Chapter 3: the problem of self-regulation

according to ancient Greeks, what is ate? (not the verb to eat)

a kind of raging passion, pseudo-demonic that banishes reason

what are the consequences of social rejection on your body? (2)

• inflammation on the body and blood cells

• compromised immune functions

how could we endanger our social status?

by losing control of ourselves and violate a norm or value

how can we attain the status and acceptance needed in order to survive?

regulate ourselves: control our feelings, impulse and behaviours to maximize positive and minimize negative outcomes

what’s the worse thing that could happen to us, a member of the eusocial species?

being excluded from your group, whether it be being fired or being imprisoned

what’s the greatest challenge for a social actor?

to learn how to control their performance

according to many theorists, what does self-regulation depends on?

the observation of the actor by the audience, whether if that audience is in the real world or on the actor’s mind

true or false: humans don’t act more desirable if they know/think they are being observed

false: we act in a more socially desirable way

define “objective self-awareness”

social actor becomes explicitly aware of the self as an object of perception (you know you are being watched)

why is objective self-awareness important?

because it keeps impulses, urges and disruptive emotions in check

true or false: when you are positioned in from of a mirror, you will act in a more socially desirable way

true: objective self-awareness

why were Japanese less influenced by the introduction of mirrors when doing a task, as opposed to Americans?

because it’s a social norm in Japan to always monitor group behaviour, objective self-awareness is the norm (they always have a mirror in their head)

true or false: self-regulation is like a muscle. the more you train it, the stronger it becomes

false: it’s a muscle that gets tired from overuse. people who show greater efforts in self-regulation will end up committing social errors

define “ego depletion”

the self-regulation muscle gets weaker because the inner resource of self-regulatory energy has been used up (t’es tannée de te contrôler)

why do we have a hard time disciplining ourselves?

because we can’t keep focusing on your self-regulatory prize forever. eventually, thoughts of gratification will come up

why do we have emotions according to James Gross?

emotions give us advice on how things are going on the inside and on the outside

what happens if emotions take control of your mind according to James Gross?

you need to do what they want you to do

during the first few months of their life, babies have no control on their emotions. how are their emotions regulated?

with caregivers: they try to increase positive emotional experiences and diminish the negative

what are the differences in individualist and collectivist societies when it’s time to raise a baby?

individualism

• encourage high-arousal positive emotions (intense joy, excitement)

• encourage kids to let out their anger

collectivism

• dampen exuberance of joy, anger

  • strong emotional expressions are threat to collective harmony

• encourage low-arousal positive emotions (mild joy, relax, calm)

how do kids regulate their negative emotions? (6 months, 12 months, 2 years old, 2-3 years old)

6 months:

• primitive strategies: turning their body away from unpleasant stimuli

12 months:

• calm themselves down: rocking themselves, chewing on objects, moving away from what upset them

2 y/o:

• cope with frustration: play with toys, talk, distract yourself

2-3 y/o:

• strategy: sadness will get you more support than anger

explain the caregiver’s role for a securely attached kid

• caregiver = secure base

• if there is any danger, kid will go back to caregiver

• knowing this, kid is ready to explore

true or false: securely attached kids have better regulated responses to stress

true: they have healthier patterns of daily cortisol production

explain the working models of attachment relationships

• you take those models with you from one social situation to the other

• the models are internalized representations of past relationships

• ideally, those representations inspire confidence and good regulation control

Walter Mischel’s experiment involved kids and marshmallows. kids could eat their marshmallow now or wait 15 minutes to get two marshmallows. only 30% managed to wait 15 minutes. how did they manage to do so?

mostly by distracting themselves by forcing themselves to do other things

true or false: kids who displayed better selfcontrol in Mischel’s study didn’t necessarily have a better self-control in school

false: they had higher levels of self-control, fewer behavioural problems, better friendships and higher SAT scores as teens

define “effortful control”

the effort to control your impulse will keep you focused on long-term goals even when there is short-term distraction

effortful control is a dimension of […]

temperament

what does effortful control consist of? (2)

• executive control of attention

• inhibition of potentially distracting impulses

who has better effortful control between:

• boys and girls

• rich and poor

• easterners and westerners

• girls

• rich

• easterners

why do easterners have a better effortful control?

because their society emphasizes on behavioural control: they have sets of rules for actions that aim to cultivate and strengthen innate virtues

at what age does conscience develop?

at 4-5 years old

what are the components of conscience? (2)

• rule-compatible conduct

• moral emotions

when do we exhibit active conscience?

when we act in ways that are consistent with what group norms consider to be moral or good behaviour

what are the key moral emotions for the development of conscience? (2)

empathy and guilt

why do we say that empathy and guilt are the key of the development of conscience? (explain both individually)

• empathy: will clear distractions so you can focus on others + clear your emotions to help others

• guilt: check against immoral behaviour

why does the feeling of guilt exist?

to ensure group solidarity and self-regulation

define “executive attention network”

network activated in situations where you need to inhibit what could stop you from analyzing a problem and remember your long term goals

what are the parts of the brain activated when executive attention networks are working? (2)

• prefrontal cortex: planning complex social behaviour, self-regulation

• anterior cingulate cortex: guide you to the appropriate behavioural response + prediction outcomes of actions

what’ the role of the prefrontal cortex? (2)

• planning complex social behaviour

• self-regulation

how are thoughts and actions organized in the PFC?

according to the achievements and goals

what’s the role of the anterior cingulate cortex?

