Final Exam: Module III

Psychology Final. Includes topics of Health Psychology, Social Psychology, Personalities, and Psychophathology

Conformity

changing one’s own behavior to match that of other people

Altruism

prosocial behavior done without expectation of reward and may involve harm to oneself

Prosocial behavior

socially desirable behavior that benefits others

Compliance

changing one’s behavior as a result of other people directing or asking for change

Groupthink

type of thinking occurring when people place more importance on maintaining group cohesiveness rather than on assessing facts of the problem with which the group is concerned

Obedience

changing one’s behavior at the command of an authority

Obedience vs Conformity

obedience → occurs under the influence of authority

conformity → occurs under the influence of peers or society

Antisocial Personality Disorder

individuals with this disorder are often called psychopaths or sociopaths; this disorder is characterized by a lack of conscience (typically emotionally shallow, impulsive, selfish, and manipulative). many are criminals/delinquents, tend to be very charming and manipulate their way through life.

Panic Disorder

chronic state of anxiety with brief moments of sudden, intense, unexpected panic → panic attack, feels like one if having physical symptoms of heart attack, psychological symptoms of feeling like one is going to die or going insane

Hypochondriasis

people is preoccupied with having serious illness or disease; interpret normal sensations ad bodily signs as proof they have a terrible disease when no physical disorder can be found

OCD

obsessive-compulsive disorder; extreme preoccupation with certain thoughts and performance of certain behaviors done to soothe unwanted, intrusive thoughts. obsession causes anxiety and extreme discomfort, and recurring thoughts or images enter consciousness against the person’s will (ex. being dirty, wondering if you performed an action, violence). compulsion: irrational acts that person feels compelled to repeat

GAD

generalized anxiety disorder, duration of at least 6 months of chronic, unrealistic, or excessive anxiety; distress seems greatly out of proportion to the situation at hand

Psychological disorder

pattern of behavioral or psychological symptoms that impact multiple life areas and create distress for the person experiencing these symptoms

Maladaptive behavior

“inability to adapt,” behavior that impairs healthy function, difficulty adapting to environment, situation, or meeting everyday demands

Schema

mental patterns, represent what one believes about certain types of people; can become stereotypes

cognition

another word for thinking, mental processes

What is normal?

dependent on:

* situational context (social/behavioral setting, general circumstances in which action takes place)


* cultural relativity: judgements are made relative to the values of one’s culture

Subjective discomfort

feelings of anxiety, depression, or emotional distress. extreme scores on intelligence, anxiety, and depression are considered statistical abnormality

Cohort effect

describe variations in the characteristics of an area of study over time among individuals who are defined by some shared temporal (relating to time) experience or common life experience (ex. year of birth, exposure to radiation)

Social norm deviance

action or behavior that violates social norms (rules or expectations that guide members of society)

Psychopathology

study of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders

Rorschach Inkblot Test

psychological projective test, examines personality characteristics and emotional functioning in subject

MMPI-2

minnesota multiphasic personality inventory, psychological tests, detects abnormal personality

Sigmund Freud

neurologist; founder of psychoanalysis, also founded theories of the 3 parts of personality and stages of personality development

Parts of personality (as theorized by Freud)

superego, ego, id

Superego

moral center, the standard for moral behavior. includes conscience, part of the superego that produces pride or guilt, depending on how well behavior matches or does not match the ego ideal

Ego

develops out of a need to deal with reality, mostly conscious, rational, and logical. includes the reality principle; the satisfaction of the demands of the id only when negative consequences will not result.

Id

part present at birth, completely unconscious. includes pleasure principle by which ego functions; satisfaction of needs without regard for the consequences “if it feels good, then do it”

Divisions of consciousness

preconscious mind, conscious mind, unconscious mind

Preconscious mind

information is available but not currently conscious

Conscious mind

aware of immediate surroundings and perceptions

Unconscious mind

thoughts, feelings, memories, and other information are kept that are not easily or voluntarily brought into consciousness (can be revealed in dreams and Freudian slips of the tongue), thought to have the most influence over personality as compared to other divisions of consciousness

Personality psychology

study of how personality develops and how it influences how we think and behave; investigates relatively stable ways in which people think, feel and behave

Conscience

awareness of morality or immorality of actions; feeling of obligation to do the right thing

Temperament

enduring characteristics with which each person is born; include easy, difficult, slow to warm up

Easy temperament

generally happy, adjust easily to new situations and environments

difficult temperament

irregular habits, difficulty adjusting, negative mood

slow to warm up temperament

less active, difficulty adjusting to new situations

Attitudes

tendency to respond negatively or positively toward the subject (person, object, idea, or situation). poor predictor of behavior unless the attitude is very specific or strong. are learned.

Formation of attitudes

* direct contact with the subject
* direct instruction from others (parents, teachers, etc)
* interacting with others who hold a certain attitude
* watching actions/reactions of others to subject

Stereotype

set of characteristics that people believe is shared by all members of a particular social category; generalizes group of people

Scapegoat

tendency to direct prejudice and discrimination at out-group members who have less power and influence in society

Prejudice

negative attitude held by a person about the members of a particular social group

Discrimination

treating people differently because of prejudice toward the social group to which they belong

Prejudice vs Discrimination

prejudice refers to *attitude* held by a person about certain social group, but discrimination refers to the *action* of treating people differently due to the existence of prejudice

Milgram study

“teacher” administered what they thought were real shocks to a “learner.” studied the dangers of obedience and the influence of authority figures; situational factors have more influence than personality factors when determining whether or not an individual will obey an authority figure

Social psychology

study of how a person’s thoughts, feelings, and behavior are influenced by the real, imagined, or implied presence of others

Types of personalities

type a, b, and , hardy personality

Type A personality

competitive, ambitious, hostile, high levels of irritability/anger, and easily annoyed. individuals with this personality more likely to develop heart disease

Type B personality

relaxed and laidback, not as driven and competitive as Type A personality, slow to anger

Type C personality

pleasant but repressed, internalizes anger and anxiety, and finds expressing emotions difficult

Hardy Personality

thrives on stress, but lacks anger and hostility present in Type A individuals

Health psychology

study of how physical activities, psychological traits, and social relationships effect health

Stress

physical, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral responses to events that are appraised as threatening or challenging

Stressors

factors or events that cause a stress reaction

Distress

effect of unpleasant and undesirable stressors

Eustress

effect of positive events, or the optimal amount of stress that people need to promote health and well-being.

Characteristics of suicidal ideation

* escape; extreme withdrawal due to inability to cope
* unbearable psychological pain; emotional pain the individual wishes to escape
* frustrated/unmet psychological needs; love, achievement, security
* constriction of options; feeling helpless, hopeless, as if death is the only option

Frustration

cause of distress; psychological experience produced by the blocking of a desired goal or fulfillment of a perceived need.

CUSS

College Undergrauate Stress Scale; assessment that measures the amount of stress in a college student’s life over a one-year period resulting from major life events

SRRS

Social Readjustment Rating Scale; assessment that measures the amount of stress in a person’s life over a one-year period resulting from major life events

PTSD

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder; disorder resulting from exposure to a major stressor or trauma, characterized by symptoms of anxiety, nightmares, poor sleep, reliving the event, and concentration problems, lasting for more than one month