Final Exam Flashcards
Altruism
Voluntarily engaging in prosocial behavior, behavior that helps another, often a costly behavior to the person engaging in act
Why do we engage in altruism
- Pursuing extrinsic gain at some level (Egotism)
- External reward or recognition
- Punishment avoidance
- Aversion arousal reduction - Altruism as an extension of alloparenting
- Empathy-altruism hypothesis
Alloparenting
Evolutionarily adaptive for others in social group to protect and care for the offspring of another in one’s social group
Dunn, Aknin and Norton Study
Researchers gave study participants either $5
or $20
Half told to spend the money on themselves
Half told to spend the money on someone else
Findings:
Those who spent $ on others had higher well-
being scores
Amount made no difference
Prosocial Spending and Toddlers
Aknin, Hamlin & Dunn, 2012
oddlers were given treats
They were then told to share their treats with a
puppet or share an extra treat (given to them)
with the puppet
Facial expressions were coded
Toddlers’ facial expressions were the happiest
when they were giving away treats (vs receiving)
They were the most happy when they gave
treats from their own “stash”
Social Exchange Relationship
When empathy is not experienced, we tend to be in a
social exchange relationship
We judge the relationship based on what we gain versus the cost of the relationship
empathy-altruism hypothesis
If we see someone in distress, we experience
Personal distress: focus decreasing unpleasant arousal
or Empathy: focus on distress of another
If personal distress is activated, the primary goal
is to change one’s feeling state
Results in leaving the situation
If we cannot leave, we might help just to decrease our arousal and unpleasant emotions
On the other hand, if empathy is invoked, we
would not be satisfied with leaving, but helping
What if you see something that you felt you
could do nothing about or the cost of helping
was high
Research suggests that people actively avoid
feeling empathy in those situations
altruism niche
the function of prosociality being rewarded and valued
Konrath, Fuhrel-Forbis, Lou, and Brown
(2012
studied motivations in older adults toward volunteer work and found that those whose primary motivations were for self-gain had higher mortality risk four years after the study was conducted in comparison to those whose primary motivations were more directed at helping others. This was especially true in individuals who volunteered on a more regular basis. Thus, though egoistic motivations may provide some of the same benefits that “true” altruists obtain, there may still be greater benefits from acting outside of self-interest.
Strategies for increasing altruism
Engaging in acts of kindness associated with people reporting they are happier Empathy based approaches – Increase contact with those in need – Point of similarities – Broaden the social circles of ourselves and our children Values based approaches – Enhance altruism as a value – Enhance altruism an a habit
Culturally speaking, people in which culture are more likely to use the words “thank you”?
What about the words, “I am sorry?”
U.S for thank you, Korean for I’m sorry
self construal
The degree to which one defines the self as
independent or interdependent of others
– Independent: Common to individualistic societies
– Interdependent: Common in collectivistic societies
forgiveness with age
In general, as we get older, our willingness to
forgive grows
sibling forgiveness
he role of offering an apology without coercion
REACH Model
Recall the hurt, Empathize, Altruistic gift of forgiveness, Commit publicly to forgive, Hold on to forgiveness
According to Lybomirsky, which culture benefitted more from the use of a gratitude
intervention in increasing well being?
white americans
Emmons Gratitude
- Celebrates the present
- Blocks out negative emotion
- Increases one’s resilience
- Seems to increase social ties and sense of self worth
Benefits of cultivating a gratitude journal
10% fewer stress related illness 10-16% lower blood pressure 1.5 hours per week more exercise Sleep 10% longer and 15% better sleep less lonely increases positive emotions
School teachers in Hong Kong Study results
Mediate on 3 questions: What did I
receive? What did I give? What difficulties
and troubles did I cause others?
– Outcome: Increases in life satisfaction, as well as
decreases in emotional exhaustion
How to cultivate gratitude
Keep a daily gratitude journal
Compare the hard times to current blessings
Make a commitment to engage in a gratitude
practice
Consider expressing gratitude that you have experienced through your senses
Use visual reminders to cue you to express gratitude
what factors increase the likelihood of forgiveness
4 parts Apology: – “It acknowledges the offense, – offers an explanation for the offense, – expresses remorse, – and involves a reparation
Behavioral Activation System
Movement towards/approach something usually to gain a reward
Behavioral Inhibition System
Movement away from something usually to avoid punishment, something negative or something undesirable (for instance, it could be boring)
Coping
Effort expended to make the best decision in a stressful situation
BAS/BIS can be applied to coping
Emotional approach coping
Move towards one’s emotions during a stressful encounter
Pros & cons of Problem solving coping
Great when there is a problem to be solved
there is not always a problem to be solved, nor is it always desirable to find a solution
When someone dies, there might not be a problem to solve (need to process emotions)
After you solve a stressor, you still may have emotions that need to be addressed/resolved
Peters Study
African American participants who experienced chronic racism who coped via emotional focused methods fared better
the outcome findings for the study of widows and widowers.