• regulation of blood pressure and heart rate

• mediation of reward-seeking behaviour

• social emotions

• conscious and rational decisions/appropriate behaviour

• planning outcomes of actions

what is serotonin implicated in? (2)

development of effortful control and self-regulation

explain the process of serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), like Prozac

• it slows down the natural process of serotonin being cleared out of the synapses

• this can help relieve symptoms of depression

how can we process experiences? (2)

• first mode: unconsciousness, impulsive and reactive

• second mode: conscious, reflective, strategic and logical

does self-regulation depend on the first or second mode of experience processing?

second mode as it’s more rational to get rid of the first mode

what would happen if you increased or decreased serotonin?

• increase: reduces in negative emotional stimuli, aggression; increase cooperation and social effectiveness

• decrease: more impulsive and aggressive (less secondary system)

what are the big 5 traits emerging from the effortful consciousness in adulthood? (2)

• conscientiousness: how disciplined you are

• agreeableness: how nice you are

how are people described on the high and low end of the conscientiousness scale?

• high: hardworking, disciplined, responsible, dependable

• low: disorganized, careless, negligent, undependable

  • no standard of work or morality

how are people described on the high and low end of the agreeableness scale?

• high: love, friendliness, cooperate, care

• low: antagonistic, unsympathetic, rude

high levels of C and A are associated with [secure/avoidant] attachment relationships

secure

people with high levels of [A/C] are more likely to stay loyal in romantic relationships while people with a high [A/C] tend to resolve conflicts easily

• C = loyalty

• A = solve conflicts

why do people with high C have success?

because they tend to work harder and are more efficient

true or false: conscientiousness doesn’t necessarily predict academic achievement

false

why are people with high C more likely to get a psychological toll if there is some problem work-wise?

because work (or school) is central to their identity

true or false: people with high A don’t invest much in work

false: they do, but

• their focus is more on helping people, so their pay might not be as high as people with high C (and we can assume that this means they don’t work hard)

• they are modest, which stops them from getting a raise or display more confidence

true or false: C and A aren’t related to health and well-being

false: they are

why do people with high C seem to live longer?

because they tend to avoid risk and have a good lifestyle (good diet, exercise, no alcohol/drug excess)

true or false: conscientiousness is related to youth problems

true: if you are low in C, you might have more problems during youth

what are the big 5 traits associated with impulsivity? (2)

conscientiousness and neuroticism

why do we think that C and A are related to self-regulation?

because people higher in those traits are more likely to have more life benefits

Freud would say that C and A are about restraining the impulsive [id/ego/superego] and accentuating the rational [id/ego/superego]

restraining the impulsive id and accentuating the rational ego

what are the emotions to motivate the C and the A? (individually)

• C = guilt

• A = empathy

according to Homer’s story, why did the protagonist of the Trojan war fought so aggressively?

because the gods drove him to do so

what’s self-regulation according to Freud?

repression: we cast what’s unacceptable into unconsciousness

why is self-regulation paid with misery according to Freud?

by regulating ourselves, we create intrapsychic conflicts, which brings more anxiety and frustration (but it’s still better than total chaos caused by no regulation)

why do we say that performance of aggression can consolidate within-group bonds?

people are reunited to fight for a common cause (war)

why is the regulation of aggression the most important thing to self-regulate?

because it can pose threat the a group’s well-being and survival

define “antisocial behaviour”

acting in ways that threaten the well-being and lives of other social actors

define “externalizing behaviours”

acting out against the external world

define “sociopath”

someone who expresses no empathy for others or remorse for their behaviour

what are the aspects that can lead to individual differences in aggressive behaviour? (5)

• temperament traits

• parenting practices

• family relation

• peer interaction

• socioeconomic class and culture

what are the risk factors to aggressive behaviour? (7)

1. early temperament tendencies towards anger/hostility with a low EC

2. ineffective and inconsistent parenting (usually physically punishments)

3. poorly regulated behaviour

4. poor school performance

5. peer rejection in school (which makes you befriend aggressive people)

6. deviant peer groups

7. these friends glorify aggression and antisocial behaviour

how early can aggression appear?

12 months

how can chronic angriness occur? (2)

• poor self-regulation

• frequent exposure to hostile environments

true or false: EC isn’t associated with the development of aggressive and antisocial behaviour

false: it is

how low/high are the big 5 traits when someone is antisocial? (CEAN)

• C: low

• E: high

• A: low

• N: high

true or false: aggressiveness can be inherited

true

why are cold parents more likely to have aggressive children? (2)

• rejecting them might tell them that they don’t love their kids

• if they use physical punishments, it tells the kid it’s okay to be aggressive

why are low-income families more likely to produce aggressive kids?

parents are already busy and are less likely to monitor their kid’s activity and friendships