Winter Exam 3 Flashcards
Behaviour is a function of _____ and _____
the Person and the Environment
what is the formula for behaviour
B=f(P, E)
true or false: behaviour depends more on where you are than who you are
true
what is social psychology
The study of how people influence others’ behavior, beliefs, and attitudes
Humans have a biologically based need
for interpersonal connections
need to belong theory
what is social comparison theory
We seek to evaluate our abilities and beliefs by comparing them with those of others
what is social facilitation
The presence of others can enhance our
performance in certain situations
refers to taking on for ourselves the behaviours, emotional displays, and
facial expressions of others
mimicry
Unwritten guidelines for how to behave in social contexts
social norms
what is ostracism
Powerful form of social pressure. exclusion from a society or group
guidelines that apply to specific positions
within the group
social roles
what did guards in the stanford prison experiment do
they were very aggressive and harsh in punishment and treatment
what is social loafing
When individuals put less effort into tasks when working with others
what occurs when an individual puts less effort into working on a task with others
social loafing
When one’s performance is affected by the presence of others
social facilitation
_____ – or the threat of _____ – has been associated with increased risk for anxiety, abnormal eating behaviour, reduced intelligence, reduced test performance and other effects
isolation
obedience and conformity are examples of ___ ____
social influences
true or false: social influences are adaptive not maladaptive
false. they are adaptive under most circumstances but they can become maladaptive
people are more or less likely to conform when there is only one other person in the vicinity
less
people are more or less likely to conform when there are only strangers in the room
less
people are more or less likely to conform when the tasks are clear and simple
less
people are more or less likely to conform when one other person does not conform
less
people are more or less likely to conform when responses are anonymous
less
people are more or less likely to conform when they are in a large group
more
people are more or less likely to conform when there are people they know in the vicinity
more
people are more or less likely to conform when tasks are ambiguous
more
people are more or less likely to conform when others conform first
more
people are more or less likely to conform when responses are public
more
When group members tend toward the same ideas to minimize conflict
groupthink
a decision-making problem in which group members avoid arguments and strive for agreement
groupthink
what is conformity
The tendency to alter our behaviour as a result of group pressure
the asch experiments were a demonstration of what?
conformity
true or false: your self esteem impacts how likely you are to conform
true. lower self esteem = more likely to conform
what phenomenon “doesn’t always lead to bad decisions, but does routinely lead to overconfidence”
groupthink
what is the problem with groupthink
An emphasis on group unanimity at the expense of critical thinking
what are the 7 symptoms of groupthink
- illusion of groups invulnerability
- illusion of group unanimity
- unquestioned belief about groups correctness
- conformity pressure
- stereotyping the outgroup
- self-censorship
- mindguards
what is conformity pressure
pressure on group members to go along with everyone else
what is self-censorship
the tendency of group members to keep their mouths shut even when they have doubts
what are mindguards
self-appointed individuals whose job it is to stifle disagreement
what is group polarisation
tendency of group discussion to strengthen the dominant positions of individual group members
true or false: group polarization can cause views to become more extreme
true
Adherence to instructions
from those of higher authority
obedience
what did the milgram experiment study
obedience to authority
true or false: obedience can be problematic
true, if people stop asking why they’re behaving how others want them to
Subjects were taken to a lab and introduced to a fellow “volunteer” and the researcher
the milgram experiment
in the milgram experiment the greater the distance between teacher and
experimenter, the ____ obedience
(more/less)
less
in the milgram experiment the greater the distance between teacher and learner, the _____ the obedience
(more/less)
more
what is the bystander effect
If one person witnesses an emergency, it is as if 100% of the responsibility for helping falls on that person. If 10 people witness an emergency, that responsibility is diffused, so it is as if each person feels only 10% of the
responsibility—which may not be enough to motivate a person to act.
