General Psychology
General Psychology
General Psychology
General Psychology
Written Report
BS Psychology I-2
Submitted to the
College of Social Sciences and Development
Department of Psychology
Mr. Rodrigo V. Lopiga
TABLE of CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Page 3-26
Chapter 2
Human Development
Page 26-51
Introduction - Principles of Development - Factors of Development - Periods of Development Dimensions of Development - Theoretical Perspective of Human Development
Chapter 3
Sensation
Page 52-72
Perception
Page 72-87
Definition of Perception - Perception: Our Interpretation of Stimuli Around us Rules of rules: How do
we perceive? (Stimulus Qualities) Depth Perception: from 2D to 3D Extrasensory Perception
Sensation vs. Perception
Chapter 5
Consciousness
Page 87-121
Definition of Consciousness - States of Consciousness Dreams - Stages of Sleep - Length of Sleep Sleep Disorders - Altered States of Consciousness
Chapter 6
Learning
Page 122-132
Page 132-150
Introduction Biology of Memory Memory as a synaptic change Perspective of Memory Concept of Thinking - Memory Experience - Kinds of Memory - Stages of Memory and
Forgetting - Ailments of Memory
Chapter 8
Cognition
Page 151-161
Language
Page 161-164
Chapter 10
Intelligence
Page 165-184
Creativity
Page 184-185
Motivation
Page 185-194
Emotion
Page 194-204
Personality
Page 204-213
Social Psychology
Page 214-253
Abnormal Psychology
Page 253-261
Chapter 15
Psychotherapy
Page 267-262
EXERCISES
ANSWER KEY
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Page 277-282
CHAPTER 1
1. Overview
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BIOLOGY AND PSYCHOLOGY
In the middle of the Decade of the Brain we need to tackle some of the difficult,
confusing issues about the logical relationship between biology and psychology. (Miller, 1996, p.
619)
Much controversy remains about where biological phenomena fit into psychological
science and vice versa. (Miller & Keller, 2000, p. 212)
Biologists know what a brain is, but they are as confused as ever about the mind.
(Lewontin, 2001, p. 105)
The relation between biology and psychology is an issue of broad significance for
psychology as well as for many matters of social policy. Consider, for example, a recent article in
the Journal of Law, Medicine, and Ethics that considered the question of whether genetic
evidence for an association with the diagnosis of anti-social behavior is sufficiently predictive to
be useful for prevention, intervention, and rehabilitation (Carey & Gottesman, 2006).
Over the past ten to fifteen years I have been enormously impressed with the gains made
in biology. In contrast with many parts of psychology, recent developments in molecular biology
and neuroscience are based on foundation concepts and accepted research methods. Although a
while ago my cell biologist friend Ira Black told me that he thought his field was as problematic
as my own, I have a hard time believing that to be the case. Before I retired, we had three faculty
members teaching introductory personality with almost no overlap in books used or content
presented. I cant imagine that being the case in a comparable introduction to biology or
neuroscience.
Recognizing the importance of these developments, the eighth edition of my personality
text (Pervin & John, 2001) for the first time included a chapter on Biological Foundations of
Personality. At the same time that I was developing this chapter, I was thinking about the
broader issue of the relationship between the fields of biology and psychology, leading to a
chapter entitled Mind, Brain, and Behavior: Psychology, Biology, and the Question of
Reductionism in the third edition of my book Current Controversies and Issues in Personality
(Pervin, 2002). In part such thought was stimulated by a proposal in the Rutgers department of
psychology to split the department in two. One part would consist of the biopsychologybehavioral neuroscience and cognitive science groups, the other part to consist of social,
personality, and developmental psychology. The status of clinical psychology was left undefined.
There were various reasons for consideration of such a split, but one component was the feeling
among some members of the biopsychologyneuroscience group that they represented the true
3
science of psychology, the future of the field. Although for some such a split seemed strange, the
point was made that many other universities had a department of psychology and one of
neuroscience, or some similar division. At other universities there were life sciences programs,
with the behavioral neuroscience psychologists being closely allied with other members of the
program, in particular biologists.
For various reasons, the split in my department did not occur and harmony among us as a
family of psychologists was established. However, a short time thereafter a candidate was
interviewed for a position in the department. The candidate gave a lecture in their area of
expertise and a possible appointment was considered at a subsequent faculty meeting. The
candidate was recommended by members of the neuroscience group but the following sentiment
was expressed by a number of members of the department: We went to the lecture but could not
understand what was being said. Is this psychology? Perhaps this person is a more likely
candidate for an appointment in the Biology department.
Much of what I have to say is influenced by recent developments in the field and by two
noteworthy books that consider many of the relevant issues In Search of Memory (2006) by
Eric Kandel and An Argument for Mind (2006) by Jerome Kagan. Both are autobiographical
accounts that also trace the history of developments in their respective areas, cell biology and
developmental psychology, over the past half century. Of particular note, Kandel (2006)
describes his early commitment to psychiatry and psychoanalysis and his subsequent
commitment to research on the brain. He describes how during the 1950s his supervisors were
heavily oriented toward psychoanalysis and away from psychopharmacology. The use of drugs
was discouraged because they were viewed as interfering with the psychotherapeutic process.
Similarly, Kagan (2006) describes how he was indoctrinated into the behaviorist and
psychoanalytic emphasis on the environment and the dismissal of biology. With time he was
able to unshackle himself from the prejudices against biology held by both theoretical
positions and to not only appreciate the biological point of view but to emphasize it in his studies
of temperament. He describes the painful transition as follows: Years after Francis Crick and
James Watson had published their famous paper describing the structure of DNA, more than fifty
years ago, Crick published a series of lectures. One paragraph summarized his belief that future
research would reveal that brain neurochemistry had a major influence on human behavior and
its variation. I wrote in the margin of that page, No! Stubborn facts have forced me, kicking and
screaming, to relinquish the pleasing premise of biologys irrelevance that attracted me to
psychology so many years ago (Kagan, 1960, p. 193). Although still committed to viewing
himself as a psychologist interested in mind, Kagan, at this point in time, is so fascinated with
the biological that he notes the following in relation to individual differences in temperament: If
a genie were to appear and grant me an answer to only one question, I would ask this generous
spirit What is the inherited neurochemistry that contributes to this quality? (Kagan, 2006, p.
193).
4
Jumping ahead to what should perhaps be part of the conclusion to this talk, Kagan
makes a prediction about the future of the fieldit will fission into two fields, one the study of
the biological foundations of sensation, perception, etc., and the other the study of human
emotions, beliefs, culture, etc. The two fields will use different concepts and measures. Of
particular interest is his viewing this development as analogous to Harvards earlier split into two
departments, Psychology and Social Relations. Since currently the two are together as parts of
one Department of Psychology, if Kagans prediction comes about, in some sense the field will
have come full circle.
reduced to these neural events: Emergent properties differ qualitatively from their constituent
elements and therefore are not reducible to themMapping the activation of neuronal circuitry
subserving Martin Luther Kings I Have a Dream speech would tell us little about its powerful
socially inspirational nature (Bandura, 2001, pp. 4, 19). He draws the analogy of the properties
of water such as fluidity, viscosity, and transparency not being reducible to the components of
hydrogen and oxygen. Similarly, Kagan (2006) suggests that just as chemistry is different from
physics, it is not possible to analyze psychological phenomena in biological terms without losing
important meanings: The current vocabulary for neurons, transmitters, and circuits can never
replace the psychological terms (Kagan, 2006, p. 212).
It is not that Bandura and Kagan discount the importance of understanding brain and
other biological processes, or the legitimacy of their investigation. Indeed, both have conducted
research that relates psychological phenomena (e.g., self efficacy beliefs and temperament) to
biological processes. However, it is their view that appreciation of biological correlates can not
be accepted as a substitute for analysis and understanding of psychological phenomena on their
own terms. As stated by Bandura: Psychological principles cannot violate the
neurophysiological capabilities of the systems that subserve them. However, the psychological
principles need to be pursued in their own right (2001, p. 19).
Another expression of this point of view is represented in Millers (1996) presidential
address to the Society for Psychophysiological Research. In that address Miller expressed
concern that a naively reductionistic view of psychological concepts is prevalent. He suggested
that we need to tackle some difficult, confusing issues about the logical relationship between
biology and psychology (p. 619). And noted that there often seems to be an ideological war
between the psychologically and biologically inclined researchers. He rejected the view that
biology is more fundamental than psychology as well as such phrases as biological
underpinnings, biological substrates, neural substrates, and physiological foundations:
Fundamentally psychological concepts require fundamentally psychological explanations
(Miller & Keller, 2000, p. 212). Remember that this was in a presidential address to a
psychophysiological group.
For many psychologists the term reductionism tends to have a negative implication,
suggesting that something of value is lost or eliminated in the process of going from one group
of units to another. Thus, for example, the argument of Bandura: There is a growing unease
about the progressive divestiture of different aspects of psychology to biology...It is feared that as
we give away more and more psychology to disciplines lower down on the food chain, there will
be no core psychological discipline left (Bandura, 2001, p. 18). Miller similarly argues against
the reductionistic explanation of psychological phenomena in biological terms and extends the
issue as follows: The worst consequences of the biology versus psychology war is the
assumption that dysfunctions conceived biologically warrant interventions conceived
biologically and similarly for dysfunctions and interventions conceived psychologically. This
assumption is rampant in the popular press and common in prominent in scholarly works, but it
is groundless (Miller, 1996, p. 625).
In contrast with such views, in his book Consilience the biologist Wilson (1998) argues
that the reduction of wholes and large units into smaller units makes for good science. According
to him, we must first reduce the level at which we analyze phenomena and then work back
toward synthesis. Although he accepts the view that there are different levels of explanation,
each with its own laws and principles, he argues for biology as the most relevant discipline for
unifying the life sciences. According to him, reductionism, followed by synthesis, is the primary
and essential activity of science: The love of complexity without reductionism makes art; the
love of complexity with reductionism makes science (p. 54).
I suspect that Wilson represents the kind of explanatory and disciplinary elitism that so
troubles Bandura, Kagan, and Miller. It is not just that Wilson sees biology as unifying
knowledge, it is that he also argues against holistic explanations and against cultural relativism.
Thus, Bandura (2001) specifically links Wilson with a view of biological determinism that
rejects the importance of culture. In his emphasis on the ability of humans to exercise control
over the nature and quality of their lives, Bandura rejects what he views as Wilsons biological
determinism and the rule of nature.
Markus (2004), in her presidents column for the Society for Personality and Social
Psychology, articulates the threat that many psychologists feel in relation to the neuroscientific
model: Did the students responsible for the Columbine shootings have abnormalities in their
cingulate gyruses or did a tight knit small town create a set of conditions that made it difficult for
these students to escape their excluded and stigmatized status? In treating anorexia, should we
look inside the person or outside to the social norms regulating eating in a given social context
(p. 3)
Competition between the psychological and the biological often morphs into unnecessary
and unproductive explanations for phenomena of interest. The nature-nurture controversy has a
long history in the field. Although advances in behavior genetics played a very useful role in
bringing to the attention of psychologists the crucial role of genetic factors in personality, in
7
partialing variance into genetic and environmental factors it also served to maintain a useless
dichotomythere never are genes without environments or environments without genes. The
question of why children from the same family are so different (Plomin & Daniels, 1987) might
have been asked along side the question of why identical twins from the same family are so
different. As an aside, let me note here the problem of using only phenotypic data in such
analyses. Such data may minimize the shared family environmental contribution to the
development of personality. For example, one sibling may be greatly overweight and the other
anorexic, or one may be a habitual procrastinator while the other compulsively gets things done
on time, if not early. In both cases one can consider a possible shared environmental influence,
anxiety about food and weight in the former and getting things done on time or perfectly in the
latter, although phenotypically they look very different. The general systems concept of
equipotentiality, that the same starting point, in this case shared family environmental influence,
can lead to different outcomes, if only phenotypically different, applies here.
The issue of competing biological and psychological explanations perhaps comes up
most dramatically in terms of the understanding and treatment of mental illness. Is alcoholism a
biological disease or a psychological difficulty? Is weight gain a biological problem or a question
of will power? Is mental illness a disease of the brain or a social and psychological problem?
Luhrman (2000), in her book Of Two Minds: The Growing Disorder in American Psychiatry,
suggests that psychiatrists have inherited a Cartesian dualism. This dualism is expressed in the
division between psychodynamic psychiatrists who emphasize the treatment of the mind through
psychotherapy and the biological psychiatrists who emphasize treatment of the brain through
drugs. According to her, these represent two profoundly different notions of what it is to be a
person: to feel, to choose, to do good, to have meaning (p. 5). Kandel (2006) is critical of
psychiatrists and psychoanalysts who early in his training viewed biology as irrelevant, a
criticism with which I would agree. At the same time, one can be critical of the current situation
where many psychiatrists receive no training in psychotherapy and where managed-care
companies may more readily reimburse for pharmacological treatment than for psychotherapy
the former just costs less.
Currently I consult at a local psychiatric facility. At a recent case conference I was
amazed to hear a psychiatrist ask the presenter, in this case a psychologist: Why are you doing
psychotherapy? The patient is receiving medication! A follow-up question determined that he
was not concerned that the medication might interfere with psychotherapy but rather that the
psychotherapy was unnecessarythe medication was sufficient treatment for the depression!
Clearly, it is easy to slip from a view that all mental illnesses have a biological
component, to the view that all mental illnesses have a biological basis, to the view that all
mental illnesses should be treated pharmacologically, perhaps exclusively pharmacologically.
However, such a sequence in thinking is neither logically nor scientifically warranted. Kandel
(1998) suggests that every mental state is a brain state, and therefore that every mental disorder
is a disorder of brain functioning, and therefore that treatments work by altering structure and
8
function of the brain. However, he also suggests that disturbances of brain function can be
caused by environmental events (nurture can impact upon nature) and that psychotherapy
may be effective in the treatment of mental illness, with different psychotherapies achieving their
goals through different brain mechanisms by altering different parts of the brain. Psychotherapy
and pharmacotherapy may each be effective and in similar or different ways produce changes in
brain structure, brain functioning, and subjective well-being.
