Psychology

Sleeping is a natural physiological process in mammals, birds and reptiles and therefore human beings find themselves requiring sleep as part of life (Sleepdex, 2009). The reason as to why people need to get sleep is however based on several theories developed by scientists in this field. Perhaps a better understanding of the need to sleep can be better understood by looking at disorders that are associated with sleep. This paper looks into the history of sleep with specific focus on why human beings need to get sleep. In addition, the paper also discusses some common sleep disorders such as insomnia, narcolepsy and sleepwalking.

Why do we need to get sleep
    Many theories have been developed as an effort to explain sleep and more so the need to get sleep. Aristotle (c.350 BCE) is noted to have described sleep as an inhibition of sense of perception for conservation (ThinkQuest, 2009). This was a view that suggested that sleep was necessary as a way of renewing the body. Research on sleep has from then taken different dimensions with the aim of understanding the process of sleep as well as the importance of sleep. Basically, there are some explanations that have been proposed as a result of this research.

    Sleep is believed to renew the brain by allowing neuronal repair and exercise of some vital connections which when left unexercised would breakdown. This repair theory is not only associated with repair of the neurons but also helps in the repair and restoration of muscle tissue and aging cells. Sleep is therefore a means of refreshing the body and restoring spent energy. This may be due to lowering of the metabolic rate as well as the rate of energy consumption. During sleep, important hormones are also secreted thus helping in building the body. Growth hormone is particularly secreted during sleep in children and young adults. Sleep helps in restoration of the brain such that data reorganization, information processing and memory renewal are highly boosted by sleep. The importance of sleep is emphasized by the need to have the cardiovascular system rest thus maintaining a normal functioning. Failure to get enough sleep is associated with impairment of the immune system (Sleepdex, 2009).

    Although plays important roles in the body of human beings, sleeping disorders such as insomnia, narcolepsy and sleepwalking deny some people these benefits.
Insomnia

    Insomnia is a condition characterized by difficulties in falling or staying asleep. Sleep-onset insomnia is characterized by trouble falling asleep whereas sleep-maintenance insomnia is depicted by recurrent awakenings and feelings of tiredness after waking up. Two types of insomnia have been identified primary insomnia and secondary insomnia. Secondary insomnia is more common with 8 in 10 insomnia patient suffering from secondary insomnia. The insomnia is related with some medical conditions or medications whereas primary insomnia is believed to occur due some changes in life such as chronic stress and emotional disturbances and 10 of the population have primary insomnia. Insomnia leads to excessive sleeping at daytime, malaise, increased anxiety and depression. Psychological disturbances such as poor concentration and memory loss are also associated with insomnia (National Heart Lung and Blood Institute Diseases and Control Index, 2009).

Narcolepsy
    This is a chronic neurological disorder whereby the brain is unable to regulate sleep-wake cycles making the sufferers experience short-lived urges to sleep at daytime. The sleeping episodes never last for more than just a few minutes. It is estimated that 1 in 2000 Americans have this sleeping disorder and the disorder affects males and females in almost equal proportions. The main symptom characterizing narcolepsy is excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) occurring in 100 percent of the individuals. With EDS, the patients normal activities are hampered daily regardless of whether the patient got sufficient sleep or not. Cataplexy (quick loss of muscle tone) is also seen in up to 70 of the patients whereas sleep paralysis and hallucinations are just mild. Initial symptoms usually present at the age of 10 to 25 years (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 2009).

Sleepwalking
    Sleepwalking is also known as somnambulism and this is a sleep disorder whereby a person walks or gets involved in other doings while apparently still asleep. Classified as a rapid eye movement (REM) behavior, the disorder mainly characterizes during the dream stage. Persons with the sleepwalking behavior are believed to be unable to release a certain chemical that paralyzes the body during sleep. The disorder that is common in childhood is characterized by quite walking around the room or sometimes frantic running with the eyes open in a staring mood. It is often difficult to bring the person into senses during the episode and they usually forget about the episode completely. The disorder has a familial relationship although environmental patterns such as sleep deprivation, stress, anxiety and drug and substance abuse are known causes. The disorder is known to lead to obstructive sleep apnea, nighttime asthma, and psychiatric disorders among other conditions (WebMD, 2009).