Tendency to overestimate the impact of dispositional influences on other people’s behaviour
fundamental attribution error
what is attribution
the process of assigning cause to behaviour
what is the fundamental attribution error
When we look at others’ behaviour we overestimate impact of dispositional influences (e.g.
traits like intelligence or personality) and underestimate impact of situational influences (e.g.
financial status, external pressures)
- When it comes to evaluating our own behaviour, we do the
opposite
which fundamental attribution error does “He’s such a careless driver. He
never watches out for other cars” describe
dispositional
which fundamental attribution error does “He probably got caught in some bad
traffic, and then he was late for a meeting.”
situational
what is diffusion of responsibility
reduction in feelings of personal responsibility in the presence of others
what is pluralistic ignorance
error of assuming that no one in a group perceives things as we do
what is prosocial behaviour
behaviour intended to help others
when are people more likely to help (4)
- unable to escape
from a situation - have adequate time to
intervene - Are in a good mood
- Have been exposed to
research on bystander
intervention
what is altruism
helping others in need without receiving or expecting reward for doing so
what are the seven influences on aggression
- Interpersonal provocation
- Frustration
- Media influences
- Aggressive cues
- Arousal
- Alcohol and other drugs
- Temperature
what are explicit processes
“conscious” thought. deliberative, effortful, relatively slow, and generally under our intentional control
what are implicit processes
“unconscious” thought; they are intuitive,
automatic, effortless, very fast, and operate largely outside of our intentional
control
what are dual process-models
models of behaviour that account
for both implicit and explicit processes
refers to the processes by which individuals categorize and form judgments about other people
person perception
what personality traits influence aggression (3)
lack of closeness to others, impulsivity, negative emotions
what is rational aggression
form of indirect aggression involving spreading rumours, gossiping, and nonverbal putdowns for the purpose of social manipulation
very small samples of a person’s behaviour is called
thin slices of behaviour
occurs when a first impression (or an expectation) affects one’s behaviour, and then that affects other people’s behaviour, leading one to “confirm” the initial impression or expectation
self fulfilling prophecy
these arise out of a need to feel good about ourselves
self-serving bias
Projecting the self onto others:
False consensus and naïve realism
what are ingroups
groups we feel positively toward and identify
with
what are outgroups
“other” groups that we don’t identify
with
what is ingroup bias
occurs when positive biases toward the self get extended to include one’s ingroups and people become motivated to see their
ingroups as superior to their outgroups
Tendency to favour individuals within our
group over those from outside our group
in-group bias
Tendency to view all individuals outside our
group as highly similar
out-group homogeneity
A belief, positive or negative, about the
characteristics of members of a
group that is applied generally to most
members of the group
stereotype
Drawing negative conclusions about a
person, group of people, or situation
prior to evaluating the evidence
prejudice
Negative behaviour toward members of
outgroups
discrimination
explains how people can be persuaded to change their attitudes
Elaborative Likelihood Model
a dual-process model of persuasion that predicts whether factual information or other types of information will be most influential
elaborative likelihood model
In the central route people are persuaded by ______
the content of a message
in the peripheral route people are influenced by ______
the way the content is presented
-> the style over the substance
what re the five ways the peripheral route can be used effectively
- authority
- liking (we believe those we like)
- social validation
- reciprocity (door in the face technique)
- consistency (foot in the door technique)
what is the door in the face technique
asking for something relatively big, then following with a request for something
relatively small
how does the door in the face technique work
logic is that once someone has scaled back their request, you are obligated to meet them part way
what is the foot in the door technique
making a simple request followed by a
more substantial request
how does the foot in the door technique work
makes use of a very strong
motivation held by many people – the need for psychological consistency
true or false: attitudes are good predictors of behaviour
false
A discrepancy between two beliefs leads to an unpleasant state of tension that we’re motivated to reduce
cognitive dissonance theory
what is cognitive dissonance theory
when we hold inconsistent beliefs, this creates a kind of aversive inner tension, or “dissonance”; we are then motivated to reduce this tension in whatever way we can
according to cognitive dissonance theory how can someone resolve the tension (3)
- changing the first cognition/belief
- changing the second cognition/belief
- introducing a third cognition that solves the issue
what do health psychologists study?
