Psyc 210: Midterm Flashcards
Pythagoras’ and Plato’s philosophies share many of the same assumptions about reality (i.e., ontological assumptions). Name and describe one ontological assumption these two philosophers shared. Briefly explain how this assumption is seen in their respective descriptions of what is real.
Pythagoras and Plato both believe in objectivism (reality is objective and external to humans and that knowledge is reliable, based on observed objects and events)
Pythagoras → believed everything could be explained through mathematics, physically so the math/understand/explain the world around him
Plato → Knowledge is innate, not reality, knowledge isn’t subjective, things we already
Know. Realm of idea-extension of Pythagoras’ realm of mathematics, perfect, external, real. Both Plato and Pythagoras think the Physical realm is deceiving.
Briefly describe Aristotle’s Theory of Associative Memory. Give one example for each principle of association.
Aristotle’s theory of associative memory → explains how we learn and remember things
- Association by similarity - Two things associated more or less to the extent that they share a common property (ex. lion and a tiger rather than a lion and a seahorse)
- Association by contrast- A concept may become associated with another concept that opposes the first in some way (ex. up and down, light and dark)
- Association by contiguity- Two or more things experienced together will be associated (ex. remember to take daily medication if you take them every time you brush your teeth) - Occur together in time and space
Name and describe Aristotle’s four causes. Which of these reflects our modern
understanding of causality?
-Material cause - what is it made of? (tangible object)
-Efficient cause - what force caused it? (saw cutting wood) (determinism)
-Formal cause- what is the framework or style of organization? (it’s form, the chairness of a chair)
- Final cause (teleological) - what is the purpose or reason for it? (goal or purpose, why something is)
Modern understanding = efficient cause >connection between one thing (the cause) which when activated causes something else (the effect)
Sir Francis Bacon summarized four sources of error that he thought could corrupt
scientific investigation, known as Bacon’s Idols. Name and describe two of these four idols and give an example of each.
-Idols of the cave - individual personal biases (education, feeling)
-Idols of the tribe - biases due to human nature (our abilities, imagination, and hope)
-Idols of the marketplace - biases from being over-influenced by the meaning of words (words are just verbal labels, we define things differently)
-Idols of the theatre - biases from unquestioning allegiance or viewpoint, like religious or political
What does “cogito ergo sum” mean? What did French philosopher Rene Descartes mean when he said this? Be sure to include a reference to Cartesian doubt and rationalism in your answer.
Cogito ergo sum - I think, therefore, I am
(cartesian doubt) doubted his own existence, concluded that he did exist because doubt was happening therefore he was a doubter, I think therefore I exist.
Rationalism -way to truth is through your mind to ergo truth, use clear & innate ideas
Summarize Descartes’ view of the mind-body relationship. How did Descartes reach the conclusion that the mind is nonmaterial and has an existence independent of the body?
-Mind-body interactionism (Dualism)- two separate but interacting entities, God mine + body
-Mechanism - (reflexes) - like a machine, reflexes were just mechanistic
Dualism → mind is non-material + has an existence & independent of the body
- Mind = consciousness + self-awareness, brain seat of intelligence
John Locke was a British Empiricist. Define empiricism and explain how John Locke used the principle of association to explain the source of our ideas/knowledge.
Empiricism - all Knowledge is derived from experience + empirical evidence
Locke > no innate principles in the mind, the mind is tabular razza > upon which experience writes, understanding knowledge is a product, not reason, it is acquired not given. He agreed with the principles of association by (Aristotle)
Two types of ideas: simple (product of sensory experience + reflection) and complex (Result of putting simple ideas together) through the process of association = is where Knowledge comes from
According to David Hume, what do we need to know in order to be able to conclude a causal relationship between two events? Can we ever be certain of causal statements? Explain your answer.
Never know if there is a causal relationship but we can INFER.
Probably assume it exists if 3 conditions are met. A = cause B = effect
- A always causes B - A always comes before B - No B without A
-he is very skeptical, Never really knows (people wanted answers, and he went against the times). We can only experience that two events happen are after the other but we can never experience the connection between them (sensibly)
After being awoken from his “dogmatic slumbers,” Immanuel Kant set out to reconcile rationalism and empiricism. According to Kant, how does knowledge arise from both sensory experience and the mind?
- all knowledge begins with experience, though not all knowledge; the mind at birth comes equipt with the categories of understanding
What did Kant mean by an a priori category of thought? According to Kant, how do such categories influence what we experience consciously? Briefly summarize Kant’s explanation of causality, time, and space.
Categories of understanding (a priori) (concepts or templates) Unity, totality, time, space, cause + effect, reality, quantity, possibility + non-possibility, existence + non-existence
Phenomena (the way things appear to us through perception, what he perceives is phenomena, our experience) vs. Noumena love the things in themselves, they constitute reality, exist independent of our experience of them and are therefore unaware of noumena. - We only have access to phenomena, then there is a barrier, an objective world filled with noumena. The objective world exists without a mind to perceive it.
Discuss two ways that Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by means of natural
selection influenced the development of Psychology.
Darwin is responsible for laying down the foundation for comparative psychology He used animals to learn more about human Psychology. We got animal-based research from Darwin. He also influenced psychology with his theory of evolution, lead to evolutionary psychology which explains our psychological functioning, and how it was shaped by evolutionary functions.
According to Ernst Weber, what is a two-point threshold? How did he measure it?
Two-point threshold- the smallest distance between the two points at which the subject reported tensing to points instead of one. Using a compass-like device consisting of two points, he simultaneously applied pressure to the subject’s skin. Weber concentrated on skin senses: pressure, hot, and cold. By using a geometric compass he was able to demonstrate that certain parts of the body were much more sensitive than others. The more sensitive areas were the fingertips, lips, and face.
Briefly describe Christine Ladd-Franklin’s evolutionary theory of color vision. How does the relative prevalence of red-green color blindness over blue-yellow color blindness provide support for her theory?
Evolutionary theory of color vision - color vision evolves in 3 stages. Achromatic vision comes first, then blue-yellow sensitivity, and finally green-red sensitivity.
Her assumption was that the last to evolve would be the most fragile explains the prevalence of red-green color blindness. Blue-yellow color blindness is less frequent because it evolved earlier and is less likely to be defective. Achromatic vision is the oldest, and therefore, the most difficult to disrupt
She noted that some animals are color blind and assumed that achromatic vision appeared first in evolution and color vision come later. She assumed further that the human eye carries vestiges of its earlier evolutionary development.
Describe how Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution due to natural selection influenced Francis Galton’s views on hereditary intelligence. How did Galton explain the hereditary nature of intelligence?
He believed that sensory acuity is heritable, as well as intelligence connecting biological traits, therefore, psychological attributes are heritable as well. Society should do selective breeding to maximize social desirabilities. He argued, Knowledge comes from sensory experience, we gain knowledge from our senses, and people with shared senses could take more in and are therefore more intelligent, intelligence is a matter of sensory acuity.
What is eugenics? Describe the difference between positive and negative eugenics. How did Social Darwinists use Darwin’s theory of evolution due to natural selection to scientifically argue against the eugenics movement?
Francis Galton coined the term Eugenics - the study of the agencies under social control that may improve on impair the racial qualities of future generations, either physically or mentally.
Positive Eugenics increases social desirabilities, and Negative Eugenies > restricts people with negative desirabilities to procreate/sterilization.
Herbert Spencer was a social Darwinist Societies evolve in the same way that species evolve. An individual should be left to their own devices and Survive based on social and physical fitness. Take on views of society as you would the natural world.
