Unit 8 - Motivation, Emotion & stress

Motivation

Motivation

a need or desire that energizes and directs behavior

extrinsic motivators

rewards we get from outside ourselves

intrinsic motivators

rewards we get internally

opponent process theory of motivation

used to explain addictive behaviors
-we feel a motivation to return back to our baseline

Instinct theory

learning of species-specific behavior motivates organisms to do what is necessary to ensure their survival.

Arousal theory

states that there is an optimum level of arousal (alertness and activation) at which performance on a given task is optimal.

Yerkes-Dodson Law

states that tasks of moderate difficulty elicit the highest level of performance.

Drive-Reduction Theory

the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state (a drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy the need

Homeostasis

a tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state; the regulation of any aspect of body chemistry, such as blood glucose, around a particular level

Incentive

a positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior.

Hierarchy of Needs

Abraham Maslow's pyramid of human needs, beginning at the base with physiological needs that must first be satisfied before higher-level safety needs and then psychological needs become active

Hierarchy of Needs (picture of triangle)

self-actualization

occurs when people creatively and meaningfully fulfill their own potential, ultimate goal of human beings according to Maslow.

overjustification effect

our intrinsic motivation may decrease if we receive extrinsic reward for the same behavior.

need for affiliation

people with a high level of this need like to avoid conflicts, be members of groups and dislike being evalutaed.

From an evolutionary perspective, why is it important that we have a strong affiliation need?

It enhanced survival, we obtain better protection and combat skills in a group rather than alone.

What happens in our brain when we feel love?

Feelings of love activate the brain's reward systems as well as the prefrontal cortex which is associated with safety that dampens feelings of physical pain.

Why can being ostracized lead to experiencing real physical pain?

Ostracism can elicit increased activity in brain areas such as the anterior cingulate cortex, that also activate in response to physical pain.

achievement motivation

a desire for significant accomplishment: for mastery of things, people, or ideas; for attaining a high standard. Choosing moderately difficult goals

Kurt Lewin

classified four types of conflicts in motives: approach-approach, avoidance-avoidance, approach-avoidance, and multiple approach-avoidance.

approach-approach conflict

Conflict that results from having to choose between two attractive alternatives

avoidance-avoidance conflict

Conflict that results from having to choose between two distasteful options

approach-avoidance conflict

conflict occurring when a person must choose or not choose an option with both positive and negative aspects

multiple approach-avoidance conflict

conflict in which the person must decide between more than two options, with each option possessing both positive and negative aspects

what part of the brain integrates glucose messages and hunger pains?

hypothalamus

is your stomach the only place where your feelings of hunger come from?

Nope, the brain creates feelings of hunger too.

5 hormones involved in hunger

1. ghrelin - increases appetite

2. orexin - increases appetite

3. leptin - decreases appetite

4. insulin - decreases appetite

5. PYY - decreases appetite

Glucose

the form of sugar that circulates in the blood and provides the major source of energy for body tissues. When its level is low, we feel hunger

insulin

a hormone produced by the pancreas to regulate glucose.

Set Point

the point at which an individual's "weight thermostat" is supposedly set. When the body falls below this weight, an increase in hunger and a lowered metabolic rate may act to restore the lost weight

ventromedial hypothalamus

if body weights rise above the set point, this part of the brain will send messages to the brain to eat less and exercise more.

lateral hypothalamus

if body weights fall below the set point, this part of the brain will send messages to eat more and exercise less, also associated with feelings of thirst.

leptin

plays a role in the feedback loop between signals from the hypothalamus and those from the stomach, abundance decrease the feelings of hunger

Basal Metabolic Rate

the body's resting rate of energy expenditure

Anorexia Nervosa

an eating disorder in which a person (usually an adolescent female) diets and becomes significantly (15 percent or more) underweight, yet, still feeling fat, continues to starve

Bulimia Nervosa

an eating disorder characterized by episodes of overeating, usually of high-calorie foods, followed by vomiting, laxative use, fasting, or excessive exercise

Binge-Eating Disorder

significant binge-eating episodes, followed by distress, disgust, or guilt, but without the compensatory purging, fasting, or excessive exercise that marks bulimia nervosa

Sexual Response Cycle

the four stages of sexual responding described by Masters and Johnson—excitement, plateau, orgasm, and resolution

Refractory Period

a resting period after orgasm, during which a man cannot achieve another orgasm

pituitary gland

the master gland that controls the function of other glands, the motivation to reproduce relies on the hypothalamus, which stimulates the pituitary gland, resulting in the production of androgens and estrogens.

Androgens

primary sexual hormones for males.

