Attached is two documents. Please write a 3-4 thought paper. The purpose of the thought paper is to draw some larger conclusions from your experience with the health behaviors. Take a step back and c
The purpose of this assignment is for you to apply the principles of behavioral change and health-promoting behaviors to your own life. You will engage in a series of health-promoting behaviors throughout the semester and journal your experience with these behaviors. You must have a minimum of 10 journal entries documenting your chosen health behaviors for the final assignment. You may do the same behavior for each entry (ex. yoga) or a mixture of behaviors (ex. running, mental health support group, cessation of a negative behavior, etc). At the end of the semester you will write a 3-4 page “thought paper” summarizing your experience, it’s impact on your physical/mental wellness, and discuss at least 3 relevant publications in health psychology related to your health behavior(s).
There will be 3 “check-in” points throughout the semester where you will turn in a subset of journal entries that you have been completing throughout the semester. Below is a timeline of the 3 due dates for the assignment:
Week 5 - First check-in. You must submit at least 2 journal entries
Week 9 – Second check-in. You must submit at least 4 journal entries (this can include the previous 2)
Week 12 – Third check-in. You must submit at least 6 journal entries (this can include the previous 4)
Finals Week – Final Journal Due. You must submit at least 10 journal entries and a 3-4 page thought paper with at least 3 scientific citations in health psychology that are relevant to your behaviors.
*For each “Check-in” that fails to meet the requirements a 5% penalty will be applied to your final grade on the assignment. Thus, if you do not turn in any of the check-ins the highest grade you can achieve on the assignment is an 85.
*This assignment is meant to encourage you to make SMALL health-promoting changes in your life and reflect about their impact. You SHOULD NOT make DRAMATIC changes to your life or lifestyle for this assignment. In fact, sudden dramatic changes can often be dangerous. For example, if you do not exercise much, but want to add exercise to your life for this assignment, you should start with light, simple exercises (walking, beginners’ yoga, stretching, resistance band training, etc). You SHOULD NOT start training for a marathon or Olympic-style weightlifting. Additionally, if you are going to use this opportunity to stop engaging in unhealthy behaviors, these changes should also be small. For example, you could cut back on sugary drinks, replace 1 meal per week with a healthier option, stop screen-time 30 minutes before going to bed, etc. This assignment IS NOT intended to help you overcome an addiction to drugs or alcohol, battle an eating disorder, or any other number of clinical health issues. In fact, clinical health issues (addiction, eating disorders, mood disorders, etc) should be addressed under the supervision of health professionals, and are not appropriate for this assignment.
What should a journal entry look like?
A journal entry should include the following details:
Date of the behavior
Description of the behavior
Perceived impact on your physical and/or mental health
Your general thoughts about the process and the results
These details should be presented in paragraph format with proper grammar and usage, but can be written “informally” in the sense that they do not require citations or scientific language. These should be journal entries written in your voice and investigating your personal experiences with the behavior. See the example below:
February 3rd:
I noticed recently that I have been mindlessly scrolling on my phone for about 30 minutes every night before bed. Sometimes this seems to help me relax, but sometimes I end up feeling depressed or upset by what I’m seeing/reading. I decided to read a book for 15 minutes and then do some breathing exercises instead. I really enjoyed the book and it felt good to do something stimulating rather than just passively scrolling on my phone. The breathing exercises really relaxed me and I think I fell asleep faster than I usually do. I might try to incorporate this a couple times a week into my bedtime routine, I think it might help with some anxiety I’ve been feeling recently.
What is the thought paper? (3-4 pages)
The purpose of the thought paper is to draw some larger conclusions from your experience with the health behaviors. Take a step back and consider if this changed you in any way, will you continue any of the behaviors, was this difficult or easy, why, etc. Then, you’ll need to search for at least 3 scientific articles that relate in some way to the behavior(s) you engaged in for the journal entries. Basically, what does the science say and how does your experience align with that science?
While this is not a FORMAL APA style paper, you want to strike a more formal tone than with the journal entries, especially when discussing research. This should be submitted in Word, with 12 pt. Times New Roman font, and 1-inch margins with APA style language and citation format.
