Lecture 2: Instincts and Drives Flashcards
Define Motivation
Force acting within an organism to give behavior its energy, direction, and persistence
Energy is _____________
Direction is ______________
Persistence is ______________
Energy - strength and intensity of the behavior
Direction - specific goal or aim of the behavior
Persistence - behavior is sustained over time
What were the two early grand theories of motivation?
Instincts and Drives
What are instincts?
“Hardwired” or “programmed in” bits of behavior
Two features of instincts:
- Do not require learning
- Occur in response to some environmental trigger
- E.g., Nest building in birds, web weaving in spiders, herding in corgis
According to 1800/early 1900 psychologists, do humans have instincts?
Yes
Why did the view of human instincts gain popularity? (2)
Influence of evolutionary theory
Functioned as means that allowed for bridging humans and evolutionary principles
William James and his views: (4)
- Instincts were similar to reflexes
- Elicited by sensory stimuli
- Occur blindly for the first time (outcome unknown)
- Subsequent behavior may change through experience
- Variability in instincts and principles explaining them:
- Learning can inhibit instinct
- Some instincts are transitory (appear only at certain times) → Chicks bonding with a random object during the first day of life and the result being different if the same object appears later in life, e.g.
William McDougall and his views: (2) + (3)
- Instincts are the primary drivers of all human behavior
- Every instinct consists of three components:
- Cognitive: Knowing of an object that can satisfy the instinct
- Affective: Feeling/emotion that the object arouses in the organism
- Conative: Striving toward or away from the object
What were the criticisms of Early Instinct Theory (4)
- No agreement concerning what types or how many instincts exist
- Nominal Fallacy → Naming is not equal to explaining
- Circular reasoning
- Insufficient recognition of role of learning, lack of clear differentiation between instincts and learning
What two fields were created as an evolution of the grand theory of motivated behavior?
Ethology and Evolutionary Psychology
What does Ethology study?
Animal behavior in naturalistic settings
Ethological observations are _____ and ______
Systematic and Objective
Fixed action patterns in Ethology
Pre-programmed behaviors triggered by a specific stimulus and follow a predictable, fixed sequence
What does evolutionary psych study
How evolutionary processes have shaped human mind and behavior
Define natural selection
Process through which certain traits become more or less common in the population over time due to environmental pressures
Three major components of natural selection
- Variation
- Heredity
- Differential fitness
Variation in Natural Selection
Individuals in a population may vary in traits
Heredity in natural selection
Variation is passed down from parents to offspring
Differential fitness in natural selection
Not all individuals in a population survive and reproduce equally
Define adaptations
Traits that increase chances of survival and reproduction in a given environment
Baby-like features are sign stimuli for eliciting ______ ______
Caregiving motivation
Baby-faced adults are perceived as _____ more _____ and ______
Warmer, naive, weaker
Why did responses to baby features evolve?
To ensure infants receive care and protection
Types of selection (2)
- Survival - Some adaptations increase the odds of survival
- Sexual - Some adaptations increase the odds of securing a mate and reproducing
Two types of sexual selection
Intersexual and Intrasexual
Intrasexual selection is ….
Driven by competitions among individuals of the same sex
Intersexual selection
Driven by mate choice
What are three main roles of aggression as adaptation?
- Defense against predators and adversaries (helps compete for limited resources)
- Competition for mates (intrasexual selection)
- Attracting mates (intersexual selection)
Why are males more aggressive, from an evolutionary standpoint?
Greater need to compete for mates
Dan is real horny and is given an option to blast another guy with a real loud noise, what is he likely to do? In what condition would the outcome be different?
He is likely to blast the other homie with a loud noise for a long period of time. If he were given an opportunity to assert social dominance, this behavior would not appear.
What is a non-evolutionary explanation for male aggression?
Men are socialized according to social norms that encourage aggression
Let’s say you got two acquaintances who come from different cultures. One comes from Kyrgyzstan, where culture of honor is dominant, the other guy comes from LA. If you were to insult both of them or bump into both of them, how would they react?
Kyrgyz (culture of honor) guy would likely respond with anger and aggression since he would think that his rep is damaged
LA guy would likely display less aggression
Recall your Kyrgyz and LA acquaintances, how would they act in absence of threat?
Similarly
You happened to murk someone in an honor-related situation. Bro needs to eat so you send your resume to different companies. One is from an area where culture of honor is dominant, the other one is from LA. What would be their responses?
Culture of honor company would be more likely to respond positively to you murking the guy
Define Drive
Bodily deficits experienced psychologically as internal states, intended to restore homeostasis
Two main categories of drive according to Freud
- Eros - drive for life
- Thanatos - drive for eternal rest
Define drive according to Hull
Pooled energy source composed of all current bodily disturbances and deficits
Key premises of Hull’s drive theory (3)
- Behavior is motivated by drive, habits direct the behavior
- Habits are derived from learning
- Incentive motivation - Quality or quantity of stimulus
Limitations of drive approach
Not all motivations arise from physiological deficits
- Humans deprive themselves of food to lose weight
- Rats explore environments out of curiosity
