psychology - exam 3

quizzes 10 - 15

in-class assertiveness study

-the independent variable is listing the 8 times vs 3 times you were assertive.

-the dependent variable is the self ratings of assertiveness on a 1-7 scale.

-this study shows that people who had to provide less examples of being assertive, rated themselves as more assertive on the scale. when people have to provide 8 examples and they can’t do it as easily, people rate themselves as lower because their brain convinces them that they are not as assertive because they cannot come up with as many examples to prove it.

-the availability heuristic refers to the attending to how quickly something comes to mind; if it comes to mind quickly, we assume it popped into our head quickly because it is really common in our lives and the world around us. in the study, people who had to give 3 examples believe they are more assertive because they believe they use assertiveness more often than others.

heuristic

-a heuristic is any mental shortcut

-people often use shortcuts because they are easy and don’t take a lot of cognitive effort

-heuristics are usually close enough and so we don’t have to think too much about it

representativeness heuristic

-the representativeness heuristic is assuming things are what they look like

-with the representativeness heuristic, we neglect base rates. this can also lead to a misunderstanding of statistical regression

base rates and why they are important

-base rate information is the odds of the likelihood of something happening.

-for example, assuming Bob plays trumpet because he enjoys touring art museums, however, he is actually more likely to be a farmer

-neglecting base rate can lead us to incorrect conclusions because solely relying on the assumptions we make can lead us to misinterpret the information

regression to the mean and why it’s important

-regression to the mean refers to the tendency for extremes which moves closer to the average over time

-extreme scores always show regression to the mean because chance and Skill go into representativeness

-ignoring regression to the mean can lead to poor-decision making and false beliefs

-to avoid this, it's important we take tests multiple times to counteract the extremes and return to the mean

framing effect and an example

-the framing effect refers to the way something is presented matters because it can change a person's answer drastically

-one example is how grocery stores market beef as 80% lean beef rather than 20% fat beef. customers are more likely to purchase the "80% lean" version, even though both labels describe the same meat

system 1 vs. system 2

-system 1 refers to gut responses. they are fast, habitual, and “close enough” responses

-system 2 is only engaged for really important situations. they are slow, deliberate, algorithmic, and 100% accurate

-they differ in many ways: system 1 is fast, easy, and not completely accurate; system 2 takes longer, is only for important situations, and 100% accurate

why do we use system 1 so often?

-we use System 1 because they are easier and faster, even if they are sometimes wrong. we only use System 2 for important situations because they take a longer time and more energy

system 1 and how it relates to multiple-choice tests

-the video from class discussed whether you should change your unsure answers on a multiple-choice test. most people have been taught to go with the first answer they put down and trust their gut-instinct. however, research shows you are more likely to get the answer correct if you go back and change the answers you were unsure of

-even though people have been presented and educated with this data, they still go with their gut instinct. This is because when people look back on their tests, they only remember the ones they got wrong. So when they look back and see they got the answer wrong because they changed their answer from their first choice, they are mad because they didn’t go with their gut instinct, even if 3 of the 4 unsure questions they got right because they changed their answer

job selection study

-the job selection study is an experimental study

-the independent variable is the qualification of the candidate

-the dependent variable is which candidate gets chosen

-in this study, all participants have to hire one of the 2 candidates presented to them: a male with 4 years of experience and a Master’s degree, and a female with 12 years of experience and a Bachelor’s degree. when asked who the participants would hire, most said they would hire the male because education matters more and he is more educated

-the study is repeated but the qualities between the male and the female are switched (male: 12 years of experience and Bachelor’s degree, female: 4 years of experience but has a Masters degree). when participants are asked to choose a candidate again, they still choose the male candidate because work experience matters more and he has more work experience

-the study shows no matter how the candidates are presented, most participants choose the male due to stereotypes created by System 1. the study shows System 2 justifies the answer System 1 automatically gave us, therefore, System 2 is not always gonna lead us to more accurate decisions

