Motivation, Emotion, and Stress Flashcards
What is motivation?
purpose, or driving force, behind our actions
Extrinsic motivation
include rewards for showing a desired behavior or avoiding punishment if the desired behavior is not achieved
Intrinsic motivation
comes from within
What are instincts?
innate, fixed patterns of behavior in response to stimuli
What is instinct theory?
people are driven to do certain behaviors based on evolutionarily programmed instincts
What is arousal?
the psychological and physiological state of being awake and reactive to stimuli
What is arousal theory?
states that people perform actions in order to maintain an optical level of arousal: somewhere in the middle
What is the Yerkes-Dawson law?
U-shaped function between level of arousal and performance; performance is worst at high and low levels of arousal
What are drives?
defined as internal states of tension that activate particular behaviors focused on goals
What are primary drives?
including the need for food, water, and warmth, motivate us to sustain bodily processes in homeostasis
What is homeostasis?
the regulation of the internal environment to maintain an optimal, stable set of conditions
What are secondary drives?
additional drives that are not directly related to biological processes
What is drive reduction theory?
explains that motivation is based on the goal of eliminating uncomfortable states
What are needs?
motivators that influence human behavior
What is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?
physiological, safety, love/belonging, esteem, self-actualization
What is the self-determination theory (SDT)?
Three universal needs:
(1) Autonomy - the need to be in control of one’s actions and ideas
(2) Competence - the need to complete and excel at difficult tasks
(3) Relatedness - the need to feel accepted and wanted in relationships
What is incentive theory?
explains that behavior is motivated not by need or arousal, but by the desire to pursue rewards and to avoid punishments
What is expectancy-value theory?
states that the amount of motivation needed to reach a goal is the result of both the individual’s expectation of success in reaching the goal and the degree to which he or she values succeeding at the goal
What is the opponent-process theory?
explains that when a drug is taken repeatedly, the body will attempt to counteract the effects of the drug by changing its physiology; results in tolerance
What is emotion?
is a natural instinctive state of mind derived from one’s circumstances, mood, or relationships with others
What are the three elements of emotion?
(1) Physiological Response
(2) Behavioral Response
(3) Cognitive Response
What are the seven universal emotions?
happiness, sadness, contempt, surprise, fear, disgust, anger
What is the James-Lange theory?
a stimulus results first in physiological arousal, which leads to a secondary response in which the emotion is labeled
What is the Cannon-Bard theory?
theorized that physiological arousal and feeling an emotion occur at the same time
What is the Schacher-Singer (Cognitive arousal/twofactor) theory?
states that both arousal and the labeling of arousal based on environment must occur in order for an emotion to be experiences
What is the limbic system?
a complex set of structures that reside below the cerebellum on either side of the thalamus; amygdala, thalamus, hypothalamus, hippocampus, fornix, septal nuclei and some of the cerebral cortex
What is the amygdala?
a small round structure that signals the cortex about stimuli related to attention and emotions; process the environment, detects external cues and learns from the person’s surroundings in order to produce emotion
What is the thalamus?
preliminary sensory processing stations and routes information to the cortex and other areas; synthesizes and releases a variety of neurotransmitters, homeostasis, modulates emotion
What is the hippocampus?
primarily involved in creating long-term memories; aids in creating context for stimuli to lead to an emotional response
What is emotional memory?
this is the storage of the actual feelings of emotion associated with an event
What is the prefrontal cortex?
the anterior portion of the frontal lobes and is associated with planning intricate cognitive functions, expressing personality, and making decisions
What is the dorsal prefrontal cortex?
associated with attention and cognition
What is the ventral prefrontal cortex?
connects with regions of the brain responsible for experiencing emotions
What is the ventromedial prefrontal cortex?
thought to play a substantial role in decision making and controlling emotional responses from the amygdala
What is cognitive appraisal?
subjective evaluation of a situation that induces stress
Stage 1: primary appraisal - initial evaluation of the environment and the associated threat. If revealed as a threat…
Stage 2: directed at evaluating whether the organism can cope with the stress; evaluation of harm, threat and challenge
What is a stressor?
a biological element, external condition or event that leads to a stress response
What is distress?
occurs when experiencing unpleasant stressors
What is eustess?
occurs when experiencing positive stressors
What is general adaptation syndrome?
(1) Alarm Stage - initial reaction to a stressors and the activation of the sympathetic nervous system
(2) Resistance Stage - continuous release of hormones allows the sympathetic nervous system to remain engaged to fight the stressor
(3) Exhaustion - the body can no longer maintain an elevated response with sympathetic nervous system activity
