Everyday Psychology

  BLOG #4- Developmental Niche- September 24th, 2024 Common Newfoundland tradition- Getting "Screeched" in   I grew up in St. John’s, Newfoundland, a place where you knew your neighbors, your doctor, the mailman, and even the person who bagged your groceries. Whether at a local restaurant or the hardware store, you were bound to encounter someone who knew your family. In St. John’s, the community was everything; it felt like everyone was part of the same extended family. When I moved away from St. John’s with my best friend, Maggie, I wasn’t prepared for the cultural differences in Nova Scotia. Despite being just a two-hour flight away, my first day at St. Francis Xavier University felt anything but familiar. As Maggie and I walked around campus, we waved and said hi to everyone, just like at home. But unlike back home, not one person waved back. Instead, we received puzzled looks, as if friendliness was a foreign concept. Looking back, it makes me laugh; those people weren’t...

BLOG #3- Pedagogical Communication- September 22nd, 2024 Have you ever looked around and wondered how we, as humans, learn and pass down our culture in ways that seem so unique compared to other species? Tomasello's (2016) work emphasizes how humans engage in cultural learning through social interactions, particularly the role of authoritative figures in teaching. Pedagogical communication, discussed by Tomasello, is the deliberate and organized method of sharing knowledge and information between individuals, which can be seen in children, where authority figures, such as adults, impart cultural knowledge to children.  Pedagogical communication is a key component of how humans learn and can help answer many questions regarding the uniqueness of human culture. For the purpose of this blog, I will share my perspective as a university student to explain the topic of pedagogical communication in a more relatable way. University students use pedagogical communication frequently, inside ...

  BLOG #2- Pluralistic Ignorance- September 21st, 2024 I am a university student at St. Francis Xavier University (STFX), and throughout my last three years here one thing has become predominantly evident to me; that is the “hook-up” culture, which is quite strange and very different in university culture compared to other phases of people's lives. My peers and I have often discussed how unsettling this “hook-up” culture is, as it seems that many university students have become desensitized to the intimacy that should accompany sexual relationships. It is a challenging conversation to have without seeming either overly prude or overly promiscuous. However, after reading Reiber and Garcia’s (2010) article on “hooking up” culture and pluralistic ignorance, I have come to realize that this culture has a much stronger psychological component than I previously assumed. Pluralistic ignorance (PI) is the idea that individuals may behave in certain ways under the false assumption that thei...

  BLOG #1- The Ratchet Effect- September 15th, 2024 The ratchet effect is an important cultural psychology theory coined by Michael Tomasello to describe how ideas are passed down through generations. As discussed in Steven J. Heine’s (2000) book on Cultural Psychology, these ideas can progressively evolve but rarely revert to earlier forms. For instance, a hairbrush, first made using materials like bone and bristles, has now been manufactured and commercialized into its modern form. As I walked around the campus of St. Francis Xavier University, I reflected on the ratchet effect, noticing the everyday gadgets we often take for granted and over-commercialize. Computers, pencils, utensils—so much of what we use today has evolved through cultural progress, building on the designs and innovations of our ancestors. This raises a big question I would love you, blog readers, to reflect on: Are our modern adaptations of everyday gadgets driven by practicality and convenience, or do commer...