the end of the road! :(

I liked watching this season of Survivor, especially because I never would have found the time to watch the season on my own. Prior to this year I never followed an entire season of Survivor, so I don't know if it was the best yet or not. I liked it though.
Watching this show I learned the people of all ages are allowed the shot at a million dollars, but similar to Darwin's theory of "survival of the fittest," the prize is likely to go to a person who excels at the various challenges. I also realized that EQ played a role in competing on Survivor, more so than book smarts. The contestants live a primitive lifestyle for 39 days and have to depend mainly on their bodily/kinesthetic, interpersonal and even intrapersonal intelligences.
This show is valuable to Psychology class because we applied our knowledge of psychology to describe the behaviors and personalities of the different contestants.
I liked the reunion show because it was nice to see everyone together again, and most of them forgave one another for events that occurred while they were on the show. It seems like many of them will be friends for a very long time.

Finale!!

1. I think Mick presented himself well, and he made it almost convincing that he had been more passionate about the game than it seemed throughout the season. Natalie was honest and charming with her speech; Russell's was honest as well, and he tried to appeal to the jury's logic by saying that Mick or Natalie should deserve the votes only if they had outwitted or outplayed him. I think his would have been more effective if the people on the jury were not so against him.

2. I loved what Eric had to say about Natalie. He gave her credit for the way she played and stated that her way was no less valuable than Russell's. I also found it interesting that Jaison suggested that the jury look to other criteria than monetary need when they were voting for the winner. Also, Kellie doubted that Russell could be a good person in real life when he lied, cheated and stole throughout the game. I see where she is coming from and I think it is a valid point to bring up, but I believe that Russell has a good heart in real life.

3. I feel that Russell would have deserved to win. However, Natalie deserved the win as well, for although she played with a completely different strategy than Russell, she made the right decisions along the way. She was more humble than Russell throughout, and was always a positive person for the others to be around. One of the biggest moves made by Foa Foa was to get rid of Erik, and that could not have been done without Natalie. Had Natalie not talked the Galu girls into voting off Erik, Foa Foa probably would not have prevailed.

4. I would have voted for Russell because I would hate to see him fail after he worked so hard to win the game. From the start he was completely focused on winning and even when the others wanted to give up or were just relaxing, he was always thinking of his next move.

Final Five

I think it would be a little challenging to separate emotions from the game because they could change the way you think.  However, it seems like she is going to be rational and still focus on winning rather than love.  Real friendships can definitely build in this environment, even though sometimes alliances have to be broken.  Once the game is over, the contestants will still have the memories they made and some of the friends they met over the 39 days, regardless of who won or did better.

As for what Shambo had to say, I am not sure if she was being serious or sarcastic.  Either way, she is not one to talk about being loyal to one's tribe because she clearly preferred the Foa Foa tribe members to her own tribe mates, and often voted with Russell.  In general, I don't think it really matters if you stay loyal to your tribe because there can be only one winner; you just have to do whatever it takes to win.

Moral dilemma

I think it is possible to form friendships with the other Survivor players, but that doesn't mean they can always trust each other on the show.  There can only be one winner, so ultimately it comes down to every person for themselves.  Once they have been voted off, they can forget about the competitive nature of the game and focus on the relationships they made; in Ponderosa they all seem to be better friends because there is little tension among them now that it is over for them.  

The nature of this game is to do whatever it takes to make yourself come out on top.  A promise is a promise, but it's a sign of weakness on Survivor to give away a secret that could later hurt you in the game.  You should be loyal to a certain extent so that other people will not resent you, but if you're in trouble and breaking that promise is the only way to save yourself, it's justifiable.  After all, this isn't real life... it's a game show.  You just have to do what it takes to win the game.

Going once.... going twice! ...... SOLD to the man wearing a chicken hat

I would have bought food (but only if I could see what it was) but if I felt that there was a chance that I would be the next one voted off, my priority would have been to buy immunity.  I feel really bad for Shambo because she spent a lot of money to get something that nobody would have actually wanted.  She's a trooper though so I think she could get over it.  John, on the other hand, was pretty selfish.  He had a choice of either getting a piece of apple pie for himself, or letting four other players have a piece instead.  Even though he spent his own money on it, there are multiple reasons why he should have chosen to share, such as: 1. to be nice, and 2. so that other people don't harbor resentment against him.

I'm pretty sure I would have bid on a shower because I can't even imagine how it would feel for going that long without being clean.  By getting refreshed and feeling clean, I would probably feel better about myself and be even more energized for the next challenge.  

