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Dr. Hung's Kaplan MCAT Decks > 🧠 MCAT Behavioral Sciences Review - 10 > Flashcards

🧠 MCAT Behavioral Sciences Review - 10 Flashcards

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1
Q

What is the purpose of the Science Mastery Assessment in MCAT prep?

A

To help identify important topics and guide study time based on personal strengths and weaknesses.

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2
Q

If you answer 0–7 questions correctly on the assessment, how much time should you spend on the chapter?

A

About 1 hour to read the chapter in full and take limited notes.

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3
Q

What should you do if you answer 8–11 questions correctly?

A

Spend 20-40 minutes reviewing quiz questions, starting with those missed.

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4
Q

If you answer 12–15 questions correctly, how long should you spend reviewing the quiz?

A

Less than 20 minutes.

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5
Q

What is interpersonal attraction?

A

The phenomenon of individuals liking each other.

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6
Q

List the factors that influence interpersonal attraction.

A
  • Similarity * Self-disclosure * Reciprocity * Proximity
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7
Q

What is the mere exposure effect?

A

The tendency for people to prefer stimuli that they have been exposed to more frequently.

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8
Q

What does aggression refer to in social psychology?

A

A behavior that intends to cause harm or increase social dominance.

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9
Q

Name two forms aggression can take.

A
  • Physical actions * Verbal or nonverbal communication
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10
Q

What role does the amygdala play in aggression?

A

It associates stimuli with rewards or punishments and signals whether something is a threat.

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11
Q

What is the relationship between testosterone and aggression?

A

Higher levels of testosterone are linked to more aggressive behavior.

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12
Q

What is the cognitive neoassociation model?

A

It states that we are more likely to respond to others aggressively when we are feeling negative emotions.

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13
Q

What type of attachment pattern does a child show when they cry when a caregiver departs and smile upon their return?

A

Secure attachment.

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14
Q

What type of mating system is characterized by elephant seal males mating with multiple females?

A

Polygyny.

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15
Q

What is the halo effect?

A

When a person’s overall impression influences how we feel about their specific traits.

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16
Q

What is the self-serving bias?

A

The tendency to attribute successes to internal factors and failures to external factors.

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17
Q

What are the components of social perception?

A
  • The target * The situation * The perceiver
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18
Q

What does the term ‘prejudice’ refer to?

A

Negative attitudes a person has toward a group or individual.

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19
Q

What principle supports the findings that women perform worse when gender is emphasized in driving ability ratings?

A

Stereotype threat.

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20
Q

Which brain structure is critical for managing emotions and stress related to aggression?

A

Prefrontal cortex.

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21
Q

Fill in the blank: The tendency to be attracted to people who are similar in attitudes, intelligence, and appearance is known as _______.

A

interpersonal attraction.

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22
Q

True or False: Proximity has no effect on interpersonal attraction.

A

False.

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23
Q

What trend is observed regarding aggression between phenotypical males and females?

A

Males are generally more aggressive than females across cultures and commit a disproportionate majority of violent crimes.

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24
Q

What does the cognitive neoassociation model state?

A

We are more likely to respond to others aggressively whenever we are feeling negative emotions, such as being tired, sick, frustrated, or in pain.