    Sleep is very important for normal physiologic functioning of the human body and mind. Failure to get sufficient sleep often leads to sleep disorders that interfere with normal body functioning and daily activities. The most effective remedy for these sleep disorders is to get enough and fulfilling sleep in addition to addressing other reasons behind lack of enough sleep.

The effects of heredity and environment on human development have been an issue of major concern in the determination of who we are and what we become. Controversies arise regarding the role of heredity and environment in determining the character traits of a person (Powell, 2009).

Genetics issues
    According to Powell, (2007) genes play a very key role in determining the characteristics of a person such as the hair color, eye color, and height. The sum total of a persons character traits are a result of genes interaction. On the other hand one gene may be responsible for a wide range of characters, meaning that, as long as a person has the gene then heshe expresses the trait. Everybody has two genes for one trait. One of the genes is obtained from the father while the other one is obtained from the mother. Some of the genes may be dominant while others are recessive. Incase a person do not have the dominant gene then the recessive gene is expressed. The genetic information of a person is encoded in the DNA.

Environmental issues
    Psychology researchers however, are more interested in factors that are moderately less determined by heredity. These are factors which are subject to environmental influence, like the way a person thinks, feels, and behaves. Given the fact that the determination of a persons character from heredity point of view varies from one dimension to another, it becomes very difficult to understand the intricate relationship between them and also to determine the relative influence of genetics and nature for the development of various human character traits.

Heredity contributes to the development of various personal traits (Kinder, 2009).
    Theorists state that if identical twins are placed under similar environmental condition they will tend to acquire similar character trait, but their theory is disapproved by psychology researchers. Psychology researchers believe that one of the twins may react positively while the other reacts negatively or may fail to react at all. Individuals can react similarly or differently to similar condition depending on their genetic composition. Environmental factors cannot be manipulated to create similar character traits on all individuals (Fedder, 2007).
Correlation between genetics and environment

    A childs character is subject to the balance of their experiences and their parents genetic make up. The environment in which a person is raised, the company heshe keeps, and the parental guidance heshe gets have a very big impact on what a person turns out to be. A child who was born in an abusive society tends to be very abusive also. If such a child is adopted by a family where she is taught good morals the childs lifestyle is most likely to change for better (Powell, 2007).

    Some traits expressions on an individual are influenced by the environment while others like polydactyl, eye color, hair color, free or attached earlobes, and the ability to fold the tongue are not influenced by the environment. A very good example which indicates how the environment may affect the expression of a certain trait is shown by the Siamese Cats. If ice parks are placed on a shaved belly of a Siamese cat, the replacement hair tends to be dark. When the tail of a Siamese cat is shaved and subjected to higher temperature, the replacement fur changes coloration from dark to light. Siamese cats are known to have dark marking on their extremities due to lower temperatures than the normal body temperature (Welch, 1973). The rubella virus is an environmental factor that directly affects an unborn child. This virus crosses the placental blood barrier and if this happens during the early stages of development, it may result to hearing defects, and other adverse damages to the child. Anoxia is another environmental factor that may lead to development of adverse defects to the baby later in life. This is a condition where the body organs of a baby are in severe oxygen deprivation in cases where the baby is entangled with the umbilical cord or is too big that it cannot fit the birth canal properly. (Kinder, 2009)

    Genetics and environments have been shown to play a role in influencing the traits of a person.  Genetics have an impact on a persons physical make up and skills while relationships determine the impact of a persons character and his behavior. People do not become who they are just because they were born, but the environment in which they are raised also plays a very major part.

There are numerous issues which are taboo in the society we live in, and children born with ambiguous genitalia are no different. Not, perhaps to the society as much, but, to the parents they are born to. The first question asked from parents is about the gender of the child and the ambiguous gender most often proves to be a source of embarrassment for them, which is a natural psychological effect for parents who look forward to or picture a perfect child (Veronique 2007, p 81). The surrogate decision by the parents involves numerous factors the consideration of childs future, financial issues involved and the ethical conflicts.

The main question that arises is why the parents should be given the power to choose instead of the health care team Usually the parents are given the autonomy of decision as they are the ones who were related to the child before the situation. As each case differs medically, decision should be based initially on the medical complications that may arise in the future such as according to the United Kingdom Testicular Cancer Study Group, to prevent malignancy, testes may later need to be removed. Thus, the decision carefully needs to be made with the doctors concerned.