positive and negative impacts that humans’
behaviour and decisions have on their health, survival, and well-being
Tobacco use causes an estimated _____ deaths worldwide each year
7 million
what is the positive reinforcement of smoking
nicotine stimulated reward circuitry
in the nervous system
what is the negative reinforcement of smoking
nicotine reduces uncomfortable
withdrawal symptoms
true or false: visual processing impacts motivation to smoke
true. visual cues illicit neural responses
true or false: discrimination impacts weight loss/gain
true
ability to keep positive relationships and to endure and recover from social isolation and life stressors
social resillience
the often subtle, unintentional spreading
of a behaviour as a result of social interactions
social contagion
what is the highest item on the life events scale for stress?
death or major illness of a loved one
what is the lowest order on the life events scale fr stress
Minor violations of the law (e.g., traffic ticket)
true or false: pregnancy and sexual dysfunction are tied on the life events scale for stress
false. pregnancy is rated 40 points and sexual dysfunction is rated 39 points
what is stress
psychological and physiological reaction
when does stress pccur
when perceived demands exceed existing
resources to meet those demands
____ refers to the cognitive act of
assessing and evaluating the potential threat and demands of an event
apprasial
what are the two steps in appraisal
primary appraisal and secondary appraisal
what is primary appraisal
the evaluation of how (potentially) harmful a particular situation is
what is secondary appraisal
the evaluation of whether the individual possesses the resources to successfully face the demands of the situation
a range of emotional intensity in which [they are] most likely to perform at their best
Individual zone of optimal functioning (I Z O F)
performance is related to what two factors
the difficulty of the task and the level of arousal/stress while it is being performed
For easy tasks, moderately ____levels of arousal helps
high
for difficult task ___ levels of arousal is ideal
low
a set of physiological changes that occur in response to psychological or physical threats
fight or flight response
what is general adaptation syndrome
a theory of stress responses and physiological changes when exposed to stress
what are the three stages in general adaptation syndrome. explain them
- alert (fight or flight)
- resistance (body tries to repair itself after the initial shock of stress)
- exhaustion (occurs from prolonged or chronic stress where you body is no longer able to cope with stress)
The stress pathways of the body
include the ______ and the ____
- autonomic nervous system
- HPA axis
The autonomic response involves stimulation of the _____ by the sympathetic nervous system
adrenal medulla
chemicals that stimulate the fight-or-flight
response are ____ (2)
epinephrine and norepinephrine
Activity of the HPA axis results in stimulation of the ______, which releases
cortisol into the bloodstream
adrenal cortex
a hormone involved in reproduction, childbirth, and social bonding
oxytocin
what is the tend and befriend response
They nurture (tend) or seek social support (befriend) when faced with a potentially dangerous situation
Higher oxytocin and _____ levels are associated with positive social interactions between married couples
vasopressin
what is Psychoneuroimmunology
the study of the relationship between immune system and nervous system functioning
true or false: caring for someone with altzheimers is related to slower healing
true
The complete or partial blockage of the arteries that provide oxygen to the heart
coronary heart disease
most ulcers are cause by a bacteria called _____
Helicobacter pylori
what is coping
the processes used to manage demands,
stress, and conflict
what are the two coping approaches
problem focused and emotion focused
_____ uses scientific methods to study
human strengths and potential
Positive psychology
what is optimism
tendency to have a favourable, constructive view on situations and
to expect positive outcomes