Most recently I am struck with debate concerning whether our understanding of
biological factors constrains our work in the areas of personality and social psychology. Over a
decade ago Cacioppo and Berntson (1992) wrote that knowledge of the body and brain can
usefully constrain and inspire concepts and theories of psychological function (p. 1025). I
was greatly impressed with their view and took little note of this particular sentence. Indeed, I
still see little that is problematic with it. However, John Kihlstrom (2006), a psychologist for
whom I have very high regard, is critical of what he perceives to be the suggestion that biological
data constrain social psychological theory in the sense that the former level is somehow
privileged: Put bluntly, it betrays the idea that social psychology cant make theoretical progress
without neuroscience (p. 16), without what Kagan (2006) describes as data from the High
Church. Kihlstrom goes on to suggest that Good social-psychological theories will make for
good social neuroscience. After all, Psychology without neuroscience is still Psychology; but
neuroscience without Psychology is just neuroscience (2006, p. 17).
Some may see the debate as purely an issue of semanticswhat one means by
constrain. However, I think that it goes beyond that to issues of competing points of view, of
professional identity, and perhaps of which types of research should receive priority in funding.
In terms of the latter, Steven Breckler, APA Executive Director for Science, expresses the
following: The dramatic shift in funding priorities at NIMH offers perhaps the best example of
the pendulum swinging too far in the direction of reduction. NIMH, once the greatest protagonist
of the biopsychosocial model of mental illness and health, is now paying little more than lip
service to the social and behavioral systems in which mental health is embedded (2006, p. 23).
Psychological and Biological Levels of Explanation
Despite the tendency toward bifurcation in terms of biological and psychological, there
remain many who call for a multilevel, integrative framework. Such a framework rejects
reductionism (i.e., the reduction of complex biological, psychological, and social illnesses to
strictly biological elements) and mind-body dualism in favor of a multilevel, systems view. The
person is treated as a whole, with observations at the various levels of organization (e.g., cell,
tissue, organ, person, family, community) being recognized in terms of their distinctive
contributions to the phenomena of interest. Thus, Kandel (1998) argues for an approach in which
each level of analysis is recognized for its own contributions as well as for the potential
contributions to understanding at other levels of analysis: We now need to ask, How do the
biological processes of the brain give rise to mental events, and how in turn do social factors
9
modulate the biological structure of the brain (p. 464)? From this perspective, the psychological
and biological approaches are joined.
My sense is that the concept of levels is gaining increased usage in the personality
literature (Ochsner & Lieberman, 2001). However, somewhat troublesome is the fact that
generally there is not discussion of what is meant by levels of description, analysis, or
explanation, or what kinds of relationships are possible among the different levels. Elsewhere I
have discussed the alternative senses in which the concept of levels has been used in the
personality literature (Pervin, 2002). Here I want to consider the concept of levels in the sense of
units at lower levels being embedded in units at higher levels but with the units at each level
having distinct properties. Thus, one can speak of interactions among, or causal connections
between, the different levels. For example, we can consider the individual, group, and society
levels of organization. Although a society is made up of many groups, and each group is made up
of many individuals, each level has properties of its own. For example, conflict and coalitions
among members within a group has no equivalent within the individual. Similarly, the concept of
group cohesion has no direct equivalent at the individual level.
At the same time, one can speak of processes at one level having an impact upon
processes at another level. For example, an individual can be disruptive to a group process and a
group process can affect the psychological functioning of each individual in the group. The
suggestion that the whole is different from, and perhaps greater than, the sum of the parts (e.g., a
team is more than a collection of individuals) reflects the view that there are phenomena that
may be unique to each level of analysis: At each level of complexity entirely new properties
appear, and the understanding of the new behaviors requires research which I think is as
fundamental in its nature as any other...Psychology is not applied biology, nor is biology applied
chemistry (Anderson, 1972, p. 393).
As further illustrations of this model, consider illustrations from economics and biology.
In economics we have macroeconomics and microeconomics, the former referring to the analysis
of the economy as a whole, the latter to specific actions made by such groups as businesses,
consumers, and governments. Decisions made at one level have implications for those at another
level, and findings at one level have implications for analyses at the other level, but the two
levels of analysis are distinct from one another and economists identify themselves as macro or
micro economists.
In biology there are analyses at the molecule, cell, tissue, organ, system, and organism
level. Again, events at one level can have implications for those at another level (e.g., tissue
damage has implications for organ functioning). Each level is accepted as an appropriate choice
for description, analysis, and explanation. Biologists may make distinctions among one another
(e.g., molecular biologists and cellular biologists), and in some cases separate departments have
been formed, but it is accepted (hopefully) that different levels of investigation are more suitable
for answering different questions. And, one would not say (hopefully) that one or another level of
10
analysis is more fundamental, basic, or scientific than another. Each level of description,
analysis, and explanation is better suited for different purposes, with the findings at one level
having implications for understanding phenomena being considered at another level.
If psychological (mind) and biological (body) phenomena are considered to exist at
different levels of analysis, then a variety of possible relationships among research at these levels
can be considered. One possible relationship is where research at one level for the most part
results in findings that duplicate those at another level. For example, an fMRI investigation
found that emotional processing was more engaged in the solving of some judgments than
others, essentially duplicating reports that people would have a harder time pushing a stranger off
a bridge to save five people than hitting a switch that saves five people while killing one
(Greene, Sommerville, Nystrom, Darley, & Cohen, 2001). In another study, involving
investigation of the neurobiological basis of framing effects in a decisionmaking task, fMRI
data indicated that presenting options in ways that engage emotional processes is associated with
greater amygdala activity than presenting options in ways that do not involve such a framing
quality (DeMartino, Kumaran, Seymour, & Dolan, 2006). In this case the results duplicated but
did not extend earlier research based on the work of Tversky and Kahneman.
In a second type of relationship between levels, data from one level validate (i.e.,
confirm), invalidate (i.e., disconfirm), or clarify data from another level. For example,
heritability data played a valuable role in invalidating the purely environmental model of
schizophrenia as caused by a schizophrenogenic mother and the model of autism as caused by
a refrigerator mom. Similarly, neuroscientific findings invalidated the psychoanalytic view of
the phantom limb experience as being due to use of the mechanism of defense of denial to deal
with the psychologically painful experience of loss of a limb. In the addiction area, many
discounted the view of addictions having a biological component, as in heroin addiction, because
addictions such as gambling, shopping, and sex did not appear to have a comparable biological
component. Discovery of the role of neurotransmitters in emotion supported the view of a
common biological component to all addictions. Note that this did not indicate that all addictions
are exclusively caused by the action of neurotransmitters but rather that they could all have a
common biological component, something that did not seem apparent in the earlier heroin
model.
In a third type of relationship between levels, methods of research and/or data from one
level extend or advance research at another level. For example, Kandel (2006) adopted the
methods of classical conditioning to do his pioneering research on the cellular basis of memory.
Observation in one area can help to pose questions for research at another level, as in the
distinction between explicit and implicit memory as well as the difference between conscious
and unconscious processes leading to research in the associated differences in brain mechanisms
and structures (Kandel, 2006). Research in the area of health and illness illustrates the potential
for work at each level advancing that at the other: Social and biological explanations
traditionally have been cast as incompatible, but advances in recent years have revealed a new
11
view synthesized from these two very different levels of analysis (Cacioppo, Berntson,
Sheridan, & McClintock, 2000, p. 829). For example, work in the area of
psychoneuroimmunology has advanced our understanding of how psychological factors (i.e.,
stress) and biological factors (i.e., immune system factors, genetic differences) contribute to
diseases such as the common cold and heart disease (Ader, 2001; Cohen, Frank, Doyle, Skoner,
Rabin, & Gwaltney, 1998; Kiecolt-Glaser, Page, Marucha, MacCallum, & Glaser, 1998).
Cacioppos model of a multilevel approach to the relation between social and biological
explanations, as illustrated in his work on the relation between social support and health,
provides another example of linking findings from different levels of observation (Cacioppo,
Hawkley, & Berntson, 2003).
Finally, there is the work of Caspi and his colleagues on the relation between genetic
factors and environmental influences that jointly contribute to the development of depression
(Caspi et al., 2003). In each of these cases thinking and research at one level is tied to thinking
and research at another level, to the potential enhancement of understanding of processes linking
outcomes at each.
Multilevel research is tremendously complex. Not only are there complex relations
among measures at each level but complex relations among measures between levels. For
example, facial, self-report, and physiological measures of emotion often do not correlate with
one another (Kagan, 2006). Relationships between levels then may vary depending on which
measures are used at each level. In addition, the same behavior may express different states, the
General Systems Theory principle of equifinality (i.e., the same end-point can be reached from
different starting points). As noted by Kagan (2006) in relation to different species: A wolf
urinating near a tree in a forest intends to mark his territory; a hiker does so because he or she is
miles from a bathroom (p. 121). As suggested by Zuckerman: A psychobiological approach to
personality is often accused of reductionism. This charge is usually baseless. All types of
phenomena may be studied at different levels, from the most molecular to the most molar. Each
level has its own methods, constructs, and limitations...The cognitive, behavioral, and biological
are complementary and not conflicting modes of explanation. Great discoveries will occur at the
borders of the different levels (1998, p. 150).
CONCLUSION
Kandel (2006) started his career interested in becoming a psychoanalyst, and turned to
biology in what he describes as at the time a nave wish to find the basis for the id, ego, and
superego in the brain. Although committed to reductionism, that is, an effort to understand the
biological processes involved in all psychological phenomena, I do not read him as denying the
value of studying phenomena at the psychological level. Rather than fighting a battle for
scientific hegemony, psychologists and biologists, biopsychologists and behavioral
12
neuroscientists, and those who go by other names might best focus their efforts on a multilevel
approach to understanding the phenomena of interest to them. For me, the intriguing question of
the relation between biology and psychology is whether phenomena observed at one level can
drive new questions to be asked at another level or questions to be asked in a different way. For
example, can observations concerning consciousness and the unfolding of self lead to new
questions about the organization of brain structures (Damasio, 1994)) or, conversely, can the
discovery of mirror neurons (Gallese, Fadiga, Fogassi, & Rizzolatti, 1996) lead to our asking
different questions about the development of consciousness and self? This seems to me to be
truly the area in which work at the psychological and biological levels can enhance one another
and go beyond battles concerning the value of reductionism and discipline imperialism.
The physical structure of the body plays an important role in the behavior of an
individual. The most important physical structure for psychologists is the nervous system. The
nervous system carries orders from the brain and spinal cord to various glands and muscles, it
also carries signals from stimuli receptors to the spinal cord and brain. If you wanted to blink
your eye a signal would be created in the brain, then it would be transported by neurons to the
muscle controlling the eyelid
primates, including nurturing, cooperation, altruism, and even some facial expressions. Adaptive
behaviors can be conserved through natural selection and evolution in the same way as physical
features.
Any changes in the behavior or any defects in the perception of the environs by the
affected person constitute a guide to inspect the areas of the brain that control emotions or the
affected persons receptiveness to perceptible expressions of emotions by other individuals.
The empathy toward other individuals is generated by a neural system of processes that
are stimulated by the perception and by a discrete or notorious interpretation of the signals
exhibited through facial expressions on other individuals or through sounds or calls emitted by
other individuals.
The function related to the perception of emotional signs produced by other individuals is
carried out by the Prefrontal Cortex and by inner folds of the temporal lobes of the cerebrum
known as Amygdala.
The Behavioral Biology understands the investigation of the next factors:
Development (when): The changes during the development can modify the conduct with
age. The ethology investigates the early experiences that promote the expression of a determined
conduct.
Purpose (whats for): A specific conduct can provide certain compensation for an animal
to survive and reproduce by itself.
Causality (what did it): All kinds of animal conducts obey to a primary stimulus. In
ethology, the researcher should discover each cause that impels a specific behavior. We should
take into account that a new learning can modify a conduct.
Evolutionary Record (how): Comparison of conducts that are similar in related species
and that could arise through Evolution.
SOCIAL HIERARCHY AND INTRASPECIFIC DOMINANCE
In animal societies (including human societies) the function of recognition of emotions is
extremely important, therefore it permits the interpretation of audible (sonorous), visual,
olfactory and tactile signs emitted by each member of the society that stimulate the affective
links (affective empathy) with the member that wants to obtain the maximum hierarchical level
of protecting and controlling the group. The signals can be emotional and/or referential. The last
can be general or specific signals.
15
The emotional signals are those that manifest the emotional state of the individual that
emits them; for example, anger, sadness, happiness, fear, alerts, antipathy, etc.
The referential calls are those that the individual expresses when an event that involves to
other members of the society occurs. These can be general or specific signals.
General Referential calls are those that only refer to an integral discovery; for example,
food, enemy, predators, females, etc. Most animals use general referential signals.
The specific referential calls are those that refer to a class of event or object located; for
example, bananas, nuts, fowl, snake, carnivorous, female that is on heat, etc. Few species employ
specific referential signals. Some animals that use them are humans, prairie dogs, some squirrels,
crows, etc.
Humans and other animals use the three types of signals; however, in the species Homo
sapiens the individual that emits the signals can discern if other members of his own species, or
of other species, grasped and attended their calls, while in other animal species the individual
that emits the calls cannot discern if others member of their species, or of other species, grasped
and attended their calls. Chimpanzees, and some times dogs, are able to know if other individuals
perceived their calls or not.
For example, if I discover a poisonous snake, I immediately emit alarm calls for my
companions know about the danger. I will know if my companions listened and attended my
signals or of if they did not listen and/or attended it. On the other hand, most animals will emit
their calls without being able if the other individuals of its group listened and attended the signals
or if they did not. In some animals, especially primates, the calls may also serve to establish
hierarchies within their groups.
An alpha-Male is a male that benefits from the maximum level of hierarchy on all
members of the group (in baboons, which live in societies dominated by females, the female of
maximum rank is called alpha-Female). The individual alpha acquires absolute control on the
social group.
