Untitled Flashcard Set
Psychology C1000: Exam 3 Review Sheet
Dr. Ronquillo
Development
What does the field of human development study?
The scientific study of changes that occur in people as they age from conception until death
Developmental research designs
Cross-Sectional Design
Different participants of various ages are compared at one point in time to determine age-related differences.
Longitudinal Design
The same participants are studied at various ages to determine age-related changes.
Cross-Sequential Design
Different participants of various ages are compared at several points in time to determine both age-related differences and age-related changes.
Nature and nurture
Nature: the influence of our inherited characteristics on our personality, physical growth, intellectual growth, and social interactions
Nurture: the influence of the environment on personality, physical growth, intellectual growth, and social interactions
Behavioral genetics - how are twin studies involved?
The field of study in which researchers determine how much of a behavior is the result of genetic inheritance and how much is due to a person’s experiences.
Twin studies: Influential in behavioral genetics because researchers study identical and fraternal twins to estimate how often a trait is shared between twin pairs
Three stages of prenatal development
Germinal period (0-2 weeks):
The zygote moves down to the uterus and begins to implant in the lining. Specialized cells, including stem cells, prepare for human characteristics.
Embryonic period (2-8) weeks:
The period after fertilization during which the major organs and structures of the organism develop
Critical period: times during which some environmental influences (teratogens) can have an impact—often devastating—on the development of the infant.
Fetal period (8 weeks - birth)
Significant weight and length development, organ function, and the development of fat
Age of viability: the point at which an infant can survive outside the womb (22-26 weeks)
The effects of teratogens on prenatal development
Marijuana (irritability, nervousness), Cocaine (short, light baby, respiratory issues), Alcohol (fetal alcohol spectrum disorders), Nicotine (miscarriage, learning disabilities), Caffeine (miscarriage, low birth weight)
What is preferential looking? Habituation?
Preferential looking: the longer an infant spends looking at a stimulus, the more the infant prefers that stimulus over others
The longer an infant spends time looking at a toy, the more it will prefer that toy over another toy. :D
Habituation: the tendency for infants (and adults) to stop paying attention to a stimulus that does not change
If I look at my chromebook screen for a very long time, I will stop paying attention to other objects in my room.
Physical development in infancy: brain development (know content from the in-class activity article, nature and nurture, video from Harvard University Center for the Developing Child)
Motor Development: tremendous motor development from birth to age 2
Brain Development: an infant’s brain has 100 billion+ neurons
Involves synaptic pruning: unused synaptic connections and nerve cells are cleared away to make way for functioning connections and cells
Senses: fairly developed at birth
Visual Cliff Study
An infant is placed on a table with a “shallow” and “deep” side, with a glass covering the table. When the infant looks down at the deep-appearing side, the squares at the bottom look smaller, which forms depth. The baby in this experiment is more likely to cross the table when their mother makes an encouraging expression rather than a scared or anxious expression.
Cognitive Development: Piaget’s theory
Jean Piaget developed a four-stage theory of cognitive development based on observation of infants and children
Sensorimotor stage (0-2 yrs): child explores the world by using their senses and ability to move. They develop object permanence.
A baby cries to get its mother’s attention
Preoperational stage (2-7 yrs): Can mentally represent and refer to objects and events with words or pictures. *Cannot conserve or logically reason.
Egocentrism: if they can’t see you, you can’t see them
Concrete Operations (7-12 yrs): Children are able to conserve, reverse thinking, and classify objects. They can think logically and understand analogies with concrete events.
A child learns to observe that pouring water from a tall, skinny glass into a short, wide glass will have the same amount of water.
Formal Operations (12 yrs - adulthood): Can use abstract reasoning about hypothetical events, can think about logical possibilities, and use abstract analogies.
A person can solve a hypothetical question
A person can understand abstract concepts such as justice or democracy and discuss them with others
ERIK ERIKSON’S THEORY of Psychosocial Development
Trust vs. Mistrust (0-1 yrs): the infant learns trust dependent on how their needs are met
Trust: if the baby’s basic needs (food, comfort, and affection) are met, they develop a sense of trust in people and expect those needs to be met in the future
Mistrust: if the baby’s needs are not met, they develop a sense of mistrust and do not expect their needs to be met in the future.
Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (1-3 yrs): Toddlers begin to understand that they can control their own actions
Autonomy: develop independence if they are successful in controlling their own actions
Shame and Doubt: If the attempts to be independent are blocked, the infant doubts themself.
Initiative vs. Guilt (3-5 yrs): Preschool children learn to take responsibility for their behavior
Initiative: If preschoolers can control their reactions and behavior, they feel capable.
Guilt: if preschoolers fail to control themselves, they feel guilt and anxiety
Industry vs. Inferiority (5-12 yrs): School-aged children must learn new skills in the academic and social world. They compare themselves to others to measure their success or failure.
Industry: Children develop a sense of industry when they succeed in learning skills.
Inferiority: Children feel inferior when they fail to learn new skills
Identity vs. Role Confusion (13-early 20s): adolescents must decide who they are, what to believe, and what they want to be as adults
Identity: Those who can find their values, goals, and beliefs will develop a stable sense of identity
Role Confusion: those who cannot define themselves remain confused—they either try to isolate or try to be like everyone else
Intimacy vs. Isolation (20s-30s): young adults face the task of finding someone they can share their identity with in an ongoing, close relationship
Intimacy: those who find someone and share their identities will have a fulfilling relationship founded on psychological intimacy.
Isolation: those who can’t find someone (often because they can’t find their identity) will isolate/feel lonely
Generativity vs. Stagnation (40s-50s): during this stage, people try to find a way to be a creative/productive person, nurturing the new generation
Generativity: Adults who focus on the new generation leave a legacy for the future.
Stagnation: adults who only focus on themselves stagnate & feel useless
Ego Integrity vs. Despair (60+): involves realizing you are at the end of life → acceptance of life
Ego Integrity: Those who come to terms with their lives can “let go” of regrets and be complete. They accept death.
Despair: those who have not reached the previous stages of identity, intimacy, or generativity will feel that death has come too soon.
Moral Development: Kohlberg’s stages
Level 1: Pre-conventional morality
Stage 1: Obedience and punishment: behavior driven by avoiding punishment
You would not speed while driving because you don’t want to get a ticket.
Stage 2: Individual interest: behavior driven by self-interest and rewards
Rejoining steal a brainrot many times for a lobby with good players = behavior driven by self-interest and rewards.
Level 2: Conventional morality
Stage 3: Interpersonal: behavior driven by social approval
Posting a bunch of stuff on instagram for likes !
Stage 4: Authority: behavior driven by obeying authority and conforming to social order
Is bro even doing this
Level 3: Post-conventional morality
Stage 5: Social contract: behavior driven by balance and social order, and individual rights
The revolutionaries in 1776 challenging Louis XVI because they felt that the rules and the way society worked was unfair. Jean Jacques Rosseau’s social contract! :o
Stage 6: Universal ethics: behavior driven by internal moral principles
Gandhi leading protests or civil disobedience against authorities because he believed that the laws were violating basic human rights, demonstrating that he saw the line between right and wrong.
Motivation
What is motivation?
The process by which activities are started, directed, and continued so that physical or psychological needs are met.
Intrinsic vs Extrinsic Motivation
Intrinsic
Do something because it is internally satisfying
Extrinsic
Do something because it leads to an outcome that is external to the person.
Overjustification Effect: reward influences intrinsic motivation
A psychological phenomenon in which providing an external reward for an activity a person already finds intrinsically motivating can decrease their inherent motivation to perform that task.
Example: If someone already finds reading as intrinsically motivating, they will be less intrinsically motivated if they are told to read for an assignment
Hebb (1955). Optimal level of arousal: How are arousal and performance related?
Optimal level of arousal = best performance
We are motivated to reach an optimal level of arousal
If underaroused, we are motivated to increase arousal
Example: if we did nothing all day, we want to go outside/exercise to increase arousal
If overaroused, we are motivated to decrease arousal
If there is much stimulus (such as in a party with lights, music, and too many people), we will probably step outside or go to the bathroom to decrease arousal
If we have a high level of arousal, agitation, and anxiety, it impairs performance.
Dweck’s Theory of Motivation (Mindset / Video)
Need for achievement is closely linked to personality factors, including self-concept.
