Motivation, Emotion, and Stress Flashcards
Motivation
Purpose/driving force behind our actions
-divided into intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
Extrinsic motivation
Motivation that comes from external sources
-behaviours to get rewards and avoid punishments
Intrinsic motivation
Motivation that comes from within oneself
-personally gratifying
Instinct theory of motivation
People are driven to do certain behaviours based on evolutionarily programmed instincts
-william james and william mcdougal were important people in the development of this theory
Instincts
Innate, fixed patterns of behaviour in response to a stimuli
-may be fixed over a lifetime or may disappear
Arousal theory of motivation
People perform actions in order to maintain an optimal level of arousal
Arousal
Physiological and psychological state of being awake and reactive to stimuli
Yerkes-Dodson law
Postulates that there is a U shaped function (bell curve) between the level of arousal and performance
- too much or too little arousal = poor performance
- lower levels optimal for cognitive tasks ( and complex )
- higher levels optimal for physical tasks ( and simple )
Drive reduction theory
Drives originate in an individual, create an uncomfortable state, and ensure motivation to eliminate the negative state
- motivation is based on the goal of eliminating uncomfortable states
- primary and secondary drives
- goal is to maintain homeostasis
Drives
Internal states of tension that activate particular behaviours focused on goals
Primary drives
Motivate us to maintain bodily processes
-thirst, hunger, warmth/cool etc.
Secondary drives
Drives not directly related to biological processes
- thought to stem from learning
- pushes us to fulfill non biological desires
- include certain emotions (desire for nurturing, love, etc)
Homeostasis
Regulation of the internal environment to maintain and optimal, stable set of conditions
-usually controlled by a negative feedback loop
Needs
Also motivators that affect behaviour
-can be categorized into different levels (Maslow)
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
Needs can be classified into 5 groups (from most basic to most abstract)
- Physiological (food, air, water, sex, sleep, homeostasis)
- Safety of: body, employment, housing, health, property
- Love/belonging (friendship, family, sexual intimacy)
- Esteem (self esteem,confidence, achievement, respect)
- Self-actualization (morality, creativity, problem solving..)
Maslow’s needs theory
If the lowest level of need is not met, motivation for that level will be the highest
-additional needs are satisfied based on priority
Self-determination theory (SDT)
Three universal needs involved in motivation
- Autonomy - control of own actions
- Competence - complete and excel at different tasks
- Relatedness - feel accepted/wanted in relationships
these need to be met in order to have a healthy relationship with oneself and others
Incentive theory
Behaviour is motivated by the desire to pursue rewards and to avoid punishments
Expectancy-value theory
Amount of motivation required to reach a goal is a product of how much the person thinks they will succeed at reaching the goal and how much they value success
Opponent process theory
Used to explain continuous drug use
- when a drug is repeatedly taken, the body tries to change its physiology in order to counteract it
- this opposing action causes withdrawal symptoms lasting longer than the drug
- this theory also explains tolerance
Tolerance
Perceived decrease in the effect of a drug over time
Masters + Johnston
Study on the physiological measures of arousal
-showed that men and women have similar physiological responses, main differences were due to cultural differences and learned behaviour
Biological factors contributing to sexual arousal
- Levels of hormones (estrogen, progesterone and androgens)
- Smell
- Cognition
- Culture and society
Emotion
Natural instinctive state of mind that is derived from circumstances, mood, or relationships with others
-3 parts: physiological, behavioural, and cognitive
Physiological response of emotion
Arousal is stimulated by the autonomic nervous system
- changes in heart rate, breathing, BP, and temperature
- more pronounced in certain emotions (embarrassment or fear)
Behavioural response of an emotion
Includes facial expressions and body language
Cognitive response of an emotion
Subjective interpretation of the feeling being experienced
7 Universal emotions and cues
- Happiness - smile, raised cheeks, wrinkles around eyes
- Sadness - frown, inner eyebrows pulled up and together
- Contempt - one corner of mouth pulled upward
- Surprise - wide eyes, open jaw, eyebrows up
