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affect
any experience of feeling or emotion
approach-approach conflict
A situation involving a choice between two equally desirable but incompatible alternatives.
approach-avoidance conflict
A situation involving a single goal or option that has both desirable and undesirable aspects or consequences.
arousal theory
A theory of motivation emphasizing the importance of a balance in our levels of stimulation.
avoidance-avoidance conflict
A situation involving a choice between two equally objectionable alternatives.
boredom susceptibility
According to sensation-seeking theory, this quality represents a dislike of repetition, predictability and monotony
broaden-and-build theory of emotion
a positive psychology theory that suggests that positive emotions can help people build skills and resources over time
cognitive label/appraisal
A theory that cognitive evaluation (a thought) is involved in the generation of some emotions.
disinhibition
According to sensation-seeking theory, this quality represents impulsiveness, extraversion, and a hedonistic lifestyle
display rules
A socially learned standard that regulates the expression of emotion that vary by culture.
drive
A generalized state of readiness precipitating or motivating an activity or course of action, usually created by deprivation of a needed substance (e.g., food), the presence of negative stimuli (e.g., pain, cold), or the occurrence of negative events.
drive-reduction theory
The idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state that motivates an organism to satisfy the need and return to homeostasis.
emotion
A complex reaction pattern, involving experiential, behavioral, and physiological elements, by which an individual attempts to deal with a personally significant matter or event.
experience seeking
According to sensation-seeking theory, this represents a need for a variety of inner experiences
external cues
related to hunger
extrinsic motivation
An external incentive to engage in a specific activity, especially motivation arising from the expectation of punishment or reward.
facial feedback hypothesis
The effect of facial expressions on experienced emotions, as when a facial expression of anger or happiness intensifies feelings of anger or happiness.
ghrelin
Hormone involved in stimulating appetite
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.
hypothalamus
structure in the limbic system that regulates many drive-related behaviors, including hunger
incentive theory
The theory that an external stimulus, such as a condition or an object, that enhances or serves as a motive for behavior.
instinct
A complex, innate behavior that is rigidly patterned throughout a species.
intrinsic motivation
An incentive to engage in a specific activity that derives from pleasure in the activity itself rather than because of any external benefits that might be obtained.
leptin
A protein, manufactured and secreted by fat cells, that may communicate to the brain the amount of body fat stored and may help to regulate food intake.
Lewin's motivational conflicts theory
Theory that proposes that choices create conflicts one must resolve (e.g., approach-approach, approach-avoidance, and avoidance-avoidance) as the basis of motivation
motivation
A need or desire that energizes and directs behavior.
optimal arousal
A motivational theory that an individual maintains contact with various stimuli so as to achieve and maintain a preferred level of stimulation.
pituitary gland
the master gland of the endocrine system; along with the hypothalamus, this regulates production of hormones that regulate feelings of hunger and satiety
satiety
the state of being fully satistfied to or beyond capacity; for example, when hunger or thirst has been fully satisfied
self-actualization
The complete realization of that of which one is capable, involving maximum development of abilities and full involvement in and appreciation for life.
self-determination theory
A theory that proposes that people are motivated by intrinsic (internal) or extrinsic (external) motivations.
sensation-seeking theory
A theory that proposes that one's level of need for varied or novel experiences is the basis of motivation; includes sensation-seeking types such as experience seeking, thrill or adventure seeking, disinhibition, and boredom susceptibility
thrill or adventure seeking
According to sensation-seeking theory, a desire to engage in unusual or risky physical activity
universal emotions
Anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, surprise
Yerkes-Dodson Law
The principle that performance increases with arousal only up to a point, beyond which performance decreases.
agreeableness
A personality dimension that includes attributes such as trust, altruism, kindness, cooperation, and other prosocial behaviors.
Big Five theory
A model of the primary dimensions of individual differences in personality. The dimensions are usually labeled extraversion, neuroticism, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness to experience.
collectivist culture
Giving priority to the goals of one's group (often one's extended family or work group) and defining one's identity accordingly.
conscientiousness
A personality dimension that describes someone who is responsible, dependable, persistent, and organized.
denial
Defense mechanism by which people refuse to believe or even to perceive painful realities.
displacement
Defense mechanism that shifts negative impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person.
ego
The largely conscious "executive" part of personality that mediates among the demands of the other two parts of the psyche and ultimately operates on what is realistic.
ego defense mechanisms
The psyche's protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality.
emotional stability
A personality dimension in which a person
extraversion
A personality dimension describing someone who is sociable, gregarious, and assertive.
factor analysis
A statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items on a test; used to identify different dimensions of performance that underlie a person's total score.
humanistic psychology
In addition to patterns and characteristics, this perspective aims to understand personality by considering what it is like to be that person, what makes that person essentially himself or herself, and what gives the person's life meaning from the person's own subjective perspective.
id
A reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to Freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives, demanding immediate gratification.
openness to experience
A personality dimension that characterizes someone in terms of a sense of curiosity, open-mindedness, and acceptance of novel situations.