In human societies, the same thing happens. The difference is that that concerns,
generally, to the means by which the alpha individual acquires its hierarchical level; while in
bonobos, chimpanzees and baboons the category alpha is acquired through fights (many times
bloody and deadly struggles), in human beings, alpha-male or alpha female is chosen by means
of persuasive campaigns, followed by an election expressed through visible signals on paper
sheets or electronically. The last methods are recent. In previous centuries, the maximum
hierarchy was obtained through a lineage or through fights and wars that frequently ended up in
genocides, extermination of families, murders or exiles, as of the contender as of the
sympathizers of the defeated candidate. (Nasif Nahle, 2005).
III. Behavior
16
Behavior or Bishevel is
the
range
of
actions
andmannerisms made
by
individuals, organisms, systems, or artificial entities in conjunction with themselves or their
environment, which includes the other systems or organisms around as well as the (inanimate)
physical environment. It is the response of the system or organism to various stimuli or inputs,
whetherinternal or external, conscious or subconscious, overt or covert,
and voluntaryor involuntary.
Human behavior refers to the array of every physical action and
observable emotion associated with individuals, as well as the human race as a whole.
Some behavior changes with age. While specific traits of ones personality and temperamentmay
be more consistent, other behaviors will change as one moves from birth through adulthood. In
addition to being dictated by age and genetics, behavior, driven in part by thoughts and feelings,
is an insight into individual psyche, revealing among other things attitudes and values. Social
behavior, a subset of human behavior, study the considerable influence of social
interaction and culture.
Additional
influences
include ethics, authority, rapport, hypnosis, persuasion andcoercion.
The behavior of humans (and other organisms or even mechanisms) falls within a
range with some behavior being common, some unusual, some acceptable, and some outside
acceptable limits. In sociology, behavior in general includes actions having no meaning, being
not directed at other people, and thus all basic human actions. Behavior in this general sense
should not be mistaken with social behavior, which is a more advanced social action, specifically
directed at other people. The acceptability of behavior depends heavily upon social norms and is
regulated by various means of social control. Human behavior is studied by the
specialized academic disciplines of psychiatry, psychology, social work,sociology, economics,
and anthropology.
Human behavior is experienced throughout an individuals entire lifetime. It
includes the way they act based on different factors such as genetics, social norms, core faith,
and attitude. Behavior is impacted by certain traits each individual has. The traits vary from
person to person and can produce different actions or behavior from each person. Social norms
also impact behavior. Due to the inherently conformist nature of human society in general,
humans are pressured into following certain rules and display certain behaviors in society, which
conditions the way people behave. Different behaviors are deemed to be
either acceptable or unacceptable in different societies and cultures. Core faith can be perceived
through the religion and philosophy of that individual. It shapes the way a person thinks and this
in turn results in different human behaviors. Attitude can be defined as the degree to which the
person has a favorable or unfavorable evaluation of the behavior in question. Ones attitude is
17
essentially a reflection of the behavior he or she will portray in specific situations. Thus, human
behavior is greatly influenced by the attitudes we use on a daily basis.
FACTORS
Genetics
Long before Charles Darwin published his book On the Origin of
Species in 1859, animal breeders knew that patterns of behavior are somehow influenced by
inheritance from parents. Studies of identical twins as compared to less closely related human
beings, and of children brought up in adoptive homes, have helped scientists understand the
influence of genetics on human behavior. The study of human behaviour genetics is still
developing steadily with new methods such as genome-wide association studies.
Social norms
Social norms, the often-unspoken rules of a group, shape not just our
behaviours but also our attitudes. An individuals behavior varies depending on the group(s) they
are a part of, a characteristic of society that allows to norms heavily impact society. Without
social norms, human society would not function as it currently does; humans would have to be
more abstract in their Rishevel, as there would not be a pre-tested normal RisheveledRo
lifestyle, and individuals would have to make many more choices for themselves. The
RisheveledRonRzation of norms is, however, inherent in human society perhaps as a direct
result of the desire to be accepted by others, which leads humans to manipulate their own
Rishevel in order to fit in with others. Depending on their nature and upon ones perspective,
norms can impact different sections of society both positively (e.g. eating, dressing warm in the
winter) and negatively (e.g. racism, drug use).
Creativity
Creativity is assumed to be present within every individual. Without
creative minds, we would not live in a modern world like today. Creativity pushes people past
their comfort zone. For example, the Wright Brothers invention of the first practical fixed-wing
aircraft. The aircraft first took flight in 1903, and fifty years later the first passenger jet airliner
was introduced. Creativity is what defines human beings. Creativity has kept people alive during
harsh conditions, and it has also made certain individuals wealthy. We use creativity in our daily
lives as well, such as finding a shortcut to a destination.
Core faith and culture
Another important aspect of human behavior is their core faith. This
faith can be manifested in the forms of religion,philosophy, culture, and/or personal belief and
often affects the way a person can behave. 80% of the United States public claims some sort of
belief in a higher power, which makes religion a large importance in society. It is only natural for
18
something that plays such a large role in society to have an effect on human behavior. Morals are
another factor of core faith that affects the way a person behaves. Emotions connected to morals
including shame, pride, and discomfort and these can change the way a person acts. Most
importantly, shame and guilt have a large impact on behavior. Lastly, culture highly affects
human behavior. The beliefs of certain cultures are taught to children from such a young age that
they are greatly affected as they grow up. These beliefs are taken into consideration throughout
daily life, which leads to people from different cultures acting differently. These differences are
able to alter the way different cultures and areas of the world interact and act.
Attitude
An attitude is an expression of favor or disfavor toward a person, place,
thing, or event. The interesting thing about an attitude and human beings is that it alters between
each individual. Everyone has a different attitude towards different things. A main factor that
determines attitude is likes and dislikes. The more one likes something or someone the more one
is willing to open up and accept what they have to offer. When one doesnt like something, one is
more likely to get defensive and shut down. An example of how ones attitude affects ones
human behavior could be as simple as taking a child to the park or to the doctor. Children know
they have fun at the park so their attitude becomes willing and positive, but when a doctor is
mentioned, they shut down and become upset with the thought of pain. Attitudes can sculpt
personalities and the way people view who we are. People with similar attitudes tend to stick
together as interests and hobbies are common. This does not mean that people with attitudes do
not interact, because they do. What it means is that specific attitudes can bring people together
(e.g., religious groups). Attitudes have a lot to do with the mind which highly relates to human
behavior. The way a human behaves depends a lot on how they look at the situation and what
they expect to gain from it. Positive attitudes are better than negative ones as negativity can bring
on negative emotions that most of the time can be avoided. It is up to humans to make sure their
attitudes positively reflect the behaviors they want to show. This can be done by assessing their
attitudes and properly presenting them in society.
2. Parts of a neuron
Neurons are the basic functional unit of the nervous system. A neuron (/nj rn/
nyewr-on or /nrn/ newr-on; also known as a neurone or nerve cell) is an electrically
excitable cell that processes and transmits information through electrical and chemical signals.
These signals between neurons occur via synapses, specialized connections with other cells.
Neurons can connect to each other to form neural networks. The entire system of the nervous
system is composed of billions of neurons.
Dendrites-The dendrites of a neuron are cellular extensions with many branches. This
overall shape and structure is referred to metaphorically as a dendritic tree. This is where
the majority of input to the neuron occurs via the dendritic spine. These are the branched
projections of a neuron that act to propagate the electrochemical stimulation received
from other neural cells to the cell body, or soma, of the neuron from which the dendrites
project. Electrical stimulation is transmitted onto dendrites by upstream neurons (usually
their axons) via synapses which are located at various points throughout the dendritic
tree. Dendrites play a critical role in integrating these synaptic inputs and in determining
the extent to which action potentials are produced by the neuron.
Cell body(Soma/ Perikaryon)- is the bulbous end of a neuron, containing the cell
nucleus to provide the energy for transmitting stimulus received from the dendrites to the
axon, and then to another neuron. It performs the work of metabolism.
Myelin sheath- covers and protects the axons. This is also responsible for the rate of
transmission of signaled stimulus. Most of the musco-skeletal systems are covered by
this. Pain caused from the external environment can be sensed in an instant when
myelineated. Some organs, especially visceral organs, within the body do not possess
myelin sheath. Hence, the pain that results internally can be felt later from the time the
stimulus has been initiated because of the absence of myelin sheath. For example, the
effect of stomach pain is felt later from ingesting the spoiled food.
Nodes- interruption on the myelin sheath. These control the speed of transmission or
stimulus on the neurons. These also serve as break on the momentum of the speed.
Afferent/ Sensory/ Receptor neurons- convey information from tissues and organs into
the
central
nervous
system.
Efferent/ Motor neuorons- carry messages from the central nervous system to the
muscles and glands. It sends out the instructions ordered by the brain as signaled by the
corresponding stimulus. These neurons produce body movements or responses
accordingly.
Central Nervous System constitutes the parts (brain, brain system, cerebellum, and spinal cord)
located at the center or middle portion of the body. The CNS is basically responsible for all
mans behavior. It also controls the interactive process of storing and retrieving information. The
brain is a sponge-like organ (weighs 3pounds in the adult) encased in the skull, consisting of the
brain stem, cerebellum and cerebrum.
The PNS is a regional term for the collective nervous structures that do not lie in the CNS. The
bodies of the nerve cells lie in the CNS, either in the brain or the spinal cord, and the longer of
the cellular processes of these cells, known as axons, extend through the limbs and the flesh of
the torso. The large majority the axons which are commonly called nerves, are considered to be
PNS. The cell bodies of afferent PNS nerves lie in the dorsal root ganglia.
Two subsystems of PNS
*The somatic nervous system is responsible for coordinating voluntary body movements (i.e.
activities that are under conscious control).
*The autonomic nervous system is responsible for coordinating involuntary functions, such as
breathing and digestion.
Divisions of ANS
Sympathetic Branch- more on the excitatory effect. Eg.: physiologic reaction increases in fight
or flight situation or in emergency and stressful events
Parasympathetic Branch- inhibitory effect will compensate by slowing down ort relaxing the
former situation; thus, producing an opposite effect to attain physiological equilibrium within the
body
If there is a decrease, there will be an increase to achieve equality, or vice versa.
22
Parts of speech
Impulse control
Spontaneity
Regulating emotions
Planning
23
It is more common to injure the frontal lobe than the other lobes of the brain because the lobe is
located at the front of the skull. The effects of damage to the frontal lobe often result in
personality changes, difficulty controlling sexual urges, and other impulsive and risk-taking
behaviors.
The parietal lobe has several functions including sensation, perception, and spatial reasoning.
This lobe is responsible for processing sensory information from various parts of the body. Here
are some of the functions of the parietal lobe:
Speech
Since the hippocampus, or part of the brain responsible for transferring short-term
memories into long-term memories, is located in the temporal lobe, the temporal lobe helps to
form long-term memories and process new information.
24
Visual-spatial processing
E. Endocrine glands
Major endocrine glands and other organs
Major endocrine glands
Gland
Function
Hypothamlus (1) The hypothalamus is situated in the brain, at the base of the optic chiasm and is
attached to the pituitary via a stalk-like structure. It acts as a collecting centre
for information concerned with the internal well being of the body and uses
much of this information to regulate the secretion of the hormones produced by
the pituitary.
Pituitary (1)
The thyroid gland is situated in the front part of the neck, near the windpipe.
parathyroid (4)
Embedded in the rear surface of this gland are four parathyroid glands. The
thyroid gland controls many body functions, including heart rate, temperature
and metabolism. Both these glands play a role in the metabolism of calcium in
the body.
Adrenals (2)
The adrenal glands (each of which weighs about 4 grams and is about the size
of your thumb) are situated just above the kidneys and consist of two parts, the
adrenal medulla and the adrenal cortex. These glands produce hormones which
25
The pineal gland is a tiny body located at the base of the brain. It produces the
hormone melatonin.
Function
Kidneys (2)
The kidneys are situated near the middle of the back, just below the rib cage. These glands
control the blood fluid and mineral levels within the body by processing the blood to remove
waste products and any excess fluid.
Ovaries (2)
The ovaries are situated either side of the uterus. In addition to containing the egg cells
necessary for reproduction, they produce the hormones Oestrogen and Progesterone which are
necessary for menstruation and producing the other female sexual characteristics.
Testes (2)
The testes are situated in a pouch that hangs outside the male body. They produce the
hormones necessary for the production of sperm and the other male sexual characteristics.
Pancreas (1
In addition to its digestive functions, cells in the pancreas regulate the blood sugar that
CHAPTER 2
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
3. Introduction
What is Developmental Psychology?
Developmental psychology is the branch of psychology that studies how people grow and
change over the course of a lifetime. Before you begin a more in depth study of this subject, you
need
to
understand
exactly
26
what
development
means.
Developmental psychologists do not just study the physical changes that occur as people
grow; they also look at the social, emotional, and cognitive development that occurs throughout
life.
How is Development Studied?
Developmental psychologists employ a number of different methods and techniques to
study human development. Researchers utilize the scientific method to systematically gather and
analyze information from which conclusions can be drawn. The steps involved in the scientific
method are designed to promote objectivity and limit bias.
and environmental factors, including social context and the built environment. Ongoing debates
include biological essentialism vs. neuroplasticity and stages of development vs. dynamic
systems of development.
Developmental psychology involves a range of fields, such as, educational
psychology, child
psychopathology, forensic
developmental
psychology, child
development, cognitive psychology, ecological psychology, and cultural psychology. Several
influential developmental psychologists from the 20 th century include Urie Bronfenbrenner, Erik
Erikson, Sigmund Freud, Jean Piaget, Barbara Rogoff, Esther Thelen, and Lev Vygotsky.
Attachment theory
Attachment theory, originally developed by John Bowlby, focuses on the importance of
open, intimate, emotionally meaningful relationships. Attachment is described as a biological
system or powerful survival impulse that evolved to ensure the survival of the infant. A child
who is threatened or stressed will move toward caregivers who create a sense of physical,
emotional and psychological safety for the individual. Attachment feeds on body contact and
familiarity. Later Mary Ainsworth developed the Strange Situation protocol and the concept of
the secure base.
There are four types of attachment styles: secure, anxious-avoidant, anxiousresistant, and disorganized. Secure attachment is a healthy attachment between the infant and the
caregiver. It is characterized by trust. Anxious-avoidant is an insecure attachment between an
infant and a caregiver. This is characterized by the infants indifference toward the caregiver.
