1. Social psychology
5/3/2014
In this week lesson, I have learned about social psychology. Social psychology is the
exploration of the interaction of an individual person at a given situation. There are three
main ideas of interest which are social perception, social influence and social interaction.
Social perception is forming of an impression of others based on available information.
Secondly, Social influence is the process by which one's thoughts and actions which are
affected by others. Lastly, Social interaction is the relationship between two or more
individuals.
When I was in secondary school, it was understandable that after SPM, there are many
different pathways for me to choose for and sometimes it is very confusing. It would
progress to do our A-Levels or foundations at private colleges before moving on to a
university somewhere in overseas to complete our education. Therefore, we went through
all the education fair and finally, my friend and I had decided to further our study at Taylor's
university which is located in Kuala Lumpur.
My friend and I are come from Sitiawan, Perak. Therefore, at first, we have to find a place to
stay. Actually, I don’t have to worry about my living place. This is because I have my own
house at Bukit Jalil. The time taken for me to reach Taylor's university by car is around half
an hour if there is no traffic jam. My parent will lend a car for me, it is easier and more
convenient for me to travel to university and other places. I have offered and invited my
friend to stay along with me but she rejected.

2. In her perspective, staying in dorm comes with more advantages. Most students, who
decide to move away from home to study, often choose to live in dorm or nearby the
campus, as this is a good opportunity to meet new people and make new friends. Besides,
we can have our meal in campus restaurant. Therefore, it is very convenience and requires
less effort in cooking. All residence areas are located nearby the campus and the city centre.
Therefore, we don't have to drive. Living around campus generally has better security
system and maintenance.
After I heard my friend's advice, I got some influence from my friend. I told my mum that I
prefer to stay at dorm or resident area around the campus. It can save my driving time from
my house to university. This is because there are always have this traffic jam happened in
Kuala Lumpur, it will take two hours to reach university or house if there is a seriously traffic
jam. Besides, it can save my petrol oil and tolls cost. I have to spend around RM500 on those
petrol and toll expenses per month. My mum disagree what I said because based on my
mum perspective, she said the cost of living outside generally is more expensive than living
in our own house. This is because when we are free, we might be going out frequently to
shopping centre, cafe, and others due to friend invitation. Once we go shopping centre, we
surely will spend our money on. For example, clothes, shoes and others. Besides, we might
dislike our roommate after living for a few months or we might be having noisy neighbours.
However, roommate issues can usually be settled and there are usually policies to regulate
noise levels. On the other hand, we don't have freedom and own private spaces if you stay
at dorm. You might be having only one small room space as your personal space. You don’t
have a living room to allow you to relax or chit chat with friend.

3. I was hesitated after I heard my mum opinion, I can't make any decision between both of it
as both of it have their own advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, I asked my
grandfather out to have a dinner together, we were talking about those things. My
grandfather knows me very well. Therefore, he suggested me to stay at our own house as
my cousin will stay with me, I won't be alone and boring. Besides, my house is a condo, it
have gym and swimming pool facilities. I can spend my time on those healthy activities. I can
also have a free space for me to move freely. Besides, I can remodel my house as much as I
like. My grandfather knows I like to cook. So he said I can cook anything that I wish to eat.
Moreover, if my family come from Sitiawan, they can stay with me for a week or a few days.
We will have more times gathered together and interact with each other. In the end, I
decided to live in my own house. This is because homeownership gives me a sense of
independence, privacy and safety.
In conclusion, throughout this progress of finding an accommodation for my university life,
social psychology plays an important role in helping me to decide my accommodation. Social
perception is forming of an impression of others based on available information. For
example, in my friend’s perception living in dorm or residential area which is nearby campus
comes more advantages than living far from the campus which is my own house. Secondly,
Social influence is the process by which one's thoughts and actions which are affected by
others. I am an easily influence type of person from other. I influenced by my friend after
she spell out her opinions. Lastly, Social interaction is the relationship between two or more
individuals. My grandfather’s advice had made a huge impact on me, that he makes me

4. clear about the advantages of staying in my own house. My good interaction with him and
my family helps me in this problem too.