Men were more likely to benefit from emotional focused strategies
Women were more likely to benefit from problem focused strategies
Breast cancer study
Emotional focused coping associated with
lower psychological distress
Fewer medical appointments
Note that they also engaged in problem focused coping as they went to the doctor and were treated for breast cancer
Why benefit from emotional approach processing
Might increase our understanding of ourselves
We might habituate to handing emotion head on and, therefore, habituate to negative experiences to some degree
We might learn that negative experiences are not as bad as we predict
Pain does usually decrease over time
We might learn to “take control” of our situation
Positive emotion accessibility
Preliminary research suggest that if you have access to your positive emotions, you are more likely to be able to access them during times of stress
Recall from broaden and build theory, positive emotions enhance recovery from the negative
Ways to access positive emotion
Humor, mindfulness: Sustained focus on current experience without judgment Associated with approaching stressors Positive reappraisal Reduced reactivity Reduces physiological reactivity benefit finding
amydala
involved in fear and processing emotions
Emotional focused expression less common in Asian cultures study
In one study looking at neurological attempts at
suppressing emotions, Asian study participants were able to decrease their emotional reaction to negative pictures, while European Americans were not
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory
As we get older, our sense of how much time we have left alters
This theory suggests that we are more selective of our environment and companions as to maximize the positive and minimize negative
Pennebaker studies
Has run studies looking at the benefits of expressing
one’s emotions (written, speaking formats), especially on health outcomes
Visits to the doctor
T-cell counts
Other studies found improved quality of life among cancer survivors and benefits for people dealing with prejudice via expressive writing
What were the findings of the study looking at senior engineers who had been laid off
the group writing about their feelings found jobs and got hired at a higher percentage
According to Pennebaker: What does few “I,
me, my” statements mean?
higher self confidence
What was the best predictor that depressed
people were getting better
Perspective switching”
Person looks at his or her problems
from different points of view
What culture benefits the least from expressive writing
Expressive writing NOT helpful for Asian participants as shame was increased through the expressive writing on this topic
self efficacy
One’s belief that one has the skills to deal effectively with a given situation, or to accomplish one’s goals
What is self efficacy based on as a learned phenomenon
What I have experienced personally – What I have witnessed – What I imagine I can do – What others have told me I can do – How my physiological arousal helps or hinders my actions
Neurobiology of Self Efficacy`
Frontal Lobes Realistic self efficacy calms cardiac reactivity and lowers blood pressure Associated with health behaviors – Quality of life – Physical activities – Immune functioning
Bi Cultural Self-Efficacy
Perception that one can successfully take part in more than one culture
– Language
– Relationships with others
– Valuing frameworks of both cultures
Associated with a decrease in acculturation stress
Learned Optimism
Explanation style regarding set backs and victories
– *Permanent: How long is this likely to last?
– *Pervasive: Will this impact other life domains?
– Personal: Am I personally responsible for this,
or is the blame/credit someone else’s (or
shared)
optimistic style
+ event: permanent, pervasive and personal
- event: temporary, specific domain only, and outside
agent responsible
pessimistic style
+event: temporary, specific domain only, and outside
agent responsible
-event: permanent, pervasive and personal
Ikaigi
Japanese word for something to live for; Considered a similar construct to optimism
– High ikigai associated with lower mortality rates (cardiovascular disease and stroke)
People who score high on optimism also tend to
– Make healthier life choices
– Have more social support
– Cope better with stress, which has implications for one’s health
Negative effects of optimism
In one study, the optimistic style was
associated with losing significantly more
money!
Other studies, optimists underestimated risks
Optimism per Scheier & Carver
Def: “…the stable tendency to believe
that good rather than bad things will happen.”
