Unit 8

Question 1

motivation

Answer 1

a need or desire that energizes and directs behavior.

Question 2

instinct

Answer 2

a complex, unlearned behavior that is rigidly patterned throughout a species.

Question 3

drive-reduction theory

Answer 3

the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state (a drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy the need.

Question 4

homeostasis

Answer 4

a tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state; the regulation of any aspect of body chemistry, such as blood glucose, around a particular level.

Question 5

incentive

Answer 5

a positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior.

Question 6

Yerkes-Dodson law

Answer 6

the principle that performance increases with arousal only up to a point, beyond which performance decreases.

Question 7

hierarchy of needs

Answer 7

Maslow’s pyramid of human needs, beginning at the base with physiological needs that must first be satisfied before higher-level safety needs and then psychological needs become active.

Question 8

glucose

Answer 8

the form of sugar that circulates in the blood and provides the major source of energy for body tissues. When its level is low, we feel hunger.

Question 9

set point

Answer 9

the point at which an individual’s “weight thermostat” is supposedly set. When the body falls below this weight, an increase in hunger and a lowered metabolic rate may act to restore the lost weight.

Question 10

basal metabolic rate

Answer 10

the body’s resting rate of energy expenditure.

Question 11

sexual response cycle

Answer 11

the four states of sexual responding described by Masters and Johnson - excitement, plateau, orgasm, and resolution.

Question 12

refractory period

Answer 12

a resting period after orgasm, during which a man cannot achieve another orgasm.

Question 13

Estrogen

Answer 13

sex hormones, such as estradiol, secreted in greater amounts by females than by males and contributing to female sex characteristics. In nonhuman mammals, estrogen levels peak during ovulation, promoting sexual receptivity.

Question 14

testosterone

Answer 14

the most important of the male sex hormones. Both males and females have it, but the additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth of the male sex organs in the fetus and the development of male sex characteristics during puberty.

Question 15

emotion

Answer 15

a response of the whole organism, involving (1) physiological arousal, (2) expressive behaviors, and (3) conscious experience.

Question 16

James-Lange theory

Answer 16

the theory that our experience of emotion is our awareness of our physiological responses to emotion-arousing stimuli.

Question 17

Cannon-Bard theory

Answer 17

the theory that an emotion-arousing stimulus simultaneously triggers (1) physiological responses and (2) the subjective experience of emotion.

Question 18

two-factor theory

Answer 18

the Schachter-Singer theory that to experience emotion one must (1) be physically aroused and (2) cognitively label the arousal.

Question 19

polygraph

Answer 19

a machine, commonly used in attempts to detect lies, that measures several of the physiological responses (such as perspiration and cardiovascular and breathing changes) accompanying emotion.

Question 20

facial feedback effect

Answer 20

the tendency of facial muscle states to trigger corresponding feelings such as fear, anger, or happiness.

Question 21

health psychology

Answer 21

a subfield of psychology that provides psychology’s contribution to behavioral medicine.

Question 22

stress

Answer 22

the process by which we perceive and respond to certain events, called stressors, that we appraise as threatening or challenging.

Question 23

general adaptation syndrome (GAS)

Answer 23

Selye’s concept of the body’s adaptive response to stress in three phases—alarm, resistance, exhaustion.

Question 24

tend and befriend response

Answer 24

under stress, people (especially women) often provide support to others (tend) and bond with and seek support from others (befriend).

Question 25

psychoneuroimmunology

Answer 25

the study of how psychological, neural, and endocrine processes together affect the immune system and resulting health.

Question 26

lymphocytes

Answer 26

the two types of white blood cells that are part of the body's immune system: B lymphocytes form in the bone marrow and release antibodies that fight bacterial infections; T lymphocytes form in the thymus and other lymphatic tissue and attack cancer cells, viruses, and foreign substances.;

Question 27

coronary heart disease

Answer 27

the clogging of the vessels that nourish the heart muscle; the leading cause of death in many developed countries.

Question 28

Type A

Answer 28

Friedman and Rosenman's term for competitive, hard-driving, impatient, verbally aggressive, and anger-prone people.