G-Factor theory of intelligence

-G-Factor theory of intelligence is the belief we have one broad general ability. therefore, if you are good at math, you would be good at english, art, science, etc. all the same

multiple intelligence theory of intelligence

-multiple intelligence theory of intelligence is the belief we have different types of intelligence and people excel in some and aren’t as good in others. therefore, if you are good at math, you may not be as good at english or art

G-Factor theory example

-an example that supports G-Factor theory is the SATs. the SATs measure an individual’s skills in reading, math, and writing. when these scores are calculated, oftentimes the scores are pretty equal (they have a strong correlation to each other, making intelligence be 1 general ability)

multiple intelligence theory example

-an example that supports multiple intelligence theory is individuals who experience brain damage. the parietal lobe is important in mathematical and spatial awareness ability. damage to the parietal lobe causes their math ability to decrease, but the rest of the individual’s intelligence abilities remain the same

twin studies and how much of intelligence comes from nature vs. nurture

-tests are done on twins and adopted siblings to perform studies to determine how much of intelligence comes from nature vs. nurture

-they found that identical twins raised in the same household shared the same intelligence, whereas identical twins raised in different households were very similar in intelligence

-from these studies we can conclude that a large portion of our intelligence comes from genetics and the remainder comes from our environment

heritability in high SES environments vs. low SES environments

-heritability is how similar parents are to children

-parents are more similar to their children (and twins are more similar to each other than their parents) in high SES environments than in low SES environments. this is because genes are not destiny, you have to activate them – meaning people in higher SES have better resources to activate their genes. in lower SES, the genes do not reach their potential because their environment did not nurture them

implicit memory and how does the in-class activity (word completion activity) relate to it?

-implicit memory refers to when information makes its way into your long-memory even though you weren’t trying to get it there

-this is supported by or in-class activity because the instructions had the answers to the “word completion” task. therefore, we were able to complete the activity because our brains subconsciously memorized the instructions and pulled that information to complete the activity

explicit memory and the model of memory

-explicit memory refers to the intentional and conscious act of remembering something

-the Atkinson & Shiffrin model refers to the memory model that depicts external events turns into sensory memory which turns into working/short-term memory, which finally becomes long-term memory storage. it starts as external events and being exposed to stimuli

-everything that comes into our memory starts as sensory information. the sensory information makes an imprint in our brain and our memory stores it. the sensory information that gets processed further is something relevant to your goals in a given moment but it eventually  leaves when it is no longer relevant

short-term memory and how it is limited

-short-term memory is a level of memory where information can be stored briefly (from seconds to less than a minute)

-one limit to working memory is that it can only store a limited amount of information (+ or - 7)

what two major ways is short-term/working memory limited?

-the two major ways in which short-term/working memory is the limited capacity and the limited duration

-limited capacity refers to the limited amount of storage working memory can hold at a given time (+ or - 7). to get around the capacity limitation, we can use a strategy called chunking, which is organizing information into smaller meaningful units of information

-limited duration refers to the limited amount of time we can hold onto the information. to get around the duration limitation, we can use a strategy called rehearsal, which is repeating information back to yourself. every time you repeat the information, you're restarting the clock of duration on short-term memory

encoding

-encoding happens whenever you move one memory store into another memory store

-encoding happens in both short-term and long-term memory

-to encode information to short-term memory, the information has to be relevant to your current goals

-to encode information from short-term memory to long-term memory, the information has to be personally meaningful

encoding information from short-term memory to long-term memory

-to encode information from short-term memory to long-term memory, the information has to be personally meaningful

-when information has an emotional or practical significance, it is more likely to be stored long-term

spacing effect, in-class activity (remembering a sequence), and how it facilitates the creation of long-term memories

-the spacing effect is a strategy you can use to help memorize information. when you are trying to remember information, you are subconsciously also memorizing your surrounding environment. when you think of or placed back in that surrounding environment, the information you were trying to remember becomes associated with it, and you are able to recall the information. this creates memory ques. When you space out learning the information, you are giving yourself more memory ques, therefore, more reasons to recall the information