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25
What situational factor can increase the likelihood of riots?
Riots are more likely to happen on hot days than cool ones.
26
What type of attachment is characterized by a consistent caregiver?
Secure attachment.
27
What are the four main types of attachment styles?
* Secure * Avoidant * Ambivalent * Disorganized
28
How does a child with secure attachment behave when a caregiver leaves?
The child will be upset at the departure and comforted by the return.
29
What characterizes avoidant attachment?
The caregiver has little or no response to a distressed child, who shows no preference between a stranger and the caregiver.
30
What is ambivalent attachment?
Occurs when a caregiver has an inconsistent response to a child's distress.
31
What behaviors are associated with disorganized attachment?
A mix of different behaviors, including avoidance or resistance, seeming dazed, frozen, or confused.
32
What is the purpose of the Strange Situation procedure?
To assess attachment in infants between 9 and 18 months old.
33
What are the steps in the Strange Situation procedure?
* Introduction to the experimental room * Alone time with the parent * Stranger enters * Parent leaves * Parent returns * Both leave * Stranger returns * Parent returns again
34
What type of social support involves listening and empathizing?
Emotional support.
35
What is esteem support?
Affirming the qualities and skills of a person to bolster their confidence.
36
What type of support involves financial or material contributions?
Material support.
37
What is informational support?
Providing information that will help someone.
38
What type of social support gives a person a sense of belonging?
Network support.
39
How does social support affect mental health?
Helps reduce psychological distress such as anxiety and depression.
40
What is the role of the lateral hypothalamus?
Promotes hunger.
41
What happens if the ventromedial hypothalamus is damaged?
It results in obesity because the individual never feels satiated.
42
What is meant by foraging in behavioral science?
The behavior of seeking out and eating food.
43
What are the types of mating systems seen among animals?
* Monogamy * Polygamy * Promiscuity
44
What is mate choice?
The selection of a mate based on attraction.
45
What are the five recognized mechanisms of mate choice?
* Phenotypic benefits * Sensory bias * Fisherian or runaway selection
46
What characterizes phenotypic benefits in mate choice?
Observable traits that indicate increased production and survival of offspring.
47
What is the definition of sensory bias?
Development of a trait to match a preexisting preference in the population.
48
What does Fisherian or runaway selection entail?
A positive feedback mechanism where a trait becomes exaggerated over time due to its sexual desirability.
49
What is Fisherian or runaway selection?
A positive feedback mechanism where a trait that has no effect or a negative effect on survival becomes exaggerated over time
50
What is the prototypical example of Fisherian selection?
The bright plumage of the peacock
51
What are indicator traits?
Traits that signify overall good health and well-being of an organism, increasing attractiveness to mates
52
What is genetic compatibility?
The creation of mate pairs that have complementary genetics, reducing recessive genetic disorders
53
Define altruism.
A form of helping behavior where the intent is to benefit another at some cost to the self
54
What is the empathy-altruism hypothesis?
The theory that individuals help others when feeling empathy for them, regardless of the cost
55
What is game theory?
A theory that explains decision-making behavior based on strategies, rewards, and costs
56
What is an evolutionary stable strategy (ESS)?
A strategy that, once adopted by a population, cannot be replaced by an alternative strategy
57
Describe the Hawk-Dove game.
A game focusing on access to shared food resources where players choose between aggressive (hawk) or passive (dove) strategies
58
What are the four strategic alternatives in social interactions?
* Altruism * Cooperation * Spite * Selfishness
59
Define inclusive fitness.
A measure of an organism's success based on the number of offspring and their ability to support others
60
What is the primacy effect?
The tendency for first impressions to be more important than subsequent impressions
61
What is the recency effect?
The tendency for the most recent information about an individual to be more important in forming impressions
62
Define the halo effect.
A cognitive bias where judgments about a specific aspect of an individual are influenced by overall impressions
63
What is the just-world hypothesis?
The belief that good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people
64
What is self-serving bias?
The tendency to attribute successes to internal factors and failures to external factors
65
What is the difference between in-group and out-group bias?
* In-group bias: Favoring members within one's social group * Out-group bias: Viewing individuals outside one's group harshly
66
What are dispositional attributions?
Attributions relating to the person, including beliefs, attitudes, and personality characteristics
67
What are situational attributions?
Attributions relating to external features of the environment, such as social norms and peer pressure
68
What are the two main categories of attribution according to Fritz Heider?
Dispositional (internal) and situational (external) attributions. ## Footnote Dispositional attributions relate to the individual’s characteristics, while situational attributions relate to external factors.
69
What do dispositional attributions relate to?
Beliefs, attitudes, and personality characteristics of the individual. ## Footnote These attributions consider the individual's internal traits as the cause of behavior.
70
What do situational attributions relate to?
Features of the surroundings, such as threats, money, social norms, and peer pressure. ## Footnote These attributions consider external factors as the cause of behavior.
71
What is an example of a dispositional attribution?
Believing a friend was nominated for an award due to hard work and personal effort. ## Footnote This attribution focuses on the individual's characteristics rather than external factors.
72
What is an example of a situational attribution?
Chalking up a friend's nomination to luck. ## Footnote This attribution considers external circumstances rather than the individual's effort.
73
What are consistency cues?
Behavior that has been consistent over time. ## Footnote Consistency cues help us associate behavior with motives.
74
What are consensus cues?
Behavior that matches others’ behavior. ## Footnote These cues indicate how a person's behavior compares to societal norms.
75
What are distinctiveness cues?
Behavior that varies in different situations. ## Footnote Distinctiveness cues help us determine if behavior is situational or dispositional.
76
What does the correspondent inference theory focus on?
The intentionality of others' behavior. ## Footnote This theory explains how we attribute behavior based on whether it helps or hurts us.
77
What is the fundamental attribution error?
The bias of making dispositional attributions rather than situational attributions. ## Footnote This error often leads to oversimplified explanations of behavior.
78
What might we assume about team members who fail to complete assignments according to the fundamental attribution error?
That they are lazy or unreliable (dispositional attribution). ## Footnote This overlooks potential situational factors like illness or personal tragedy.
79
What is actor-observer asymmetry?
The tendency to make situational attributions for oneself and dispositional attributions for others. ## Footnote This bias is influenced by the self-serving bias and fundamental attribution error.
80
What is attribute substitution?
The process of substituting a complex judgment with a simpler one. ## Footnote This often occurs without the individual realizing a substitution has been made.
81
Give an example of attribute substitution in a judgment.
Estimating the volume of a sphere inside a cube by imagining a circle inside a square. ## Footnote This simplification leads to incorrect estimates.
82
What common mistake do people make when asked how much an eraser costs if a pencil and eraser together cost $1.10 and the pencil costs one dollar more?
Most respond instinctively with ten cents. ## Footnote The correct answer is that the eraser costs five cents.
83
How do visual cues affect attribute substitution in optical illusions?
Three-dimensional cues can distort the perceived size and color of figures. ## Footnote This affects how we interpret images, leading to incorrect judgments.
84
What role does culture play in attribution?
Culture influences the types of attributions made by individuals. ## Footnote Individualist cultures tend to make more dispositional attributions, while collectivist cultures make more situational attributions.
85
What is the primacy effect?
The tendency to remember the first items in a list better than subsequent items. ## Footnote This effect demonstrates how initial information can influence perception.
86
What is the recency effect?
The tendency to remember the most recent items in a list better than earlier items. ## Footnote This effect indicates that the latest information can have a strong impact on memory.
87
What is the halo effect?
The tendency to let an overall impression of a person influence judgments about their specific traits. ## Footnote For example, if someone is likable, we may assume they are also competent.
88
What is the just-world hypothesis?
The belief that people get what they deserve and deserve what they get. ## Footnote This idea can lead to victim-blaming.
89
What is self-serving bias?
The tendency to attribute positive outcomes to dispositional factors and negative outcomes to situational factors. ## Footnote This bias helps protect self-esteem.

Dr. Hung's Kaplan MCAT Decks (24 decks)

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