AP Psych Unit 8a

Motivation

A need or desire that energizes behavior & directs it towards a goal; ex. Aron Ralston

Aron Ralston

Found the motivation to break and then proceed to cut off his arm in order to free himself and survive when trapped in a cliff in Utah in 2003

Nature and nurture

What interrelation between two concepts does motivation arise from?

Nature

The influence of our inherited characteristics on our personality, physical growth, intellectual growth, and social interactions; the psychological "push"

Nurture

The influence of environment and upbringing on our personality, physical growth, intellectual growth, and social interactions; the cognitive & cultural "pulls

Instincts

The biologically determined and innate patterns of behavior that exist in both people and animals; completely drives animals behavior, but has a more subdued role in human behavior (we think with complexity)

Self-abasement

To put oneself down, to denigrate or belittle oneself; ex: "I'm not good enough”

Self-assertion

Mindset in which people gravitate towards overconfidence and cockiness; ex: "I'm the best at everything"

Drive-reduction theory

Physiological needs create an aroused tension state (drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy the need

Need

Basic requirement for survival

Drive

Motivation tension, or arousal, that energizes behavior to fulfill a need

Homeostasis

Tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state; the regulation of any aspect of body chemistry, such as blood glucose, around a particular level

Primary drives

Biological needs, like food, water, shelter; directly involves the drive-reduction theory

Secondary drives

Learned drives, like money, needed to satisfy our primary drives; indirectly involves the drive-reduction theory

No, it is only applicable to SOME (ex. cliff jumping - motivated by rush of adrenaline and sense of accomplishment, moves individual farther away from homeostasis)

Is drive-reduction theory always applicable to human motivations?

Arousal theory

Humans are motivated to seek an __optimum level__ of excitement or arousal; explains motivation for activities that are NOT part of one's homeostasis

Optimum level

BEST level, NOT maximum level

Yerkes-Dodson Law

Performance increases with arousal to a point, beyond which it decreases

Easy tasks = high arousal

Difficult tasks = low arousal

Easy tasks

According to the Yerkes-Dodson Law, what type of tasks cause performance to **improve** with HIGH levels of arousal?

Difficult tasks

According to the Yerkes-Dodson Law, what type of tasks cause performance to **suffer** with HIGH levels of arousal?

Opponent-process theory

People are usually at a baseline state, but might perform an act that moves us out of it (ex. drinking or smoking); "taking it too far"

Addiction causes the new state to be the baseline; after neuroadaptation sobriety would be considered "deviating from homeostasis" and will feel the effects in reverse, causing withdrawal from the return to sobriety

How is the opponent-process theory affect our understanding of addiction and withdrawal?

Incentive Theory

Positive or negative environmental stimuli that motivate behavior

wants/desires, needs

Behavior is motivated by our \____________ instead of our \____________

Abraham Maslow

Who created the Hierarchy of Needs?

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Predicts that some needs take priority over others; more basic needs have to be met before moving to the next level

Psychological, safety, love/belonging, esteem, self-actualization

What are the levels of the Hierarchy of Needs in ascending order?

Psychological components

breathing, food, water, physical gratification, sleep, homeostasis, and excretion

Safety components

security of body, of employment, of resources, of morality, of the family, and of health of property

Love/belonging components

friendship, family, and sexual intimacy

Esteem components

self-esteem, confidence, achievement, respect of others, and respect by others

Self-actualization

a need to fulfill our unique potential as a person by finding meaning and identity beyond the self

Self-actualization components

morality, creativity, spontaneity, problem-solving, lack of prejudice, and acceptance of facts.

Yes; ex: student protest in Tiananmen Square in 1989, man standing in front of tank in hopes of preventing massacre - put his life in direct danger, defying Hierarchy of Needs

Are there some common human behaviors that seem to violate Maslow's theory?

WE NEED FOOD!!! If this biological need is not being met, we tend to lose motivation for anything else

Why does hunger serve as such a powerful motivating in human nature?

Ancel Keys experiment (1950)

36 men were fed in order to maintain their original weight then this food amount was cut in half; led to a body weight that was ¼ of the original and a hyper-fixation on food

Hunger affects our behavior and motivation by causing us to think exclusively of the need to eat; it dominates our thoughts (think Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs)

What contribution did the Ancel Keys experiment make to understanding hunger motivation?

