Emotion, Stress and Motivation

Question 1

Define emotion

Answer 1

feelings that cause cognitive, behavioral and physiological changes in an individual

Question 2

Explain the cognitive, behavioral and physiological changes that are related to emotions

Answer 2

1) Cognitive - thoughts / expectations about how you should be feeling to help interpret the emotion
2) Behavioral - posture / gestures, changes in body language, facial expression, tone, etc.
3) Physiological (fear) - increase in heart rate, dilating pupils, (changes in sympathetic nervous system), etc.

Question 3

Explain primary and secondary emotions

Answer 3

Proposed that there are 8 primary emotions:

sadness

anticipation

disgust

fear

acceptance

anger

surprise

joy

Thought that secondary emotions were a combination of two or more primary emotions

• love - joy / acceptance
• aggression - anger, fear

Question 4

Describe the James - Lange Theory of Emotion

Answer 4

posits that we experience emotion after sensing the physiological changes elicited by an emotionally provocative stimuli

1) stimuli
2) physiological response
3) brain processing physiological response
4) emotion
- the emotion is caused because you became aware of the emotionally provoking stim

– according to this theory, we won’t feel any emotion if we dont feel any arousal, nor if we fail to notice the arousal

Question 5

Describe the Cannon - Bard theory of Emotion ( aka Thalamic theory)

Answer 5

Asserts that sensory information is received and sent to both the cortex and the sympathetic nervous system at the same time by the thalamus.

• Thus, the theory states that the cognitive and physiological components of emotion occur simultaneously and result in the behavioral component of emotion

Question 6

What are some of the cultural differences regarding emotion?

Answer 6

Emotions are experienced universally, but it is argued they can be affected greatly by culture

• Cultural dissimilarities in emotion include varying reactions to similar events, differences in the emotional experience itself, the behavior exhibitied in response to an emotion and the perception of that emotion by others within the society.

Question 7

Explain the Schachter-Singer Theory (Cognitive Arousal Theory)

Answer 7

Theory of emotion stating that both the arousal and the labeling of arousal based on environment must occur in order for an emotion to be experienced.

• Unique to this theory is the aspect of cognitive appraisal: to feel an emotion, one must consciously analyze the environment in relation to nervous system arousal

Question 8

Describe the experimental design Schachter and Singer used to study their cognitive appraisal approach to emotion?

Explain the results of the experiment.

Answer 8

Schachter and Singer administered injections of epinephrine or a placebo to 3 groups of subjects that were 1) informed 2) misinformed or 3) ignorant.

Also manipulated external cues by having an actor in each group acting either happy or angry.

Results: ephinephrine did result in increased physiological arousal; but also discovered the environment and cognitive processing affected the emotion experienced by subjects

– the misinformed and ignorant groups experienced the highest levels of emotion

Question 9

Define amygdala

Answer 9

Almond shaped structure in anterior temporal lobe that signals cortex about stimuli related to attention and emotions.

The amygdala processes the environment, detects external cues and learns from the person’s surroundings in order to produce emotion

This region is associated with fear and also plays a role in human emotion through interpretation of facial expressions

Question 10

Define Thalamus

Answer 10

Functions as preliminary sensory processing station and routes information to the cortex and other appropriate areas of the brain.

Question 11

Define hypothalamus

Answer 11

Located below the Thalamus, it synthesizes and releases a variety of neurotransmitters.

• Balances many homeostatic functions and is involved in modulating emotion

– Largely dictates emotional states by controlling the neurotransmitters that affect mood and arousal

Question 12

Define hippocampus

Answer 12

Located within tempoal lobe, it is primarily involved in creating long-term memories

• Along with amygdala and hypothalamus, the storage and retrieval of emotional memories is key in producing an emotional response

Question 13

Define stress

Answer 13

Stress is a feeling of emotional or physical tension. It can come from any event or thought that makes you feel frustrated, angry, or nervous.

• Stress is your body’s reaction to a challenge or demand.
• In short bursts, stress can be positive, such as when it helps you avoid danger or meet a deadline.

Question 14

Define cognitive appraisal, and what are its two stages?

Answer 14

Cognitive appraisal is the subjective evaluation of a situation that induces stress.

This process consists of two stages:

1) Primary appraisal
2) Secondary appraisal

Question 15

Define primary appraisal

Answer 15

The initial evaluation of the environment and the associated threat.

• this appraisal can be identified as irrelevant, benign-positive, or stressful.

– stage II begins if primary appraisal discovers a threat

Question 16

Define secondary appraisal

Answer 16

Secondary appraisal is directed at evaluating whether the organism can cope with the stress

• This appraisal involves the evaluation of three things:
  1) harm, or damage caused by the event;
  2) threat, or the potential for future damage caused by the event
  3) challenge, the potential to overcome and possibly benefit from the event

Question 17

Define stressor

Answer 17

a biological element, external condition or event that leads to a stress response

The severity of stressors can range from minimal events like losing keys, to catastrophic scenaries like a volcano erupting

• Stressors classified by either causing distress or eustress

Question 18

Define distress and eustress

Answer 18

Distress - feeling that occurs when experiencing unpleasant stressors

Eustress - can include life events such as graduating from college or achieving a high score on the MCAT

Question 19

What is general adaptation syndrome as it pertains to stress response

Answer 19

A sequence of physiological responses consisting of three distinct stages:

1) Alarm stage
2) Resistance stage
3) Exhaustion stage

Question 20

Explain the Alarm Stage of the General Adaptation Syndrome, and what physiological responses does it trigger

Answer 20

alarm, or initial reaction to a stressor and the activation of the sympathetic nervous system

• Next, the hypothalamus stimulates the pituitary to secrete ACTH
• This causes release of cortisol, epinephrine and norepinephrine from adreal glands

Question 21

Explain the resistance stage of the General Adaptation Syndrome

Answer 21

During the resistance stage, the continuous release of hormones allows the sympathetic nervous system to remain engaged to fight the stressor.