tendency to have a negative perception of life and expect negative outcomes
pessimism
the tendency to interpret and explain negative events as internally based (i.e., as being due to that person rather than to an
external situation) and as a constant, stable quality
Pessimistic explanatory style
what is negative affectivity
tendency to respond to problems with pattern of anxiety, hostility, anger, guilt, or nervousness
what is resilience
the ability to effectively recover from
illness or adversity
what is a type a personality
personality type that describes people who are competitive, driven, hostile, and ambitious
true or false: excercise has long term impacts on cognition
false. SHORT TERM impacts on cognition
The acquired failure to avoid or escape unpleasant circumstances that are perceived as uncontrollable is referred to as
_____
learned helplessness
true or false: randomness causes anxiety
true
true or false: those who feel out of control are more likely to see patterns where there are none
true
mechanism that is put in place to satisfy the requirement for a security measure that is deemed too difficult or impractical to implement at the present time
compensatory control
variety of practices that train attention and awareness
meditation
Receptors convert the stimulus into a neural impulse. this process is called _____
transduction
what is the cycle of a self-fulfilling prophecy
you have a belief which leads to actions that reflect that. people reflect, see the actions and this confirms the belief
psychological phenomenon in which high expectations lead to improved performance in a given area and low expectations lead to worse
Pygmalion effect
what did the robbers cave study study
how easy groups could both turn on each other and come together
what is the friction reduction phase
challenges where participants in robbers cave study were forced to work together to solve problems
whenever there are two or more groups that are seeking the same limited resources, this will lead to conflict, negative stereotypes and beliefs, and discrimination between the groups. this is called __________
realistic conflict threory
the perception of stimulus occurs in specialized brain regions. there are: (3)
- visual
- auditory
- olfactory
what is the absolute threshhold
the level at which a stimulus can be detected 50% of the time
____ theory recognizes that a stimulus is either present or absent based on the sensory process
signal detection theory
what is the decision process in signal detection theory
when the individual either reports detecting the
stimulus or does not
perception below the threshold of conscious awareness is called ____
subliminal perception
previous exposure to a stimulus can influence that individual’s later responses
priming
what is the difference between sensation and perception
sensation is the detection of sensory info and perception is the brains interpretation of that data
what is gestalt psychology
an approach to perception that emphasizes the ”the whole is greater than the sum of its parts”
what are the five principals of gestalt psychology
- figure and ground
- proximity (helps us group items together)
- similarity
- continuity (tendency to view items as whole
figures even if the image is broken) - Closure (tendency to fill in gaps so as
to see a whole object)
why do people think they hear things in backwards music
the brain tries to make sense from nonsense
______ processing can be used to perceive specific phrases
Top-down
top down processing is based on
prior knowledge
bottom up processing is based on
construction
When participants are given no direction from the experimenters and simply listen to
backward music, they are engaging in ____ processing
bottom-up
____ is a filter that influences what aspects we perceive or pay attention to
perceptual set
True or false: bottom-up processing occurs when our perceptions are influenced by our
expectations or by our prior knowledge
false. that is top-down processing
true or false: bottom-up processing occurs when we perceive individual bits of sensory information (e.g. sounds) and use them to construct a more complex perception (e.g.