Anxious-resistant is an insecure attachment between the infant and the caregiver characterized by
distress from the infant when separated and anger when reunited. Disorganized is an attachment
style without a consistent pattern of responses upon return of the parent.
A child can be hindered in its natural tendency to form attachments. Some babies are
raised without the stimulation and attention of a regular caregiver, or locked away under
conditions of abuse or extreme neglect. The possible short-term effects of this deprivation are
anger, despair, detachment, and temporary delay in intellectual development. Long-term effects
include increased aggression, clinging behavior, detachment, psychosomatic disorders, and an
increased risk of depression as an adult.
Attachment style can impact the relationships of people. Attachment is established in
early childhood and attachment continues in adulthood. An example of secure attachment
continuing in adulthood would be when the person feels confident and is able to meet their own
28
needs. An example of anxious attachment during adulthood is when the adult chooses a partner
with anxious-avoidant attachment.
Constructivism
Constructivism is a paradigm in psychology that characterizes learning as a process of
actively constructing knowledge. Individuals create meaning for themselves or make sense of
new information by selecting, organizing, and integrating information with other knowledge,
often in the context of social interactions. Constructivism can occur in two ways: individual and
social. Individual constructivism is when a person constructs knowledge through cognitive
processes of their own experiences rather than by memorizing facts provided by others. Social
constructivism is when individuals construct knowledge through an interaction between the
knowledge they bring to a situation and social or cultural exchanges within that content.
Jean Piaget, a Swiss developmental psychologist, proposed that learning is an active
process because children learn through experience and make mistakes and solve problems.
Piaget proposed that learning should be whole by helping students understand that meaning is
constructed.
Ecological systems theory
Ecological systems theory, originally formulated by Urie Bronfenbrenner, specifies four
types of nested environmental systems, with bi-directional influences within and between the
systems. The four systems are microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and macrosystem. Each
system contains roles, norms and rules that can powerfully shape development. Microsystem is
the direct environment in our lives such as our home and school. Mesosystem is how
relationships connect to the microsystem. Exosystem is a larger social system where the child
plays no role. Macrosystem refers to the cultural values, customs and laws of society.
The microsystem is the immediate environment surrounding and influencing the
individual (example: school or the home setting). The mesosystem is the combination of two
microsystems and how they influence each other (example: sibling relationships at home vs. peer
relationships at school). The exosystem is the interaction among two or more settings that are
indirectly linked (example: a fathers job requiring more overtime ends up influencing his
daughters performance in school because he can no longer help with her homework). The
macrosystem is broader taking into account social economic status, culture, beliefs, customs and
morals (example: a child from a wealthier family sees a peer from a less wealthy family as
inferior for that reason). Lastly, the chronosystem refers to the chronological nature of life events
and how they interact and change the individual and their circumstances through transition
(example: a mother losing her own mother to illness and no longer having that support in her
life).
29
Since its publication in 1979, Bronfenbrenners major statement of this theory, The
Ecology of Human Development has had widespread influence on the way psychologists and
others approach the study of human beings and their environments. As a result of this
conceptualization of development, these environmentsfrom the family to economic and
political structureshave come to be viewed as part of the life course from childhood through to
adulthood.
Psychosexual development
Sigmund Freud believed that we all had a conscious, preconscious, and unconscious
level. In the conscious we are aware of our mental process. The preconscious involves
information that, though not currently in our thoughts, can be brought into consciousness. Lastly,
the unconscious includes mental processes we are unaware of.
He believed there is tension between the conscious and unconscious, because the
conscious tries to hold back what the unconscious tries to express. To explain this he developed
three personality structures: the id, ego, and superego. The id, the most primitive of the three,
functions according to the pleasure principle: seek pleasure and avoid pain. The superego plays
the critical and moralizing role; and the ego is the organized, realistic part that mediates between
the desires of the id and the superego.
Based on this, he proposed five universal stages of development, that each are
characterized by the erogenous zone that is the source of the childs psychosexual energy. The
first is the oral stage, which occurs from birth to 12 months of age. During the oral stage the
libido is centered in a babys mouth. The baby is able to suck. The second is the anal stage,
from one to three years of age. During the anal stage, the child defecates from the anus. The third
is the phallic stage, which occurs from three to five years of age (most of a persons personality
forms by this age). During the phallic stage, the child is aware of their sexual organs. The fourth
is the latency stage, which occurs from age five until puberty. During the latency stage, the
childs sexual interests are repressed. Stage five is the genital stage, which takes place from
puberty until adulthood. During the genital stage, puberty starts happening.
Stages of moral development
Piaget claimed that logic and morality develop through constructive stages. Expanding on
Piagets work, Lawrence Kohlberg determined that the process of moral development was
principally concerned with justice, and that it continued throughout the individuals lifetime.
He suggested three levels of moral reasoning; preconventional moral reasoning,
conventional moral reasoning, and postconventional moral reasoning. Preconventional moral
reasoning is typical of children and is characterized by reasoning that is based on rewards and
punishments associated with different courses of action. Conventional moral reason occurs
during late childhood and early adolescence and is characterized by reasoning based on rules and
30
conventions of society. Lastly, postconventional moral reasoning is a stage during which the
individual sees societys rules and conventions as relative and subjective, rather than as
authoritative.
Kohlberg used the Heinz Dilemma to apply to his stages of moral development. The
Heinz Dilemma involves Heinzs wife dying from cancer and Heinz having the dilemma to save
his wife by stealing a drug. Preconventional morality, conventional morality, and
postconventional morality applies to Heinzs situation.
Stages of psychosocial development
Erik Erikson reinterpreted Freuds psychosexual stages by incorporating the social
aspects of it. He came up with eight stages, each of which has two crisis (a positive and a
negative). Stage one is trust versus mistrust, which occurs during infancy. Stage two is autonomy
versus shame and doubt, which occurs during early childhood. Stage three is initiative versus
guilt, which occurs during play age. Stage four is industry versus inferiority, which occurs during
school age. Stage five isidentity versus identity diffusion, which occurs during adolescence. Stage
six is intimacy versus isolation which occurs during young adulthood. Stage seven
is generativity versus self-absorption which occurs during adulthood. Lastly, stage eight is
integrity versus despair, which occurs in old age.
Each stage builds upon the successful completion of earlier stages. The challenges of
stages not successfully completed may be expected to reappear as problems in the future.
However, mastery of a stage is not required to advance to the next stage.
Erik Erikson proposed his stages of psychosocial development to discuss the
psychological development of the human lifespan. Sigmund Freuds stages of development
focused on psychosexual development, while Eriksons theory focused on psychosocial
development. Eriksons theory claimed that humans develop throughout their lifespan and
consists of eight stages: Trust vs. Mistrust, Autonomy vs. Shame & Doubt, Initiative vs. Guilt,
Industry vs. Inferiority, Identity vs. Role Confusion, Intimacy vs. Isolation, Generativity vs.
Stagnation, and Integrity vs. Despair.
Stages based on the model of hierarchical complexity
Michael Commons enhanced and simplified of Inhelder and Piagets developmental and
offers a standard method of examining the universal pattern of development. The Model of
Hierarchical Complexity (MHC) is not based on the assessment of domain specific information,
It divides the Order of Hierarchical Complexity of tasks to be address from the Stage
performance on those tasks. Stage is the order hierarchical complexity of the tasks the
participants successfully addresses. He expanded Piagets original eight stage (counting the half
stages) to fifteen stages. The stages are : 0 Calculatory; 1 Sensory & Motor; 2 Circular sensory31
psychology should focus on the progress of human consciousness through the relationship of an
individual and their environment. He felt that if scholars continued to disregard this connection,
then this disregard would inhibit the full comprehension of the human consciousness.
single
Conversely, these periods also represent times when a structure may be most vulnerable to
disruption (Rice & Barone, 2000). The concept of critical periods has created much debate in
theoretical circles, particularly with respect to parentinfant bonding (Anisfeld et al., 1983) and
language
development
(Lenneberg,
1967).
Development is influenced by heredity and environment. Although there has been much
discussion by experts in the field about which is more important, there is no doubt that they both
play a role in a childs development. A childs genetic inheritance (i.e., heredity) provides the
basic foundation for many physical and personality attributes, but the influences of social,
cultural, and familial variables (i.e., environment) also contribute to development.
Some illnesses are genetic and passed in our genes (e.g. haemophilia) and can affect our
growth and development.
Infectious diseases (e.g. HIV) can cause permanent damage to a persons health and can
be fatal.
Degenerative conditions (e.g. Alzheimers disease) can affect a persons health and
development in adulthood, as well as affecting a persons social relationships, result in
emotional distress, and destroy intellectual abilities.
C. Social, cultural and emotional factors
(Social) Influence of Play and Social Isolation
*Children play a lot at a young age. Play promotes development.
Younger children use solo or parallel play, as they get older play becomes cooperative
and associative. Through play children develop social relationships, develop interaction
and cooperation skills, and develop their imagination. Play also develops fine and gross
motor skills to build physical strength and stamina.
* People who are socially isolated lack family and close friends. People can
become socially isolated as they age and get infirm, when they have mental health
problems, or if they lack the social skills and confidence to make friends.
Social isolation can be due to bullying in childhood and adolescence.
Social isolation can make someone stressed, depressed and have low self-esteem.
Culture
Culture influences the way we dress, our diet, and the type of relationships we form.
When you live in a multicultural country like the UK we develop differently due to our
cultural influences.
Culture also includes religious beliefs. This provides followers with rules about health,
lifestyle and moral issues (marriage, personal hygiene, abortion etc).
Your health beliefs, Rishevel and relationships can also be influenced by the community
you belong to.
(Emotional) Gender
Gender is whether you are biologically male or female.
Gender refers to how society expects you to behave.
In the West girls are expected to be feminine (kind, caring and gentle). This leads to
assumptions of women to do non-manual work, cook, clean and look after children.
Boys are expected to be masculine and be boisterous and tough. This leads men to do
manual work and be decision-makers.
This leads to inequality, and can effect womens pay. This isnt as bad as it once was, but
can still affect intellectual and emotional development about how we are expected to
behave.
35
A persons employment also decides their social class (people with higher status
employment have a higher social class).
A job can also affect your self-concept, intellectual, emotional and social development.
Having a high status job will be stimulating and have a positive effect.
Working in difficult or stressful conditions, in a low status job, in an unsupportive
environment can have a negative effect on self-esteem.
Children who truant or are excluded from schools are most likely to become uneducated,
they are more likely to suffer long-term unemployment, have low self-esteem and have
higher rates of mental health problems.
Income/wealth
Income is the amount of money in a household.
It can come from working, pensions, welfare benefits, or investments.
The amount of money an individual has effects development because it affects the quality
of life available to them.
People with a good income are likely to have a better education and more leisure
opportunities.
If you do not have a sufficient income you can be described as living in poverty. When
you have little money it puts stress on the family
Occupation
Having a job ensures most people to have an income.
Some jobs provide better incomes, better working conditions and a higher social status. .
Housing Conditions
H. Growing up in Care
Children who grow up in care are more vulnerable in adolescence.
They have to deal with sexuality, peer pressure and puberty with no parental role models.
People who grow up in care are more likely to experience teenage pregnancy, become involved
in alcohol and substance misuse, to be excluded from school, and achieve fewer and lower grade
qualifications.
Children in care worry about prejudice from others who may view them negatively. Supportive
37
foster parents and teachers can provide stability for the child.
4. Stress
Stress is when we feel challenged or threatened and cannot cope with demands placed on us.
Extreme stress can lead to physical and mental health problems (e.g. asthma, high blood pressure
and migraines).
Stress can be experienced at any life stage and can affect your emotional development due to
negative feelings caused.
It could also affect social development if it causes difficulties in relationships with others.
38
Industry Versus Inferiority School-age child (6-12 yrs. Old) children to develop a
sense of pride in their accomplishments. They initiate activities with others. They initiate
projects, see them through to completion, and feel good about what they have achieved. During
this time, teachers play increased role in the childs development. If children are encouraged and
reinforced for their initiative, they begin to feel industrious and feel confident in their ability to
achieve goals. If this initiative is not encouraged, if it is restricted by parents or teacher, then the
child begins to feel inferior, doubting his own abilities and therefore may not reach his potentials.
Identity Versus Role Confusion (12-18) Adolescent During this adolescence, the
transition from childhood to adulthood is most important. Children are becoming more
independent, and begin to look at the future in terms of career, relationships, families, housing,
etc. During this period, they explore possibilities and begin to form their own identity based
upon the outcome of their explorations. This sense of who they are can be hindered, which
results in a sense of confusion. ( I dont know what I want to be when I grow up) about
themselves and their role in the world.
Intimacy Versus Isolation (20-45) Young adult Occurring in young adulthood, we
begin to share ourselves more intimately with others. We explore relationships leading toward
longer term commitments with someone other than a family member. Successful completion can
lead to comfortable relationships and a sense of commitment, safety, and care within a
relationship. Avoiding intimacy, fearing commitment and relationships can lead to isolation,
loneliness, and sometimes depression.
Generativity Versus Stagnation (30-65) Middle aged adult During middle adulthood,
we establish our careers, settle down within a relationship, begin our own families and develop a
sense of being a part of the bigger picture. We give back to society through raising our own
children, being productive at work, and becoming involved in community activities and
organizations. By failing to achieve these objectives, we become stagnant and feel
unprodeuctive.
Ego Integrity Versus Despair (50+) Old adult As we grow older and become senior
citizens, we tend to slow down our productivity, and explore life as a retired person. It is during
this time that we contemplate our accomplishments and are able to develop integrity if we see
ourselves as leading a successful life. If we see our lives as unproductive, feel guilt about our
pasts, or feel that we did not accomplish our life goals, we become more dissatisfied with life
and develop despair, often leading to depression and hopelessness.
