Lecture 10 Flashcards
Define motivation
Refers to the moving force that energizes behaviour. Motives reflect biological and psychological needs
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
- Self actualization (creative art, service to others)
- Esteem (respect from peers)
- Love or belongingness (intimacy)
- Safety (housing, money)
- Physiological (hunger, thirst)
Hypothalamic regulation of eating
Hypothalamus receives information regarding nutrient levels in the body
Lateral region: Stimulation induces eating, lesions of the lateral region produce starvation
Ventromedial region: Lesions induce overeating, stimulation inhibits eating
Describe some ways of sexual motivation
Hormones
Organizational effects: Prenatal exposure to androgens alters the neural circuits in brain and spinal cord, Adult behaviour of androgenized subject is masculine
Activational effects: alteration of adult levels of hormones can alter the intensity of a behaviour that is modulated by hormone
Pheromones: Chemical signals that trigger social responses
Enivronmental cues
Evolutionary analysis of human sexual behavior
- Parental investment
refers to the time, energy and resources parents invest in their offspring to increase chances of survival (females usually invest more time) - Patterns of sexual activity: Men tend to seek a variety of sexual partners whereas women tend to choose quality over quantity
- Differences in mate preferences
Men tend to look for partners with certain physical appearances to their liking whereas women tend to focus on a partner’s resources, social status and ability to provide - Jealousy
An adaptive emotion that evolved to protect one’s reproductive success. Men might feel more threatened if they are providing resources to an offspring that isnt their own
Sexual orientation
Is the direction of attraction for a sexual partner. Homosexuality: attraction for a person of the same sex
Twin studies document a biological basis for homosexuality
Hormonal responses differ between homo and heterosexual men
Affiliation motives
The need to associate with others and maintain social bonds
- Companionship, friendship and love
- Evolutionary bases
- Safety, grooming, survival
- Rejection, loss of intimate, loneliness
- Anxiety, jealousy and depression
Achievement motives
Need for achievement: refers to the need to do well, to succeed and to avoid failure
People that have a high level of need for achievement tend to
- Choose moderately difficult tasks
- Enjoy being challenged
- Avoid failure
- Enjoy success
- Work more persistently
Emotion
Reflect a “stirred up” state
Emotions have valence: Positive or negative
Emotions are thought to have three components
Physiological arousal
Subjective experience
Behavioural expression
Taxonomy of emotions
Between 5 and 9 basic states
The common 5 include: anger, fear, happiness, sadness and disgust
Additional emotional states include surprise, contempt, guilt, joy, trust, shame
Emotional valence may be related to activity in the nervous system
Positive: Activity of dopamine systems
Negative: Activity of norepinephrine systems
Neuropsychology of emotions
Dual processing of emotions:
- Activation of the amygdala produces visceral responses
- Cortical activation allows for the use of memory in understanding emotional stimuli
- Limbic system
2 theories of emotion
James-lange theory
Emotion inducing stimulus -> behavioural and body responses -> Subjective interpretation of arousal as emotion
Cannon-bard theory
Emotion inducing stimulus leads to behavioural/body responses and the experience of emotion simultaneously
Cognitive perspectives on emotion
Plato: “reason must rein in the passions”
Schachter and singer (1962): Cognitive judgements are a critical part of emotional experiece
- Subjects are aroused by an injection of adrenaline and then exposed to anger or happiness cues
- The emotional cues played a prominent role in emotional experience
Schachter -singer theory of emotion
Emotion inducing stimulus -> Cognitive interpretation of arousal -> emotion
Happiness as an emotion
Emotional state characterized by positive valence
Research shows that it is
- related to cultural values (highest in individualistic cultures, lowest in collectivist cultures)
- Highly correlated with number of uninterrupted of democracy in a country
Not related to
- Gender
- Age
- Wealth
How do evolutionary psychologists explain gender differences in patterns of jealousy?
Men and women have evolved to react differently to jealousy. Men can never be 100% sure that a child they are raising is biologically theirs. This uncertainty leads men to be more sensitive to sexual infidelity because they may invest resources (like time, energy, and material support) into raising a child that is not genetically related to them. Women have evolved to look for partners who are emotionally committed and able to provide resources and protection for both them and their offspring. If a man forms an emotional bond with another woman, this could signal that he might withdraw his resources and support, leaving the woman and her child at a disadvantage
