Anthony Bean, Ph.D.

Hello!

I just wanted to drop a post that I will be teaching an online course this summer titled: Contemporary Issues in Psychology: Social Media; Gaming, and Internet Interactions.   This class will be taught ONLINE at Framingham State University in the Psychology and Philosophy Department starting on October 28th, 2015.  If you are interested in learning more about the video game world and want to play video games for college credit – this class is for you.

This class can be taken as an elective for credit to any college institution’s degree program.  It can be transferred to your degree fairly easily and is open to anyone, even if you are not attending college at the moment.  If you have parents who do not know much about video gaming, this class is for them.  If your partner is getting on you for playing games and talking to people online, this class is for them.  If you want to learn more about the field in which you love to immerse yourself more and more and how your interactions have and may affect people, this class is for you.

This are the required materials and Course Description:

All students must have reliable and continual access to Blackboard and stable online connection for successful participation in this course.  Students are also expected to check their e-mail accounts on a regular basis.*

Texts: Wright K. & Webb L., Computer-Mediated Communication in Personal Relationships ISBN-13: 978-1433110818      ISBN-10: 1433110814

Thurlow, C., Lengel, L. M., & Tomic, A., Computer Mediated Communication

ISBN-13: 978-0761949541    ISBN-10: 0761949542

Virtual Materials:  An online Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (sometimes requiring a subscription) of the Student’s choice approved by the instructor.  Accompanying this would be a computer with the ability to handle the video game.  Options would be World of Warcraft, Guild Wars 2, Elder Scrolls Online, and Star Wars: The Old Republic; professor will include links on Blackboard.  DISCLAIMER:  YOU WILL HAVE TO PLAY A VIDEO GAME ONLINE FROM THE CHOSEN GAMES IN ORDER TO PASS THIS CLASS.

Course Description:  Social Media: Gaming and Internet Interactions.  This class is a mix of theoretical and experiential material and assignment. The first half of the course will be dedicated to theories of interpersonal communication, different types of internet interactions, and current video game theoretical knowledge. The second half of the course will be experiential in nature where students will be expected to participate online in three different online interactions of their choice (options provided by the instructor).

Here is the link to the class online: Contemporary Issues in Psychology

And again, anyone can take this class, sign up before the seats go, it just opened up and people have already begun to sign up for the class.

Email me with any questions or post them here.  Hope to see you in class!

Hello there gamers,

Recently I was on the podcast again of Tauren Think Tank! As always they are in amazing bunch of people to interact with. They all have kind hearts, exploratory and informative personalities, and really really great questions.

This podcast was is especially informative and important because of the topics that we covered. Namely, the topics of coping mechanisms, defenses, relationships, anxiety about money, and really a lot more introspective information that applies to a lot of different people.  Jules and Marconin are really great people who cared deeply about their fan base and how they can do anything within their own grasp to help them. These qualities very missed in today’s society and show yet another way that gamers interact in an attempt to help one another.

Even though this podcast was primarily aimed at video gamers tonight these topics are found in our everyday lives and could provide some very intense help for other individuals who may be asking for or searching for it. Both hosts know what they are doing in attempt to bring the conversations farther than what ordinary individuals would. These qualities are what set them apart from other individuals completing podcasts today.

Mass media has expected us, as gamers, to not be as helpful, conscientious, or insightful as some of the snow massive stereotypes continue to exist today. We discussed these on the podcast tonight as well and how some important individuals are attempting to break the stereotypes. Without breaking them society will continue to view the video gamer is an inept individual even with the mass amount of research that has come across us stating otherwise.

It was a fascinating discussion we had tonight on the fast range of topics and I really hope that helped a lot of individuals who were seeking help or even a little guidance.

I will edit this further once they have completed uploading the podcast. Until next time.

Hello fellow gamers,

A new recent study has shown that teens technology and friendships actually go pretty well together. A recent article from Pew Research Center shows that teens technology and friendships actually matter.