Related to locus of control (internal vs. external)
Internal locus of control: those who assume they have control over what happens in their lives
External locus of control: those who feel their lives are controlled by powerful others, luck, or fate
McClelland’s psychology needs
Need for affiliation (nAff): the need for friendly social interactions and relationships with others.
Need for power (nPow): the need to have control or influence over others.
Need for achievement (nAch): involves a strong desire to succeed in attaining goals (not only realistic but also challenging)
Humanistic approaches: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
Several levels of need a person must strive for before reaching self-actualization
(1) Physiological, (2) Safety, (3) Love and Belonging, (4) Esteem, (5) Self-Actualization
Social Psychology
What is social psychology?
Scientific study of how a person’s behavior, thoughts, and feelings are influenced by the real or imagined presence of others
What is social influence?
The process by which individuals’ thoughts and behaviors are changed by other people or by a social environment
Forms of social influence: conformity, compliance, obedience
Conformity & Asch Experiment
Conformity: a change in behavior to match the behavior of others
Factors that influence conformity:
Number of confederates/ group size
History/culture
“Just one,” agrees
Face to face
The Asch Experiment demonstrates the effect of social pressure and the desire to fit in with a group, even when the group is clearly wrong. In the experiment, a real participant was told to answer an easy question along with a group that chose a clearly wrong answer. About 36.8% of the real participants conformed and gave the wrong answer when the whole group did so unanimously.
Compliance techniques: Foot in the door, Door in the face, Lowball, That’s not all!
Compliance: changing one’s behavior as a result of non-authoritative people directing or asking for a change
Foot in the Door Technique: if they agree to a small request first, they are more likely to agree to a larger request.
Asking someone for help on a math question, then asking them for homework answers.
Door in the Face Technique: if a large commitment was requested first, then they are more likely to give in to a small commitment.
Asking your parents for a big gift for your birthday, then asking them to buy you a smaller one —> they are more likely to agree with only a small commitment.
Lowball technique: people who agree to an initial request will often still comply when the requester increases the cost of the commitment
Ordering something online that is reasonable price, but still complying when you see that there is an $8 shipment fee.
That’s Not All Technique: making an offer and then adding something to make it more attractive.
This uses the norm of reciprocity, which makes the recipient feel obligated to “reciprocate” the generosity, whether it is a bonus item, a lowered price, or a benefit.
I’ll sell this item to you for $20, and I’ll add in two extra items on the side for free.
Obedience (and the difference between obedience and compliance)
Obedience: agreeing to a direct order from an authority figure
This is different from compliance because it is submitting to someone of authority rather than someone asking you who may not be an authority figure.
Bystander Effect: Kitty Genovese Case Study, Latane and Darley Elevator Study
Bystander effect: people are less likely to help a victim when others are present.
Kitty Genovese Case Study: Kitty Genovese was murdered while her neighbors repeatedly heard her screams, but did not intervene → public outrage/curiosity.
Latene and Darley conducted the “elevator study” and the “seizure study” to demonstrate that the effect of the presence of others on individuals.
Latane and Darley Elevator Study: confederates in an elevator were all turning their backs to the elevator door so the people who walked in were confused and some copied the group’s actions even with no reason to do so.
In the Latane and Darley seizure study, researchers varied the number of people in a room, and the subjects heard a staged emergency (seizure). When alone, the participant was more likely to act quickly than when they were in a group of calm confederates.
Milgram (1964) Shock Experiment
From this experiment, about 65% of participants administered shocks to the maximum voltage, even if it meant that the person receiving the shock would be “killed.” This demonstrates obedience because they were told to administer shocks from an authority figure in the experiment.
Zimbardo Prison Study
Highly controversial study that involved randomly assigning male college students to either the role of “guard’ or “prisoner” in a prison-like environment. After only a few days, the guards asserted their dominance; some even beating the prisoners. This led to extreme emotional discomfort for some of the prisoners. Because of this, the experiment was stopped.
This study demonstrates the effect of perceived “power roles” that change in certain contexts; it also proves how easily individuals can be dehumanized and treated inhumanely.
Social Norms
Acceptable patterns of behavior based on the group, culture, etc.
Schemas
A cognitive framework that helps guide the way we think.