Uncertainty in the future of any surrogate decision, taken by the parents in affirmative or negative, would exist. Bringing up the child in question should be done accordingly, to share the decisions made and how the child is different from the normal male or female sex (Lynn 2000, p 171). If the decision is taken in an affirmative, the positive effects would be as follows Alleviation of social ridicule that the child may face in school and further in high school, confidence about its sexual identity and less financial concerns.

However, its not always about financial concern for the parents. Consideration of the childs feeling holds greater value the following issues do arise when it comes to the decision-making process Transferring agency of decision-making (that may differ from the parents once the child is an adult), affect on relationship with parents and the difference of decision of the child in adulthood (nothing should be done surgically that would be unalterable in future micro-penises should be left in place and ovaries and uterus should not be removed).

If the decision that is taken is against the sex-reassignment procedure at birth, then the parents should take particular care in bringing up the child as such that heshe is able to take a well thought decision whether to have the operation, when ready for it or not to go through the procedure at all. The major advantage is the positive relationship that will be built between the parents and the child as heshe will like the fact that the decision was left for himher to be made instead of being already made for him (John 2000, p 101).

In between the array of factors that is needed to be considered by the parents when making a decision, once of the major factors involved is the cost involved. If the surgery is performed at birth or during infancy then it is justified by the doctors as correction of a necessary birth defect. As an infant, heshe would not need a psychological treatment as well and the medical costs involved would be minimal. When and if left to the future, there would be numerous modus operandi involved under the cosmetic procedure. Moreover, the continuous testosterone injections up to the point of operation and post-operative psychological treatment that is essential for the patient involves major finances, which is not generally covered by insurances due to scarce medical funds.

The major ethical issue that is considered, if the decision is taken in an affirmative, is whether the parents are doing so in order to satisfy their picture of a perfect child that is the child being either a girl or a boy and not respecting the individuality of the child. To prevent this, proper counseling should be given to parents to increase the awareness, provide those further details - the pros and cons of any decision taken and in each case the effect of the decision upon the childs future (Laurie 2009, p 290).

Complete research should be done, related to all the possibilities of gender discrepancies of a child, by the couple wishing to have a child. In consideration of the above facts and recommendations, we notice that sex reassignment operations provide the parents with one more option to choose from. Any decision that maybe adopted would have its positives and negative effects in the future. The main concern is how the parents would bring up the child and establish the trust and explain to the child, the wisdom of the decision taken in light of all the facts involved.

The most important day I can remember was the day I graduated from high school. My parents were so incredibly proud of me, and I was on top of the world. My family was not rich. Dad and Mom have had to work hard for everything we have, and if that meant working weekends or holidays to make sure I had new gym shoes or educational toys and books than that is what they did. They always made sure that there is plenty of food and we never doubted that they love us. This day brought wonderful memories of the childhood I was leaving behind but more so, it made me appreciate my parents more.

They say your childhood basically shapes the person you will become as an adult. As asserted by Bee and Bjorklund the first years of life allow individuals to learn, grow and develop insights on all aspects of life. During my studies at preschool and elementary school, I was always keen to learn and this made me very inquisitive. Erikson detailed this stage as the industry vs. inferiority stage where I was capable of learning and developing new skills and knowledge. Both my parents and teachers were there to assist me and also guide me through the right path. If it was not for my parents insights and advice, I would not have made it through high school successfully. Indeed, they taught me the importance of education and encouraged me to work hard so that I could emerge independent.

This lesson has contributed to most of the choices and decisions I have made while growing up. I started working to start saving for college when I was 16, my first job was in a fast food restaurant, even though I hated it, I did the work because that is the big lesson my father taught me, if you want something you have to work hard for it. I also had to work hard to keep my grades up.

High school was tough for me because I did not really know where I fit in. I was not a jock, and did not really fit with the popular kids, but I was not a druggie, a gangster, or Gothpunkhippie either. Bee and Bjorklund note that at the stage of adolescence individuals are keen to discover their identities which contributes to the growth of their personalities. The search for my own identity was not difficult and at the same time I was determined to ensure that this stage did not affect me negatively.  By the time I was eighteen I had found a few friends that had the same interests as I did and I had gotten involved in the school newspaper and other extracurricular activities. My choice of friends made it possible for me to develop into a better person and find my own path in life without the negative influence of others.
   