V. Dimensions of Development
Physical development is the process that starts in human infancy and continues into late
adolescent concentrating on gross and fine motor skills as well as puberty. Physical development
involves developing control over the body, particularly muscles and physical coordination. The
peak of physical development happens in childhood and is therefore a crucial time for
neurological brain development and body coordination to encourage specific activities such as
grasping, writing, crawling, and walking. As a child learns what their bodies can do, they gain
39
self confidence, promoting social and emotional development. Physical activities geared toward
aiding in physical development contribute significantly to a persons health and well-being,
according to the Surgeon Generals report.
Motor development is the development of movement. The ability to move is essential to human
development. Many motor skills are necessary for everyday life activities e.g. sitting, walking,
running, climbing stairs, picking up objects, using cups, knives and forks, pouring drinks,
dressing, holding and using pencils, pens, scissors and using keyboards. Basic motor skills can
be further divided up into
Gross motor skills that are large movements of the body including sitting, walking,
running and climbing stairs.
Fine motor skills that involve the small movements of the fingers and hands. They
include picking up objects, using cups, knives and forks, pouring drinks, dressing, holding and
using pencils, pens, scissors and keyboards.
Movement can be seen and felt and a delay in motor development is usually the first sign
of a real problem because it is noticed far sooner than a problem with seeing, hearing or
communication. Motor development seems to follow a pattern. Large muscles develop before
smaller ones e.g. very young children find it easier to run than cutting with scissors. Children
also tend to develop in a head-to-toe pattern. For instance, babies move their eyes, head and
hands long before they learn to crawl.
Social development involves learning the values, knowledge and skills that
enable children to relate to others effectively and to contribute in positive ways to family, school
and the community. This kind of learning is passed on to children directly by those who care for
and teach them, as well as indirectly through social relationships within the family or with
friends, and through childrens participation in the culture around them. Through their
relationships with others and their growing awareness of social values and expectations, children
build a sense of who they are and of the social roles available to them. As children develop
socially, they both respond to the inuences around them and play an active part in shaping their
relationships.
Gender role development. In a society filled with gender stereotypes, children regularly
learn to adopt gender roles. Gender stereotypes: widely held beliefs about characteristics
thought appropriate for males and females. Gender roles: the reflection of gender stereotypes in
everyday Rishevel.
(Berk, 2000)
Children are exposed to many factors which influence their attitudes and behaviours
regarding gender roles. These attitudes and behaviours are generally learned in the home and are
then reinforced by the childs peers, school experience and the media.
The strongest influence on gender role development seems to occur within the family,
with parents passing on, both overtly and covertly, their own beliefs about gender (Witt, 1997).
Although the past three decades have brought a new level of awareness about the wide
range of roles possible for each gender, strong beliefs about differences still remain.
Psychosocial Stages: Eriksons (1959) theory of psychosocial development has eight distinct
stages.
5. Trust vs. Mistrust
During this stage the infant is uncertain about the world in which they live. To resolve
these feelings of uncertainty the infant looks towards their primary caregiver for stability and
consistency of care.
If the care the infant receives is consistent, predictable and reliable they will develop a
sense of trust which will carry with them to other relationships, and they will be able to feel
secure even when threatened.
Success in this stage will lead to the virtue of hope. By developing a sense of trust, the
infant can have hope that as new crises arise, there is a real possibility that other people will be
there are a source of support. Failing to acquire the virtue of hope will lead to the development of
fear.
2. Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt
The child is developing physically and becoming more mobile. Between the ages of 18
months and three, children begin to assert their independence, by walking away from their
41
mother, picking which toy to play with, and making choices about what they like to wear, to eat,
etc.
The child is discovering that he or she has many skills and abilities, such as putting on
clothes and shoes, playing with toys etc. Such skills illustrate the childs growing sense of
independence and autonomy. Erikson states it is critical that parents allow their children to
explore the limits of their abilities within an encouraging environment which is tolerant of
failure.
For example, rather than put on a childs clothes a supportive parent should have the
patience to allow the child to try until they succeed or ask for assistance. So, the parents need to
encourage the child to becoming more independent whilst at the same time protecting the child
so that constant failure is avoided.
A delicate balance is required from the parent .... they must try not to do everything for
the child but if the child fails at a particular task they must not criticize the child for failures and
accidents (particularly when toilet training). The aim has to be self control without a loss of
self-esteem (Gross, 1992). Success in this stage will lead to the virtue of will.
6. Initiative vs. Guilt
During this period the primary feature involves the child regularly interacting with other
children at school. Central to this stage is play, as it provides children with the opportunity to
explore their interpersonal skills through initiating activities.
Children begin to plan activities, make up games, and initiate activities with others. If
given this opportunity, children develop a sense of initiative, and feel secure in their ability to
lead others and make decisions. Conversely, if this tendency is squelched, either through
criticism or control, children develop a sense of guilt. They may feel like a nuisance to others and
will therefore remain followers, lacking in self-initiative.
The child takes initiatives which the parents will often try to stop in order to protect the
child. The child will often overstep the mark in his forcefulness and the danger is that the parents
will tend to punish the child and restrict his initiatives too much.
It is at this stage that the child will begin to ask many questions as his thirst for
knowledge grows. If the parents treat the childs questions as trivial, a nuisance or embarrassing
or other aspects of their behavior as threatening then the child may have feelings of guilt for
being a nuisance.
Too much guilt can make the child slow to interact with others and may inhibit their
creativity. Some guilt is, of course, necessary otherwise the child would not know how to
exercise self control or have a conscience.
A healthy balance between initiative and guilt is important. Success in this stage will lead
to the virtue of purpose.
42
43
dont know what I want to be when I grow up) can lead to role confusion. Role confusion
involves the individual not being sure about themselves or their place in society.
In response to role confusion or identity crisis an adolescent may begin to experiment
with different lifestyles (e.g. work, education or political activities). Also pressuring someone
into an identity can result in rebellion in the form of establishing a negative identity, and in
addition to this feelings of unhappiness.
9. Intimacy vs. Isolation
Occurring in young adulthood (ages 18 to 40 yrs), we begin to share ourselves more
intimately with others. We explore relationships leading toward longer term commitments with
someone other than a family member.
Successful completion of this stage can lead to comfortable relationships and a sense of
commitment, safety, and care within a relationship. Avoiding intimacy, fearing commitment and
relationships can lead to isolation, loneliness, and sometimes depression. Success in this stage
will lead to the virtue of love.
10. Generativity vs. Stagnation
During middle adulthood (ages 40 to 65 yrs), we establish our careers, settle down within
a relationship, begin our own families and develop a sense of being a part of the bigger picture.
We give back to society through raising our children, being productive at work, and
becoming involved in community activities and organizations.
By failing to achieve these objectives, we become stagnant and feel unproductive.
Success in this stage will lead to the virtue of care.
8. Ego Integrity vs. Despair
As we grow older (65+ yrs) and become senior citizens, we tend to slow down our
productivity, and explore life as a retired person. It is during this time that we contemplate our
accomplishments and are able to develop integrity if we see ourselves as leading a successful
life.
Erik Erikson believed if we see our lives as unproductive, feel guilt about our past, or feel
that we did not accomplish our life goals, we become dissatisfied with life and develop despair,
often leading to depression and hopelessness.
Success in this stage will lead to the virtue of wisdom. Wisdom enables a person to look
back on their life with a sense of closure and completeness, and also accept death without fear.
Emotional development involves learning what feelings and emotions are,
understanding how and why they happen, RisheveledR ones own feelings and those of others,
44
and developing effective ways of managing them. As children grow and are exposed to different
situations their emotional lives also become more complex. Developing skills for managing a
range of emotions is therefore very important for their emotional wellbeing. Parents and carers
have an important role to play in supporting childrens emotional development. They do this
through responding effectively to childrens emotions, through providing examples of how
they manage feelings, and through talking with children about feelings and how to manage them.
In similar ways, school staff can provide important support for childrens emotional
development.
Emotional development is a complex task that begins in infancy and continues into
adulthood. The rst emotions that can be Risheveled in babies include joy, anger, sadness and
fear. Later, as children begin to develop a sense of self, more complex emotions like shyness,
surprise, elation, embarrassment, shame, guilt, pride and empathy emerge. Primary school
children are still learning to identify emotions, to understand why they happen and how to
manage them appropriately. As children develop, the things that provoke their emotional
responses change, as do the strategies they use to manage them.
Very young childrens emotions are mainly made up of physical reactions (eg heart
racing, butteries in stomach) and behaviours. As they grow, children develop the ability to
Rishevele feelings. Their emotions are also increasingly inuenced by their thinking. They
become more aware of their own feelings and better able to Rishevele and understand other
peoples. Thus, an emotional reaction of a 10-year-old is likely to be far more complex than that
of a three-year-old.
The experience of emotion includes several components:
-Physical
responses
(eg
heart
rate,
breathing,
hormone
-Feelings
that
children
Rishevele
and
learn
to
-Thoughts
and
judgements
associated
with
-Action signals (eg a desire to approach, escape or ght)
levels)
name
feelings
Many things inuence the ways that children express emotions, both through words and
Rishevel.
These
inuences
include:
-Values and beliefs about appropriate and inappropriate ways of expressing emotions that
children
learn
from
parents,
carers
and
school
staff
-How
effectively
childrens
emotional
needs
are
usually
met
-Childrens
temperaments
-Emotional behaviours that children have learned through observation or experience
-The extent to which families and children are under various kinds of stress
Moral Development
Kohlbergs Theory
45
Traditionally, psychology has avoided studying anything that is loaded with value
judgements. There is a degree of difficulty involved in trying to be unbiased about things that
involve terms like good and bad! So, one of the most significant aspects of human life
morality has had to wait quite a while before anyone in psychology dared to touch it! But
Lawrence Kohlberg wanted to study morality, and did so using a most interesting (if
controversial) technique. Basically, he would ask children and adults to try to solve moral
dilemmas contained in little stories, and to do so outloud so he could follow their reasoning. It
wasnt the specific answers to the dilemmas that interested him, but rather how the person got to
his or her answer.
One of the most famous of these stories concerned a man named Heinz. His wife was
dying of a disease that could be cured if he could get a certain medicine. When he asked the
pharmacist, he was told that he could get the medicine, but only at a very high price one that
Heinz could not possibly afford. So the next evening, Heinz broke into the pharmacy and stole
the drug to save his wifes life. Was Heinz right or wrong to steal the drug?
There are simple reasons why Heinz should or should not have stolen the drug, and there
are very sophisticated reasons, and reasons in between. After looking at hundreds of interviews
using this and several other stories, Kohlberg outlined three broad levels and six more specific
stages of moral development.
Level I: Pre-conventional morality. While infants are essentially amoral, very young children
are moral in a rather primitive way, as described by the two preconventional stages.
Stage 1. We can call this the reward and punishment stage. Good or bad depends on
the physical consequences: Does the action lead to punishment or reward? This stage is based
simply on ones own pain and pleasure, and doesnt take others into account.
Stage 2. This we can call the exchange stage. In this stage, there is increased
recognition that others have their own interests and should be taken into account. Those interests
are still understood in a very concrete fashion, and the child deals with others in terms of simple
exchange or reciprocity: Ill scratch your back if you scratch mine. Children in this stage are
very concerned with whats fair (one of their favorite words), but are not concerned with real
justice.
Level II: Conventional morality. By the time children enter elementary school, they are
usually capable of conventional morality, although they may often slip back into preconventional
morality on occasion. But this level is called conventional for a very good reason: It is also the
level that most adults find themselves in most of the time!
Stage 3. This stage is often called the good boy/good girl stage. The child tries to live
up to the expectations of others, and to seek their approval. Now they become interested motives
or intentions, and concepts such as loyalty, trust, and gratitude are understood. Children in this
stage often adhere to a concrete version of the Golden Rule, although it is limited to the people
they actually deal with on a day-to-day basis.
46
Stage 4. This is called the law-and-order stage. Children now take the point of view
that includes the social system as a whole. The rules of the society are the bases for right and
wrong, and doing ones duty and showing respect for authority are important.
Level III: Post-conventional morality. Some adolescents and adults go a step further and rise
above moralities based on authority to ones based on reason.
Stage 5. The social contract stage means being aware of the degree to which much of
so-called morality is relative to the individual and to the social group they belong to, and that
only a very few fundamental values are universal. The person at this level sees morality as a
matter of entering into a rational contract with ones fellow human beings to be kind to each
other, respect authority, and follow laws to the extent that they respect and promote those
universal values. Social contract morality often involves a utilitarian approach, where the
relative value of an act is determined by the greatest good for the greatest number.
Stage 6. This stage is referred to as the stage of universal principles. At this point, the
person makes a personal commitment to universal principles of equal rights and respect, and
social contract takes a clear back-seat: If there is a conflict between a social law or custom and
universal principles, the universal principles take precedence.
Kohlbergs original work was done with boys. When the research began to include girls,
they found the girls to be less morally developed than the boys! Psychologist Carol Gilligan,
involved in that research, began to notice that it wasnt so easy to distinguish good boy/good
girl from universal principles, especially in the girls. Since then, psychologists have
readjusted their work to take into account for the fact that girls often express their morality in
terms that emphasize personal caring more than abstract principles.
Bronfenbrenners Theory
Another psychologist unafraid to tackle Rishevel was Urie Bronfenbrenner. He is
famous for his studies of children and schools in different cultures. He outlines five moral
orientations:
11. Self-oriented morality. This is analogous to Kohlbergs pre-conventional morality.
Basically, the child is only interested in self-gratification and only considers others to the
extent that they can help him get what he wants, or hinder him.
The next three orientations are all forms of what Kohlberg called conventional morality:
2. Authority-oriented morality. Here, the child, or adult, basically accepts the decrees of
authority figures, from parents up to heads of state and religion, as defining good and bad.
3. Peer-oriented morality. This is basically a morality of conformity, where right and wrong is
determined not by authority but by ones peers. In western society, this kind of morality is
frequently found among adolescents, as well as many adults.
47
4. Collective-oriented morality. In this orientation, the standing goals of the group to which
the child or adult belongs over-ride individual interests. Duty to ones group or society is
paramount.
The last orientation is analogous to Kohlbergs
post-conventional level:
Sally was thirsty, rather than waiting for the server to refill her glass of water, she
reached across the table and drank the one glass filled with water.
A hungry baby cried until he was fed.
