EXAM 3 - Intro to Psych

Intelligence Tests

Western, Educated, Industrial, Rich, Democratic (WEIRD)

Intelligence tests were used early to support…

Eugenics

Psychometrics

the practice of measuring psychological constructs

Intelligence

The global capacity of an individual to think rationally, act purposefully, and deal effectively with their environment

How we measure intelligence

IQ

Who invented IQ

Stanford Binet

Physical adolescence markers

puberty; prefrontal development

behavioral markers of adolescence

shift from parents to peers; risky behavior; sexual exploration

Hypothalamicpituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis

governs puberty; Hypothalamus signals the pituitary to release follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone; hormones released stimulate sexual organs

Peer influence on risky behavior

Adolescents take more driving risks when in a group than when alone

Teen Identity Exploration

•Religious identity •Political identity •Ethnic identity •Gender identity • Sexual identity

Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development (format)

At each developmental stage, a ‘crisis’ is solved in a positive or negative way

gender identity

Psychological sense of self

Gender Expression

Communication of gender

Biological Sex

Physical markers (anatomy, chromosomes, hormones)

Sexual Orientation

Psychological/physical attraction to others

Trust vs Mistrust

1; If needs are dependably met, infants develop a sense of basic trust

Autonomy vs Shame/Doubt

2; Toddlers learn to exercise will and do things for themselves, or they doubt their abilities

Initiative vs Guilt

3; Preschoolers learn to initiate tasks and carry out plans, or they feel guilty about efforts to be in dependent

Industry vs Inferiority

4; Children learn the pleasure of applying themselves to tasks, or they feel inferior

Identity vs Confusion

5; Teenagers work at refining a sense of self by testing roles and then integrating them to form a single identity, or they become confused about who they are

Intimacy vs Isolation

6; Young adults struggle to form close relationships and to gain the capacity for intimate love, or they feel socially isolated

generativity vs stagnation

7; The middle-aged discover a sense of contribution to the world, usually through family and work, or they may feel a lack of purpose

integrity vs despair

8; When reflecting on his or her life, the older adult may feel a sense of satisfaction or failure

physical markers of emerging adulthood

final stage of prefrontal cortical development

behavioral markers of emerging adulthood

seeking life partnerships

psychological markers of emerging adulthood

seeking distance from parents (revisiting attachment style of childhood)

young adulthood is more culturally common in…

industrialized, individualistic cultures

Child IQ

Ratio IQ

Adult IQ

Standardized IQ

Ratio IQ formula

MENTAL AGE/PHYSICAL AGE X 100 = RATIO IQ

normal distribution

A continuous probability distribution for a single factor

standardized IQ

Scores are computed relative to norms, allowing for ease of categorization and comparison between individuals

average (mean) IQ score

100

top 2 percent of IQ scores

130

Intelligence testing assumes…

there’s a definable property called intelligence

IQ correlates with…

academic performance; occupational status; how likely to commit a crime

Factor analysis

a statistical technique that explains a large number of correlations in terms of a small number of underlying factors

Two-factor theory of intelligence

Every cognitive task requires a combination of general ability (g) and skills that are specific to the task (s)

types of tasks relating to two factor intelligence

mechanical; logical; arithmetical; spatial

word fluency

primary mental ability; ability to solve anagrams and to find rhymes, etc

verbal comprehension

primary mental ability; ability to understand words and sentences

number

primary mental ability; ability to make mental and other numerical computations

space

primary mental ability; ability to visualize a complex shape in various orientations

memory

primary mental ability; ability to recall verbal material, learn pairs of unrelated words, etc

perceptual speed

primary mental ability; ability to detect visual details quickly

reasoning

primary mental ability; ability to induce a general rule from a few instances

fluid intelligence

– “think on your feet” to solve problems – Associated with youth – You can adapt quickly

Crystalized intelligence

– the ability to use language, skills and experience to address problems – Increases with age – You rely on stored knowledge

emotional intelligence

The ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions

heritability coefficient (h²)

the amount of variability in a trait that is attributable to genetic variance (eye color = 1; completely genetic, language = 0; completely nurture)

