intro to psychology exam 4 review

nature vs nurture

biological versus environmental effects on personality and development

stability / continuity vs change / stages

stability / continuity: suggests that change is gradual and consistent

change / stages: suggests that change can happen in spurts; shifts between different stages evident across life

pre-natal development (three stages)

germinal, embryonic, fetal

germinal stage

0-2 weeks ; formation of zygote

embryonic stage

3-8 weeks ; major organ systems develop, early brain and CNS development

fetal stage

9 weeks - birth ; muscles form, rapid growth

is there evidence of prenatal learning?

yes — recognizing a mother’s voice as familiar when out of the womb

teratogens

agents that have the potential to cause harm to the baby

chemicals and environmental toxins (lead), maternal diseases (rubella, std), drugs (nicotine, alcohol, caffeine) etc — timing, amount, and length of exposure can changes how it affects the baby

newborn reflexes

palmer grasp: holding onto finger in their hand automatically

startle (moro) response: loud sound or pretend to drop them

palmer disappears around 6 months; startle around 2 years old — both thought to help infant cling and avoid falls

habituation studies

mother does tests during different stages of pregnancy, and then they test how effective it was post-birth

etc: mother reading the same bedtime story aloud every night throughout the entire pregnancy increased the positive association with the bedtime story with the newborn

attachment

attachment as a ‘contact comfort’ — babies cling to mother for comfort and reassurance

secure attachment

a child who experiences responsive, nurturing, consistent caregiving — predicts social, emotional, and relational skills

insecure attachment

a child who experiences inconsistent, unresponsive, or insensitive caregiving — internal working model that perceives themselves, their environment, and others negatively or untrustworthy

self-awareness

distinguishing yourself from others leads to the beginning of social behaviors — becoming aware of how your actions and words affect others

social referencing

looking to others to know how to react (~12 months)

theory of mind

understanding that other people have different thoughts, beliefs, and desires — in essence, they have different ‘minds’ from your own

emotion regulation

manage or control emotional arousal — shift from external to internal ; self soothing, monitoring and masking facial expressions

temperament

biologically rooted individual differences in behavioral style ; relatively stabel over time (easy babies, difficult babies, slow to warm up / shy)

schemas

cognitive organization of related concepts

assimilation

changing existing schemas or creating new ones to fit new information into a category

dog: has four legs and hair ; a child may classify a horse as a dog — when they learn what a horse is, they will create a new schema and classify the horse into it

object permanence

understand that objects exist even though they can’t be seen

example: placing a toy in a box but the baby still being aware that the toy exists.

authoritative

warm and affectionate but still stern with rules

authoritarian

controlling and cold ; limited affection

concrete operations

mental operations to solve concrete problems — manipulate mental images, ability to conserve demonstrates increasing; flexibility in mental operations, can’t solve abstract problems

formal operations

~12 and above

abstract and flexible thinking like algebra, decision making, and looking into the past, present, and future

the unconscious (freud)

collection of unacceptable thoughts, wishes, desires, feelings, and memories

unconscious has disguised influence on our feelings and behaviors

slips out in dreams, freudian slips, etc.

psychoanalytic theory

personality = behavior resulting from conflict between aggressive, pleasure seeking desires and social restraints

id

unconscious motivation driven by biological urges

pleasure principle: demands immediate gratification, does not care about societal norms and constraints

superego

part of the personality that represents internalized ideals and standards for judgement

the ‘conscious’, apparently develops around 4-5 years old

focused on how one ‘ought’ to behave, feelings of shame and guilt when you break these standards

ego

mostly conscious, ‘executive’ part of personality that mediates the battle between id and superego

reality principle: seeks to gratify the id in ways acceptable to superego

egrogenous zones

parts of the body that have especially strong pleasure-giving qualities at particular stages

anal stage, groinal, oral, etc

fixation

i digital is ‘locked’ in a stage because needs are under/overgratified

oedipal complex

during phallic stage, boys develop unconscious sexual desires for mother, and jealous and hatred of father

repression

forcibly blocking unacceptable thoughts from the conscious mind — reduces anxiety

not completely successful and true desires leak out in other aspects

projection

disguise own threatening impulses by attributing them to others

reaction formation

unconsciously switching unacceptable impulses into their opposites

(eg: politician who makes anti-gay comments while secretly harboring same-sex attraction)

sublimation

redirecting energy away from negative outlets towards positive and valued outlets

