Instincts & Drives

Question 1

What is the definition of “motivation”?

Answer 1

Force acting within an organism to give behavior its energy, direction, and persistence

Question 2

What is the definition of “energy”?

Answer 2

Strength + intensity of behaviour

Question 3

What is the definition of “direction”?

Answer 3

The specific goal or aim of the behaviour

Question 4

What is the definition of “persistence”?

Answer 4

It is the behaviour sustained over time

Question 5

What is the definition of “Grand theory”

Answer 5

Theory that seeks to explain the full range of motivated action (why we eat, drink, work, play compete, etc.)

Question 6

1. List 2 early grand theories of motivation.
2. What type of ideology (thinking) influences these 2 early grand theories?

Answer 6

1. Instincts and drives
2. Influenced by the rise of biological determinism (our genetics determine human behaviour)

Question 7

What is the definition of “instincts”?

Answer 7

“Hardwired” or “programmed in” bit of behaviour that:

• does not require learning
• occurs in response to some environmental trigger

Question 8

According to psychologists in the early 1800s and 1900s, do humans have instincts?

Answer 8

Yes, because the concept of instinct gained popularity due to the influence of evolutionary theory.

Question 9

1. What is William James’ view of instincts?
2. According to him, how do instincts occur?
3. Following his theory, what are 2 ideas that explain variability in instincts?

Answer 9

1. Instincts are similar to reflexes that are caused by sensory stimuli
2. They occur “blindly” the first time (without you knowing the outcome)
3. Learning can inhibit an instinct & Some instincts are transitory (they appear only at certain times)

Question 10

1.What is William McDougall’s view of instincts?

2. According to him, every instinct consists of 3 components, what are they?

Answer 10

1. Instincts are primary drivers of all human behaviour
2. Cognitive: knowing that something can satisfy your instinct

Affective: the feeling or emotion that an object arouses in you

Conative: striving toward or away from the object

Question 11

What are some criticisms of early instinct theories? (3)

Answer 11

1. Circular reasoning: people can’t agree on what type or how many instincts are there
2. Nominal fallacy: naming what an instinct is, does not mean that you’re explaining it.
3. There lacks a differentiation between instinct & learning.

Question 12

What do these criticisms of early instincts theories lead to? (consequence)

Answer 12

Criticisms lead to the decline of instinct theory as a”grand theory” of motivated behavior but is influential for ethology and evolutionary psychology.

Question 13

1. What is the definition of “ethology”?
2. What research method does it utilize?
3. What is the definition of “fixed-action patterns”?

Answer 13

1. The study of animal behavior in natural settings
2. Systematic and objective observations
3. They are pre-programmed behaviors that are triggered by a sign (specific) stimulus followed by a predictable, fixed sequence

Question 14

What is the definition of “evolutionary psychology”

Answer 14

The study of how evolutionary processes have shaped human mind + behaviors

Question 15

What do ethology and evolutionary psychology have in common?

Answer 15

They emphasize the adaptive functions of behavior

Question 16

What is the definition of “natural selection”?

Answer 16

Certain traits become more or less common in a population due to the pressures of the environment.

Question 17

What are the 3 key components of “natural selection”?

Answer 17

1. Variation: people vary in traits (ex: size, color, behaviour)
2. Heredity: traits are passed down through genes
3. Differential fitness: not everyone survives + successfully reproduces

Question 18

What is the definition of “adaptations”?

Answer 18

Traits that enhance survival & reproduction chances

Question 19

How is caregiving an example of genetic motive? Use the term “baby-like” features.

Answer 19

“Baby-like” features are perceived as warmer, naive and weaker. You tend to feel pity and protective of them because they are warm but incompetent.

Question 20

What is the definition of “baby schema” or “kindchenschema”?

Answer 20

Visual cues that trigger nurturing responses.

Question 21

How is “aggression” an example of genetic motive? (Give a global answer + 3 mini examples).

Answer 21

Aggression has adaptive functions that have helped us survive & reproduce:

• defence against predators + adversaries when competing for limited resources
• when competing for mates
• when attracting mates

Question 22

What is the definition of “survival selection”?

Answer 22

traits that increase the chances of survival

Question 23

What is the definition of “sexual selection”?

Answer 23

traits that increase the chances of securing a mate + reproducing

Question 24

What is the definition of “intrasexual selection”?

Answer 24

competition among same-sex individuals for access to mates

Question 25

What is the definition of "intersexual selection"?

