PSychology 403: MOtivation
Psych 403 was the first 400 level psychology course that I took at the UW. I was captivated by the differences between 403 and the 300 level classes I had taken so far; our class was much more engaging and structured around active evaluation of psychological studies, rather than simply learning about theories that other psychologists have proposed. My professor Dr. Voorhies did a phenomenal job of choosing studies that researched thought provoking concepts and we were asked each week to "write a paper about something that popped into your head during class or while doing the readings". How great of an assignment is that?! So I spent the majority of my homework time for this class exploring psychology journals for answers to questions I was genuinely interested in. After my first couple of papers I realized a trend in my interests, specifically towards a field called psychoneuroimmunology, which studies how your mental state can affect the functioning of your body, specifically the immune system. I am fascinated by the idea of being able to make someone physically healthier through strengthening their mental health and exploring the idea of applying this concept to modern medicine. If you're interested in learning more I've included some of my weekly papers below-enjoy!