As his research shows through its many graphs important features in other areas of pew research 57 % of all teens have made new friends online. A big question in this case is what does this mean. In fact most sociological and psychological minded individuals would agree with this research. Even though it’s based primarily on American teens it still is able to show us quite a bit about the online environments that we all participate in.

What this further also means is that individuals a.k.a. American teens are not just looking in their current surroundings for friends or making friends but they actually go online they play video games of the people they use technology in the also look at other means of making friendships. Does this mean that these friendships are in religious as they play one or two games of them? Many people would agree with that statement however they would be considerably wrong.

Just because people go online to look at friends make friends and interact with other individuals across a virtual space doesn’t conclude that they are actually not friends. This is one of the major downfalls that we have in our current society viewing online gaming or other areas as not to real friendships. I cannot tell you how many parents come into our office talking about how their children “all they do is play video games.” Then they usually go and say I want to do something else being plugged in isn’t real. This is where we as mental health experts need to be more intertwined with current reality changes in paradigm switches. If we do not evolve with it and look past just simple technology and being plugged in we are most likely to be lost within a lot of different areas.

The current research from pew is extremely important in this entire ideology. It is going to help us shape how we view these types of phenomenons that occur online.

What this research additionally shows is that playing video games is not just a solidarity tactic or action but that we play with other individuals we interact with people we are able to go and actually have companion ships across virtual rounds. This is what we should be focusing on how to create further relationships with people or thousands of miles away people we would necessarily be able to see meet greet be able to actually have a conversation with with out this technology.

Take a look at the research for yourself and you will see it is better to look at the research directly than be told about it: http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/08/06/teens-technology-and-friendships/

Hello!

I just wanted to drop a post that I will be teaching an online course this summer titled: Contemporary Issues in Psychology: Social Media; Gaming, and Internet Interactions.   This class will be taught ONLINE at Framingham State University in the Psychology and Philosophy Department starting on May 18th 2015.  If you are interested in learning more about the video game world and want to play video games for college credit – this class is for you.

This class can be taken as an elective for credit to any college institution’s degree program.  It can be transferred to your degree fairly easily and is open to anyone, even if you are not attending college at the moment.  If you have parents who do not know much about video gaming, this class is for them.  If your partner is getting on you for playing games and talking to people online, this class is for them.  If you want to learn more about the field in which you love to immerse yourself more and more and how your interactions have and may affect people, this class is for you.

This are the required materials and Course Description:

All students must have reliable and continual access to Blackboard and stable online connection for successful participation in this course.  Students are also expected to check their e-mail accounts on a regular basis.*

Texts: Wright K. & Webb L., Computer-Mediated Communication in Personal Relationships ISBN-13: 978-1433110818      ISBN-10: 1433110814

Thurlow, C., Lengel, L. M., & Tomic, A., Computer Mediated Communication

ISBN-13: 978-0761949541    ISBN-10: 0761949542

Virtual Materials:  An online Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (sometimes requiring a subscription) of the Student’s choice approved by the instructor.  Accompanying this would be a computer with the ability to handle the video game.  Options would be World of Warcraft, Guild Wars 2, Elder Scrolls Online, and Star Wars: The Old Republic; professor will include links on Blackboard.  DISCLAIMER:  YOU WILL HAVE TO PLAY A VIDEO GAME ONLINE FROM THE CHOSEN GAMES IN ORDER TO PASS THIS CLASS.

Course Description:  Social Media: Gaming and Internet Interactions.  This class is a mix of theoretical and experiential material and assignment. The first half of the course will be dedicated to theories of interpersonal communication, different types of internet interactions, and current video game theoretical knowledge. The second half of the course will be experiential in nature where students will be expected to participate online in three different online interactions of their choice (options provided by the instructor).

Here is the link to the class online: https://selfservice.framingham.edu/PROD/bwckschd.p_disp_detail_sched?term_in=201550&crn_in=50253

And again, anyone can take this class, sign up before the seats go, it just opened up and people have already begun to sign up for the class.

Email me with any questions or post them here.  Hope to see you in class!