- Fear - wide eyes, lips pulled towards ears, eyebrows up
- Disgust - nose wrinkling, raising of upper lip
- Anger - glaring, lips pressed, eyebrows down
James- Lange theory of emotion
A stimulus results first in physiological arousal, which then leads to a secondary response in which the emotion is labelled
-emotions need to be processed with feedback from the peripheral nervous system
*weakness - under this model damage to the peripheral nervous system (ie. paralysis) would result in decreased emotional response but this is not the case
Cannon-Bard theory of emotion
The cognitive and physiological components of emotion occur simultaneously and result in the behavioural component
*weakness - fails to explain the Vagus nerve which relays information from the peripheral organs to the CNS
Schachter- Singer theory of emotion
aka: cognitive arousal theory OR two-factor theory
Both arousal and the labelling of arousal must occur in order for an emotion to be experienced
-one must consciously analyze the environment in relation to the nervous system arousal
- study : epinephrine/placebo injections paired with information or misinformation
- result: if people don’t know they are experiencing the side effects of a drug, they will report higher levels of emotion due and believe it due to the environment
Limbic System
Complex set of structures below the cerebrum an on either side of the thalamus
-role in motivation and emotion
Made up of:
- amygdala
- thalamus
- hypothalamus
- hippocampus
- septal nuclei
- fornix
- +parts of the cerebral cortex
Amygdala
Signals to the cortex about stimuli related to attention and emotions
- processes the environment and detects external cues
- associated with fear
- involved in the controlling implicit memories (emotional memory)
Thalamus
Preliminary sensory processing centre
-routes info to the cortex and other areas
Hypothalamus
Located below the thalamus
- synthesizes and releases a bunch of neurotransmitters
- has many homeostatic functions
Hippocampus
Located in the temporal lobe and is involved in making long term memories
-retrieval of emotional (explicit) memories is important in forming an emotional response
Emotional memory
Unconscious (implicit) memory
-storage of actual feelings of emotions associated with an event (as opposed to explicit memories of which are the conscious memory of the experience)
Brain regions involved in interpreting other’s facial expressions?
Primarily the temporal lobe
-has input from the occipital lobe
Right hemisphere is more active during this process
More active in women than men, and more active in adults than children
Prefrontal corex
Anterior portion of the frontal lobes
- planning intricate cognitive functions
- receives arousal input from them brainstem
- right side = negative emotions
- left side = positive emotions
Dorsal prefrontal cortex function
attention and cognition
Ventral prefrontal cortex function
Connects with regions of the brain experiencing emotion
Ventromedial prefrontal cortex
Substantial role in decision making and controlling emotional responses from the amygdala
Stress
response to challenging events
-either physical, cognitive, behavioural or emotional
Cognitive appraisal
Subjective evaluation of a situation that induces stress
- primary appraisal: initial evaluation
- identify stress as irrelevant, benign-positive, or stressful - Secondary appraisal: evaluation of ability to cope with stressor
- identify: harm (damage caused), threat (future harm), and challenge (potential to overcome or benefit)
Stressor
Biological element, external condition or events leading to a stress response
Distress
Result of experiencing unpleasant stressors
Eustress
Result from experiencing pleasant or rewarding stressors
- ie. graduating
- even though they are positive they still required the person to change or adapt their lifestyle
Social readjustment rating scale
Stress level can be measured in “life change units”
Pressure
Experienced when expectations or demands are placed on a person from external sources
-forces them to complete tasks, perform actions in a certain way
Physiological response to stress
body responds via the sympathetic nervous system
-increase in heart rate and decrease in digestion
General adaptation syndrome
- Alarm: initial reaction to a stressor
- activation of sympathetic NS
- hypothalamus secretes ACTH which acts on adrenal cortex (release cortisol)
- hypothalamus also activates medulla to secrete epinephrine and norepinephrine - Resistance: continuous release of hormones
- keeps the sympathetic NS engaged - Exhaustion : body can no longer maintain an elevated response
- become more susceptible to illness
Strategies for coping with stress - 2 kinds
- Problem-focused
2. Emotionally focused
