Applying Psychology: Choosing to Attend a University
             The choices a person makes in life depend entirely on how they perceive the world and the people around them. When it comes to making a decision that could affect the rest of my life, I take much consideration into all the possible outcomes of my decision by observing those who have made each of the choices possible. When it came to choosing whether or not to attend a university, several psychological factors played an important role in helping me to reach a decision.
             Towards the beginning of high school, the thought of studying, homework and class-work was rather unpleasant. I remember seeing 9th grade as such an unreasonable obligation. It wasn't until my junior year that I suddenly realized that the work I did every day, even the smallest of assignments, actually mattered. Why did everything matter? College! If I could study, complete all assignments, and get good grades, the end result would be my acceptance into a good university. Looking towards psychology to classify this revelation, I found the answer in a theory dealing with Operant Conditioning. In my case, the Premack Principle could describe accurately my reasoning for attending a university. This principle states: "a more preferred activity can be used to reinforce a less preferred activity" (Baron, 2001, p. 183). Not many people would really enjoy staring at a book for hours, taking tests, and continuously writing papers on multiple subjects for 4 years straight. However, the consequences of 4 years of intense studying and work pay off. Literally.
             In high school, getting good grades means going to a good university, in college, good grades can mean a good job and a direction in life. It is amazing to think that once you are on a college campus, you can basically study to become the profession of your choice! I made the decision last week that I would attempt to transfer back to Los Angeles to U...