chapters 11.1 Flashcards
what is motivation
concerns the physiological and psychological processes understanding the initation of behaviours that direct organisms torward specific goals
why is behaviour initiated
to complete some sort of goal-directed behaviour
what is homeostasis
the body’s physiological processes that allow it to maintain consistent internal states in response to the outer environment
- when body water levels fall below normal, cells release chemical compounds that maintain the structures and fluid levels of the cell
what is a drive
a biological trigger that tells us we are deprived of something and causes us to seek out what is needed
what does stress normally lead us to
more resources than we normality would
- it is challenging to our homeostasis because it is difficult to predict how long you will be in that energy consuming state
what is incentives
the stimuli we seek out in order to reduce drives
what is allostasis
motivation that is not only influenced by current needs but also by the anticipation of future needs caused by stress
- wanting to sleep after my exam
what do motivational systems have to do
make predictions about the resources that our body will require, and then initiate motivational behaviours that will drive us to acquire those resources
example of the relationship between homeostasis and allostasis
emma eats chips while she’s stressed about her exam. the experience of anxiety used a lot of her energy, as did the effort required to control her emotions. if emma did not increase her food consumption to meet the new energy demands, her energy levels would quickly dip
if Emma was not stressed out, HOMEOSTASIS would drive her toward consuming a particular number of calories, but ALLOSTASIS would drive her to consume a greater number of calories
what is the hypothalamus
a brain structure that refulates basic biological needs and motivational systems
what is hypothalamus involved in
regulating motivation and homeostasis by stimulating the release of hormones throughout the body
what is the lateral hypothalamus
serves as the on switch
what is the ventromedial hypothalamus
serves as the off switch
what is paraventricular
a nucleus in hypothalumus that inhibits the lateral hypothalmus triggering it to stop
what is the hypothalamus influenced by
hormones that are relased in the gut in the response to the energy needs of your body
what are key functions of the hypothalmus
to monitor blood chemistry for indicators of the levels of sugar and hormones necessary for you to have enough energy to function
what is glucose
a sugar that serves as a primary energy source for the brain and rest of the body
what is insulin
a hormone secreted by the pancreas and helps store this circulating glucose for future use
- insulin levels rise in response to consumption of a meal, hunger decreases
why do humans crave fatty foods
we have specialized receptors on the tongue that are sensitive to the fat content of food
- these receptors send messages to the brain that stimulate the release of endorphins and dopamine
what is sugar fixed
addiction to candy and chocolate
what do sugars and drug have in common
they share similarities such as supernormal stimuli and ordinary sucrose
what is supernormal stimuli
stimuli are more intense than our bodies evolved to typically experience
what role does dopamine play in eating
- craving for food
- our feeling of satisfaction when we taste food
- motivation to eat
what happens when ordinary sucrose is stimulated
it releases the neurotransmitter dopamine in the nucleus accumbens, a brain area for reinforcing effects of substances