Stomach pangs

A biological cue for hunger; aka HUNGER CONTRACTIONS

A. L. Washburn & Walter Cannon experiment (1912)

A balloon was placed in Washburn's stomach and inflated to transmit contractions; he pressed a button when he felt a hunger pang

Hunger is accompanied by stomach contractions.

What did the A. L. Washburn & Walter Cannon experiment (1912) discover?

Tsang experiment (1938)

Stomachs were removed from rats.

__Outcome__: Rats continued to eat, even without stomach contractions.

Hunger pangs due to stomach contractions are NOT the only trigger for hunger.

What was discovered by the Tsang experiment (1938)?

Hypothalamus

IT CONTROLS YOU; neural structure below thalamus; directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature); governs the endocrine system via the pituitary gland; linked to emotion and reward.

Arcuate Nucleus

Hypothalamic area with sets of neurons for hunger and satiety

Glucose

"Blood sugar" located in food; increase in glucose = decrease in hunger

Insulin

Stimulates hunger; released from pancreas when glucose level is high

Lateral Hypothalamus

The part of the hypothalamus that produces hunger signals; when glucose levels drop, the hormone __**orexin**__ is released (ex. fat rats); LOCATED ON THE SIDES

Rats would not be able to stop eating; would eat themselves to death

Humans posses the cognitive ability to know when to stop eating

What would happen if the lateral hypothalamus was stimulated in rats versus humans?

Ventromedial Hypothalamus

The part of the hypothalamus that produces feelings of fullness; causes one to stop eating; food is more readily stored as fat; LOCATED ON LOWER MIDDLE

Rats would stop eating and starve

Humans have the cognitive ability to recognize the need to eat; we will force-feed ourselves because we know we need food to survive

What would happen if the ventromedial hypothalamus was stimulated in rats versus humans?

Ghrelin

when STOMACH LINING is exposed to emptiness, will be released = HUNGER AROUSING; STRONG SIGNAL: "EAT EAT EAT"

Leptin

hunger-suppressing; FAT CELLS; WEAK SIGNAL

PYY

hunger-suppressing; DIGESTIVE TRACT; STRONG SIGNAL: "I NEED TO POOP"

Set-point theory

a set optimum body weight that each person is biologically predisposed to have; whether the weight is above or below the set point, metabolism will work to return to this set weight

Basal metabolic rate

The body's resting rate of energy expenditure; aka metabolism

Settling Point/Set Range

you can *retrain* your “set point” (eg. 400 lb uncle)

Paul Rozin amnesia test

Conducted an experiment in which a patient with anterograde amnesia was brought food continuously after the resetting of memory; he ate it ALL; demonstrated that there are psychological factors that play a role in food consumption.

Internals

People whose hunger is typically a response to internal cues (ex. stomach pangs)

Externals

People whose hunger is typically a response to external food cues (ex. presentation and presence of food, social situations)

Garcia Effect

Named after researcher John Garcia; food aversion that occurs when people attribute illness to a particular food.

Garcia Experiment

Experiment where rats were given sugar water followed by radiation; caused nausea, and then the sugar water became a conditioned stimulus that induced nausea without the radiation.

Biopsychosocial factors (nature & nurture)

What are food preferences the result of?

Food preferences

Degree of liking or disliking for a food item; includes food cravings, delicacies, & food aversions

Delicacies

"Rare" foods (i.e. caviar, veal); foods that are culturally appreciated; learn to like, not necessarily predisposed to enjoy

Food aversions

Food that people learn or are naturally predisposed to dislike (i.e. vegetarians and chicken fingers); genetically predisposed to be aversive to *bitter* and *sour* foods

Obesity (Binge-Eating)

"Eating too much" - eat for pleasure, coping, antidepressant food > 3,000 calories a day; 100+ lbs overweight

Obesity is considered 30+ BMI

According to WHO, what BMI level is considered obesity?

Anorexia Nervosa

"Eating too little" - typically around 500 calories a day; below 85% of their normal body weight; obsessed with weight

Bulimia

Bulimics eat large amounts of food in a short period of time (binging) and then get rid of the food (purging) by vomiting, excessive exercise, or the use of laxatives

Some caloric intake will be absorbed

Why are Bulimics' weights average or above?