-the in-class activity demonstrated this because everyone in the class remembered more of the words that were spaced on then the words that were said back to back

-the spacing effect can facilitate the creation of long-term memories because when we create memory ques, we are personalizing the information

testing effect, reading activity, and how it facilitates the creation of long-term memories

-the testing effect refers to every time you test your information, you’re strengthening your memory

-the reading activity demonstrates this because when students are asked to read the information and are asked to recall the information, they are only around 42% correct. however, when students are asked to read information and then test their knowledge on it, when the students are asked to recall the information, they are around 75% correct

-the testing effect facilitates long-term memory because the act of retrieving information strengthens our neural pathways. this makes the memory more durable and easier to retrieve later. it’s like taking a book off a bookshelf and putting it back when you’re done

slideshow video and what does it suggest about the relationship between stress and memory?

-in class, we watched an experimental study, and in the study, all the participants viewed a slideshow. after viewing the slideshow, the participants were told to put their hand in a bucket of water. half of the participants’ buckets are filled with ice water (which causes stress hormones to be released) and told to keep their hand there for as long as possible. the other half of the participants put their hand in a bucket of room temperature water. the participants then come back a week later and are given a surprise memory test about the images they saw in the slideshow

-the results show the group of participants with the ice water bucket remember the information better

-the study suggests that stress causes individuals to remember events better, therefore, the relationship between stress and memory is a positive correlation

in-class activity (schemas - bread schema)

-in class, we did an activity where we were tasked with remembering and listing the words that were read to us. after everyone created a list, 35% of the class remembered hearing “bread” be a part of the list, even though it was never read. this is because of reconstruction

-when we’re asked to recall a memory, we put the highlights that were, in this case, all sandwich related, so our brain filled in schemas (in this case, bread)

big five personality traits and examples of highs and lows

-openness: a person with high openness is very imaginative, whereas a person with low openness is very practical

-conscientiousness: a person with high conscientiousness is very disciplined, whereas a person with low conscientiousness is very impulsive

-extraversion: a person with high extraversion is very affectionate, whereas a person with low extraversion is very reserved

-agreeableness: a person with high agreeableness is very trusting and helpful, whereas a person with low agreeableness is very suspicious and uncooperative

-neuroticism: a person with high neuroticism is very anxious, whereas a person with low neuroticism is very calm

how do cross-sectional and longitudinal studies tell us about the relationship between personality and life outcomes?

-cross-sectional and longitudinal studies are commonly used to measure personality. these studies’ results point in the same direction and are super relevant to other things about you

-with these studies, researchers are able to predict other facts (relationship satisfaction) and possible future facts (the likelihood of substance abuse) about you and your personality

psychodynamic theory in relation to personality

-psychodynamic theory claims personality develops as people grapple with key issues at different stages of development

-Freud says successful resolution to any of these stages is balance

-failure to resolve a stage results in fixation, where a person is “stuck” at that stage. this can set future unrealistic expectations for other people. if you’re preoccupied and leave energy behind, you cannot focus your full attention on current problems

-Freud believes you can tell where you became fixated based on your actions as an adult. there are character types for every stage of development (oral, anal, etc.), and based on which stage you became fixated on can display different traits to your current personality

humanistic theory in relation to personality

-humanistic theorists claim personality develops as people try to satisfy basic (e.g. food, security, love) and higher-order (e.g. sense of meaning and purpose) needs. the highest level is self-actualization and when it is achieved, you are fully human

-in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, there are different levels, starting at the bottom with our basic needs, then to our psychological needs (love and acceptance), and at the top our self-fulfillment needs. Maslow would argue most of us are stuck on the love and acceptance stage, and, therefore, never getting us to the self-actualization stage