Intelligence

Laura is very intelligent in the bodily/kinesthetic and interpersonal departments. In challenges she is agile and quick, probably the strongest girl where athletic ability is concerned. For example, in this episode she moved quickly and was very well-coordinated when putting the pieces into the puzzle.
Laura is helpful at the camp and does well in challenges, which make her get along well with her tribemates. She gets along so well with Kelly and Monica that she actually seems to have power over them, which helps her in the game. These traits demonstrate her interpersonal intelligence.
I think the most important intelligence in this game is interpersonal. You have to do your best in challenges and when working around the camp, but mostly you have to make good relationships with the other contestants so they are less likely to want you voted off. Russell has succeeded so far in the game because of his interpersonal intelligence, since it allows him to secretly control some of the people. Now that the tribes are pretty much equal (if Shambo is on Foa Foa's side) I don't think Galu is as strong. If Laura gets voted off, Galu will definitely be at a disadvantage in the future. However, I can kind of see her making it to the final round. I think Mick is perfectly capable of winning, as long as he stays focused and builds up his motivation to win it all.

The Merge!!!

I think now there will be a little less comeradery among the former tribes and each person will have more of an "every man for himself" attitude. Even though they are all one tribe, there are no teams anymore so each contestant has to compete against everyone else. When they vote people off, they will no longer be thinking in the best interest of the tribe and voting off the weakest; instead they will probably want to vote off the strongest in order to give themselves a better chance at winning Survivor.

After watching this episode, I think that for the most part, the Galu tribe has fully accepted the Foa Foa members into their tribe and are willing to take their opinions when it comes to voting people off. Erik was probably the exception, because he felt that the Foa Foa members had nothing to offer Galu; he was still competing against them even though everyone was one tribe now. When the other Galu members agreed to vote off Erik though, I think it showed that the other Galu members are not all out to get Foa Foa. I think some of the Foa Foa members still have a chance at getting far in this game, even though they are outnumbered right now. I guess we'll see....!

Intelligence

You definitely need intelligence to be able to succeed at Survivor. Some of the challenges require the contestants to think quickly and logically, and the better you are at it, the more likely your team will win immunity in the challenge. Also, you will be valued in your tribe and less likely to be voted off in Tribal Counsel when your tribe does lose. Most importantly, you have to know when it is safe to trust other tribe members, and which ones you should not rely on. Russell is very good at getting along with people in a way that makes them trust him, and he succeeds at controlling them. He is intelligent (logically) enough to know who to vote off and when, based on what will give him the best chance of being the winner of Survivor.

Rain, rain, go away!

The rainy weather really affected the way the Survivor contestants played the game.  The Foa Foa Tribe lost the food challenge and they knew someone had to get sent home that night, but they weren't able to scramble this time.  They were all so cold and wet that they did not want to leave their shelter to discuss who would be voted off in private... in fact, they all looked forward to Tribal Counsel this time!  At least they would be out of the cold and rain for a little bit, and there is a fire there.  I think the tribe in fact became closer because of their experiences in the stormy weather because they were all uncomfortable, but each of them knew they were not alone in dealing with it.

The rain is making the Survivor experience much more difficult for all of the contestants; a few of them have even said it is the hardest thing they have ever gone through in their lives.  One of the girls on the Galu tribe said she regrets that they chose blankets over the tarp, because the blankets and pillows aren't keeping them from being warm and dry.

True Colors

Russell Swan is probably Blue and Gold.  He definitely has compassion for his teammates and showed this when he chose the blankets and pillows over the tools and tarp because he wanted the girls on his team to be happy.  Also, he is very personable but might be a little sensitive; when he found out that some members of his tribe were thinking about voting off Yasmin instead of Monica, he was offended that they did not think they could trust him.  As for Gold, Russell possesses leadership qualities.  He is able to get the other members of the tribe to listen to him, and he also has a strong sense of morals so he does not take advantage of his power.  His color spectrum helps him to get along well with the other members of his tribe because of his genuine personality.

If she had not told Eric the clues about the Immunity Idol, tension might build up between the members of the tribe and the others might turn against her because they would feel she can't be trusted.  However, telling her clues to Eric creates competition between them for who would find it first, therefore lowering her chances of finding the Immunity Idol.  If she had lied about the clues then she would have more power, but since she told him the clues correctly, she has less power in the game.