(tortured artist making art to relieve stress)

denial

person refuses to recognize reality (you’re wrong and i do not have a problem)

displacement

substitute a less threatening object for the original object of impulse (kid finds outlet for his aggression through violent pretend games)

rationalization

substituting socially acceptable reasons — father hits kids ‘for their own good’

psychoanalysis

technique of treating psychological disorders by seeking to expose and interpret unconscious tensions

object-relation theories

emphasizes real (as opposed to fantasized) relations with others

social cognitive approach

each person has unique personality because of their own personal histories — personal events (social) and how we interpret them (cognitive) shape our personalities

locus of control

theory emphasizes a person’s internal or external focus as a major determinant of personality

internal locus of control

life outcomes are under personal control, positively correlated with self-esteem, use more problem-focused copingex

external locus of control

luck, change, and powerful others (god) control behavior — learned helplessness

clinical psychology / ‘abnormal psycholgy’

the study of abnormal, thoughts, behaviors, and feelings — especially when they are causing distress to a person’s functions

emotionally abnormal

subjective feelings of discomfort, unhappiness, emotional distress

socially abnormal

breaking societal standards for acceptable conduct; my relate to destructive or self-destructive behaviors

statistically abnormal

being extreme on some dimension, such as intelligence, anxiety, or depression

not all statistically abnormal people can be considered problematic — ig: someone who is highly intelligent or athletic are instead considered gifted

three d’s

deviant: statistically and social abnormal

distressing: to either yourself, others, or both

dysfunctional: maladaptive — impairs daily function

medical model

psychopathology is a disease that is biological and needs to be treated the same way that someone may treat a physical illness

however, this overlooks potential environmental or social forces (stress, lack of acceptance or feeling lonely, bad home life)

bio-psycho-social perspective

assumes that biological, sociocultural, and physiological factors combine and interact to produce psychological disorders

most comprehensive approach

diathesis-stress model

diathesis: biological predisposition

stress: environmental triggers

clinical assessment

gathering information about the way a person thinks, feels, and behaves in order to form judgements about that person

systematic evaluation and measurement of psychological, biological, and social factors

types of assessments: interviews (structured/unstructured), physical exams, observations, clinical/psychological tests

diagnosis

the degree of fit between symptoms and predefined criteria

generalized anxiety disorder

client is tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal (unease)

social anxiety disorder

symptoms occur in social setting; fear of scrutiny, public humiliation / embarrassment

panic disorder

marked by a minutes-long episode of intense dread — person experiences terror and accompanying chest pain, choking, or other frightening sensation

phobia

persistent or irrational fear of specific object or situation — persistent fear that is excessive or unreasonable

triggered by presence or anticipation of an object or situation, can induce panic

obsessive-compulsive disorder (ocd)

characterized by unwanted repetitive thoughts (obsessions) and / or actions (compulsions)

obsessions: persistent, intrusive, and distressing thoughts, impulses, or images — paired with increased anxiety

compulsions: repetitive, ritualistic behaviors or mental acts

post traumatic stress disorder (ptsd)

exposure to a traumatic event that involved actual or threatened death or injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of self or others — during event, person feels intense fear, helplessness, or horror

consistently reexperienced through recurrent and intrusive distressing recollections of the event, nightmares, flashbacks, or intensive psychological distress when conronted with a ‘trigger’

persistent symptoms of increased arousal — difficulty falling / staying asleep, irritability and anger, hyper vigilance, exaggerated startle response

major depressive disorder

a person experiencing two or more weeks of depressed moods, feelings of worthlessness, and diminished interest or pleasure in most activities

significant distress or impairment; not due to substance of medical condition

more frequent in women due to higher introspection and hormonal changes; depression may also be masked in men due to higher drug uses

mania

mood disorder marked by a hyperactive, wildly optimistic state, inflated self esteem or grandiosity, decreased need for sleep, talkative, flight of ideas and racing thoughts, distractible

bipolar disorder

mood disorder in which the person alternates between hopelessness and lethargy of depression and overexcited state of mania

formerly called manic-depressive disorder

cognitive therapy

teaching the patient to recognize cognitive triggers and change them

exposure therapy

gradually increase the patient’s exposure to the source of anxiety

what is the “big 5""? (OCEAN/CANOE")

openness: willingness and ability to try new things or ideas

conscientiousness: how we control, regulate, and organize our lives — responsible and hardworking

neuroticism: intense negative emotional reactions, long lasting

extraversion: how socially outgoing someone is

agreeableness: concern with cooperation and social harmony — sympathetic, kind, easily manipulative, etc.