If you have been paying any attention to fairly recent headlines relating to sports, specifically football, you would have noticed that there has been a drastic increase in the amount of media attention that sports related concussions have been receiving. Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, or CTE, is the term that refers to the the accumulated damage of brain tissues in individuals who typically have been playing professional football for a long period of time (although it can still be found in young individuals who have not played as long). Players such as Aaron Hernandez, Junior Seau, and Bill Bryant were all found to have evidence of CTE in their post-mortem evaluation.

CTE occurs when there is a repeated trauma of the brain. Football is an incredibly contact oriented sport, which involves the smashing of helmets during the plays. Symptoms of CTE include, but are not limited to, suicidality, depression, anxiety, memory loss, aggression, and anger control problems. Unfortunately, it is impossible to diagnose before death. This means that many former players had their fate secured long before they were aware.

As I write this, I have an interview scheduled to be a research assistant in a sports concussion lab here at University Park. If I get the position, I will be very happy to be involved in research to better understand this horrible condition, and maybe even work with my peers to be able to diagnose it in living patients. From what I understand, the lab works closely with members of the football team. This means that I can potentially make a contribution to my immediate community. If I can contribute to saving just one singular life before they fall victim to CTE, I will feel accomplished with my work. Not satisfied, of course, but accomplished.

Phrenology. This is the word that describes the ancient practice of diagnosing mental differences in individuals by observing the bumps and crevices on the exterior part of a person’s skull. Seems legit right? Well, no, not really.

This pseudoscience was the attempt of ancient people to describe the differences across people’s personalities and actions. We all have different skulls, so obviously this is an explanation for the way that we all act differently…

To put this in modern perspective, I think its arrogant to make (too much) fun of these people. We still don’t know too much about the field of psychology, since much of what we do know is based on inference and observation. There are many areas of psychology, such as personality psychology, that have very little biological evidence to base claims off of. The theories that we consider to be the most scientifically valid oftentimes don’t have any scientific procedures involved.

But this brings up the evolving field of neuropsychology. I believe this is the most prominent direction that this field is heading, because we are developing increasingly reliable ways to assess the inner workings of the brain, and then apply this knowledge to practical human processes. In relation to the time frame that the field of psychology has existed, technologies such as MRI, fMRI, CAT, and EEG are relatively new. These all allow us to have insight about what is going on inside the brain, rather than the outward expressions that are reflected by these previously unseen processes.

It’s just amazing to me the advancement that we have already made, and it makes me excited to see what else is to come. This gives me motivation to explore my own theories in hopes that one day I can make my own machine that allows me to gain my own knowledge that I can then publish and share to the rest of  the psychology community.

What attracts me the field of psychology is the necessity to remove all barriers between people in order to approach every situation objectively. At our most primitive and basic core, we are all no more than connections of neurons trying to communicate with each other in order for the organism as a whole to properly operate. So to me, it is difficult to look at any situation without first considering all the possible psychological confounding variables that can put a spin on that specific situation.

Critical turning points in life have a knack for leaving a lasting impression on the demeanor and attitude of typical people. With that being said, it’s impossible to know the roots of all of the cumulative experiences of another person’s life, which supports the cliche of, “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.” By no means do I consider myself totally unaffected by first impressions; what I am trying to say is that I believe that taking an interest in the field of psychology at a young age has reminded myself at times to hold back any predetermined judgments about people who I have yet to get to know. The field calls for every person to be treated as, well, a person. Initiating and engaging in a conversation with someone that you previously thought had nothing in common with yourself can leave you walking away with alternative outlooks on any number of discussion topics.

I heavily believe in the concept that the brain not only decides, but dominates human behavior. The brain is like a muscle (theoretically, certainly not anatomically), and can be trained in the same manner. Maybe next time you’re next to a fellow student on the CataBus, you could spark up a conversation about whatever’s on your mind; maybe you’ll notice that if you make a habit of interacting with strangers that you’ll become more comfortable doing so and could potentially become a more outgoing person.

The connection I am looking to make is the one that holds the study of psychology together to the concept of positive inter-personal interactions. I think that this type of foundation for interaction has the potential to breed the highest level of shared knowledge and harmony.