Leah Bradstreet Capstone

For my Capstone, I conducted extensive research to formulate a paper and an art representation to answer the question, "How has our current understanding of the brain affected how we treat others?" In order to answer this question, I conducted three interviews, regularly visited my local library for source material, and met with my mentor to plan my next move. With all of this new data about how people have treated others based on psychological evidence, I formulated a four-page research essay which attempted to prove my hypothesis. I thought that no matter how humanity evolved, our treatment of those different than us would never evolve with us. We would remain unable to show true compassion to the stranger. Using the sources gained from the library, I believe I answered this question. In order to represent my research paper, I decided to create an art gallery of five pieces to illustrate the ignorance towards those that are different than the "normal" picture of humanity because of something they cannot control: their mental health. Each piece represents a common, yet misunderstood mental illness that has shown to divide us from each other no matter how much we think we understand about it. Above all, I learned about some of the capabilities of the human lengths of compassion possible in our world, and that because of human nature, the road to true compassion is going to be slow and bumpy with many setbacks. However, I don’t believe it to be impossible.
 

Bostrom, Bob, and Vikki Clawson. "How People Think: Human Information Processing." Google Docs. Accessed January 24, 2019. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1j0ttZVILY361QojKQ2iGT9cijojWmh6EAWlv0K1FF3Y/edit?usp=sharing.

This source is a document written by some college students about the practical ways people think and how they come to new ideas and conclusions. It explains in depth the step by step way the brain functions. It also shows many applications for this. I want to use this source to view one of the many ways people understand how the human thought process works. There are many others, but this is one of the main ones.

Gallagher, Richard. "As a Psychiatrist, I Diagnose Mental Illness. Also, I Help Spot Demonic Possession." The Washington Post. July 01, 2016. Accessed January 24, 2019. https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2016/07/01/as-a-psychiatrist-i-diagnose-mental-illness-and-sometimes-demonic-possession/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.09d1513bf87d.

This is another source which reveals a more religious perspective of psychology through someone who used to view the science through a more conventional and modern lense but changed his perspective to a way of thinking dating back centuries. This is one of the many perspectives of psychology adapted over the years. It will be useful to my research because of this new light and because it used to be widely accepting, but is less so now. There may be insight into why that is within the article.

Malone, John C. Psychology: Pythagoras to Present. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2011.

This story is a true story of how psychology as a whole developed. It was written by an MIT graduate and scholar and backed up by another college’s recommendations. Despite that, this book can be summarized as a well, summary of all of the psychology from Aristotle’s time to now. In essence, it gives a blatant history lesson on psychology. Although it doesn’t directly relate to my thesis, there are fractions that do give support to the ideas of other selected sources.

Pipes, Taylor. "Understanding the Evolution of Human Thought | Evernote." Evernote. February 02, 2018. Accessed January 24, 2019. https://evernote.com/blog/understanding-the-evolution-of-human-thought/.

This article explores the evolutionary perspective of human thought. It dates back as far as we can go in recorded human history and explores theories around how evolved thinking has gotten over time. This article is a more biological piece than metaphysical or practical one. It relies more on physical evidence and less on interviews, records, and psychological theory. There are many diverse sources used in this article which support its words. For this reason, a more biologically concrete perspective is welcomed to my research compilation.

Simonton, Dean Keith. "Applying the Psychology of Science to the Science of Psychology: Can Psychologists Use Psychological Science to Enhance Psychology as a Science?" Perspectives on Psychological Science 4, no. 1 (2009): 2-4. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40212277.

This source is a bit of a mind-bender, for it asks if psychology as a science can be advanced with psychological science. One may ask if they are the same thing, which this article explains and expands upon. This article, which talks about advancement, reflects upon what institutions of psychology used to be. What used to be may hint upon why it needed to change, a major factor of my thesis. That historical nugget of information is what I hope to find in this source.

Tix, Andy. "The Psychology of Religion." Psychology Today. December 14, 2017. Accessed January 24, 2019. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-pursuit-peace/201712/the-psychology-religion.

This source explores the psychology of religion in a modern, normal aesthetic. The person who wrote this sees is as part, but not all of his life, and wrote this in that lens. The source is yet another perspective of psychology to explore. It is very similar to the Richard Gallagher article but has some key differences to explore in the research field. Those key difference appear in its difference in the nature of belief, the depth explored, and simply general difference in ideas about religion. This article mirrors the previous article on religion.

Screenshot 2019-04-30 at 8.56.17 PM
Screenshot 2019-04-30 at 8.56.17 PM
This is my first work in progress and my first time using spray paint... ever!
This is my first work in progress and my first time using spray paint... ever!
Depression
Depression
Intellectual Disability
Intellectual Disability
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar Disorder
General Anxiety Disorder
General Anxiety Disorder
Paranoid Schizophrenia
Paranoid Schizophrenia

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