pleased me, my day was more enjoyable. After experiencing this day, I realized that by incorporating more simple pleasures into my daily life I will be much happier.

      There are several things that I wanted to do but was fearful attempting because of failure, rejection, and/or embarrassment. One of these actions included confronting someone about a problem. I was fearful of doing so because I wanted the other person to hear my opinion without shutting me down, and I was nervous about potentially hurting their feelings. Another action that I feared attempting was calling for the ball in field hockey, because I didn’t want to miss the ball and embarrass myself. I also didn’t want to disappoint my coach and the team. In addition, I wanted to speak to the new French exchange students and introduce myself to them, but I was too nervous to do so because my French is not so great, and I didn’t want to be embarrassed. I also wanted to contribute my ideas about Halloween costumes to my friends, but I didn’t want to attempt it because I was afraid they would reject my ideas, which would probably make me upset. Lastly, although I wanted to raise my hand and participate more often in my classes, I was fearful of doing so because of failure and embarrassment in front of my classmates. However, throughout the week I did try to raise my hand more and share answers. Although I may not have always gotten the answers correct, my teachers seemed to appreciate the fact that I was putting in the effort to participate. By gaining the approval of my teachers, and sometimes even gaining the satisfaction of answering a question correctly, I learned to overcome my fear of failure. I learned that despite failure and embarrassment, I will not be able to learn from my mistakes and get my ideas across if I do not attempt these actions. 

The Bystander Effect

The likelihood that an onlooker would help the car that slid off the road would be in the middle of very likely and very unlikely, in this case a 4 on the scale. Some of the factors that would influence an onlooker to help include feeling guilty for not stopping. Although the driver was not driving responsibly, the onlookers may feel guilty because the accident could have been serious. On the other hand, one of the factors that would influence an onlooker not to help is the characteristics of the victim. In this case, the victim was being a reckless driver by weaving on the roads to pass other drivers, coming close to hitting them. By the dilution effect, the onlookers may stereotype this driver as someone who is careless and frankly obnoxious. The other drivers may believe that this driver in need doesn’t deserve help, because he/or caused the problem. Therefore, the onlookers are less likely to help the victim.

The likelihood that an onlooker would stop to help the teacher that dropped her papers it pretty unlikely, in this case a 5 on the scale. One factor that influence an onlooker to help pick up the papers is avoiding personal guilt for not helping the teacher. However, there are several factors that would influence a bystander not to help. One reason they wouldn’t help in this situation could be linked to pluralistic ignorance, in which the bystanders do not help if others are not helping, thinking it is not necessary to intervene. Another reason they wouldn’t help is because of the “diffusion of responsibility,” in which they do not help because they think someone else will help, therefore feeling less responsible in the situation. Lastly, if students are in a hurry and are worried about being late to class, they are unlikely to help the teacher pick up her papers.

The bystanders are unlikely to help the victim outside of the tavern, the likelihood being a 5 on the scale. The two main reasons that the bystanders would step in are to help the victim from danger, and to help relieve the tension of seeing this situation take place. One factor that would influence an onlooker not to help in this situation is pluralistic ignorance, as mentioned above. Also, the onlookers may believe that this situation is none of their business. Lastly, similar to the onlookers in the Kitty Genovese case, they may want to avoid a dangerous situation and not get involved.

The bystanders are likely to help the man off of the railing of the bridge, the likelihood being a 6 on the scale. Some of the factors that would influence the bystanders not to help would be pluralistic ignorance, and ambiguity, in which the bystanders are unsure if the situation is really an emergency. Although a bystander may help this man to avoid personal guilt if something bad were to happen to him. Also, they may feel the need to get this man out of a dangerous situation, and may feel as though they are not harming themselves in the process. Lastly, because of “selfish benefits,” in which a bystander will help in return for social and personal rewards, a bystander may help the man to be rewarded with praise from the other bystanders, and be seen as a hero.

The Bystander Effect shows that humans are sometimes unsure of whether or not they should help, and rely on the reactions of others to determine the degree of a situation. It also shows that people are less likely to help if there are other bystanders around. The Milgram Study shows that humans are likely to listen to authority and be obedient, and that they “trust those with the knowledge of power.” Both the Bystander Effect and the Milgram Study show that people tend to defer their responsibility in certain situations, and are often afraid to get into trouble. My own thinking has changed with regard to helping others, because I know that I cannot always rely on the reactions of other bystanders to determine whether or not I should intervene in a situation. I know that although I may not have a legal responsibility to help others, I have a moral responsibility to step in and help. I can now help others without the fear of questioning authority or getting into trouble. I think the most significant factors that influenced me not to help, and will continue to influence me not to help, are the fears of getting involved in a dangerous situation, and offering potentially dangerous assistance. However, after learning about the Milgram Study and the Bystander Effect, I am more likely to help out in an emergency situation in which it is safe to do so. 

Exercise 2

One of the issues that I constantly find myself complaining about is that I have too much homework, and not enough time to complete it. Every weekday after school is finished, I have field hockey practice until 5:30, after which I have to shower and eat dinner. And by the time I sit down to begin my homework, I'm already exhausted. I will also admit that I have a bit of a procrastination issue, preferring to put off my homework for as long as possible. To solve this issue, a possible solution would be to avoid procrastinating my homework, which would definitely alleviate the stress of having to finish it late at night. Another solution is to try to improve my time management so I can efficiently complete my homework in a moderate amount of time. By taking action on these solutions, I found that I could finish my homework in the time I have, without waiting until the last minute and becoming stressed. Another issue I frequently complain about is being extremely tired during the school day, and not being able to focus in class. This issue is caused by staying up late in general, either trying to finish homework, watching television, or using the computer. In order to solve this issue, I attempted to fix my procrastination issue, as mentioned previously, and limit the use of technology right before I go to bed. I tried to go to bed at an earlier and more reasonable time, which had a significant impact on my ability to focus in school the next day, and not be as tired.

One of the biggest things I take for granted is my friends. My friends are some of the most important people in my life that I may not always take the time to appreciate. Several great aspects of my friends include that they are always there for me, they support my goals, they never fail to make me laugh and brighten my mood, I can ask them for advice, and I know that I can always rely on them and confide in them. Although I am already very grateful to have my friends be a significant part of my life, one way that I could appreciate them more fully is to put more effort into spending time with them. Another action I could take to appreciate my friends more fully is to return to them all of the favors they do for me. Lastly, I could frequently let them know how much I appreciate having them in my life, and all of the great things they do for me. After improving my actions to appreciate my friends more fully, I realized that this not only benefits my well-being, but also the well-being and happiness of my friends. When I took the time to appreciate my friends for everything they do, I no longer took them for granted and I savored my friendships even more. By having close relationships with these people, and socializing with them more often, I became happier and felt more satisfied. This effect lasts a long time because when I constantly spend time with my friends and thank them for the favors they do for me, I continue to appreciate them and realize they should never be taken for granted.