Question 29

Type B

Answer 29

Friedman and Rosenman's term for easygoing, relaxed people.

Question 30

obesity

Answer 30

defined as a body mass index (BMI) measurement of 30 or higher. (Overweight individuals have a BMI of 25 or higher.)

Question 31

physiological need

Answer 31

a basic bodily requirement

Question 32

asexual

Answer 32

having no sexual attraction to others;

Question 33

affiliation needs

Answer 33

the need to build relationships and to feel part of a group

Question 34

ostracism

Answer 34

deliberate social exclusion of individuals or groups

Question 35

narcissism

Answer 35

excessive self-love and self-absorption

Question 36

catharsis

Answer 36

in psychology, the idea that "releasing" aggressive energy (through action or fantasy) relieves aggressive urges

Question 37

aerobic exercise

Answer 37

sustained exercise that increases heart and lung fitness; may also alleviate depression and anxiety

Question 38

mindfulness meditation

Answer 38

a reflective practice in which people attend to current experiences in a nonjudgmental and accepting manner

Question 39

feel-good, do-good phenomenon

Answer 39

people's tendency to be helpful when already in a good mood

Question 40

positive psychology

Answer 40

the scientific study of human flourishing, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive

Question 41

subjective well-being

Answer 41

self-perceived happiness or satisfaction with life. Used along with measures of objective well-being (for example, physical and economic indicators) to evaluate people's quality of life.

Question 42

adaptation-level phenomenon

Answer 42

our tendency to form judgments (of sounds, of lights, of income) relative to a neutral level defined by our prior experience

Question 43

relative deprivation

Answer 43

the perception that one is worse off relative to those with whom one compares oneself

Question 44

achievement motivation

Answer 44

a desire for significant accomplishment: for mastery of things, people, or ideas; for attaining a high standard

Question 45

grit

Answer 45

in psychology, grit is passion and perseverance in the pursuit of long-term goals

Question 46

behavior feedback effect

Answer 46

the tendency of behavior to influence our own and others' thoughts, feelings, and actions

Question 47

approach-approach conflict

Answer 47

Conflict that results from having to choose between two attractive alternatives

Question 48

approach-avoidance conflict

Answer 48

A conflict in which there are both appealing and negative aspects to the decision to be made.

Question 49

avoidance-avoidance conflict

Answer 49

conflict occurring when a person must choose between two undesirable goals

Question 50

Abraham Maslow

Answer 50

Humanistic psychologist known for his "Hierarchy of Needs" and the concept of "self-actualization"

Question 51

Alfred Kinsey

Answer 51

regarded by some as the father of the scientific study of human sexuality. Published a series of reports which described common sexual behaviors in the US

Question 52

William Masters

Answer 52

along with his colleague, Virginia Johnson, used direct observation and experimentation to study sexual response cycle (4 stages)

Question 53

Virginia Johnson

Answer 53

documented the sexual response cycle in men and women in stages with William Masters

Question 54

William James

Answer 54

along with Carl Lange he proposed that our experience of emotion is our awareness of our physiological responses to an emotion-arousing stimulus; stimulus -> arousal -> emotion

Question 55

Walter Cannon

Answer 55

He along with Philip Bard concluded that our bodily responses and experienced emotions occur separately but simultaneously

Question 56

Stanley Schachter

Answer 56

he along with Jerome Singer demonstrated that how we appraise or interpret our emotions also matters. Created two-factor theory of emotion: to experience emotion one must be physically aroused and cognitively label the arousal

Question 57

Robert Zajonc

Answer 57

he along with Joseph LeDoux believed that some emotional responses are immediate before any conscious appraisal

Question 58

Robert LeDoux

Answer 58

he along with Robert Zajonc believed that some emotional responses are immediate before any conscious appraisal

Question 59

Richard Lazarus

Answer 59

American psychologist who concluded that some emotional responses do not require conscious thought

Question 60

Paul Ekman

Answer 60

theory that facial expressions are universal

Question 61

Hans Selye

Answer 61

A psychologist that created the general adaptation syndrome theory.

Question 62

Martin Seligman

Answer 62

researcher known for work on learned helplessness and learned optimism as well as positive psychology