Although graduation was important for me, it was not the real transition for me.  Mom and Dad still treated me like I was a teenager, I had a curfew and was expected to get a summer job and follow their rules. But at the same time I was expected to take on some adult responsibilities in terms of more adult chores around the house, and in contributing some money towards the household expenses. That summer was the busiest summer of my life. For the first time ever I was working full time. I made shift manager at the restaurant I had been working at since I was fifteen and was responsible for making sure that the 6 other people (including people much older than me, who had been there longer) did their jobs properly. Dont get me wrong, I was proud about the promotion and it would look really good on my resume, but I wasnt free to be a carefree teenager anymore. At this point in my life I was being an adult way before was done being a teenager. However, I hoped that this would work to my advantage in the future.
   
I was also busy getting ready to leave for college. I had to figure out what my main interests were in terms of my major, my classes and my future career. I knew I wasnt truly interested in Business Management working in the restaurant industry helped me figure that one out. I thought about it and discovered that what I really wanted was a major and a future career that would allow me to help others. My parents had taught me as a child the importance of generosity and kindness. They had also taught me to value others and to offer help to those who were in need. I have always loved helping people out and even felt quite fulfilled every time I knew I had been of help. At this transitional stage in my life, I knew I had to pick a career path in a field I would love, enjoy and be of service to the community. Therefore, I chose to learn Diagnostic Medical Sonography that would help me achieve my eventual goal of working in the professional field.
   
Towards the end of that summer I was beginning to feel a little bit scared. After all this would be the first time I was away from my parents other than for summer camp and to stay with friends on weekends. I had not really traveled before and here I was choosing to attend college halfway across the country, in a state where I did not know anyone, not even on Facebook or Livejournal. This choice had been as a result of my desire to find a place where I would grow up independently from my parents and learn how to be my own person. I was also afraid that despite all of my hard work in high school, to get good grades, and to have the types of extracurricular activities on my college applications that schools looked for, that I would be a failure and end up flunking out of school. I did find out later that most of the traditionally college aged freshmen in my year felt the same thing before they left, so I was pretty normal in that regard.
   
College proved to be a turning point for me. When I got to college I became aware that I was fully an adult and no one could tell me what to do anymore. I was fully responsible for my own actions, and there were no parents to talk to the teachers or anyone else if I messed up. I admit, I did go wild for awhile and took advantage of the social life that the college had to offer. For the first time I found a large group (rather than one or two people) that I fit in with, and I enjoyed attending parties in the dorms and sororities and fraternities. Soon I settled down, as I realized that this wasnt high school. I did not have to party to be popular and could find friends and social acceptance amongst those with more academic interests as well. This was college and it was finally cool to be smart.
   
According to Eriksons Theory, I was experiencing the end stages of the Identity vs. Role Confusion stage of development (deciding where I fit in, figuring out who I am and who I want to be), and in the beginning stages of Intimacy vs. Isolation (finding friends, affiliating myself with social and professional groups). I found myself at one point overwhelmed by the need to affiliate myself with a particular group of people and at other times I just wanted to be by myself. These conflicts more often than not had been responsible for my change in moods and this had only heightened my stress levels. I was finding that these two stages were very much intertwined at that point in my life. I still havent quite figured out who I am and who I want to be, just as I am only now finding friends and a place where I fit in.
   
My social life began to change in regard to personal relationships once I reached college. In high school, it had not been easy for me to develop a romantic relationship with anyone because I felt that I did not really fit in. I did not think I had much in common with anyone and so I refrained from any romantic relationship. This has changed since I joined college and I have gotten more into the dating scene now, and am really in the process of thinking about what I want in a life partner, what qualities he should have, and what type of person he should be. Although, I am more focused on work and getting good grades at the moment, it is still something that I need to think about, because eventually I plan on having a family. I value my education more but I also want to develop in all aspects.

