PSYC 1101: Unit 3 Study Guide

discrimination

in classical conditioning, the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and stimuli that do not signal an unconditioned stimulus

achievement motivation

a desire for significant accomplishment: for mastery of things, people, or ideas; for attaining a high standard

general adaption syndrome (GAS)

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

tend-and-befirend response

under stress, people (especially women) often provide support to others (tend) and bond with and seek support from others (befriend)

direct effects hypothesis

the theory that coping resources, such as social support, have beneficial psychological and health effects under conditions of both high stress and low stress

tyranny of choice

brings information overload and a greater likelihood that we will feel regret over some of the unchosen options

external locus of control

the perception that chance or outside forces beyond your personal control determine your fate.

explanatory style

a person's habitual way of explaining events, typically assessed along three dimensions: internal/external, stable/unstable, and global/specific

normative social influence

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

social facilitation

stronger responses on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others

social loafing

the tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling their efforts toward attaining a common goal than when individually accountable

Deindividuation

the loss of self-awareness and self-restraint occurring in group situations that foster arousal and anonymity

diffusion of responsibility

the tendency for individuals to feel diminished responsibility for their actions when they are surrounded by others who are acting the same way

groupthink

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

prejudice

preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience

gender prejudice

the tendency to hold a hostile attitude toward an individual because of his or her gender

DSM-5

the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition; a widely used system for classifying psychological disorders.

nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI)

direct, deliberate destruction of body tissue in the absence of any intent to die

immigrant paradox

the fact that despite living in poverty, going to substandard schools, and not having parents who speak the language, many immigrant children do far better than we might expect at school

motivation

a need or desire that energizes and directs behavior

instinct

a complex behavior that is rigidly patterned throughout a species and is unlearned

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

incentives

a positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

1. physiological
2. safety
3. love/belonging
4. esteem
5. self-actualization

Yerkes-Dodson Law

the principle that performance increases with arousal only up to a point, beyond which performance decreases

self-transcendence

according to Maslow, the striving for identity, meaning, and purpose beyond the self

affiliation

An association with a group or organization

social identity

the "we" aspect of our self-concept; the part of our answer to "Who am I?" that comes from our group memberships

narcissism

excessive self-love and self-absorption

grit

passion and perseverance in the pursuit of long-term goals

extrinsic motivation

a desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment

intrinsic motivation

a desire to perform a behavior effectively for its own sake

James-Lange theory of emotion

theory proposing that emotions result from our interpretations of our bodily reactions to stimuli

Cannon-Bard Theory of emotion

theory in which the physiological reaction and the emotion are assumed to occur at the same time

Schachter-Singer 2 Factor Theory of Emotion

A two-factor theory stating that for an emotion to occur, there must be (1) physiological arousal and (2) a cognitive interpretation or explanation of the arousal, allowing it to be labeled as a specific emotion.

relationship between cognition and emotion

- Arousal fuels emotion, cognition channels it
- Some theories say that there's no cognition involved in experiencing emotion, some say there is

catharsis

a release of emotional tension

feel-good, do-good phenomenon

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

positive psychology

the scientific study of optimal human functioning; aims to discover and promote strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive

subjective well-being

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

pillars of positive psychology

1. positive well-being
2. positive character
3. positive groups, communities, and cultures

Which days of the week are the happiest according to Kramer

saturdays and sundays

adaption-level phenomenon

our tendency to form judgments (of sounds, of lights, of income) relative to a neutral level defined by our prior experience

relative deprivation

the perception that one is worse off relative to those with whom one compares oneself

factors predicting happiness

positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, achievement

stress

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

stressor

Anything that causes stress

approach and avoidance motives

the drive to move toward (approach) or away from (avoid) a stimulus

psychoneuroimmunology

the study of how psychological, neural, and endocrine processes together affect the immune system and resulting health

type a personality

personality type that describes people who are competitive, driven, hostile, and ambitious

type b personality

Personality characterized by relatively relaxed, patient, easygoing, amicable behavior.

indirect effect hypothesis

Immunosuppression is an aftereffect of the stress response
Stress may encourage maladaptive behaviors that disrupt immune functioning

transactional model

A model that emphasizes the bidirectional effects of parents and adolescents on each other.

problem-focused coping

Attempting to alleviate stress directly by changing the stressor or the way we interact with that stressor.

emotion-focused coping

attempting to alleviate stress by avoiding or ignoring a stressor and attending to emotional needs related to one's stress reaction

maladaptive coping

Strategies that cause further problems

percieved lack of control

makes an event more stressful

learned helplessness

the hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events

internal locus of control

the perception that you control your own fate

difference between stress and anxiety

Stress is a response to a threat in a situation. Anxiety is a reaction to the stress.

social psychology

the scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

attribution theory

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

attitudes

evaluations of people, objects, and ideas

cognitive dissonance

Inner tension that a consumer experiences after recognizing an inconsistency between behavior and values or opinions

peripheral routes of persuasion

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

central routes of persuasion

occurs when interested people focus on the arguments and respond with favorable thoughts

social cognation

the feeling and behaviors that seem to spread among people. when at a funeral and you begin to laugh about something of a story you remember with them, you then become contagious to others and they begin to tell their stories of what made them laugh together.

conformity

Adjusting one's behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.

informational social influence

influence resulting from one's willingness to accept others' opinions about reality

group polarization

the enhancement of a group's prevailing inclinations through discussion within the group

stereotyping

creating an oversimplified image of a particular group of people, usually by assuming that all members of the group are alike

fundamental attribution error

the tendency for observers, when analyzing another's behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition

implicit prejudice

unfounded negative belief of which we're unaware regarding the characteristics of an out-group

just world phenomenon

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

ingroup bias

the tendency to favor our own group

outgroup bias

tendency to focus on negative aspects of other people's groups

scapegoat theory

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

victim-blaming

placing the responsibility or blame for a bad outcome on the individual who experiences the bad outcome due to his or her behavior

Philippe Pinel

French physician who worked to reform the treatment of people with mental disorder

biopsychosocial approach to mental illness

biological influences on it, psychological, socio influences

characteristics of panic disorder

Recurrent panic attacks
Feelings of intense fear or terror and impending doom
Symptoms come on unexpectedly without triggers
Depression and agoraphobia are common
Average onset in late 20s
Frequency and severity vary

characteristics of OCD

Perform rituals over and over again, fearful of dirt or contamination, concern about order/exactness, persistent intrusive thoughts that can't be shaken,

characteristics of PTSD

intrusion, avoidance, hyperarousal

somatic symptom disorder

psychological disorder in which the symptoms take a somatic (bodily) form without apparent physical cause

major depressive disorder

A mood disorder in which a person experiences, in the absence of drugs or a medical condition, two or more weeks of significantly depressed moods, feelings of worthlessness, and diminished interest or pleasure in most activities.

major depressive disorder

A mood disorder in which a person experiences, in the absence of drugs or a medical condition, two or more weeks of significantly depressed moods, feelings of worthlessness, and diminished interest or pleasure in most activities.

mania

a mood disorder marked by a hyperactive, wildly optimistic state

biological influences on depression

genetic predispositions, changes in brain chemistry, brain damage due to stress and other factors

social-cognitive perspective

views behavior as influenced by the interaction between people's traits (including their thinking) and their social context.

"vicious cycle" of depression

Depression can lead to behaviors that cause social rejection, which worsens depression