Nature vs Nurture Flashcards
What words are associated with the Nature side of the debate?
- Introvert / Extrovert
- Type A or Type B
- Traits
What words are associated with the nurture side of the debate?
- Social learning
- Environment
- Observation
What are characteristics of type A?
- Impatient
- Intolerant
- Prone to stress and anxiety
What are the characteristics of type B?
- Relaxed
- Tolerant of others
- Calm
What is state anxiety?
Anxiety felt in a specific situation
What are the two spectrums for Eysenck’s personality traits?
- Stable –> Unstable
- Extrovert –> Introvert
What does stable mean?
Unchangeable, remaining constant and predictable (eg someone who is anxious will be in many situations)
What does unstable mean?
Changeable and unpredictable (neurotic). Someone may be anxious only in certain situations
What is an introvert?
Prefers to be alone and is good at concentrating
What is an extrovert?
Seeks social situations, excitement and lacks concentrations
What does RAS stand for?
Reticular Activating System
What is the Reticular Activating System?
Extroverts have an RAS that inhibits external stimuli, so they seek stimulation
What is social learning theory?
Personality is shaped by significant others and influenced by the environment
What is interactionist theory?
Suggests we are born with traits that can be modified. Explains why personalities can change.
What are the stages of Hollander’s theory?
- Role related behaviours (school etc)
- Typical responses (day-to-day)
- Psychological core (the real you)
How do the effects of the environment relate to Hollander’s theory?
The effects of the environment impact the inner layers less but can impact the outer layers a lot
What are attitudes?
Feelings, beliefs and values that predispose someone to behave in a certain way
What are attitudes directed towards?
An attitude object
What factors impact on attitudes?
- Peer group
- Conditioning
- Social learning
- Familiarity
How can peer groups impact on attitudes?
An acceptance of a given group’s attitudes results in the gaining of identity
How can conditioning impact on attitudes?
Rewards will strengthen existing attitudes
How can social learning impact on attitudes?
Significant others and role models are performers of an attitude, setting examples
How can familiarity impact on attitudes?
The more an attitude object is experienced, the more likely a positive attitude will form.
What can form positive attitudes?
- Enjoyable experiences
- Being good at a given task
- Using sport as a stress relief
- Influence of others where participation is the norm
What can form negative attitudes?
- Past bad experiences
- Injuries
- Fear of taking part
- Influence of others where participation is not the norm
What is the triadic model composed of?
- Cognitive component (what we know)
- Effective component (how we feel)
- Behavioural component (how we behave)
What is persuasive communication?
An active, non-coercive attempt to influence attitudes (persuader, receiver and message)`
What matters for the persuader in persuasive communication?
- STATUS with receiver
- POPULARITY amongst a group
- CREDIBILITY from past experiences
- SOCIAL BACKGROUND
What matters for the message being received in persuasive communication?
- ACCURACY of message
- CONFIDENCE and ENTHUSIASM
- CLARITY of message
- FACTUAL and appealing to intellect
What matters for the receiver in persuasive communication?
- READINESS to interpret message
- How STRONGLY HELD the current attitude is
- MOTIVATED or open to change?
What does cognitive dissonance theory state?
Individuals like to be consistent in what they see, feel and how they behave.
What does cognitive dissonance theory result in?
Contradictory thoughts about something, causing an attitude relating to the triadic model
What can contradictory thoughts result in?
Tension
Give an example of tension due to contradictory throughts
A rugby player believes aerobics are feminine. The coach tells him fit people do aerobics. This creates a challenge of beliefs and tension, possibly adapting the attitude
What are the three aspects of the triadic model?
- Cognitive
- Effective
- Behavioural
What aspect of the triadic model is challenged to change attitudes?
The cognitive element
When can persuasive communication fail to adapt attitudes?
When it is met by firmly held beliefs
Give some examples of a focused cognitive approach to adapting attitudes
- Pointing out health benefits
- Using role model examples
- Using reinforcement
- Attributing reasons for success
What is arousal?
A state of readiness
What does Drive theory look like?
A straight, positive line
What does drive theory state?