Social Cognition

how people think about others and about the social world, forming attitudes and making predictions

social influence

how people change others’ behaviors and attitudes

stereotype

a belief that characterizes people based on their group membership; The process by which we draw inferences about others based on knowledge of the categories to which they belong

Prejudice

an evaluation or emotion toward people based on their group membership

discrimination

behavior that advantages or disadvantages people based on their group membership

the accuracy motive

we want to have right attitudes and beliefs

attitude

an enduring positive or negative evaluation of an object or event

beliefs

an enduring piece of knowledge about an object or event

stereotypes can be…

Can be inaccurate • Can be overused • Can be self-perpetuating • Can be automatic

Stereotypes can be overused

The mere act of categorizing makes us overestimate the similarity of items within that category

Stereotypes can be self-perpetuating

people tend to see what they expect to see/cause what they expect to see

Perceptual confirmation

the tendency for people to see what they expect to see; TOP DOWN PROCESSING

self fulfilling prophecy

the tendency for people to cause what they expect to see

the Stroop task

Requires participants to inhibit a prepotent (frequent & easy) response to a specific stimulus, often involving naming the color of the ink rather than the word itself. This demonstrates the interference of conflicting information.

inhibition

the ability to suppress task-irrelevant cognitive processing and ignore salient yet irrelevant features of the situation; PREFRONTAL CORTEX

normative influence

Behavior that results from a concern for what other people think of us

conformity

The tendency to do what others do simply because they’re doing it

Asch (1956)

A psychological experiment demonstrating conformity, where individuals agreed with a group's incorrect answer on a simple task. the more people in the majority, the more likely the subject will go along

informational influence

Conformity that results from a concern to act in a socially approved manner as determined by how others act

obedience

The tendency to do what powerful people tell us to do

Stanley Milgram experiment

– Subjects thought they were teaching a learner word pairs and were instructed to give increasing shocks after incorrect responses – 65% (two-thirds) of participants continued to the highest level of 450 volts. how far would people go to obey instruction if it meant hurting someone else?

aspects of social psychology

Humans are a highly social species – like ants! • People have a high need to belong to their groups • Social support strength is a predictor of physical & mental health

social psychology

the study of the causes and consequences of sociality

social psychology is comprised of…

– Attraction – Attitudes – Peace & Conflict – Social Influence – Social Cognition

attraction

how we decide who to mate with

aggression

behavior whose purpose is to harm another

cooperation

behavior by two or more individuals that leads to mutual benefit

altruism

behavior that benefits another without benefitting oneself

mere exposure effect

the tendency for the frequency of exposure to a stimulus to increase liking

what determines attractiveness

body shape - symmetry - male/female differences - age

aggression

behavior whose purpose is to harm another

frustration-aggression hypothesis

animals aggress when and only when their goals are frustrated

negative affect (aggression)

animals aggress whenever they feel bad

culture of honor

insults diminish a man's reputation and he tries to restore his status by aggressive or violent behavior

de-individuation

when immersion in a group causes people to become less concerned with their personal values

the bystander effect

individuals do not offer any means of help in an emergency situation to the victim when other people are present

diffusion of responsibility

more people = less likely to help

cost-benefit analysis

is helping worth risking time, resources, and safety?

empathy

the ability to feel and understand another’s emotional experience

kin selection

the process by which evolution selects for individuals who cooperate with their relatives

reciprocal altruism

behavior that benefits another with the expectation that those benefits will be returned in the future

negative state relief model

We have learned through our socialization that helping makes us feel better

cost-reward model

We help to decrease our own unpleasant feelings in the face of others’ suffering

empathy-altruism model

people who can generate empathy for others by imaging how they feel can demonstrate selfless altruism with no expectation of benefits

what is a good start for parents

N.E.S.S.S. (•Nutrition •Education • Safety •(Low) Stress • Support)

Teratogens

substances that negatively affect prenatal developmental processes (alcohol, environmental toxins, viruses, etc)

children’s ‘pre-loaded apps’

Vision, hearing, smell, touch, taste (•Recognize •Imitate • Learn •Communicate) motor reflexes, smiling, capacity for language, attachment

Strange Situation Experiment