a message)
true
____ attention involves focusing on one particular event or task
selective
Process of selecting one sensory channel and
ignoring/minimizing others
selective attention
true or false: expectation have little effect on perception
false
what is divided attention
paying attention to more than one stimulus or task at the same time
failure to notice clearly visible events or objects because attention is directed elsewhere
inattentional blindness
Wavelength is measured by _____
distance between the peaks (or the troughs) of the waves
When _____ travels through ____, the bending of the light reveals the visible light spectrum
white light, a prism
Colours vary by what three things
hue (colour), saturation (colourfulness), intensity (brightness)
Related to the amount of light reflected back to the eye
intensity (brightness)
the white portion of the eye
Sclera
what is the iris and what does it do
the coloured portion that controls how much light enters the eye
the hole where light enters the eye
pupil
transparent cells that focus light on the back of the eye
cornea
what part of the eye changes curvature (accomodation) to reflect light onto back of eye and is important as we adjust for distance of objects (close to us or far away
the lens
____ and _____ cells collect
messages from the light-sensitive
photoreceptors and converge on the
____ ____, which then carries the
messages to the brain
- Bipolar
- ganglion
- optic nerve
Cones are concentrated at the _____
fovea
what is the centre of the retina called
the fovea
where are rods in the retina located
the periphery
There are approximately _____ rods and
approximately _____ cones in the adult retina
- 120 million
- 6 to 8 million
According to this theory, humans have three types of cones that respond maximally to different regions of the colour spectrum
The Trichromatic Theory of Colour Vision
Reds wavelengths are ___
short, medium or long
long
greens wavelengths are ___
short, medium or long
medium
blues wavelengths are ___
short, medium or long
short
The _____ exits the back of the eye and is composed of the axons of ganglion cells
optic nerve
Trichromatic theory says colour vision is based on what
our sensitivity to three primary colours: blue, green, red
which theory explains colour blindness
trichromatic theory
what is opponent process theory
theory that states that the human visual system interprets information about color by processing signals from photoreceptor cells in an antagonistic manner
suggests that the way humans perceive colors is controlled by three opposing systems
what are the three opposing channels in our vision according toopponent process theory
- blue versus yellow
- red versus green
- black versus white
____ theory sees colour vision as a
function of complementary, opposing colours
opponent process
Nearsightedness and farsightedness result from ____
misshapen eyes
true or false: eye shape impacts where an image hits the retina
true. If the eye is
elongated or too short, images are not centred on the retina
The ____ is the membrane at the back of the eye
retina
what is the fovea responsible for
acuity (sharpness of vision)
At the ____, some of the cells remain on the same side and some cross to the opposite
side of the brain
optic chiasm
how can scientists can measure the activity of individual feature detector cells
inserting a microscopic electrode into the visual cortex of an animal
activity level will peak when the animal is shown the specific feature corresponding to that specific cell
Neural impulses leave the visual
centres in the occipital lobe along
two pathways. These are:
- The ventral (bottom) stream extends to the temporal lobe
- the dorsal (top) stream extends
to the parietal lobe
what are the three perceptual constancies
- shape constancy
- colour constancy
- size constancy
what is shape constancy
we perceive objects as staying the same shape, even when they’re rotated or viewed from different angles
what is size constancy
the ability to see an object as staying the same size, even when it is moved to a different location
what is colour constancy
when we are able to see colours in different objects, even if the light reflecting off these objects is different
our brain understands that the colour of an object is not dependent on the type of light that is shining on it
the images taken in by both eyes to give depth perception
binocular depth cues
There are two types of binocular depth cues. what are they
convergence and retinal disparity
what is retinal disparity
the difference between the visual images that each eye perceives because of the different angles in which each eye views the world
what is convergence (depth cues)
when both eyes rotate inward at different angles to focus on an object. The degree to which the eyes turn is sent to the brain to determine how far away an object may be
what’s the difference between binocular depth cues and monocular depth cues
binocular = two eyes, monocular = one eye
what are the 5 monocular depth cues that are mentioned in the slides
- relative size
- linear perspective
- motion parallax
- accomodation
- texture gradient
what happens in monocular accomodation
the lens changes shape to accommodate the light when the same object is moved close
what is monocular motion parallax
when you move your head and objects that are farther away appear to move at a different speed than those closer to you
when the angles of two adjacent objects and the distance between them look smaller and smaller. This causes your eye to interpret those objects as increasingly farther away from you
linear perspective
what is relative size (monocular depth cues)
judging how big or small the object is and what that means in relation to other objects you’ve interacted with in the past.