There is low performance at low arousal and higher performance under high arousal, Experienced athletes perform better. Performance = f(habit x drive)
Give two advantages of drive theory?
Explains why novices need simple tasks and low arousal.
Explains why elite athletes perform well under pressure
Explains why people often perform well under higher arousal
What does inverted U theory look like?
A mound up and then back down
What does Inverted U theory state?
Performance increases with arousal until optimum point. This point shifts for different individuals.
What factors does inverted U theory account for?
- Task Type (simple, gross, fine, complex)
- Personality (introverts, extroverts)
- Stage of learning
- Experience
Why do extroverts perform better at high arousal?
They have a less sensitive RAS and seek to stimulate it
Give two disadvantages of drive theory
- Linear relationship rarely occurs
- Doesn’t account for other variables such as task type
Give two advantages of inverted U theory
- Takes many variables into account
- Recognises a shift in optimum levels
- Links with cue utilisation theory
Give two disadvantages of inverted U theory
- Increase and decrease in performance are rarely smooth
- Doesn’t account for sudden, dramatic declines in performance
What does catastrophe theory state?
Arousal and performance are related the same as inverted U. BUT if cognitive anxiety is high, sudden increase in state anxiety causes rapid decline, which is hard to recover from
Give two advantages of catastrophe theory
- Explains why sudden dramatic declines often occur
- Multidimensional and considers multiple forms of anxiety
Give two disadvantages of catastrophe theory
- Some performers don’t experience rapid decline
- Does not account for personality or skill level
What is the area of perfect arousal called for a given performer?
The individual zone of optimal functioning
Why is the individual zone of optimal functioning different to inverted U?
- Optimal performance is not always in the middle
- Optimal performance is not a point but a bandwidth
Name three characteristics of the “zone”.
- Performance appears effortless and automatic
- Athlete is fully in control
- Athlete shows good focus and attention
What is achieved when an athlete is in the optimal zone of functioning?
Peak flow
Define anxiety
- Negative aspect of experiencing stress
- Worry experienced by a possibility of failure
What three things can cause anxiety?
- Perception of the importance of situation
- Perception of situational demands
- Perception of lack of ability to cope
What is cognitive anxiety?
Nervousness or apprehension about their ability to complete a task
What is somatic anxiety?
Physical responses to situation where performer feels they may not cope. (Heart rate, sweaty, muscle tension etc)
What is competitive anxiety?
Apprehension experienced during or about a competitive situation
What 4 factors result in competitive anxiety?
- Individual differences (fear of letting team mates down, damaging relations etc)
- Trait and State anxiety
- Competitive trait anxiety
- Competition process (interaction between situation, personality and comp. t anxiety)
What does high somatic anxiety interact with to impact performance?
- High cognitive anxiety
- High state anxiety
What is state anxiety?
Anxiety felt in a given situation
What is state anxiety characterised by?
Subjective, consciously perceived feelings of apprehension. Associated with high arousal of autonomic nervous system.
What is trait anxiety?
An enduring personality trait results in tendency to feel apprehension in all situations
What is cue utilisation theory?
The more aroused a performer becomes, the narrower their attentional field.
What happens in cue utilisation theory if the performer is not aroused enough?
The attentional field becomes too wide
If the attentional field is too narrow or wide and too few or too many cues are paid attention too, what happens?
Concentration is lost
In the context of the sport course, what is aggression?
The intent to harm others, outside the rules of the game
What is instinct theory?
Aggression is instinctive and a natural response. It is developed through evolution and based on territorial domination. It is built up and must be released.
Give one advantage of instinct theory
- Makes sense based on animals and evolution
- Explains sudden acts of aggression
Give three disadvantages of instinct theory
- Expects all humans to respond similarly but this is not the case (cultural differences)
- Early humans were non-aggressive hunter gatherers
- Aggression is not always spontaneous but planned
- Close evolutionary relatives such s gorillas aren’t aggressive
What is frustration aggression hypothesis?
Frustration will lead to aggression. Blocking of goals increases drive, increasing aggression. Aggression reduces frustration and gives catharsis.