Answer 25

individuals of 1 sex choose mates based on traits or behaviors they find desirable in the opposite sex

Question 26

1. Are there gender differences in aggression? 2. When do these gender differences emerge?

Answer 26

1. Men are more likely to engage in physical aggression. 2. Gender differences emerge in early development

Question 27

According to research testing whether or not mating motivation promotes aggressive motivation in men, what was the conclusion?

Answer 27

It is consistent w/ the view that men's inclination towards aggression is partly driven by the need to compete for mates.

Question 28

What is an alternative view for the gender gaps in aggression?

Answer 28

Men are socialized according to social norms that encourage physical aggressiveness.

Question 29

How is male aggression influenced by cultures of honour?

Answer 29

Cultures of honour place a high value on social reputation and the need to defend one's honour through aggressive ways.

Question 30

1. Why is a culture of honour more prevalent in regions like the Southern U.S.? 2. What is this caused by?

Answer 30

1. Historically, these regions are based on a herding economy where their wealth is tied to livestock (which is crucial for survival + social status). Threats to their resources result in aggression to maintain wealth + social status. 2. Differences in socialization (parental modelling, peer reinforcement, cultural narratives + values)

Question 31

What is the definition of "drive theories"?

Answer 31

Behaviour is motivated by the need to meet bodily needs + maintain homeostasis.

Question 32

What is the definition of "homeostasis"?

Answer 32

Process where an organism maintains a stable internal environment despite changes in the external environment.

Question 33

What is the definition of "drive"?

Answer 33

When the body lacks something it needs, like food or water, you feel it as an internal urge or discomfort. An emergency signal (drive) compels you to take action to reduce discomfort + restore balance.

Question 34

Describe Freud's drive theory (PT. 1) 1. What is behaviour motivated by? 2. What are energy build-ups? What are its consequences? 3. What creates energy build-ups? 4. How does this relate to the nervous system (homeostasis)?

Answer 34

1. All behaviour is motivated by the need to satisfy bodily needs. 2. Energy build-ups create psychological discomfort (anxiety). Prolonged energy build-ups threaten physical + mental health. 3. Recurring conditions (hunger) create a build-up of psychic energy (mental pressure), pushing you to take action to relieve your hunger. 4. These inevitable urges disrupt the ideal state where the nervous system aims to maintain a low-energy state.

Question 35

What is the definition of a "drive's source"?

Answer 35

When a bodily deficit occurs

Question 36

What is the definition of a "drive's impetus"?

Answer 36

The intensity of the bodily deficit grows + emerges into the consciousness as a psychological discomfort (anxiety).

Question 37

What is the definition of a "drive's object"?

Answer 37

The person seeks to reduce anxiety + satisfy the bodily deficit by consuming a satisfying object.

Question 38

What is the definition of a "drive's aim"?

Answer 38

If the object satisfies the bodily deficit, satisfaction occurs + quiets anxiety.

Question 39

Describe Freud's drive theory (PT. 2) 1. List the 2 general categories of drives. What is the difference between them? 2. What are some examples for each category? 3. What is the definition of "defensive strategies"?

Answer 39

1. Eros (life instinct): drive for life, survival, reproduction, pleasure - ex: food, water, sleep, sex, nurturance, affiliation 2. Thanatos (death instinct): drive for rest, inactivity, return to inanimate state - expressed through aggression, destruction, self-harm 3. Learned strategies for managing sexual + aggressive drives, allowing them to be transformed in socially acceptable ways

Question 40

Describe Hull's drive theory. 1. According to him, what is a drive? 2. What motivates our behaviour? 3. Later, Hull adds a third cause of behaviour: what is it?

Answer 40

1. A drive is a pooled energy source composed of all current bodily deficits/disturbances 2. Behaviour is motivated by drive reduction (the process of reducing physiological imbalances called "internal drives"). It energizes behaviour but does not explicitly indicate what the behaviour should be. For example, if I'm hungry, drive tells me to eat but not exactly what to eat. However, habits (learned/repeated patterns of behaviour that reduce drive) direct our behaviour. Since we feel relief after drive reduction, it will reinforce our behaviour to become a habit. 3. Incentive motivation: the value (quantity/value) of a stimulus is going to affect how strongly someone is going to be motivated to do something.

Question 41

What is a limitation of the drive approach?

Answer 41

Not all motivations arise from physiological deficits. People starve (food deprivation) themselves to lose weight.