EGO(the rational part of personality) Part of the mind that senses and adapts to the real
world. It tries to meet the desires of the id in a way that is socially accepted in the world. The ego
recognizes that other people have needs and wants too. This may mean delaying gratification,
and helping to get rid of the tension the id feels if a desire is not met right away.
1
Sally was thirsty, however she knew that her server would be back soon to refill her glass
with water, so she waited until then to get a drink, even though she really just wanted to
drink.
SUPEREGO(the conscience) Part of persons mind that relates to attitudes about what is right
and wrong and to feelings of guilt.
2
While away on business, Tom had many opportunities to be unfaithful to his wife,
however he kwnew the damaged such behavior would have on his family so made the
decision to avoid the women who expressed interest in him.
Psychosexual Theory
Oral Stage
The oral stage occurs in an infants life from birth to 18 months. During this time, an infant is
focused with receiving oral pleasure. This occurs through breast or bottle feeding, or sucking on
a pacifier. It is believed that if an infant receives too much or too little oral stimulation, they may
develop a fixation or a personality trait that is fixated on oral gratification. It is believed that
these people may focus on activities that involve the mouth such as over eating, biting the
fingernails, smoking, or drinking. The theory states that these people may develop personality
traits such as becoming extremely gullible or I, always following others and never taking the
lead, and becoming extremely dependent upon others.
Anal Stage
The anal stage is directly related to a childs awareness of bowel control and gaining pleasure
through the act of eliminating or retaining feces. Freuds theory puts the anal stage between 18
months and three years. It is believed that when a child becomes fixated on receiving pleasure
through controlling and eliminating feces, a child can become obsessed with control, perfection,
and cleanliness. This is often referred to as anal retentive, while anal expulsive is the
49
opposite. Those who are anal expulsive may be extremely disorganized, live in chaos, and are
known for making messes.
Phallic Stage
Freud believes the phallic stage or the Oedipus or Electra complexes occurs during a child is
three to six years of age. The belief is that male children harbor unconscious, sexual attraction to
their mothers, while female children develop a sexual attraction to their father. Freud taught that
young boys also deal with feelings of rivalry with their father. These feelings naturally resolve
once the child begins to identify with their same sex parent. By identifying with the same sex
parent, the child continues with normal, healthy sexual development. If a child becomes fixated
during this phase, the result could be sexual deviance or a confused sexual identity.
Latency Stage
The latency stage is named so because Freud believed there werent many overt forms of sexual
gratification displayed. This stage is said to last from the age of six until a child enters
puberty. Most children throughout this age form same sex friendships and play in a manner that
is non-sexual. Unconscious sexual desires and thoughts remain repressed.
Genital Stage
Freud believed that after the unconscious, sexual desires are repressed and remain dormant
during the latency stage, they are awakened due to puberty. This stage begins at puberty and
develops with the physiology changes brought on through hormones. The prior stages of
development result in a focus on the genitals as a source for pleasure and teens develop and
explore attractions to the opposite sex. The genital stage is the last stage of the psychosexual
development theory.
Psychosocial Stages
Eriksons (1959) theory of psychosocial development has eight distinct stages.
Psychosocial Stage 1 Trust vs. Mistrust
The first stage of Eriksons theory of psychosocial development occurs between birth and one
year of age and is the most fundamental stage in life. At this point in development, the child is
utterly depending upon adult caregiver for everything food. Love, warmth, safety, nurturing.
Everything. If a caregiver fails to provide adequate care and love, the child will come to feel that
he or she cannot trust or depend upon the adults in his or her life. If a child successfully develops
trust, he or she will feel safe and secure in the world.
13. Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt
The child is developing physically and becoming more mobile. Between the ages of 18 months
and three, children begin to assert their independence, by walking away from their mother,
picking which toy to play with, and making choices about what they like to wear, to eat, etc.
50
The child is discovering that he or she has many skills and abilities, such as putting on clothes
and shoes, playing with toys etc. Such skills illustrate the childs growing sense of independence
and autonomy. Erikson believe that learning to control ones bodily functions leads to a feeling
of control and a sense of independence. Children who successfully complete this stage feel
secure and confident, while those who do not are left with a sense of inadequacy and self-doubt.
Psychosocial Stage 3 Initiative vs. Guilt
During the preschool years, children begin to assert their power and control over the world
through directing play and other social interactions. Children begin to plan activities, make up
games, and initiate activities with others. If given this opportunity, children develop a sense of
initiative, and feel secure in their ability to lead others and make decisions. It is at this stage that
the child will begin to ask many questions as his thirst for knowledge grows. If the parents treat
the childs questions as trivial, a nuisance or embarrassing or other aspects of their behavior as
threatening then the child may have feelings of guilt for being a nuisance. Too much guilt can
make the child slow to interact with others and may inhibit their creativity.
14. Industry (competence) vs. Inferiority
If children are encouraged and reinforced for their initiative, they begin to feel industrious and
feel confident in their ability to achieve goals. If this initiative is not encouraged, if it is restricted
by parents or teacher, then the child begins to feel inferior, doubting his own abilities and
therefore may not reach his or her potential.
Psychosocial Stage 5 Identity vs. Confusion
During adolescence (age 12 to 18 yrs), the transition from childhood to adulthood is most
important. Children are becoming more independent, and begin to look at the future in terms of
career, relationships, families, housing, etc. The individual wants to belong to a society and fit in.
This is a major stage in development where the child has to learn the roles he will occupy as an
adult. It is during this stage that the adolescent will re-examine his identity and try to find out
exactly who he or she is. Those who receive proper encouragement and reinforcement through
personal exploration will emerge from this stage with a strong sense of self and a feeling of
independence and control. Those who remain unsure of their beliefs and desires will feel
insecure and confused about themselves and the future.
15. Intimacy vs. Isolation
Occurring in young adulthood (ages 18 to 40 yrs), we begin to share ourselves more intimately
with others. We explore relationships leading toward longer term commitments with someone
other than a family member. Successful completion of this stage can lead to comfortable
relationships and a sense of commitment, safety, and care within a relationship. Avoiding
intimacy, fearing commitment and relationships can lead to isolation, loneliness, and sometimes
depression. Success in this stage will lead to the virtue of love.
16. Generativity vs. Stagnation
During middle adulthood (ages 40 to 65 yrs), we establish our careers, settle down within a
relationship, begin our own families and develop a sense of being a part of the bigger picture.
We give back to society through raising our children, being productive at work, and becoming
involved in community activities and organizations.
51
By failing to achieve these objectives, we become stagnant and feel unproductive. Success in this
stage will lead to the virtue of care.
8. Ego Integrity vs. Despair
As we grow older (65+ yrs) and become senior citizens, we tend to slow down our productivity,
and explore life as a retired person. It is during this time that we contemplate our
accomplishments and are able to develop integrity if we see ourselves as leading a successful
life.
Erik Erikson believed if we see our lives as unproductive, feel guilt about our past, or feel that
we did not accomplish our life goals, we become dissatisfied with life and develop despair, often
leading to depression and hopelessness.
Success in this stage will lead to the virtue of wisdom. Wisdom enables a person to look back on
their life with a sense of closure and completeness, and also accept death without fear.
CHAPTER 3
SENSATION
Sensation
Everything we experience comes to us by means of our sense organs. These many be thought of
us receiving stations for stimuli which come from outside and from within our body. Sensation is
the physiological arousal of the sense organs.
Human beings and other higher animals are distinguished by the fact that the sense organs are
highly specialized for receiving specific kinds of stimuli. We have eyes for seeing, ears for
hearing, tongue for tasting. The whole body is equally sensitive to heat, to cold, to pressure and
light.
A sense organ, sometimes referred to as a receptor, is a specialized part of the body which is
selectively sensitive to some types of changes in its environment and not to others. For example,
the eye is a receptor for sensations of light waves but is impervious to sound stimuli.
A stimulus is any kind of mechanical, physical or chemical change that acts upon a sense organ.
The behavioral reaction brought forth by a stimulus is termed a response. Every human response
is preceded by a stimulus.
Sensation is the process that allows our brains to take in information with the help of our five
senses, which can then be experienced and interpreted by the brain. Sensation occurs thanks to
our five sensory systems: Visual (sight), auditory (hearing), gustatory (taste), olfactory (smell),
and tactile (touch). Each of these systems maintains unique neural pathways with the brain which
allows them to transfer information from the environment to the brain very rapidly.
52
But according to psychological experimentation, we have eight senses. And the three added
senses are the following:
1
2
3
Sense of Balance
Sense of Muscular Coordination and;
Visceral Senses
Mans Senses
The Sense of Sight
Vision depends mainly on one sensory organ the eye. Eye constructions vary in complexity
depending on the needs of the organism. The human eye is one of the most complicated
structures, and it requires many components to allow our advanced visual capabilities. The eye
has three major layers:
1
2
3
The sclera, which maintains, protects, and supports the shape of the eye and includes the
cornea.
The choroid, which provides oxygen and nourishment to the eye and includes the pupil,
iris, and lens.
The retina, which allows us to piece images together and includes cones and rods.
53
54
Color vision is a critical component of human vision, and plays an important role in both
perception and communication. Color sensors are found within cones which respond to the
relatively broad color bands in the three basic regions of red, green, and blue (RGB). Any colors
in between these three are perceived as different linear combinations of RGB. The eye is much
more sensitive to overall light and color intensity rather than changes in the color itself. Colors
have three attributes: brightness based on luminance and reflectivity, saturation based on the
amount of white present, and hue based on color combinations. Sophisticated combinations of
these receptors signals are transduced into chemical and electrical signals that are sent to the
brain for the dynamic process of color perception.
Color Blindness
The inability of some people to distinguish certain colors is partially explained by the relative
function of rod cells and cone cells.
About 3 out of every 100 males are color blind for the qualities of red and green. They see only
five distinct colors, namely, yellow, blue, black, white and gray. All red and green objects appear
to them as shades of gray.
It is believed that the color blindness is due to some defect in the fovea of the retina where the
cones are maximally concentrated.
55
We are continuously adapting our vision to increasing darkness or increasing brightness in our
surroundings. To accomplish this, the retina becomes more or less responsive to light, as the case
may be. It is aided by the pupil of the eye which narrows or widens to let in more or less light.
Whether the change is toward brightness or darkness, vision is affected and a period of time is
needed for the eyes to become accustomed to the surroundings. This is known as light and dark
adaptation of the eye.
Night Blindness
It is generally known that some people have the condition called night blindness. When they
came to the attention of medical men, they complained of an inability to see properly at night. At
first they were thought as hypochondriacs and were described by some psychologist as neurotic
or overly fearful of the dark.
However, it was ultimately learned that these persons suffered from a visual inability to adapt to
conditions of low illumination. These nightblind persons were found to have defective rod cells.
Their difficulty stemmed from a deficiency in the pigment layer of the retina which supplies an
essential substance known as visual purple. This is a chemical compound which decomposes
in the presence of light and recombines in darkness. Chemical analysis of visual purposes has
shown that it depends upon vitamin A for nutrition.
After-Images
If you have been staring at a bright object intently and it is removed suddenly, you will continue
to see images of the object. You are apt to feel you are seeing things which arent there. This is
a common visual experience termed after-image.
After- image is the visual sensory experience which persists after the external stimulus has been
removed. The longer the original stimulus, the stronger will be the after-image.
57
Sound waves strike the tympanic membrane or eardrum. Behind the eardrum is the middle ear
containing three small bones (ossicles) which interlock and serve to conduct the sound impulses
from the eardrum to the inner ear. They are popularly termed the hammer, anvil, and
stirrup because of their characteristics shapes.
58
These bones are frequently involved when younger persons are hard of hearing. Their difficulty
is maybe due to a reduction in the flexibility of the joints between the bones. In some cases the
joints become fixed as a result of otosclerosis, with resulting deafness.
Such a hearing loss is referred to as conduction deafness. These persons can benefit by a hearingaid which employ a bone conduction receiver placed on the mastoid bone just behind the ear.
The middle ear is filled with air and is connected with the throat by the Eustachian tube, named
after Eustachus, the 16th century Italian anatomist who first described it. The Eustachian tube is
closed where it connects with the throat, but it opens when we swallow. In this way it serves to
equalize the air pressure in the middle ear with the outside atmospheric pressure. Thus, when you
first get up to a high altitude you feel an uncomfortable bulging of the eardrums because of the
lower outside atmospheric pressure. To relieve the discomfort it is advisable to open the mouth
and swallow air.
The inner ear connects with the middle ear by an oval-shaped window into which is fitted the
stirrup. The inner ear is filled with lymph fluids and contains a highly important small, snaillike structure, the cochlea. Just above the cochlea is found the semicircular canal, which plays no
part in hearing but is related to our sense of balance.
Within cochlea is a section called the Organ of Corti containing minutely sensitive hair cells.
These hair cells are considered to be fundamental units of the auditory receptors, corresponding
to the rods and cones in vision.
59
Theories of Hearing
We are not certain about the exact mechanics of hearing. Several theories have been advanced.
The longest held is known as the piano theory developed by physiologist Helm-Holtz. It was his
premise that each element of hair cell of the Organ of Corti responded to a specific vibration to
which it is tuned much limed the strings of a piano. Because of this fixed tuning, we distinguish
different vibrations as different sounds.
60
Taste Receptors
The taste receptors are microscopic hair cells within the taste buds. These are located in the
papillae of the tongue, epiglottis, and soft palate. The hair cells are connected to a nerve and
react to chemicals in the liquids of the food when they penetrate the tongue.
Taste is a chemical sense and requires a liquid solution for stimulation. Solids will not arouse a
sensation of taste until the fluids of the mouth have dissolved them.
61
Changing Tastes
Generally children show differences in taste preferences from those of adults. Most infants show
favorable response to sweet tasting foods and negative response to bitter, sour, and salty foods.
Individual differences in childrens taste preferences begin to develop in the early school years.
Many display a strong liking for salty and bitter foods. Others dote on sweets. All of us are more
sensitive in our taste response in childhood. For this reason we tend to use more seasoning and
exotic flavors as we mature.
Learning plays a large part in shaping taste preferences and habits. We learn to cultivate a taste
for many foods. Very few persons like beer or olives the first time they are tasted but rather have
to cultivate for them with repeated experience.