The _____ of a sound wave (cycles per second) is associated with pitch,
while ___ (the height of the sound wave) is associated with loudness
- frequency
- amplitude
true or false: hearing relies on sound waves
true. The perception of hearing is based on the physical properties of sound waves
Sound waves travel from ____ to _____and
____, and then through the ____
- the outer ear
- the eardrum
- middle ear
- inner ear
where is the cochlea
the inner ear
where does transduction occur
the cochlea
___ occurs through the movement of
the tiny hair cells lining the basilar membrane
transduction
how does the brain localise sound
brain computes the small difference in time at which the sound reaches each of the ear + the loudness
what is frequency theory
sound pitch is based on the rate at which the basilier membrane vibrates
what is place theory
specific location along the basilar membrane matches a specific tone and pitch
true or false: high frequency sounds stimulate hair cells at the base of the cochlea
true
low frequency sounds stimulate hair cells where in the cochlea
near the end
low pitch is fast or slow waves
slow
true or false: high pitch sounds have fast waves
true
what is the volley principal
another name for frequency theory
explains how the inner ear detects the frequency of a sound and states that our perception of a sound’s frequency depends on how often the auditory nerve fires
perception of beats in music is correlated with activation where
the basal ganglia
true or false: there is a link between behaviour and beat perception and movement
true
what are the two groups of structures in the vestibular system
the vestibular sacs and the semicircle canals
detects our head’s position, particularly when it is no longer upright
vestibular sacs
what do the semicircle canals do
detect when our head is in
motion
true or false: the vestibular system is connected to the amygdala and the basal ganglia
false. the amygdala and the insula
what is kinesthesis
Receptors in muscles and joints send sensory messages to the brain, helping us
maintain awareness and control of our movements
_____ and ____ are sensory receptors that provide information about changes in
muscle length and tension
- Muscle spindles
- Golgi tendon organs
true or false: the nerve endings for pain are very sensitive and are located deep under the skin
false. they are very sensitive, but are located near the surface of the skin
what is gate control theory
asserts that non-painful input closes the nerve “gates” to painful input, which prevents pain sensation from traveling to the central nervous system
describes how non-painful sensations can override and reduce painful sensations
gate control theory
nerves in the spinal cord conduct pain messages. according to gate control theory, the stimulation of ___ fibres inhibit pain, and the stimulation of ____ fibres detect pain
- large fibres inhibit
- small fibres = pain
what is a mirror box used for
therapy for amputees experiencing phantom pain
true or false: physical sensations of pain can not be triggered by emotions of pain when seeing someone else in pain
false. emotions of pain can influence physical sensations
what part of the brain is possibly involved in empathy pain
the insula
what is the gustatory system
the system of taste
what is the system of smell called
the olfactory system
what are the bumpy surfaces on the tongue called
papillae
The tongue is lined with _____
papillae
where are the taste buds located
inside papillae on your tongue
the tiny receptors to which chemicals bind in your mouth
taste buds
true or false: number of taste buds varies from person to person
true
taste sensitivity is caused by what
the amount of taste buds on the tongue
We are sensitive to five basic tastes. these are:
- Sweet
- salty
- sour
- bitter
- umami
Lining the olfactory _____ are tiny ____ that collect airborne chemicals
- epithelium
- cilia
what sends messages to the nerve fibres that make up the olfactory bulb
cilia
airborne chemicals that interact with lining in our nasal passages
odours
somatosensory
touch and pain
the kinesthetic sense
Proprioception
the vestibular sense
equilibrium and balance
______ argues that neural mechanisms in the spinal cord regulate conscious awareness of pain
gate control theory
____s occur when our expectations influence
our perceptions
perceptual sets
_____ allows us to perceive stimuli consistently across conditions
Perceptual constancy
Rules that govern how we perceive objects as wholes within their overall context
gesalt principals
the ___ demonstrates that depth
perception is partly
innate and a result of
experience
visual cliff
the neural integration or combination of information from different sensory modalities
multimodal integration theory
what is multimodal integration theory
Combining sensations from different modalities into single
integrated perception
what is the mcgurk effect
perceptual phenomenon that demonstrates an interaction between hearing and vision in speech perception
for example, when we hear the sound ‘da’ while seeing the face of a person articulate ‘ga’, many adults perceive the sound ‘ba’, a third sound which is a blend of the two
a condition in which stimulation of one sense generates a simultaneous sensation in another
synesthesia
auditory-tactile synesthesia ftw woooo