Estrogens

sex hormones, such as estradiol, secreted in greater amounts by females than by males and contributing to female sex characteristics. In nonhuman female mammals, estrogen levels peak during ovulation, promoting sexual receptivity

Testosterone

the most important of the male sex hormones. Both males and females have it, but the additional levels in males stimulates the growth of the male sex organs in the fetus and the development of the male sex characteristics during puberty

Sexual Orientation

an enduring sexual attraction toward members of either one's own sex (homosexual orientation) or the other sex (heterosexual orientation)

Emotion

a response of the whole organism, involving (1) physiological arousal, (2) expressive behaviors, and (3) conscious experience.

How does Lazarus explain emotions?

emotions arise when we appraise an event as harmless or dangerous whether we truly know it is or not

What part of the nervous system triggers many of the physical responses we have when we experience an emotion

parasympathetic & sympathetic nervous system

Do different emotions have very different patterns of activation in the brain?

Yes, they have different patterns of activation characterizing different situations and their associated emotional states.

Are humans good or bad at recognizing emotions in other people?

Good.

Are men or women better at analyzing people's nonverbal expressions?

Women (Judith Hall [1984,1987] concluded after analyzing 125 studies of sensitivity to nonverbal cues concluded that women generally surpass men at reading people's emotional cues when given "thin slices" of behavior. They also surpass men in other assessments of emotional cues, such as discerning genuine couples from fake ones in Barnes & Sternberg's 1989 study).

Do facial expressions differ across cultures? Why?

No, facial expressions are a hard-wired human behavior with evolutionary origins, so facial expressions wouldn't differ across cultures.

According to Darwin, why would it have been important evolutionarily for facial muscles to be universal to every culture?

He believed that shared expressions helped our ancestors survive as it communicated threats, greetings, and submission.

James-Lange Theory

the theory that our experience of emotion is our awareness of our physiological responses to emotion-arousing stimuli.

Cannon-Bard Theory

the theory that an emotion-arousing stimulus simultaneously triggers (1) physiological responses and (2) the subjective experience of emotion.

Two-Factor Theory

the Schachter-Singer theory that to experience emotion one must (1) be physically aroused and (2) cognitively label the arousal.

Polygraph

a machine, commonly used in attempts to detect lies, that measures several of the physiological responses accompanying emotion (such as perspiration and cardiovascular and breathing changes).

Facial Feedback

the effect of facial expressions on experienced emotions, as when a facial expression of anger or happiness intensifies feelings of anger or happiness.

According to Darwin, why would it have been important evolutionarily for facial muscles to be universal to every culture?

Before our ancestors communicated verbally, they communicated through facial expressions

Catharsis

an emotional release. The hypothesis for this maintains that "releasing" aggressive energy (through action or fantasy) relieves aggressive urges.

Feel-Good, Do-Good Phenomenon

people's tendency to be helpful when already in a good mood.

Well-Being

self-perceived happiness or satisfaction with life. Used along with objective measures (for example, physical and economic indicators) to evaluate people's quality of life.

Health Psychology

a subfield of psychology that provides psychology's contribution to behavioral medicine.

Stress

the process by which we perceive and respond to certain events, called stressors, that we appraise as threatening or challenging.

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

Selye's concept of the body's adaptive response to stress in three phases—alarm, resistance, exhaustion.

Tend & befriend response

when faced with a perceived threat, humans will tend to their young and rely on others for connection and support.

Coronary Heart Disease

the clogging of the vessels that nourish the heart muscle; the leading cause of death in many developed countries.

Type A

Friedman and Rosenman's term for competitive, hard-driving, impatient, verbally aggressive, and anger-prone people.

Type B

Friedman and Rosenman's term for easygoing, relaxed people.

Psychophysiological Illness

literally, "mind-body" illness; any stress-related physical illness, such as hypertension and some headaches.

Lymphocytes

the two types of white blood cells that are part of the body's immune system. The B type of this form in the bone marrow and release antibodies that fight bacterial infections; The T type of this form in the thymus and other lymphatic tissue and attack cancer cells, viruses, and foreign substances.

Display Rules

cross-cultural guidelines for how and when to express emotions

Appraisal

the evaluation of the significance of a situation or event as it relates to a person's well-being

Valence

In psychology, it is the intrinsic attractiveness (positive) or aversiveness (negative) of an event, object, or situation

Arousal

Physiological and psychological tension

Telomeres

DNA at the tips of chromosomes; stress leads to the shortening of telomeres=aging

biopsychosocial factors impacting sexual motivation

Biological: Sexual maturity, sex hormones especially testosterone, sexual orientation

Psychological: Exposure to stimulating conditions, sexual fantasies

Social: Family & society values, religious & personal values, cultural expectations, media

what is the point to remember about the spillover effect?

arousal fuels emotion; cognition channels it

Psychoneuroimmunology

a discipline that studies the relationship between immunity, the endocrine system(hormones), and the central and peripheral nervous systems.

How does stress affect the immune system?

long-term stress weakens the responses of your immune system.