Defense Mechanism: Rationalization

In the second episode, Yasmin reprimands Ben for tackling her so roughly during the challenge, saying that a man should not behave so roughly towards a lady. He uses rationalization by giving the excuse that the rules for the challenge did not state that the men could not hurt the women. However, he should understand that men are supposed to be respectful towards women. It would be okay for him to defend against her during the game, but it was unnecessary for him to be as harsh as he was, especially without apology.
Ben's usage of rationalization definitely hindered his relationship with his teammates, because they were also offended by the way he spoke to Yasmin. They held the incident against him, along with the fact that he was hammering in the middle of the night and showed little to no respect for some of his teammates.

I am glad that Ben was kicked out in this episode because he contributed a lot of negative energy to the group and caused a lot of strain. I think they will be able to unite now that he is not causing tension. I feel bad for Ashley because, although she may not be the strongest link on their team, she is rational and plays hard in the challenges. As of now, she has come close to being voted off two times, once the victim of Russell's shenanigans and the second time because of Ben's arguments.

when the id strikes...

Three examples of behavior directed by the id:

1. On the second episode, Ben purposely kicks Russell (from the Galu tribe) to trip him during the challenge. Even though Jeff warned the contestants that any cheap shot would result in getting kicked out of the challenge, Ben took direction from his id, and gave into the aggressive impulse.

2. Also on the second episode, the Foa Foa tribe's Russell decided that he wanted to find the Immunity Idol. He listened to his id and searched the entire camp for the Idol, ultimately finding it in a tree.

3. In the first episode, Russell (Foa Foa) revealed that he wanted to make the Survivor experience as miserable as possible for his teammates. Despite what his superego should have told him to do, Russell, listening to his id, dumped out the water from all of their canteens and burned some of their socks.

I can't believe Mike and Betsy are both gone, and the Foa Foa tribe is already down three members! I think Ben should have left, because Betsy was so much more respectful and sincere, and Ben is so uncaring. After being kicked out of a challenge, completely disregarding Yasmin's irritation, and hammering with a machete in the middle of the night for no reason, he deserved to go.

Second Impressions!

My second impression of Mick is better than my first, because he seems to have a good personality and acts more normal than I expected from reading his Bio. One thing that impressed me was that he remembered almost all of his teammates' names immediately after they were introduced, especially when Russell (the Galu leader) could not seem to remember his own teammates. Mick seems like a good judge of people, based on his choice of participants for each leg of the first challenge. The other members of the Foa Foa tribe seem to look up to him because he is intelligent and confident. He has not abused his power as leader so far, and I don't think any of the other tribe members have a problem with him yet. I still think he is motivated and very athletic so he is definitely an asset to his team.
I think people judge others so quickly because they want the person to seem like less of a stranger. They want to feel like they know the other person, whether as a friend, acquaintance or even enemy. Also, I think people judge others from the start because they want to see if their predictions are true when they finally get to know the person. The people on Survivor make judgments of each other because they want to know who will be the most dangerous person, the weakest person or the best asset to their team. This helps them decide who to vote off when the time comes.
I think watching Survivor in class is a really good way of having fun while observing people's behaviors. It is such an exciting show to watch, and I love how we all got to pick a contestant. I liked watching the episode today because we got an inside look at all the contestants (such as Russell with his plan), other than what the others see in each other. It makes you really wonder what is to come and who will be voted off next. I think the blogging is a really good idea too, because it is an out-of-the-ordinary way of doing classwork and homework assignments and is very convenient.

First Impressions!

My Survivor contestant is Mick Trimming. He is a 33-year old resident anesthesiologist at UCLA and plans to win the million dollars so that he can pay off his student loans. He also wants to use the money to buy a new vacuum cleaner. His life is consumed by his internship and he loves working so hard at his job. Mick has a sense of humor and his pet peeves include people throwing dirt clods at him, or patients that have neglected their health for so many years coming to him "with extraordinary demands."



I think Mick sounds like a hard worker, and he is good looking. By his pet peeves though, it seems like he might be fairly temperamental. I think his sense of humor is a little bit strange; he said that in order to win he would go so far as to "give a homeless person a tongue bath.”



Mick is very motivated and looks very healthy and is probably in good enough shape to do very well on the show, physically. However, if he is easily irritated, I don't know how long he will last on the show. A bad attitude could result in his tribe voting him off, so he should hope to get on everyone's good sides. I think Mick will be very successful in the show as long as he keeps his motivation up and makes good relationships with the other contestants.