-failure to satisfy basic needs results in fixation, which causes an inability to satisfy higher-order needs, especially self-actualization. self-actualization refers to what makes us actually happy and finding our purpose in life – who we truly are

behaviorism theory in relation to personality

-behaviorists claim personality is (almost) all learning history

-you become conscientious through experience/reward and punishment

heritability in relation to personality

-there is moderate heritability of all the big five traits. 30% to 60% of individual differences in personality is due to genetics

-while you do not inherit specific personality traits from your parents, you do inherit certain brain structures

example:

-the amygdala is in charge of fear learning (neuroticism). some people can be conditioned to fear something very quickly. those who can have a super reactive amygdala, which is inherited by their parents. therefore, you may not have inherited anxiety from your parents, but you may have inherited a super reactive amygdala from your parents, causing you to be more anxious

can personality change overtime?

-personality changes across your lifespan, however, there is not going to be a 180 flip

examples:

-people tend to become more conscientious as you grow older (hits a peak in your 30s and 40s)

-openness continuously increases until around your mid-50s, when your openness begins to decline

concept vs. prototype

-concepts are mental categories that group similar objects, events, ideas, or people

-prototypes are the best example or average member that incorporates more of the features most commonly associates with it

-the closer something is to the prototype of a concept, the more quickly people can identify it with that concept

confirmation bias and how it operates

-confirmation bias is the tendency to look for and weigh evidence that confirms preexisting beliefs more strongly than evidence that is inconsistent with those beliefs

-people tended to perceive whatever evidence supported their initial belief as more credible and persuasive than opposing evidence

fluid vs. crystallized intelligence

-fluid intelligence is the ability to tackle new and unusual situations. you use it when you deliberately think you way through a challenging problem or decision

-crystallized intelligence is accumulated knowledge. it includes your knowledge of language and other facts, as well as you repertoire of skills and strategies for dealing with familiar problems, such as how to sign up for college classes

standardized, reliable, and valid tests

-for any intelligence test to be useful, it must meet three criteria: standardization, reliability, and validity

-standardization is a process of making test scores more meaningful by defining them in relation to the performance of a pretested group

-reliability is the extent to which a test produces consistent results

-validity is the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to

overcoming test anxiety

-change the way people are interpreting their anxiety. students who had been informed that their anxiety could help them did not report experiencing less anxiety about the exam, but they worried less about anxiety and felt greater confidence

-removing negative stereotypes should improve performance

memory consolidation vs. reconsolidation

-consolidation is the neurobiological process whereby memory storage is stabilized and strengthened. it occurs after experiences have passed, with our brains working behind the scenes on building a stable, enduring memory

-reconsolidation is the recollection (bringing back together) of past experience in itself is a new experience, coming with new thoughts, feelings, and context of your current self that your brain uses to update that memory and store foe future retrieval. retrieving a memory returns it into a momentary, unstable state, rendering it vulnerable to change

levels of processing: shallow vs deep encoding

-levels of processing refers to the concept that encoding is an active process, which can occur at multiple levels on a continuum from shallow to deep

-shallow encoding uses appearances, such as how something looks or sounds

-deep encoding relies on processing information in a manner that goes beyond appearance to involve its significance and meaning

learned helplessness

-learned helplessness occurs when we develop a passive resignation to our situation because we have had past experience of being unable to control it

independent vs. interdependent self-construals

-independent self-construal refers to a notion of the self as a bounded and stable entity that is distinct from others. found in individualistic cultures, where individuals are valued for what they can do on their own

-interdependent self-construal refers to a notion of the self as defined by one’s connections to other people. found in collectivistic cultures, where harmony and social connection are valued over individual agency

“person-situation” debate and how that questions the existence of a stable personality

-the person-situation debate is a model positing that in order to understand and predict behavior, it is necessary to account for both personal dispositions and the situation people find themselves in, as well as the interaction between the two

-the debate shows that is would seem that personality traits and features of the situations are both important influences on how we behave, and each contributes a piece to a larger puzzle. prior to this realization, researchers claimed everyone was very different because of our personalities and our environments. however, Mischel suggested we should be able to label peoples personalities based on five big personality traits, making people more consistent than they actually are.