Optimism as a disposition, not an explanatory style
suggested by Seligman
They suggest that what you expect the outcome to
be is the best predictor of your behavior
– Expectation associated with a person’s confidence that
he/she can reach the goal associated with more
persistence when faced with challenges meeting that goal
Studies Supporting Scheier & Carver
Lower pre-surgery stress, higher satisfaction with medical care and higher life satisfaction months after the surgery in men going through coronary bypass surgery
– Better adjustment in young adults beginning
college (Aspinwall & Taylor, 1992)
– Better job performance (Long, 1993)
Cultivating Learned Optimism
Changing your attribution style via cognitive
restructuring
– Self monitor thoughts and explanations for events
via journaling
– Analyze patterns
– Brainstorm ways to replace or dispute pessimistic
styled thinking
Culture as it Relates to Optimism and Pessimism
European and Asian Americans also had similar
levels of optimism
– But Asian Americans had higher levels of pessimism
Associated with more problem solving, not less
– Chinese participants had lower levels of optimism
defensive pessimism
A strategy used by anxious people to help them
manage their anxiety so they can work productively”
“Lower expectations to help prepare for the worst”
“Mentally play through bad things that might happen
3 functions of defensive pessimism
Low expectations that are not realized are a
pleasant surprise
– By focusing on “worst case scenarios” one can
prepare for those and avoid them
Channels anxiety towards actions that are likely to
increase success
Over preparation decreases the chances of failure
“Fortune favors the prepared mind”
Hope as Goal Directed Thinking
Goal directed thinking related to
attaining goals that has 2 parts
Pathway thinking
Can I find strategies to realize my goal?
agency thinking
Do I have the required motivation to try those strategies
Associated with Hope
Negatively associated with PTSD diagnosis and
psychological distress in 228 study participants
who survived Hurricane Katrina (Glass et al., 2009)
Positively associated with GPA, academic and athletic performance
Primary Prevention
lessen or eliminate physical or psychological problems before they appear(exercise)
Secondary Prevention
Detect and treat a problem that is not yet symptomatic, like screening for depression
tertiary prevention
the treatment of something that is symptomatic
universal prevention
programs aimed at entire population
selective prevention
programs aimed at “at-risk” population
Effectiveness of Primary Prevention
Effective: Meta analyses indicate that people in prevention programs are 59%-82% better off
how many deaths in the US are causes by chronic illness
7/10
illusion of invulnerability
“Nothing bad is going to happen to me” thinking
hedonic primary enhancement
increase pleasure
eudaemonic primary enhancement
Increase well being through helping people
set and achieve goals
Savoring
Purposeful actions aimed at “appreciating and amplifying a positive experience
Requires you to step outside of the experience and think about the experience
secondary enhancement
Build upon already optimal functioning and
satisfaction to achieve peak experiences
– Having already achieved primary enhancement,
person seeks peak and transcending experiences
Durlak & Wells
examined the effectiveness of prevention programs on children’s and adolescents’ behavioral and social problems; they found that the preventions yielded effective outcomes similar in magnitude to medical procedures such as cancer chemotherapy and coronary bypass surgery. Moreover, Durlak and Wells (1997) observed that, relative to control group participants, those in the prevention programs were anywhere from 59% to 82% better off in terms of reduced problem behaviors and increased competencies
Satisficing
Decision making strategy whereby one finds an acceptable
minimal threshold
Once that is met, the decision is deemed acceptable and the search for solutions stops
Maximizing
Decision making strategy whereby one finds the optimal
solution
abnormal behavior
Distressing
– Deviant (as in statistically rare)
– Maladaptive (dysfunctional and, in extreme cases,
dangerous)
As psychological professionals and laypeople, we tend to
Under estimate environmental contributions,
including culture
– Over estimate the individual’s characteristics
– Over estimate role of “weakness” and
negative emotions
– Not fully take into account developmental
contributions
Fundamental Attribution Error
Human tendency to take environment and motive into account when explaining our behavior, but NOT being generous in this
regard to others’ behavior
– However, we are less likely to do this with
people we love or like
Cacioppo showed participants positive, neutral and negative
slides
The brain reacted significantly stronger to the negative slides
What % of college students report homesicknes
68%
universality assumption
what is deemed true for one group may be considered true for other people, irrespective of cultural differences
What is the most influential of all school related factors
in undermining students’ learning and attitudes about
education
poor teaching
Career
Work as a means of gaining upward mobility
– Increase social standing through work, promotion, raises
Calling
Work as an integral part of one’s identity
– Gain self expression, self fulfillment through work
– Increase meaning through work
presenteeism
Employees are physically at work, but are unproductive and/or unhappy because of mental health problems
Often related to aversive or repetitive work experiences
diversity in the workplace
Racial diversity is positively correlated with overall performance
Managers with fixed mindset
punish dissent, little coaching, revenge
managers with growth mindset
forgive and forget, challenge and nurture, zest for teaching
Mindset(Dweck)
a set of beliefs or way of thinking that determines ones behavior, outlook, and mental attitude