1. genetics (twin studies)
2. family history
3. cultural expectations (the "thin-ideal")

What three concepts can disorders can be correlated to?

Albert Kingsley

Professor that surveyed sexual motivation within society; posted his results and critics thought he ruined "the moral integrity" and was "encouraging" taboo practices to occur at a heightened rate; opened pathway for other people to create experiments, such as William Masters and Virginia Johnson

William Masters and Virginia Johnson's research (in 1960s)

Took 500 consensual volunteers and observed them having sex; completely revolutionized the understanding of intimacy

Initial excitement, plateau phase, orgasm, and resolution phase

According to William Masters and Virginia Johnson's research (in 1960s), what are the 4 stages of the sexual response cycle?

Initial Excitement

Genital areas become engorged with blood; penis becomes erect; clitoris swells; respiration and heart rate increase

Plateau phase

Respiration and heart rate continue at an elevated level; genitals secrete fluids in preparation for coitus

Orgasm

Rhythmic genital contractions that may help conception; respiration and heart rate increase further; males ejaculate, often accompanied by a pleasurable euphoria; contractions on males side causes release of thousands of sperm; female contractions allows realignment in order to best receive sperm

Resolution Phase

Respiration and heart rate return to normal resting states, men experience a __**refractory period**__, women do NOT have a similar refractory period and can repeat the cycle immediately

Refractory period

A time period that must elapse before another orgasm; resetting of body to prepare for another orgasm

Men - erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation

Women - pain, low desire for sex, female orgasmic disorder

How did William Masters and Virginia Johnson's work affect our understanding of sexual dysfunctions?

Erectile dysfunction (ED)

Cannot have or maintain an erection

Testosterone & estrogen

What are the two sex hormones?

1. direct the physical development of male, female, or intersex characteristics
2. activate sexual behavior (especially in nonhuman animals)

What are the two effects of sex hormones?

For humans, women and men both respond to testosterone for sexual desire, but all have higher form of cognition and will not respond as animals do with an automatic reaction

For animals, it is a direct cause and effect… females influenced by estrogen and males by testosterone

How do the sex hormones affect humans compared to non-human animals?

Depo-provera

An injection that lowers testosterone levels, has a lot of health related consequences; typically used on men that are sex

Decreases both men and women's sex drive

What does an absence of testosterone cause?

Men and women both viewing pornographic film, would both get excited or aroused

Men react differently in the way in which men believe that women like rape and aggression and are more inclined to view their partner as less appealing

How does external stimuli (seeing, hearing, or reading erotic material) affect men & women?

Imagined stimuli

Our imagination in our brain; can influence sexual arousal and desire.

People with spinal cord injuries and no genital sensation can still feel sexual desire.

Heterosexual, homosexual, and bisexual

What are the 3 main sexual orientations?

Erotic Plasticity

The degree to which sex drives can be shaped/altered by social, cultural, and situational forces

BIOLOGY (NATURE).

No evidence of environment playing a role in sexual orientation

Is sexual orientation based on environment (nurture) or biology (nature)?

* cell cluster in HYPOTHALAMUS larger in heterosexual men
* section of ANTERIOR COMMISSURE is 1/3 larger in homosexual men and women

What are the general concepts of evidence that links sexual orientation to biology?

Simon LeVay Experiment

Discovered a cell cluster in the hypothalamus that’s LARGER in heterosexual men

Laura Allen and Roger Gorski Experiment

Discovered anterior commissure is 1/3 LARGER in homosexual men and women

2-5 months

What months do exposure to prenatal hormones after conception possibly predispose a person’s sexual orientation?

Fraternal Birth Order Effect

Men with older brothers are more likely to demonstrate a homosexual orientation, increasing by 1/3 for each brother

Social Motivation

Addresses more complicated behaviors than hunger, sex, etc., like how our motivation is affected by out attitudes and goals, society, and the people we surround ourselves with

Achievement Motivation

Examines our desires to master complex tasks and knowledge to reach personal goals

Extrinsic/Intrinsic Motivation

Examines whether a behavior is motivated by external or internal factors

Extrinsic Motivators

Rewards from external factors (grades, money, etc.)