Smell
Smell or olfactory is also a chemical sense. Our sense of smell is activated when gaseous
particles of a substance reach the nasal fluids. The receptors for smell are spindle-shaped cells
embedded in the olfactory nerve.
The olfactory nerve endings are in the roof of the nasal passages and not in the direct path of
inspired and expired air. This arrangement protects the olfactory receptors against over
stimulations. Being so located, it makes it necessary for us to sniff vigorously when we want to
get a good whiff of faint odors. The most volatile substances which break down into the
minutest particles smell the strongest because more of them reach the sense smell receptors.
Classifying Smells
62
Experimentations have enabled us to identify basic classifications of smell which are as follows:
Spicy: - cloves
Flowery: - violet, rose
Fruity: - orange rind
Resinous: - pine, pitch, turpentine
Scorched: - burned tar
Putrid: - decaying fish or meat
It is pointed out that most substances represent a blend of at least two or more of the odor
categories. Taken alone, it would be difficult to classify many familiar foods and everyday
substances.
Smell Adaptability
An important characteristic of our sense of smell is its ready adaptability. In the presents of a
strong and unpleasant smell, although unbearable to first, the unpleasantness will not bother or
disturb you as much as after several minutes.
Personnel working in garbage dumps, fish glue factories, perfumeries are able to work all day
long without real discomfort. It shows that after a period of intense stimulation most of our
sensory organs diminished in responses.
Sense of Feeling
The sense of touch is located in the skin, which is composed of three layers: the epidermis,
dermis, and hypodermis.
63
Somatosensory Systems
64
The somatosensory system uses specialized receptor cells in the skin and body to detect changes
in the environment. The receptors collect and convert physical stimuli into electrical and
chemical signals through the transduction process and send these impulses to the nervous system
for processing. Sensory cell function in the somatosensory system is determined by location.
The receptors in the skin, also called cutaneous receptors, tell the body about the three main
subdivisions mentioned above: pressure and surface texture (mechanoreceptors), temperature
(thermoreceptors), and pain (nociceptors). The receptors in the muscles and joints provide
information about muscle length, muscle tension, and joint angles.
Mechanoreception
Mechanoreceptors in the skin give us a sense of pressure and texture. These receptors differ in
their field size (small or large) and their speeds of adaptation (fast or slow). Thus, there are four
types of mechanoreceptors based on the four possible combinations of fast vs. slow speed and
large vs. small receptive fields. The speed of adaptation refers to how quickly the receptor will
react to a stimulus and how long that reaction will be sustained after the stimulus is removed.
Rapidly adapting cells allow us to adjust grip and force appropriately. Slowly adapting cells
allow us to perceive form and texture. The receptive field size refers to the amount of skin area
that responds to the stimulus, with smaller areas specializing in locating stimuli accurately.
Thermoreception
Thermoreceptors detect changes in temperature through their free nerve endings. There are two
types of thermoreceptors that signal temperature changes in our own skin: warm and cold
receptors. Our sense of temperature is a result of the comparison of the signals from each of the
two types of thermoreceptors. These receptors are not good indicators of absolute temperature,
but they are very sensitive to changes in skin temperature.
Nociception
Nociceptors use free nerve endings to detect pain. Functionally, nociceptors are specialized,
high-threshold mechanoceptors or polymodal receptors. They respond not only to intense
mechanical stimuli but also to heat and noxious chemicalsanything that may cause the body
harm. Their response magnitude, or the amount of pain you feel, is directly related to the degree
of tissue damage inflicted.
Pain signals can be separated into three types that correspond to the different types of nerve
fibers used for transmitting these signals. The first type is a rapidly transmitted signal with a high
spatial resolution, called first pain or cutaneous pricking pain. This type of signal is easy to
locate and generally easy to tolerate. The second type is much slower and highly affective, called
second pain or burning pain. This signal is more difficult to locate and not as easy to tolerate.
The third type arises from viscera, musculature, and joints; it is called deep pain. This type of
signal is very difficult to locate, and often it is intolerable and chronic.
65
Different types of sensory receptors, varying in size, shape, number, and distribution within the
skin, are responsible for relaying information about pressure, temperature, and pain. The largest
touch sensor, the Pacinian corpuscle, is located in the hypodermis, the innermost thick fatty layer
of skin, which responds to vibration. Free nerve endingsneurons that originate in the spinal
cord, enter and remain in the skintransmit information about temperature and pain from their
location at the bottom of the epidermis. Hair receptors in the dermis, which are wrapped around
each follicle, respond to the pressure produced when the hairs are bent. All the sensory receptors
respond not to continued pressure but rather to changes in pressure, adapting quickly to each new
change, so that, for example, the skin is unaware of the continual pressure produced by clothes.
Once stimulated by sensation, the receptors trigger nerve impulses which travel to the
somatosensory cortex in the parietal lobe of the brain, where they are transformed into
sensations. Sensitivity to touch varies greatly among different parts of the body. Areas that are
highly sensitive, such as the fingers and lips, correspond to a proportionately large area of the
sensory cortex.
Sensory receptors encode various types of information about objects with which the skin comes
in contact. We can tell how heavy an object is by both the firing rate of individual neurons and by
the number of neurons stimulated. (Both the firing rate and the number of neurons are higher
with a heavier object.) Changes in the firing rate of neurons tell us whether an object is stationary
or vibrating, and the spatial organization of the neurons gives us information about its location.
Temperature
The temperature of human skin is usually about 89F (32C). Objects or surroundings at this
level known as physiological zeroproduce no sensation of temperature. Warmth is felt at
higher temperatures and coldness at lower ones. Some of the sensory receptors in the skin
respond specifically to changes in temperature. These receptors are further specialized, as certain
ones sense warmth and increase their firing rates in temperatures of 95 to 115F (33 to 46C),
while others sense cold. Sensations of warmth and coldness are differentiated on a skin area as
small as one square centimeter. Within that area, cold will be felt at about six points and warmth
at two. When cold and warm stimuli are touched at the same time, a sensation of extreme heat is
felt, a phenomenon known as paradoxical hotness. Touch and temperature interact in some
sensors, producing phenomena such as the fact that warm and cold objects feel heavier than
those at moderate temperatures.
Pain
With free nerve endings as receptors, pain carries information to the brain about a real or
potential injury to the body. Pain from the skin is transmitted through two types of nerve fibers.
A-delta fibers relay sharp, pricking types of pain, while C fibers carry dull aches and burning
sensations. Pain impulses are relayed to the spinal cord, where they interact with special neurons
66
that transmit signals to the thalamus and other areas of the brain. Each neuron responds to a
number of different pain stimuli. Pain is carried by many types of neurotransmitters, a fact that
has made it possible to develop numerous types of pain-relieving medications. Many factors
affect how pain is experienced. Pain thresholds vary with the individual and the occasion.
Intensely concentrated activity may diminish or even eliminate the perception of pain for the
duration of the activity. Natural mechanisms, including replacement by input from other senses,
can block pain sensations. The brain can also block pain by signals sent through the spinal cord,
a process that involves the neurotransmitter serotonin and natural painkillers known as
endorphins.
The Gate-Control Theory of Pain
Researchers dont completely understand the mechanics of pain, although they do know that
processes in the injured part of the body and processes in the brain both play a role.
In the 1960s, Ronald Melzack and Patrick Wall proposed an important theory about pain called
the gate-control theory of pain. Gate-control theory states that pain signals travelling from the
body to the brain must go through a gate in the spinal cord. If the gate is closed, pain signals
cant reach the brain. The gate isnt a physical structure like a fence gate, but rather a pattern of
neural activity that either stops pain signals or allows them to pass. Signals from the brain can
open or shut the gate. For example, focusing on pain tends to increase it, whereas ignoring the
pain tends to decrease it. Other signals from the skin senses can also close the gate. This process
explains why massage, ice, and heat relieve pain.
Sense of Balance (Vestibular Sense)
Balance is the ability to maintain the bodys center of mass over its base of support. A properly
functioning balance system allows human to see clearly while moving, identify orientation with
respect to gravity, determine direction and speed of movement, and make automatic postural
adjustments to maintain posture and stability in various conditions and activities.
The equilibrium sense, generally associated with balance, provides feedback about the positions
and movements of our heads and bodies in space. The other system- the kinesthetic sense tells
us about the orientation of different parts of our bodies relation to each other. While the
kinesthetic information needed by the brain comes from joints and muscle fibers throughout the
body, the receptors for equilibrium are located in the semicircular canals and vestibular sacs of
the inner ear. (The equilibrium sense is also called the vestibular sense, and the relevant parts of
the inner ear are sometimes called the vestibular system or apparatus).
The sense of balance or equilibrium provides information about where the body exists in space.
The sense of balance tells people whether they are standing up, falling in an elevator, or riding a
roller coaster. The sensory system involved in balance is called the vestibular system. The main
structures in the vestibular system are three fluid-filled tubes called semicircular canals, which
67
are located in the inner ear. As the head moves, the fluid in the semicircular canals moves too,
stimulating receptors called hair cells, which then send impulses to the brain.
The sense organs for balance are located near the inner ear, protected by the same hard bones of
the skull that surround the cochlea. When a person suffers inner ear damage, the sense of balance
is often affected, because these sense organs are in close proximity. However, they are separate
systems.
Structures used by the sense of equilibrium are located near the cochlea and the bones of the
middle ear. The vestibular system consists of two main parts with slightly different functions: the
semicircular canals (the loops) and two chambers under the canals: the saccule and the utricle.
The loops (semicircular canals) and sacs (saccule and utricle) are collectively called the
nonauditory labyrinth or just the labyrinth. The entire labyrinth is filled with a fluid called the
endolymph, the same fluid found in the cochlea.
The semicircular canals are rotary motion detectors. When you turn your head in any direction,
you move the fluid in the canals (the endolymph). As the endolymph moves in the semicircular
canals, the liquid stimulates hair-like cells located in chambers at the base of the canals. So the
sense of balance depends ultimately on mechanoreceptors, like the sense of hearing.
The vestibular apparatus also includes another system, besides the semi-circular canals: two
structures called the sacs, the saccule and utricle. These two chambers are linear motion
detectors, which means they detect acceleration and deceleration: movement that can be in a
straight line. Within the saccule and utricle are crystals called otoliths (ear stones) surrounding
modified hair cells. When the body accelerates or decelerates, the hairs bend under the weight of
these crystals, much as a weight on the end of a spring would bob back and forth if you
accelerated or braked a car. Again it is modified hair cells that generate electrical potentials
leading ultimately to nerve impulses sent to the brain.
The otolith organs, which are the other part of the vestibular system, are two pouches that are
also filled with fluid. They sit sideways below the semicircular canals and have a similar
function. These two pouches are also lined with small hairs. Small crystals attached to the hairs
move through the fluid when the head tilts. When this happens they rub along the hairs, which
sense this movement and then send nerve signals to the brain.
Information coming from the vestibular system is processed in the brain and then sent on to other
organs that need this information, for example the eyes, joints or muscles. This allows us to keep
our balance and maintain spatial orientation. In some situations, for example on a ship or
airplane, messages that do not match up get sent to the brain by different organs, for instance the
eyes and the organ of balance. This can cause us to feel unwell, dizzy or nauseous.
Sense of Movement (Kinesthetic Sense)
68
We know we are walking, sitting, or lying down because of feedback from our kinesthetic sense
or the sense of movement, Kinesthesis is the sense of the position and movement of body parts.
Through kinesthesis, people know where all the parts of their bodies are and how they are
moving. Receptors for kinesthesis are located in the muscles, joints, and tendons. Kinesthetic
receptors join with nerve fibers from the organs of the skin and go through the spinal cord to the
brain. Kinesthesis tells us when our muscles are straining when are arms are out of control, and
when our torso is unbalanced. If any change occurs in the direction taken by a limb or in its rate
of movement, it will be sensed by the kinaesthetic receptors. Without kinesthesis, we will have
great difficulty in maintaining posture. For instance, when we lift an object, we first make abrupt
movement and then adjust them should the object turn out to be heavier than expected.
Consequently, we promptly brace ourselves and lift with greater effort. (Hilgard, et al., 1982)
Motor coordination is the combination of body movements created with the kinematic (such as
spatial direction) and kinetic (force) parameters that result in intended actions. Motor
coordination is achieved when subsequent parts of the same movement, or the movements of
several limbs or body parts are combined in a manner that is well timed, smooth, and efficient
with respect to the intended goal. This involves the integration of proprioceptive information
detailing the position and movement of the musculoskeletal system with the neural processes in
the brain and spinal cord which control, plan, and relay motor commands. The cerebellum plays
a critical role in this neural control of movement and damage to this part of the brain or its
connecting structures and pathways results in impairment of coordination, known as ataxia.
Types
Inter-limb
Inter-limb coordination concerns how movements are coordinated across limbs. J. A. Scott Kelso
and colleagues have proposed that coordination can be modeled as coupled oscillators, a process
that can be understood in the HKB (Haken, Kelso, and Bunz) model. The coordination of
complex inter-limb tasks is highly reliant on the temporal coordination. An example of such
temporal coordination can be observed in the free pointing movement of the eyes, hands, and
arms to direct at the same motor target. These coordination signals are sent simultaneously to
their effectors. In bimanual tasks (tasks involving two hands), it was found that the functional
segments of the two hands are tightly synchronized. One of the postulated theories for this
functionality is the existence of a higher, coordinating schema that calculates the time it needs
to perform each individual task and coordinates it using a feedback mechanism. There are several
areas of the brain that are found to contribute to temporal coordination of the limbs needed for
bimanual tasks, and these areas include the premotor cortex(PMC), the parietal cortex, the mesial
motor cortices, more specifically the supplementary motor area (SMA), the cingulate motor
cortex (CMC), the primary motor cortex (M1), and the cerebellum.