Drive –> Obstacle –> Frustration –> Aggression –> Success (Catharsis) or Failure (more frustration)
Give an advantage of frustration aggression hypothesis?
- Evidence based and explains in detail cause of aggression, more than instinct
Give a disadvantage of frustration aggression hypothesis?
- Frustration does not always result in aggression
- Aggressive acts can occur without clear frustration or obstacles
What is aggressive cue hypothesis?
When someone is frustrated there is high arousal. This creates a disposition towards aggressive behaviour, which is triggered by certain and sudden stimuli
Give two advantages of aggressive cue hypothesis
- Explains both unacceptable and channelled aggression
- Explains sudden aggressive acts
Give a disadvantage of aggressive cue hypothesis
- Doesn’t explain aggression without any stimuli or cues
What is the social learning theory of aggression?
Aggression is learned rather than instinctive. Observing and copying others with reinforcement causes aggression. This is “optimistic”. If people can learn, they can “unlearn”
Give two advantages of social learning theory of aggression?
- Explains cultural differences in aggression
- Explains why frustration and cues are not always present in aggressive acts
Give two disadvantages of social learning theory of aggression?
- Doesn’t explain apparently instinctive or cued acts of aggression
- Doesn’t explain aggression in athletes not exposed to aggression
What are negative and positive influence of others known as?
- Positive = Social facilitation
- Negative = Social inhibition
What does Zajonc’s theory state?
Presence of an audience increases arousal and makes the dominant response more likely to occur
How does the skill type impact on theory of social influence?
If the skill is simple or performer is expert, the dominant response will be correct. If the skill is complex or the performer a novice, the response will be incorrect
What is evaluation apprehension theory?
Only those felt to be judging or evaluating the performance would impact arousal
What are the four factors impacting on social facilitation?
- Home or away
- Personality factors (Type A or B)
- Experience level (amount and pos or neg)
- Type of skill
What three strategies can minimise social inhibition?
- Relaxation techniques
- Positive imagery
- Use of an audience in training
What is a group?
A collection of three or more people working towards a common goal
What are the four stages of group development?
- Forming
- Storming
- Norming
- Performing
What is forming?
A group meets and familiarises. Leaders give direction and member roles are unclear
What is storming?
There is conflict as individuals seek roles and status. A sense of purpose is established
What is norming?
Hostility is overcome and some leave, leaving the group agreed on common values.
What is performing?
Members work together towards the common goal. Relationships are well established and there is a clear focus.
What is Steiner’s model of productivity?
Actual productivity = potential productivity - losses due to faculty processes
What is actual productivity?
Extent of successful interaction at a given point
What is potential productivity?
A group’s maximum capability
What are faculty processes?
Deterioration of cohesion by errors and mistakes
What are coordination losses?
Errors due to poor execution, poor timing, misunderstanding.
What is the Ringlemann effect?
Coordination errors increase the more team members there are
What are motivational losses?
Reduction of motivation in an individual causes “coasting” and errors occur
What is the relaxation in effort known as?
Social loafing
What are motivational losses attributed to?
Low confidence, negative experiences or going unnoticed. Avoidance behaviours.
What three things does group cohesion rely on?
- Collective identity
- Shared purpose
- Clear communication structure
What are Carron’s two dimensions of group cohesion?
- Group integration (relationships)
- Individual attraction to the group
What is task cohesion?
How well a group works when completing a task. Deciding and accepting tactics.
When is task cohesion important?
In interactive games
What is social cohesion?
Relates to personal relationships. The leader must create opportunities for social development.
When is social cohesion important?
In co-active sports (individual performances collectively contribute to team score or success.
What are four advantages of goal setting?
- Increased motivation and confidence
- Ensures effort is maintained
- Reduces anxiety and controls arousal
- Improves and directs attention and focus
What does goal setting do overall?
Improves performance
What are SMART goals?
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Recorded
- Time based and phased (split up)
What are the three types of goal?
- Performance (personal stats)
- Outcome (set by coaches, big picture)
- Process (development of skill)
What may an outcome goal be made up of?
Performance goals and process goals
What type of goal is most effective?
Goals set through negotiation and agreement rather than external goals.
