Psych 101

Heredity and Intelligence

Intelligence is not a result of your genes alone

Environmental Influences

Better environments tend to lead to more favorable traits in regards to intelligence

Gene-Environment Interactions

Small genetic advantages can trigger social experiences that multiply our original skills

Evolutionary Perspective of Intelligence

Biology affects gender differences in priorities

Bias in Testing

If a test accurately predicts outcomes in only one group

Instinct theory

Genetically predisposed behaviors

Drive-reduction theory

How we respond to inner pushes and external pulls

Arousal theory

Finding the right level of stimulation

Instinct and evolutionary theory

How genes predispose us to some species-typical behaviors

Arousal Theory

Yerkes-Dodson law- Our need to maintain an optimal level of arousal motivates behaviors that meet no physiological need

Maslow's Hierarchy of human needs

We prioritize survival-based needs then social needs more than the needs for esteem and meaning

Biological and Environmental Influences on Hunger

Influence not only when we get hungry but also what we get hungry for

Situational Influences on Eating

What is going on around us can have varying effects on our state of hunger and what we are driven to eat

Ecology of Eating

Our environment influences how and what we eat

James-Lange Theory

Arousal comes before emotion, anger because we strike

Cannon-Bard Theory

Arousal and emotion occurs simultaneously; my heart pounded as I felt fear

Schachter-Singer Two-Factor Theory

To experience emotion one must be physically aroused and cognitively label that arousal

Zajonc-LeDoux and Lazarus Theories

There are some stimuli that make us react emotionally before we can comprehend why

Emotion Categorization

work it out ;)

valence (positive vs. negative)

Interpretation of a stimulus

arousal (calm vs. excited)

How worked up we get about it

Physiology of Emotion

How our body reacts to different emotions

Lie Detection

-Polygraph and Concealed information test: Measure arousal, changes in HR, RR, BP

Gender, Emotion, and Nonverbal Behavior

Women show a higher ability to decode visible emotion

Culture and Emotion

Different cultures express emotions differently and we are better at discerning our own cultures versions

The Effects of Facial Expressions

We can fool ourselves into thinking we are in a certain mood by mimicking its facial expressions

Facial Feedback Effect and Behavior Feedback Effect

Tendency for our facial expressions and behaviors to influence ourselves and others

Emotion as a Social-Cultural Phenomenon

Emotion and expression are affected by culture and its respective views of them

Stress

The way we perceive and respond to certain events we believe to be threatening or challenging. Short term stress can make us and our immune system more effective, but long term stress causes us to become fatigued

Types of Stressors

Catastrophes (large scale disasters), significant life changes, and daily hassles

Acculturative stress and Significant life changes

The stress newcomers feel when entering a new environment

Stress Response System

Fight or flight

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

selye's concept of response to stress- alarm, resistance, exhaustion

Alarm Reaction, Resistance and Exhaustion

Heart zooms, blood is diverted to skeletal muscle (alarm). Temp, BP, RR remain high, adrenaline pumping (resistance)

Immuno compromise

A state where the immune system is weakened, leading to increased vulnerability to infections and diseases.

Coping with Stress

Alleviating stress using emotional, cognitive, or behavioral methods.

Problem-focused coping

Changing the stressor or the way we interact with it.

Emotion-focused coping

Changing our emotional response to a stressor.

Perceived Loss of Control

Uncontrolled threats trigger the highest stress responses.

Biological reactions

Physiological responses to stressors that can affect health.

Learned helplessness

Hopelessness and passive resignation learned through unavoidable aversive events.

Locus of Control

The degree to which individuals believe they can control events affecting them.

External locus of control

The perception that outside forces determine our fate.

Internal locus of control

The perception that we control our own fate.

Building Self-Control

Learning to control impulses and delay short-term gratification for greater long-term rewards.

Optimism vs. Pessimism

Optimism is associated with well-being and success, while pessimism involves expectations of things going wrong.

Social Support and Happiness

Having a good support system and social structure promotes happiness and good health.

Social isolation

Socially isolated individuals are at higher risk for health issues.

Reducing Stress through Exercise and Relaxation

Physical activity and relaxation techniques can help manage stress.