Returning home the summer after my freshman year was an interesting experience. It was tough on both my parents and me. I had left them as a hesitant 18 and a half-year-old teenager, who was afraid of the future and of moving so far away from home. I returned to them as a fully-fledged adult with a wealth of new experiences to share, and with attitudes and opinions of my own. I was almost 19 and ready to spread my wings, but they were not ready to let me go. The first half of the summer we fought a lot. They still treated me like a child, but I wasnt one anymore. I was an adult and felt I had the right to be treated like one. At this point I made this clear to them and tried to talk things out with them. I didnt realize that my parents were having their own problems. I was the second oldest and the first child to leave home and my parents had begun to realize that they were growing old. They werent young when they had me, Mom was 30 and Dad was 36, and now they are both in their 60s. So they had their own developmental issues to deal with as well. At the stage of late adulthood as depicted by Erikson, my parents were despairing over their own lives and this brought on great anxiety. Towards the end of the summer we finally resolved our disagreements. I understood that they were under the same stress of adjusting to me not being home and we resolved to understand and respect each other. They agreed to treat me more as an adult.   

During my summer holidays I had met with a few of my high school classmates who were not doing so well in their lives. They had made wrong choices such as excessive partying and socializing, troublemaking and minimum wage working instead of choosing to advance their careers in college. The realization that bad choices could lead individuals into enduring bad lives I became more determined to make something out of myself. Drucker implies that with ambition, intelligence and focus one can manage to reach the topmost of their profession. When I returned to school I became more focused and guided my strengths into succeeding in my studies. This same drive has enabled me to finally study psychology a field which I believe will work positively towards advancing my career.

Looking back to the time when I was 18, my life has changed radically. At the moment I have developed my own identity and personality and I have a better idea of where I belong. I am also looking forward to a more fulfilling life as an adult and as a person charged with numerous responsibilities. I know that my graduation will be the culmination of my growth and development and it will also pave way for new and better experiences. College has helped me to realize that the world outside the town I grew up in has a lot to offer me. I am more likely to speak my mind now and less likely to rely entirely upon my friends and family for confirmation and acceptance. College has also changed my life in other ways. I have friends that are interested in me, for who I am, not how much my jeans cost, or whether or not I am involved in sports. I had gotten more involved in the college community and extracurricular activities than I ever was in high school. This only created more experiences to learn from.

At this stage in life I am looking forward to a higher education and achieving a degree of my dream.  Of course, things could change over the course of the next several years and this particular plan could be disrupted, but if that happens I will adjust and adapt new plans. I am hoping that I can continue to remain focused on my goals and dreams. I am heading into graduate school and I am very happy with my current job.  The future is often unknown but our dreams can give us a glimpse of what we would want it to be like. I am aware that it is only I who can shape my future and I am prepared to do so.

To ascertain whether children facilitate in interaction between strangers, a literature review as well as a study was conducted. Both the literature review and the study suggested that the children definitely help in breaking the ice. People trust strangers who are accompanied by a child more than a stranger who is alone or accompanied by an adult. Since it is difficult to turn away from the affectionate smile of a child, a stranger not only finds it easier to communicate with him but also to communicate with the adult whom the child is accompanying.

However a research is required to ascertain how much trust does the adult who is most likely to be a childs family member has on the stranger who is showing signs of affection towards the child or is passing on a friendly gesture to the adult with him. Since there has been growing instances of cases of child abuse, this angle needs further research.

Discussion
While interacting with a child we are more likely to use a variety of facial expressions and gestures. Since facial expressions and gestures constitute a significant portion of our communication, interaction with children becomes easier even in a short while. Adults need a longer amount of time to really start conversing with each other. They start conversing with words first. There is stiffness in communication between two strange adults for a longer period of time when compared to communication between two strange adults and a child accompanying either of them. Humans are the only animals to communicate through the medium of words. I recently spent several hours watching apes communicating with one another. Watching a female ape bonding with an abandoned baby ape via submission signals, stage-by-stage touch and some periods of complete back-off reminded me just how much we lost when we learnt to talk. (James, 2008) Since childrens knowledge of vocabulary is limited, they are very good observers of body language. They at once understand and reciprocate to the gestures of adults even when they dont know them. If a person sees that his or her child is able to build a good communication with a stranger, he too builds a rapport, which might be limited to just a few seconds. Even if the interaction between two strangers is more than a few seconds it is limited mostly to the facial expressions like a smile or two or nodding of head. These will most likely be divided between the child and the adult and not only to the adult. The sweeter the facial expression of the stranger towards the child is, the more are the chances of him getting acquainted with the adult.  The face is an endlessly fascinating canvass on which, we express our emotions. Hence if one is good to a stranger child, he comes across as a good human being to the stranger adult accompanying him. It has been rightly pointed out by Reiman that