Question 22

Explain the exhaustion stage of the General Adaptation Syndrome

Answer 22

When the body can no longer maintain an elevated response with sympathetic nervous system activity

• At this points, individuals become more susceptible to illness and medical conditions (such as ulcers and high bp), organ systems can begin to deteriorate, and death can occur in extreme cases

Question 23

Define Motivation

Answer 23

Motivation is the purpose, or driving force, behind our actions

• many different forms of motivation and can be categorized based on what drives people to act

– these drives can be external forces (extrinsic) or internal forces (intrinsic)

Question 24

Define and provide examples of extrinsic motivation

Answer 24

Extrinsic motivation, is motivation arising from external factors.

• it can include rewards for showing a desired behavior or avoiding punishment if the desired behavior is not achieved

examples include working hard at your job for praise from your boss

• studying for months on end to achieve a high score on the MCAT
• showing up to work on time to avoid being fired

Question 25

Explain Intrinsic Motivation

Answer 25

Motivation that comes from within oneself

• This can be driven by interest or pure enjoyment

Question 26

Define Instincts

Answer 26

Instincts are innate, fixed patterns of behavior in response to stimuli.

• early attempts to understand the basis of motivation focused on instincts

Question 27

Explain the Instinct Theory of Motivation

Answer 27

According to this theory, people are driven to engage in certain behaviors based on evolutionarily programmed instincts

• One of the first theories of evolution derived from Darwin’s theory of evolution

Question 28

Explain the arousal theory of motivation

Answer 28

states that people perform actions in order to maintain an optimal level of arousal: seeking to increase arousal when it falls below their optimal level, and to decrease arousal when it rises above their optimum level

Question 29

What is the Yerkes Dodson Law

Answer 29

Law stating that performance is worst at extremely high and low levels of arousal and optimal at some intermediate level, as depicted in Figure 5.2.

• The optimal level or arousal varies between different types of tasks

– lower levels are optimal for highly cognitive tasks, while higher levels are optimal for activities that require physical endurance and stamina

— simple tasks generally require slightly higher arousal than complex tasks

Question 30

Explain the Drive Reduction Theory of motivation

Answer 30

This theory explains that motivation is based on the goal of eliminating uncomfortable states

• Theorists hypothesize that certain physiological conditions result in a negative internal environment
• this internal environment then drives motivation and seeks homeostasis in order to reduce the uncomfortable internal state

Question 31

Define drives

Answer 31

Drives are defined as internal states of tension that activate particular behaviors focused on goals

• drives are thought to originate within an individual without requiring any external dactors to motivate behavior

– help us survive by creating an uncomfortable state, ensuring motivation to eliminate this state or to relieve the internal tension created by unmet needs

— can have primary and secondary drives

Question 32

What are primary drives

Answer 32

Primary drives motivate us to sustain bodily processes in homeostasis such as the need for food, water and warmth

• Drives related to biological processes

Question 33

What are secondary drives

Answer 33

All additional drives that are not directly related to biological processes

• these drives are thought to stim from learning

– drive to matriculate into medical school and become a physician is an example of a secondary drive

Question 34

Define needs

Answer 34

Needs are also motivators that influence human behavior

• through this lens, motivation can be described as how we allocate our energy and resources to best satisfy these needs

– motivation thus determines which behaviors are most important to pursue, how much effort will be taken and for how long the effort will be maintained

Question 35

Explain Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and how it pertains to needs-based motivational theories

Answer 35

Maslow observed that certain needs will yield a greater influence on our motivation and established the hierarchy of needs to categorize these needs

• needs classified into five groups ranging from most primitive, essential and important needs are at the base

– The first four levels correpond to physiological needs: safety and security, love and belonging and self-esteem

— The highest level corresponds to self-actualization, or the need to realize one’s fullest potential

* Maslow theorized that if the lowest level of need is not met, motivation to meet that need will be the highest priority

Question 36

Explain the Self-Determination Theory (SDT)

Answer 36

SDT emphasizes the role of three universal needs:

1) autonomy - the need to be in control of one’s actions and ideas
2) competence - the need to complete and excel at difficult tasks
3) relatedness - the need to feel accepted and wanted in relationships
- Theorists explain that these three needs must be met in order to develop healthy relationships with oneself and others

Question 37

Explain Incentive Theory of motivation

Answer 37

Theorizes that behavior is motivated not by need or arousal, but by the desire to pursue rewards, and to avoid punishments

Question 38

Explain the Expectancy-Value theory

Answer 38

Asserts that the amount of motivation needed to reach a goal is the result of both the individual’s expectation of success in reaching the goal, and the degree to which he or she values succeeding at the goal

Question 39

Explain the Opponent-Process Theory

Answer 39

Contends that the primary or initial reaction to an emotional event (A) will be followed by and opposite secondary emotional state, (B).

• scary at first but after multiple exposures, not so scary

Theory of motivation that explains continuous drug use. It explains that when a drug is taken repeatedly, the body will attempt to counteract the effects of the drug by changing physiology

ie) the body will counteract repeated use of alcohol (a depressant) by increasing arousal
- results in withdrawal symptoms that are exactly opposite of alcohols effects