Dani's Crib

Welcome to my Social Sciences blog!

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Culminating Entry

My first month in college was really stressful. We only had one day of OrSem and I still didn’t get to adapt to college life. Add that to the fact that I joined a varsity the 2nd week of school. I was physically and mentally drained the following days and I had my first breakdown. During those weeks, we were studying about self-regulation, controlling your emotions and depression in my SocSc class. Learning about rumination and the things that cause depression and sadness was wake up call for me to control my emotions, that whatever I am experiencing now will come to pass as it is one of the many breakdowns I will have and I have to be ready for it so that I will not be shocked anymore with the certain gravity of some situations. I am a really bubbly and jolly person and I didn’t realize I was capable of feeling so down. Learning to acknowledge my emotions helped me get over that state of rumination and self-doubt.

I have been living in a dorm since Grade 11. At first, I really missed my family. But when my parents tried to control me too much, I would prefer to stay at the dorm more than at home. Fortunately, we are in a better state now and I’ve gone back to missing them when I am in the dorm. Living in a dorm made me realize how important my family is to me. Even when there are times that I want to differentiate and separate myself from my parents, I end up coming back to them. Seeing the families of my friends and other schoolmates, it can be concluded that most Filipino family are closely knit compared to that of other races. I say most, not all, because I know of people who are not on good terms with people in their family. It also made me see how big of a role my family played in the formation of my identity. I find myself doing things I know my parents would do and I only realized it after I have separated from them.

Lastly, I found myself becoming more and more like my clique (Babble cheerdancers). Looking at myself, I see both positive and negative effects. Positive effects include me gaining more confidence, coming out of my shell and no longer being afraid to socialize. I used to be image conscious before, meaning that I am careful of what I do because I think people will judge me for what I’m doing. Now, however, I no longer put people’s opinions above my own. I still care about what they say but I no longer let them dictate what I do and don’t do. I simply do what I want. On the other hand, being with my clique a lot has made me more judgemental and prideful. I may have internalized the stereotypes too much and now, I have to correct myself because, deep inside, I know this isn’t who I really am and what a hypocrite I’ve become if I continue doing this because I was once on the receiving end of judgmental people.

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BINHI

How are the habitus of the communities different and/or similar from yours? What forms of capital are valued in their field? The habitus of the people in LAMCO were both different and similar to mine. For the similar parts, these include the same value for education. This value came from what our parents constantly told us about how the world is tough and competitive and in order to get a good job that pays well, you need to study well. Just like them, our parents work in order to pay for our tuition and they expect us to study. No matter the difference in socio-economic statuses, education is valued. Educational attainment is one capital that both habitus value. Another similar aspect is the importance of family. Instead of buying a new house, the foster family I stayed in just added another floor to their house. This is similar to some of my relatives who still don’t want to leave the home of their parents despite having a family already. As for the differences, the language was different. There, they kept saying “po”, even though I am much younger than them. For them, because we go to an expensive school and are more financially stable, we are “higher” or “older” in a sense for them. This was probably brought about by the norm people from their class usually grow to become employees only, and never bosses, thus they think less of themselves. Another difference is their for settling. These people are contented with their lifestyle. When I asked them if they wanted to move out of their current field, they said they were fine and that anywhere they would go, they would have the same life, still struggling. Clearly, money is a capital that they need and value.

This isn’t my first time entering a different field. I’ve done this before in TD and CSIP, which are outreach programs of Ateneo SHS. So I am just going to share my thoughts from the first time I entered a different field. I was scared and anxious. Even till the time I had BINHI, I was still a bit anxious. This may be because I was so used to my field that entering another one seems daunting and challenging because you are not familiar with the elements, and how they live/work, present in that field. Also, there are a lot of stereotypes going around about how a field like theirs is known for vice and crimes. With that in mind, it is understandable for me to be scared. However, ironically, another part of me was also a bit excited. I’ve grown up in my field and only seen that so seeing and experience a whole different world gives me a new perspective of how life works for people who are not part of my field.

 Is it possible to bridge the gap between people from different habitus? Based on your own experience, how can it be done? I believe that it is possible. However, it will take a really long time and a lot of effort and cooperation from people from the people of both habituses. Since education is a prime capital and value, we should start there. We are to give them proper education, atleast equal to ours so that they get rid of the belief that we are more fortunate than them. Their belief that they are lower and less fortunate and our belief that we are higher and more fortunate is what continues to widen the gap between us. Yes, it’s true, we are more fortunate but we internalize belief too much that we don’t make an effort anymore. Same goes for them, they internalize it too much that they settle for what they have. Everyone should be given a proper capital and it is up to people to decide whether they want to use it properly or not.

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Romantic relationships and Gender-related issues

Believe it or not, I haven’t had a romantic relationship yet which is why I am still unexposed to cuddles and kisses and at the same time, heartbreak and pain (because of a boy). This is also the reason why I still expect too much from boys, based on the expectations we have attached to them. I am a hopeless romantic still waiting for the boy who will make feel like I’m the only girl in the world (too cheesy). I have never confessed to the boy because I’m shy and I expect the boy to confess first. I know that this may seem problematic because these expectations are no longer being followed due to the changing world and feminism. The issue of attaching expectations to different genders is similar to that of giving different crowds stereotypes. These are what we think they should embody but it is not always true. Because of this, we are shocked and sometimes turned off when boys do not meet the expectations we set. But was it right to expect so much from them in the first place?