First, you take an accurate read of the other persons thoughts and feelings by decoding her body language, then you respond with physical signals that both acknowledge her unspoken messages and accurately reflect your own. (Reiman, 2007) No matter how kind ones words are, if they dont match with the body language it is very easy to detect deception, unease and dissonance. An adults mind is preoccupied with so many things that he might some time falter in decoding, but not a child. If you are really friendly a childs inner sensor will say, that this stranger is safe. When the child shows friendliness towards the stranger, the person accompanying him automatically reacts more positively.

There are different learning theories that different people use in the process of learning. Moreover, an individual can have more than one learning theory depending on the learning abilities of the individual, the learning program employed in the learning institution the individual is enrolled to or the content of the knowledge to be learnt. Therefore, teachers and students as well as learning institutions administrators should understand that individuals do not learn in the same way. The educators should also understand that a style applicable to a student or a group of students may not apply to all students the educator is likely to encounter. My personal learning theories are the facilitation theory and the sensory stimulation theory.
    Among my personal learning theories is the facilitation theory. This theory was developed by Carl Roger together with other scholars in education psychology. The theory is based on the principle that in the event of learning, there must be a facilitator who is mainly the educator or any other person who can facilitate the learning process. The role of the facilitator in this case is to ensure that the learner experiences the best learning environment that will aid in the ability of the learner to absorb new ideas. The theory suggests that learning requires a favorable environment where the learner is comfortable and not vulnerable to external dynamics in order to put into consideration new ideas (Sinclair, n d).
    The facilitation learning theory is based on the fact that all human beings have a natural and very strong eagerness to gather new ideas and knowledge. With this believe in mind, the role of the learning institution and the teachers is to facilitate the learning process by providing the necessary environment. The other characteristic of the theory of facilitation is the natural resistance to give up the already held fact as true and the unpleasant effects of giving up what is held to be true. Therefore, based on this theory, the most fundamental aspect of learning is the process of changing the concept held by the learner.
    This theory has several strong points in that the educators who employ this theory are not as protective as other educators on their viewpoint and constructs. They give a room for learners to express their views and correct them appropriately and therefore facilitating the consideration of new ideas by the learners. The educators and teachers are therefore able to know their learners feelings which in turn increase the interpersonal relationship between the learner and the educator. This aspect is essential in any learning process. To facilitate learning, the educator should lay as much emphasis to the learner-teacher relationship as to the content being learnt. The facilitator should therefore be able to accommodate feedback and responses from the learner which are both positive and negative. The teacher can use these responses from the learners constructively in the improvement of his delivery as well as evaluation of the learners learning rate (Sinclair, n d).
    The facilitation theory of learning is learner based in that it encourages the learner to make efforts to learn while the role of the teacher is facilitation. The learner is encouraged to be responsible for his or her own learning such that he or she can learn in the absence of a teacher. Most of the learning activities therefore involve individual learners experiences and insights about the concepts being taught. The facilitator is therefore able to guide the learner from the known to unknown. The learner is also encouraged to evaluate themselves on the understanding of the concepts. In fact, self evaluation has proved to be the most important method of evaluation and should therefore be promoted among the learners. The learning process can only be effective if and only if the learner can solve significant problems related to the taught concepts and the intended results have been attained (Sinclair, n d).
    My other personal learning theory is the sensory stimulation theory. This theory is based on the principle that a learner is able to learn if his senses are stimulated. Research indicates that over three quarters of the knowledge accumulated by majority of the people is learnt through seeing, about a quarter of the knowledge is acquired through hearing while some good amount is obtained through smelling, touching or tasting. Therefore, stimulating the senses of the learner is a basic practice in any learning activity. The educator should therefore make attempts of stimulating as many senses as possible in the learning process. This can be done by the use of appropriate color varieties, variation of the volume and tones, use of strong and attractive statements as well as visual presentations.