personality
An individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting.
personality inventories
A questionnaire on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors.
preconscious mind
according to psychodynamic theory, the level of the psyche that contains thoughts, feelings, and impulses not presently in awareness but that can more or less readily called into consciousness
projection
Psychoanalytic defense mechanism by which people disguise their own threatening impulses by attributing them to others.
projective test
A personality test, such as the rorschach or tat, that provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of one's inner dynamics.
psychodynamic theory
View personality with a focus on the unconscious and the importance of childhood experiences.
rationalization
Psychoanalytic defense mechanism that offers self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening, unconscious reasons for one's actions.
reaction formation
Defense mechanism by which the ego unconsciously switches unacceptable impulses into their opposites. Thus, people may express feelings that are the opposite of their anxiety-arousing unconscious feelings.
reciprocal determinism
The interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment.
regression
Defense mechanism in which an individual faced with anxiety retreats to a more infantile psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated.
repression
The basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness.
Rorschach test
The most widely used projective test - seeks to identify people's inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations of inkblots.
self-actualization
The complete realization of that of which one is capable, involving maximum development of abilities and full involvement in and appreciation for life.
self-concept
One's description and evaluation of oneself, including psychological and physical characteristics, qualities, skills, roles and so forth.
self-efficacy
An individual's subjective perception of his or her capability to perform in a given setting or to attain desired results.
self-esteem
The degree to which the qualities and characteristics contained in one's self-concept are perceived to be positive.
social-cognitive theory
A personality theory stating that our traits and social environments interact with one another and how mental processes such as interpretation further impact our behavior.
sublimation
Defense mechanism by which people re-channel their unacceptable impulses into socially approved activities.
superego
Represents internalized ideals and provides standards for judgement (the conscience)and for future aspirations.
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
A projective test in which people express their inner feelings and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes.
trait
A characteristics pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports.
trait theories
A theory of personality that emphasizes the lasting nature of personal characteristics and an individual's tendency to respond in a certain way in many different kinds of situations.
unconditional positive regard
According to Carl Rogers, an attitude of total acceptance toward another person.
unconscious
According to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories.
achievement test
tests designed to assess what a person has learned
aptitude tests
tests designed to predict a person's future performance; aptitude is the capacity to learn
chronological age
the number of years one has been alive; one's age as determined by date of birth
construct validity
the extent to which a test accurately measures some abstract trait or psychological notion. For example, "hopelessness," "self-actualization," and "ego-strength" are all constructs.
content validity
the extent to which a test samples the behavior that is of interest (such as a driving test that samples driving tasks).
fixed mindset
In Carol Dweck's model, a belief about intelligence that suggests it is not changeable
Flynn effect
the rise in average IQ scores that has occurred over the decades in many nations
g (general intelligence)
a general intelligence factor that underlies specific mental abilities and is therefore measured by every task on an intelligence test
growth mindset
In Carol Dweck's model, a belief about intelligence that suggests it can expand based on learning, experience, or practice.
intelligence
mental quality consisting of the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations
intelligence quotient (IQ)
A standardized scale used to measure intellectual abilities.
mental age
a measure of intelligence test performance - a child who does as well as a 8 year old has that mental age
predictive validity
the success with which a test predicts the behavior it is designed to predict; it is assessed by computing the correlation between test scores and the criterion behavior
psychometric principles
the scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits
reliability
the extent to which a test yields consistent results, as assessed by the consistency of scores on two halves of the test, or on retesting
split-half reliability
A measure of reliability in which a test is split into two equal parts and an individual's scores on both halves are compared.
standardization
the use of uniform procedures in test administration to ensure that all participants take the same test under the same conditions and are scored by the same criteria, which in turn ensures that results can be compared to each other.
stereotype lift
an increase in a group's test performance due to not being part of a negative stereotype
stereotype threat
a self-confirming concern that one will be evaluated based on a negative stereotype
test-retest reliability
using the same test on two occasions to measure consistency
validity
the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to
multiple abilities of intelligence
One theory that intelligence is not just a single ability, but rather a several specific intelligences
Norming
The process of establishing a normal distrubtion of scores against which test-takers' results will be compared. For example, if designing a test for 3rd graders, one must obtain a normal distrubtion of test scores from representative 3rd graders that can be used to determine which levels of performance are low, middling, or high.
Percentile Rank
the location of a score in a distribution expressed as the percentage of cases in the data set with scores equal to or below the score in question. Thus, if a score is said to be in the 90th percentile, this means that 90% of the scores in the distribution are equal to or lower than that score.; often used as a way of comparing an individual's score on a test or measure to the scores of others in the same population
In-Group Variations
the differences that exist within a group of people (i.e. women, men, a specific ethnicity); there is a greater difference between in-groups than there are when comparing one group to another (between groups)
accommodation
a process in which schema are changed in response to new information
acoustic encoding
The encoding of sound, especially the sounds of words.
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