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Relationship with Peers

With the number of people in babble (our unit is the only one in the pic, babble is 100++ people) and alumni who still continue to support games, you can consider Babble a crowd. We share certain characteristics, like having school spirit and being really loud and bubbly. However, we are also different in our own way. Some love Mcdo, some love Jollibee. Some hate matcha, some love matcha. Some drink, some don’t. The stereotype that Babble, cheerleaders in particular, like the same exact stuff and do everything together is false. We have our own interests, some are shared with others, others aren’t. We come together because of our goal, which is to cheer our hearts out for the players on the court/field/pool/mats but at the end of the day, we are different people bound together by a shared/common interest (for our unit, cheerdancing).

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Relationship with Parents

Over the years, my relationship with my parents has changed. From seeing them as providers to annoying people to my constant support system, my parents have always been there. Even now (I’m 19), my parents still treat my like their baby. They watch all of my games (even if just the one cheering, not playing) and they still think I’m in pre-school. Sometimes, I see something in them that I don’t like which causes me to separate from them and stay in my dorm longer than usual. I disagree with them a lot, but I also find myself agreeing with them too. Maybe all I wanted was for us to see eye to eye about certain things and allow me to do more things and luckily, they are starting to see my point and lessen their strictness. ( they’ve lessened it by 10% :( )

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Sociological Perspectives

Sociological perspectives include Symbolic Interactionism, Looking Glass Self & Dramaturgy. In my picture below, these perspectives are (lowkey) present. With the presence of the chair, the hairdresser behind me, the blowdryer and the set up of the place, one can infer that I am in a parlor. These symbols are what we attach to the place and therefore it is given meaning as things that are present in a parlor and things we use to make ourselves look nice. (Symbolic Interactionism) As for the presence of the mirror, the theory of the looking glass self is present because what we see in the mirror is how we see ourselves, meaning if our mirror is a different person, what the person thinks of us affects how we think of ourselves as well. This mirror selfie showed me what I look like with short hair and if it’s nice. If seen by other, based on their reaction, I will know if it is truly nice. Lastly, dramaturgy is present here because this picture that I took before was posted on my Snapchat story (when snapchat was still in). My story, IG feed, profile pictures and the like are all part of my front stage. It is the region where I “act” and show follow certain scripts, where I try to show my best qualities but not too far from my true self.

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Psychosocial Perspective (Erikson)

The different psychosocial stages are characterized by a crisis between 2 opposites (syntonic vs. dystonic). Like in a typical video game, there is always a winner and a loser. This crisis results to whether the basic strength will “win” and be used by the individual or the core pathology, the can cause maladapitve effects on a person. Crisis can also mean exploration or a problem. Despite the differences in meaning, a crisis is integral in the development of ourselves and our identity. It provides us with options and our commitment to one dictates the rest of our development. However, developing an identity and committing to the choice is easier said than done. With the internet and technology providing more room to explore, people will have a hard time settling down and committing to one single things when you have a venue to experience more things at once.

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Psychodynamic Perspective (Freud)

Yes, the iceberg principle. Freud argues that people are motivated by unconscious, which contains the repressed sexual and aggressive drives and early childhood memories. The ship Titanic only hit the tip of the iceberg. Similarly, people only have access to the conscious and a part of the pre-conscious. Going deeper may cause us to break due to the stress of learning the things that are hidden in our unconscious.

Another concept in the Psychodynamic perspective is the id, ego and superego. In class, I learned that the id isn’t evil and the superego isn’t the angel. Both the extremes do not have access to the outside and the rules present, thus they act only to achieve their goal without considering other aspects. The ego balances them both and exercises defense mechanisms. Rose repressed the memory of Jack after he died which was the response of the ego in order to cope with losing the man she loves. There are numerous defense mechanisms and we use them more than we know.

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Self-regulation

Regulating our emotions is one important skill that everyone should master in order to avoid different emotional disorders. The most important part of self-regulation is to acknowledge your emotions. One should know if they are sad, angry, stressed,etc. Being aware allows you think of certain ways to approach your current situation. In the picture below, we see the things I need when I am stressed or on the brink of a breakdown. Since I am aware, there is no room to ruminate (causes  depression) because I will focus on the things that bring me joy or relief and consequently, prevent depression and other mental health disorders.

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Here the ABC models for each basic emotion.

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The Thinking Self

There are multiple components to the thinking self, but the most basic ones, and their constant state, can be represented by the 2 animals in the picture. System 1 (hare) and System 2 (tortoise) are 2 vital elements of our thinking self. System 1, the fast and reflexive one, allows us to make decisions that do not need much thought or let us do basic things and routines. On the other hand, System 2, the complex and thoughtful one, makes us think of rational ways to approach a certain situation. Though seemingly opposite from one another, these 2 work together to make sure that you get the best result. In the next picture, we see an application of these 2 systems. When texting/ chatting with someone, you dont usually think much about what you are going to say, thus we use system 1. However, we switch to system 2 when we talk to someone we like because we want the person to like us back. Our thoughtful system 2 thinks of nice ways to reply without looking like we’re trying too hard.

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Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Model

Like my favorite cake in coffee bean, there are different layers in a person. Similarly, a person is also part of the different layers of context, time and process, all of which are part of the Ecological Model by Bronfenbrenner. The top of the cake is what we usually see first. This can symbolize our microsystem, for the people here are the ones we encounter immediately and consistently. The lower layers are the bigger contexts in our life like the meso and macrosystem, wherein we dont immediately see them but they still affect us. Just like the cake, where all the layers form one cake that makes it so delicious, there are different things that alter and affect our lives, but they come together to make us the person who we are now.

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Welcome to my dream house!

Today's activity was to draw a house and I ended up drawing this. (Forgive my lack of drawing skills 😢) When I was drawing it, I was just thinking of what my house would want to look like in the future. Suprisingly, the house I drew reflected who I am as a person. According to my psychologist professor, I like open and breathing spaces which is evident in the number of windows and lawns present around the house. In the end, I realized that even the simplest things we do reflect who we are as a person anf that one's nature cannot be simply changed.