Question

For each case study below, provide an explanation from the viewpoint of the following five perspectives to explain or describe the behaviors:

• Neurobiological

• Humanistic

• Psychodynamic

• Behavioral

• Cognitve

Case Study #1: Mrs. B has been teaching English for the past 12 years. Until this year, she always planned interesting and creative lessons for students with a variety of different activities. This year, the quality of her lessons gradually deteriorated. She began to doubt her ability to motivate students, believing her students found her "boring." In an evaluation, the school principal mentioned that her classes appeared "poorly organized." During the past year she has undergone a variety of life changes, including the death of her 82-year-old father and the departure of her only child for college out of state. She confided in a close friend that she has been feeling overwhelmed and lonely.

Case Study #2: Barry is a 45-year-old computer programmer who has never been married and lives with his mother. He spends his evenings and weekends either playing Scrabble with his mother, surfing the Internet or participating in chat rooms. His friend Eddie set him up on a blind date with a woman from his work. Yet Barry forgot the time and showed up so late that his date had already left, thinking she’d been stood up. Barry would like to date her, but is too ashamed to call and apologize for not keeping their date. Until recently, his work had been going really well, but after he missed an important project date, the client withdrew the contract offer.

Answer 1

• Case 1
• Neurobiological- The woman’s neural functioning might affect her brain, where controls emotions. As it mentions in the description, perhaps the loss of his father and the departure of his only child have made her produced hormones which would cause depression, feeling of loneliness and even mental malfunctions. Therefore, all these consequences would resultin poor organization of lessons.
• Humanistic-Humanistic perspective is about feelings and desires. Because of her father and her child, she was not feeling lonely but loved. However, after the loss of her dad and the departure of her son, the feelings she had now become empty. She might desire for love but there is no one here for her. Therefore, the hole of emptiness might become larger and larger, which would eventually cause depression, feeling of loneliness and even mental malfunctions.
• Psychodynamic-Perhaps unconsciously, the feeling of love is from her father and son. However, since both of them are gone now, she is unconsciously feeling overwhelmed and depressed.
• Behavioral-She has been living with her son and her dad for a long period of time, and her home is aplace filled with happiness. Now, since both of them are gone, coming back to home only provides a feeling of loneliness because she is still not used to an empty house. On the other hand, school is still the same, which in a way breaks the balance between home and school.
• Cognitive-Cognitive perspective is about thoughts that trigger and control feelings. Perhaps because of her loss of her father and the departure of her son, her brain is telling her she is the only one left behind in this lonely house. The negative thoughts of being lonely might also cause depression.
  
• Case 2
• Neurobiological- Barry is experiencing an excess production of some chemicals in his brain, causing the absences on his date and work. Or perhaps, after the date he missed, the sense of time has been muted by the overproduction of some chemicals in his brain.He might be suffering from extreme forms of anxiety.
• From a psychodynamic perspective when Barry was a child his mother might have arrived home really late and yet he was still happy to see her every time she saw her and might have grew an attachment to her mother through the following years.
• From a behavioral perspective for Barry might not have been positively reinforced to go somewhere or do a task at an appropriate time but instead been punished for it and which caused him to not finish things on time.
• From a humanistic perspective he might have fears of leaving his mother and to potentially move out if he starts going out with other women.
• From a cognitive perspective Barry’s confinement to his mother might have given him a lack of proper social skills and cannot communicate amongst women.