Aerobic exercise

Physical activity that improves cardiovascular fitness and reduces stress.

Biofeedback

A technique that helps people gather inner strength and lessen the effects of stress.

Adaptation-level phenomenon

Our tendency to form judgments relative to a neutral level defined by our prior experiences.

Social Psychology

The study of how individuals view and affect one another.

Attribution Theory

The theory that we explain someone's behavior by crediting either the situation or the person's disposition.

Fundamental attribution error

The tendency to underestimate the impact of the situation and overestimate the impact of personal disposition when analyzing others' behavior.

Attitude

Feelings, often influenced by our beliefs, that predispose us to respond in a particular way to objects, people, and events.

Foot-in-the-door phenomenon

The tendency for people who have first agreed to a small request to comply later with a larger request.

Role

A set of expectations (norms) about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave.

Cognitive dissonance theory

The theory that we act to reduce the discomfort we feel when two of our thoughts are inconsistent.

Peripheral/Central route persuasion

Persuasion that occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speaker's attractiveness.

Norms

Understood rules for accepted and expected behavior.

Tight/loose cultures

Cultures with clearly defined norms versus cultures with flexible and informal norms.

Conformity

Adjusting our behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.

Groupthink

The mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision-making group overrides realistic appraisal of alternatives.

Normative/informational social influence

Influence resulting from a person's desire to gain approval or avoid disapproval.

Social facilitation

The presence of others improves performance on simple or well-learned tasks.

Social loafing

The tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling their efforts toward a common goal.

Prejudice

An unjustifiable and usually negative attitude toward a group and its members.

Stereotype

A generalized belief about a group of people, which can be accurate or overgeneralized.

Discrimination

Unjustifiable negative behavior toward a group or its members

Just-world phenomenon

The tendency for people to believe that the world is just and that people therefore get what they deserve and deserve what they get

Ingroup

"Us"- people with whom we share a common identity

Outgroup

"Them"- Those perceived as different from our ingroup

Ingroup bias

The tendency to favor our own group

Scapegoat theory

The theory that prejudice offers an outlet for anger by providing someone to blame

Other-race effect

The tendency to recall faces of one's own race more accurately than faces of other races. Also called the cross-race effect and the own-race bias

Aggression

Any physical or verbal behavior intended to harm someone physically or emotionally

Frustration-aggression principle

The principle that frustration-the blocking of an attempt to achieve some goal- creates anger, which can generate aggression

Social script

A culturally modeled guide for how to act in various situations

Attraction

The draw you have to another person or thing

Mere exposure effect

The tendency for repeated exposure to novel stimuli to increase our liking of them

Passionate love

An aroused state of intense positive absorption in another, usually present at the beginning of a romantic relationship

Companionate love

The deep affectionate attachment we feel for those whom our lives are entwined with

Equity

A condition in which people receive from a relationship in proportion to what they give

Self-disclosure

The act of revealing intimate aspects of ourselves to others

Altruism

Unselfish regard for the welfare of others

Bystander effect

The tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to give aid if other bystanders are present

Social exchange theory

The theory that our social behavior is an exchange process, the aim of which is to maximize benefits and minimize costs

Reciprocity norm

An expectation that people will help, not hurt, those who have helped them

Social-responsibility norm

An expectation that people will help those needing their help

Conflict

A perceived incompatibility of actions, goals, or ideas

Social trap

A situation in which two parties, by each pursuing their self-interest rather than the good of the group, become caught in mutually destructive behavior

Mirror-image perceptions

Mutual views often held by conflicting parties, as when each side sees itself as ethical and peaceful and views the other side as evil and aggressive

Self-fulfilling prophecy

A belief that leads to its own fulfillment

Superordinate goals

Shared goals that override differences among people and require their cooperation

GRIT

Graduated and reciprocated initiatives in tension-reduction- a strategy designed to decrease international tensions

Personality

An individual's characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting

Psychodynamic theories

Theories that view personality with a focus on the unconscious and the importance of childhood experiences

Psychoanalysis

Freud's theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts

Unconscious

According to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories. According to contemporary psychologists, information processing of which we are unaware