When we walk into an office, we expect to see books, desks, papers, calendars, and chairs. This is a schema of an office.
Schemas, once activated, are like a “lens”
Priming: if a person is exposed to words like “dream,” “relaxed,” and “blanket,” they would be thinking of sleep or feel sleepy because these words were stored in an interconnected network in our brains.
Problems with schemas: stereotyping, consistency/self-fulfilling prophecy, perseverance effect
Stereotypes
A set of characteristics that is believed to be shared by all members of a group
Perseverance Effect
The schema remains even if you encounter information that doesn’t fit.
Seeing someone as perfect, even if they do things that make them imperfect. Your schema that this person is so perfect does not change because of the perseverance effect.
Stereotype Threat
The anxiety or fear that individuals face when they fear confirming a negative stereotype about their social group which can lead to underperformance.
African Americans severely underperformed on a test because they were reminded of the negative stereotype that people have on their academic abilities.
ABC model of attitudes
A = effect
Example: disliking someone
Feeling angry or annoyed
B = behavior
Avoiding the person
C = cognitive
Belief that they are rude/mean
How are attitudes formed?
Direct Contact
Direct Instruction
Interaction with others
Observational Learning
LaPiere's (1934) study
In 1934, LaPiere traveled with a Chinese couple to 250+ businesses across the United States in a time when anti-Asian prejudice was high. All companies except 1 accepted service to them, but when surveyed later, over 90% claimed that they would NOT serve Chinese customers.
This shows that people’s attitudes don’t always match their behavior
Proves that what people say doesn’t always match what they do
Sherif’s (1961) Robber’s Cave Experiment
22 boys were divided into 2 groups and spent time bonding together. Then they were introduced to the other group and were forced to compete in sports/contests with prizes. As a result, hostility developed (over shared resources). Then, researchers tried to reduce hostility by having them watch movies together (which did not work) and then introduced superordinate goals, which involved working together to complete tasks. Consequently, cooperation broke down the hostility and led to positive interactions.
The Robbers Cave Experiment proved that competition creates conflict, simple contact does not reduce prejudice, and cooperative goals reduce conflict.
Cognitive Dissonance – Festinger and Carlsmith (1954) study
Emotional discomfort when attitudes do not match behavior
Festinger and Carlsmith study: the study showed that people will change their attitudes to match their actions when they have insufficient justification for them. Participants who were paid only $1 to lie and say a boring task was fun rated the task as more enjoyable after than those who were paid $20.
3 ways to relieve cognitive dissonance:
Change behavior to match attitude
Change attitude to justify behavior
Form new attitudes to justify behavior
Example: wanting to study but procrastinates instead
Study because you want to study
Don’t want to study → procrastinate
Studying can wait → justifies procrastination
Situational versus Dispositional causes of behavior
Attribution: explaining why things happen
Situational causes (external): attribute behavior to external, environmental factors
“I can’t play tennis today because of the wind”
Dispositional causes (internal): attribute things to internal traits like personality or mood
“I’m playing so bad today because I wasn’t feeling good today.”
Fundamental Attribution Error
Explaining others’ behaviors by dispositional causes rather than situational causes
Prejudice versus Discrimination
Competition for common resources between ingroups (us) and outgroups (them) often leads to prejudice and discrimination (think Robber’s cave study experiment)
Stereotype: A set of characteristics that is believed to be shared by all members of a group
All Whitney students are smart
All filipino people are good at singing
Prejudice: A Negative attitude about the members of a particular social group
Throughout the history of the US, there has been much prejudice against those of Native American heritage.
Discrimination: differential behavior based on prejudice
Discrimination is acceptable in sports, but it can be problematic
Cheering against a sports team, such as a team in the NBA, because they are playing against your favorite team.
The audience clapping when you mess up in a tennis game.
Implicit Association Test
The Implicit Association Test (IAT) is a tool that measures the strength of subconscious associations between concepts, such as stereotypes or preferences, and evaluations (good/bad)
Implicit Race bias versus Explicit Race bias
Explicit: consciously controlled
A deliberate/conscious preference or prejudice that people are willing to admit
Implicit: less controllable, subconscious
Unconscious attitudes and stereotypes that may contradict a person’s conscious