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AP Psychology (Class) > Motivation > Flashcards

Flashcards in Motivation Deck (39)
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-A need or desire that energizes and directs behavior
-Anything that drives you to a behavior


Why do people engage in a behavior?

1. Instinct
2. Drive Reduction
3. Optimum Arousal
4. Hierarchy of Needs



-A complex behavior that is rigidly patterned throughout a species and is unlearned
-Outlived it's usefulness
-Does not really explain human behavior


Drive Reduction

-Idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state (drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy a need
-Ex: need for food, water--> drive (hunger, thirst)--> drive-reducing (eating, drinking)



-Positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior
-How we are pushed by our psychological needs and pulled by incentives in the environment
-Grocery shopping when hungry--> buying more food



-physiological aim of drive reduction
-tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state
-Regulation of any aspect of body chemistry


Optimum Arousal

-People are motivated to reach an optimal state of alertness or stimulation
-More than homeostatic systems


Hierarchy of Needs Levels

1. Physiological--> food water
2. Safety--> shelter, financial security
3. Belongingness and love--> finding people with whom you love
4. Esteem--> achievement (recognized for contributions)
5. Self-actualization--> fulfilling full potential "true purpose"



-Hierarchy of Needs
-How we prioritize our needs/motivations
-Dictates what type of behavior we engage in and when
-Lower levels need to be met before higher levels
-Progress in stages


Minnesota Starvation Experiment

-Ancel Keys
-Empirical (scientific) study of hunger
-Prep for end of WWII
-Guide efforts to help victims of famine in Europe and Asia
-36 volunteers (conscientious objectors)
-Went through 6 week period of semi-starvation
-Resulted in preoccupation w/ food, loss of interest in other things
**Shows Maslow's hierarchy


Stomach contractions

-Stomach contractions (Pangs) send signals to the brain, making us aware of our hunger


Washburn and Cannon

-Swallowed a balloon that measured stomach contractions
-Pressed a key each time he felt hungry
-Pangs overlapped with feeling of hunger


Follow-Up on Washburn's Experiment

-Stomach contractions occur at other times
-Removal of stomach doesn't remove the hunger drive
-Tsang: removed a rat's stomach, connected it to the esophagus for the small intestines, and the rats still felt hungry and ate food



-Best psychological basis for hunger (creates hunger drives)
-Levels of glucose in the blood are monitored by receptors (neurons) in the stomach, liver, and intestines
-Send signals to the hypothalamus in the brain
-Realtime feedback of blood chemistry
-Effected by what we eat


Lateral Hypothalamus

-Sides of hypothalamus
-Stimulation causes anger
-Drop in glucose triggers release of orexin
-Hunger creating hormone


Ventromedial Hypothalamus

-Lower/middle hypothalamus
-Stimulation causes satiety--> satisfaction/fullness


Hypothalamus and Hormones

-The hypothalamus monitors a number of hormones that are released hunger



-Orexin increase--> hypothalamus--> increases hunger
-Ghrelin increase--> Stomach--> increase hunger
-Insulin increase--> pancreas--> increase hunger
-Leptin increase--> fat cells--> decrease hunger
-PPY increase--> digestive tract--> decrease hunger


Set Point

-How our body regulates hunger and weight
-Point at which our body feels comfortable (shapewise) --rate of metabolism
-Manipulating the lateral and the Ventromedial hypothalamus alters the body's "weight thermostat"
-Heredity influences the set point and body type
-Weight lost, food intake increases and energy expenditure decrease
-Weight gained= opposite


Psychology of Hunger

-Memory plays an important role in hunger
-Due to difficulty w/ retention, amnesia patients eat frequently when given food
-Eat due to: time of day or place where u usually eat increases hunger, tastes can lead to feeling full or satisfied --> food less yummy at end of meal (sensory adaptation)


Taste Preference

-Body chemistry and environmental factors influence not only when we feel hungry but what we are hungry for
-Taste preference are influenced by culture
-What we have been grown up eating
-Ex: hot cultures like hot spices


Obesity and Weight Control

-Fat is an ideal form of stored energy and is readily available if needed
-In times of famine, an overweight body was a sign of affluence


Unit Bias

-Idea of what a serving size in
-Portions in USA: different from other areas of world
-Larger meals



-Determined by fat% of BMI (body mass index, measured by weight and height)
-Obesity increases the risk for health issues
-Cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, back problems


World Health Organization

-Estimates 1 billion people= overweight
-300 million= clinically obese (BMI 30 or more)
-34% of USA= obese
-Childhood obesity is increasing


Body Mass Index

-Obesity in children increases their risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, gallstones, arthritis, and certain types of cancer
-Shortens life expectancy
-Physical fitness isn't determined by BMI and vice versa


Obesity and Mortality

-The death rate is high among very overweight men
-Where someone carries their weight is important
-Apple shape (stomach)= negative effects
-Pear shape (hips, thighs)= less negative effects


Social Effects on Obesity

-Weight discrimination
-When women applicants were made to look overweight, subjects were less willing to hire them (rated negative way)
-Less acceptable for women to be overweight, than men


Regina Pingitore

-Pretend to apply for jobs
-Went as themselves, healthy weight and actors overweight
-How would this effect hire-ability
-Much less worthy of being hired
-Weight has an effect on pay (7,000 less)


Additional obesity effects

-Increased rates of depression
-Decreased wellbeing and little satisfaction