Chapter 9 Study Guide Ethology the study of animal behavior Instincts an innate unlearned biological pattern of behavior that us assumed to be universal throughout a species Drives vs Needs o Drive an aroused state that occurs because of psychological need Psychological itch that requires scratching o Need a deprivation that energizes the drive to eliminate or reduce the deprivation Generally psychologists think of needs as underlying our drives o Ex you may have a need for water the drive that accompanies that need is your feeling of being thirsty Motivation the force that moves people to behave think and feel the way they do Drive reduction theory explains that as a drive becomes stronger we are motivated to reduce it The goal of drive reduction is homeostasis o Homeostasis the body s tendency to maintain an equilibrium or steady state Yerkes Dodson Law the psychological principle stating that performance is best under conditions of moderate arousal rather than either low or high arousal Experience of Hunger the brain receives signals from the stomach as it contracts what causes growling a signal of hunger Furthermore there are three key chemical substances that play a role in hunger eating and satiety glucose blood sugar insulin and leptin o Glucose Blood sugar Signals in the brain and or liver can signal when blood sugar is too low and you need to eat o Insulin plays a role in glucose control Complex carbohydrates raise insulin levels that fall off gradually over time When we eat simple sugars like those found in candy insulin levels raise then fall sharply known as the sugar low o Leptin acts as an anti obesity hormone Cholecystokinin CCK hormone that helps start the digestion of food travels to the brain through the bloodstream and signals us to stop eating Lateral hypothalamus involved in stimulating eating Ventromedial hypothalamus involved in restricting eating Learned associations a psychological factor in hunger and obesity Time and place can effect our eating because we associate food with a particular place and time and are characteristic of many organisms Hypothalamus the center of motivation for sexual behavior Amygdala houses circuits that are activated when we experience negative emotions It plays a central role in fear However the amygdala can also participate in positive emotions Estrogens vs Androgens o Estrogens the class of sex hormones that predominate in females produced mainly by the ovaries o Androgens the class o sex hormones that predominate in males produced by the testes in males and by the adrenal glands in both males and females For men higher androgen levels are associated with sexual motivation and orgasm frequency Human sexual response pattern according to Masters and Johnson the characteristic sequence of psychological changes that humans experiences during sexual activity consisting of four phases excitement plateau orgasms and resolution o Excitement begins the process of erotic responsiveness Engorgement of blood vessels and increased blood flow in genital areas and muscle tension characterize this phase o Plateau a continuation and heightening of the arousal begun in the excitement phase Increase in breathing heart rate blood pressure become more intense penile erection and vaginal lubrication are more complete orgasm is closer o Orgasms explosive discharge of neurotransmitter tension and an intensely pleasurable feeling o Resolution blood vessels return to normal state Females can be stimulated again without delay while males go through a refractory period Gender differences in sexual attitudes in American culture women are typically discouraged from engaging in sexual behavior until marriage while it is much more acceptable for men This is part of the Slut vs Stud theory Sexual orientation the direction of an individual s erotic interests today viewed as a continuum from exclusive male female relations to exclusive same sex relations Maslow s hierarchy of needs Maslow s theory that human needs must be satisfied in the following sequence physiological needs safety love and belongingness esteem and self actualization o Self actualization the motivation to develop one s full potential as a human being the highest and most elusive of Maslow s proposed needs Self determination theory Deci and Ryan s theory asserting that all humans have three basic needs competence relatedness and autonomy These needs are innate and exist in every person They are basic to human growth and functioning o Competence met when we feel that we are able to bring o Relatedness the need to engage in warm relations with about desired outcomes other people o Autonomy the sense that we are in control of our own life Individualistic vs Collectivistic Cultures o Individualistic emphasize individual achievement independence and self reliance We live in this type of culture o Collectivistic stress affiliation cooperation and interdependence Intrinsic vs Extrinsic Motivation o Intrinsic motivation based on internal factors such as organismic needs competence relatedness and autonomy as well as curiosity challenge and fun When we are intrinsically motivated we engage in a behavior because we enjoy it o Extrinsic motivation that involves external incentives such as rewards and punishments When we are extrinsically motivated we engage in a behavior for some external payoff or to avoid external punishment Self regulation the process by which an organism effort fully controls behavior in order to pursue important objectives A key aspect of self regulation is getting feedback about how we are doing in our goal pursuits Conscious Experience experience we generate through our own mind Parasympathetic nervous system calms the body Sympathetic nervous system prepares the individual for fighting or running away Polygraph tests by using a polygraph a machine that monitors changes in the body used to try to determine if someone is lying someone can conduct a polygraph test Used to determine if someone is lying or being misleading James Lange Theory the theory that emotion results from psychological states triggered by stimuli in the environment Essentially the theory proposes that after the initial perception of a stimulus the experience of the emotion results from the perception of one s own psychological changes The Cannon Bard theory states the opposite Cannon Bard Theory the proposition that emotion and psychological reactions occur simultaneously Schachter and Singer s two factor
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