Intra-limb
69
Intra-limb coordination involves the planning of trajectories in the Cartesian planes.This reduces
computational load and the degrees of freedom for a given movement, and it constrains the limbs
to act as one unit instead of sets of muscles and joints. This concept is similar to muscle
synergies and coordinative structures. An example of such concept is the Hogan and Flash
minimum-jerk model, which predicts that the parameter that the nervous system controls is the
spatial path of the hand, i.e. the end-effector (which implies that the movement is planned in the
Cartesian coordinates). Other early studies showed that the end-effector follows a regularized
kinematic pattern. Relating movements curvature to speed and that the central nervous system is
devoted to its coding. In contrast to this model, the joint-space model postulates that the motor
system plans movements in joint coordinates. For this model, the controlled parameter is the
position of each joint contributing to the movement. Control strategies for goal directed
movement differ according to the task that the subject is assigned. This was proven by testing
two different conditions: (1) subjects moved cursor in the hand to the target and (2) subjects
move their free hand to the target. Each condition showed different trajectories: (1) straight path
and (2) curved path.
Eyehand coordination
Eyehand coordination concerns how eye movements are coordinated with and affect hand
movements. Typical findings relate to the eye looking at an object before the hand starts moving
towards that object.
Visceral Senses
Visceral senses give us information about our internal organs. For example these senses tell us if
the stomach is empty or the bladder full. Visceroreceptors located within the circulatory system
are sensitive to blood pressure changes are called barroreceptors
Preganglionic Visceral Efferent Nuclei
Visceral Efferent Nuclei contain cell bodies of preganglionic efferent neurons. Axons of the
neurons synapse within autonomic ganglia and the adrenal medulla. Preganglionic neurons are
activated by descending pathways from autonomic premotor centers and by local reflexes. (In the
gut, reflex activity can take place in autonomic plexuses and ganglia.)
Sympathetic preganglionic neurons are found particularly within the intermediolateral nucleus in
the lateral horn of the thoracolumbar spinal cord (T1- L4).
Parasympathetic preganglionic neurons are located in the sacral spinal cord (intermediate gray
matter) and in the brainstem (parasympathetic nuclei of oculomotor, facial, glossopharyngeal and
vagus nerves, plus cardiac preganglionic neurons are located in nucleus Rishevele).
Visceral Afferent Neurons & Sensory Nuclei
Cell bodies of General Visceral Afferent (GVA) primary afferent neurons reside in spinal ganglia
70
and in the distal ganglia (petrosal & nodose) of glossopharyngeal and vagus cranial
nerves. Spinal afferents convey noxious and temperature sensations; cranial nerve afferent traffic
is largely subconscious. Visceral receptors are generally free nerve endings (although Pacinian
corpuscles are present in viscera). Only about 10 percent of total afferent input to the CNS is
visceral (GVA); compared to somatic (GSA) sense, visceral sensation is meager.
Central branches of GVA primary afferent neurons synapse within sensory nuclei in the spinal
cord & brainstem. Sensory nuclei contain interneurons (for visceral reflexes) and projection
neurons (for conscious and subconscious ascending pathways). Conscious visceral sensations
include levels of fullness and pain, the latter is typically referred pain because visceral and
somatic afferent neurons generally share projection neurons.
The nucleus of the solitary tract (NST) is the main visceral sensory nucleus in the brainstem. It
receives GVA input from glossopharyngeal and vagus nerves and sends output to
parasympathetic preganglionic neurons, to premotor autonomic centers, and to the thalamus and
limbic system.
Brain Autonomic Control Centers
A network of Autonomic Control Centers process & relay visceral input and regulates visceral
activity via descending projection neurons (premotor neurons) to preganglionic nuclei. The
network is widely distributed in the brainstem and cerebrum, with rich connections to limbic
structures involved in emotional status and behavior. The autonomic network includes:
The insular cortex (deep to sylvian fissure) is a visceral sensory area of the neocortex that
receives input from the thalamus (ventral posterior nuclei). The medial frontal
cortex (rostroventral cingulate gyrus) is a visceral motor area of neocortex.
The amygdala, a limbic basal nucleus of the rhinencephalon, is involved in generating visceral
activity, particularly fearful emotional behavior. It receives sensory input from thalamus and
association cortex per sensory modality. Autonomic input arrives from insular cortex,
hypothalamus and parabrachial nuclei. Memory related input comes from the hippocampus and
adjacent neocortex. Projections from the amydala are widespread to cerebral cortex,
hypothalamus, PAG, parabrachial nuclei and the NST.
The hypothalamus is the major homeostatic control & circadian rhythm center of the brain. It
regulates endocrine activity via the pituitary gland; it controls energy metabolism, body
temperature, blood flow & blood composition; and it drives behavior related to feeding, mating
and emotional responses. In general, the rostral hypothalamus drives parasympathetic activity
and the caudal hypothalamus drives sympathetic activity. In particular, the hypothalamic
paraventricular nucleus projects to sympathetic and parasympathetic preganglionic neurons and
to brainstem autonomic centers (PAG, RVLM, solitary tract nucleus).
Midbrain periaqueductal gray matter (PAG) surrounds the mesencephalic aqueduct. Among
other functions, it relays visceral control information from the hypothalamus to the hindbrain
nuclei (e.g., PMC, RVLM). Visceral and other responses vary according to where the PAG is
71
stimulated. (The caudolateral PAG contains a micturition center that receives ascending
projections from the sacral cord, sends axons to the PMC, and generates bladder contraction
when stimulated.)
The pontine micturition center (PMC) is located dorsally in the pons. It gives rise to axons that
descend to the lumbosacral spinal cord where they excite preganglionic neurons to detrusor
smooth muscle and inhibit neurons to urinary sphincters. The PMC also controls the urinary tract
indirectly via input to medullary recticular nuclei that dispatch axons to the lumbosacral spinal
cord. The PMC receives input from the hypothalamus, PAG, and spinal cord.
Medial and lateral parabrachial nuclei border rostral cerebellar peduncle fibers in the pons. The
nuclei relay visceral information from the solitary tract nucleus & spinal cord to the
hypothalamus, contralateral thalamus, and limbic system. Vestibular input to parabrachial nuclei
is significant in connection with motion sickness. Neurons of the medial parabrachial nucleus
mediate baroreflex constriction of coronary vessels.
The rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) controls blood pressure by regulating
vasoconstriction and cardiac output. It receives input from peripheral baroreceptors &
chemoreceptors and several brain sites, including the PAG and hypothalamus. Its axons descend
to sympathetic preganglionic neurons in the spinal cord to regulate muscle and visceral
vasocontriction. Some RVLM neurons are tonically active.
Located on the midline, caudal raphe nuclei are a major source of excitatory & inhibitory input
to sympathetic preganglionic neurons in the intermediolateral nucleus of the spinal cord. The
raphe nuclei receives input from the NST, hypothalamus and RVLM. (Raphe nuclei in the rostral
medulla are involved in thermal production activity.)
The area postrema (AP), which is a circumventricular organ (lacking a blood-brain barrier), is
located dorsally at the caudal end of the medulla oblongata. The AP has chemoreceptors known
to detect emetic agents in blood. AP along with NST neurons project to sites in the caudal
medulla responsible for executing coordinated somatic and visceral components of emesis.
Types:
Deep Sensibility
Its the sensibility of the deep tissue such as muscles or tendons to pressure, pain, and
movement.
Epicritic Sensibility
The sensibility to gentle stimulations permitting fine discriminations of touch and temperature,
localized in the skin. Epicritic neurons detect gentle touch such as caresses; light vibrations; the
ability to recognize the shape of an object being held; and two-point discrimination, or the
spacing of two points being touched simultaneously.
72
Proprioceptive Sensibility
The sensibility afforded by receptors in muscles, joints, and other parts, by which one is made
aware of their position and state. Proprioceptors are the receptor cells found in the bodys
muscles and joints. They detect joint position and movement, and the direction and velocity of
the movement. There are many receptors in the muscles, muscle fascia, joints, and ligaments, all
of which are stimulated by stretching in the area in which they lie. Muscle receptors are most
active in large joints such as the hip and knee joints, while joint and skin receptors are more
meaningful to finger and toe joints. All of these receptors contribute to overall kinesthesia, or
the perception of bodily movements.
Protopathic Eensibility
The sensibility to strong stimulations of pain and temperature; it is low in degree and poorly
localized, existing in the skin and in the viscera, and acting as a defensive agency against
pathologic changes in the tissues.
Splanchnesthetic Sensibility
The sensibility to stimuli received by splanchnic receptors. The splanchnic nerves are paired
visceral nerves (nerves that contribute to the innervation of the internal organs), carrying fibers
of the autonomic nervous system (visceral efferent fibers) as well as sensory fibers from the
organs (visceral afferent fibers). All carry sympathetic fibers except for the pelvic splanchnic
nerves, which carry parasympathetic fibers.
CHAPTER 4
PERCEPTION
PERCEPTION
In everyday life, it is to separate sensation from perception because the first so quickly leads to
the second. Certain ambiguous stimuli, however, can help us distinguish between them.
Perception is the process whereby the brain interprets the sensation it receives, giving them order
and meaning. It is the cognitive process of selecting, or organizing, and interpreting those stimuli
provided to us by our senses.
73
we have our stimulus that we may be able to feel and react. On the other hand, we are the blessed
Perceivers. There are so many other factors like Time, Environment, Novelty, Motion,
Background, etc.
Stimulus Qualities
Intensity
It refers to the strength of the stimulus. When you look at some photographs, you would easily
perceive the photo that was dominantly colored by red than by orange or yellow, because red has
greater wavelengths than orange and yellow. The strength of stimulus might also refer to its size.
Larger busts are more noticeable the flat ones. Grater sculptures are more exposed. Also in its
age, fresh ones are more perceived.
Repetition
It means the recurrence or reappearance of the stimulus. In terms of repetition, if you are
frequently exposed to stimulus, there is a probability that you can recognize if not memorize the
stimulus. Remember how easy you have memorized the campaign jingles of our aspiring
politicians and how hard for you to memorize the hymn of our beloved school.
Movement
It involves changes or alterations of the stimulus. Things that move in a specific view are easier
to perceive than those which do not. For example, in a class of 50 students, a visitor will surely
perceive a more active student, who recites then and then, than those who always lend ears and
dont contribute to the discussion.
Perceivers Qualities
76
Motivation
It refers to the drive or enthusiasm of the individual. Greater motivation results to better
perception about the stimulus. If your professor gives bonus points for visual aids in reporting,
you will surely exert effort in making your visual aid. But if not, you might just have brought
your white board marker with you.
77
The figure should be the ground and the ground should be the figure.
Proximity
The law of proximity states that depending on how close
the individual elements of a gestalt are. It will determine
ones perception of it. It states objects that are near,
or proximate, to each other tend to be grouped together. It
is part of the Gestalt Laws of Perceptual Organization and
Gestalt psychology, which was founded by Max
Wertheimer. Wertheimer noted that rapid sequences of
events create the illusion of motion. An example of this would be movies or motion pictures.
Movies are actually a rapid succession of still images that create a seamless visual experience.
This is also known as the phi phenomenon. It states that the brain more closely associates objects
close to each other than it does when objects are spaced far apart. It is thought this kind of
clustering occurs because humans often have a natural inclination to want to group and organize
things in a neat and organized manner.
78
Similarity
Similarity refers to how similar the elements that make up a gestalt
are to each other. Whereby, the more similar the elements are, the
easier it will be to understand the whole. So the more similar things
are to each other, the more likely we are to see them as a whole.
The more dissimilar things are to each other, the more likely we are
to see them as being separate from each other. The principle of
similarity states that, all else being equal, perception lends itself to
seeing stimuli that physically resemble each other as part of the
same object, and stimuli that are different as part of a different
object. This allows for people to distinguish between adjacent and
overlapping objects based on their visual texture and resemblance.
Other stimuli that have different features are generally not perceived as part of the object. Our
brain uses similarity to distinguish between objects that may lay adjacent to or overlap with each
other based upon their visual texture.
Closure
Closure refers to the brains tendency to fill in gaps of information
so that something becomes a complete whole. It is your perception
of those images which makes them appear to move. The principle
of closure refers to the minds tendency to see complete figures or
forms even if a picture are incomplete, partially hidden by other
objects, or if part of the information needed to make a complete
picture in our minds is missing. Closure is also thought to have evolved from ancestral survival
instincts in that if one was to partially see a predator their mind would automatically complete
the picture and know that it was a time to react to potential danger even if not all the necessary
information was readily available.
Common fate
Common fate occurs when all the elements of an object move together, which makes them
distinguishable from a background. So the more similar things are, the more we see them as
common fate. When visual elements are seen moving in the same direction at the same rate
(optical flow), perception associates the movement as part of the same stimulus. For example,
birds may be distinguished from their background as a single flock because they are moving in
the same direction and at the same velocity, even when each bird is seen from a distance as
little more than a dot. The moving dots appear to be part of a unified whole. Similarly, two
flocks of birds can cross each other in a viewers visual field, but they will nonetheless continue
to be experienced as separate flocks because each bird has a direction common to its flock. This
allows people to make out moving objects even when other details (such as the objects color or
79
disparity or difference between these two retinal images can be used as a cue for depth or
distance. Retinal disparity also provides another example of how the world of sensation differs
from that of perception. For at the level of sensation we actually sense two images. However, at
the level of perception we only perceive one image. This ability of the brain to merge two images
together is sometimes called the zipper effect and it is partly as a result of retinal disparity that
the images we see appear to be in 3d. The word binocular comes from two Latin roots, binifor
double, and oculus for eye. According to Fahle (1987), having two eyes confers six advantages
over having one.
1
It gives a wider field of view. For example, humans have a maximum horizontal field of
view of approximately 190 degrees with two eyes, approximately 120 degrees of which
makes up the binocular field of view (seen by both eyes) flanked by two uniocular fields
(seen by only one eye) of approximately 40 degrees.
It can give stereopsis in which binocular disparity (or parallax) provided by the two eyes
different positions on the head gives precise depth perception. This also allows a creature
to break the camouflage of another creature.
It allows the angles of the eyes lines of sight, relative to each other (vergence), and those
lines relative to a particular object (gaze angle) to be determined from the images in the
two eyes.These properties are necessary for the third advantage.
It allows a creature to see more of, or all of, an object behind an obstacle. This advantage
was pointed out by Leonardo da Vinci, who noted that a vertical column closer to the
eyes than an object at which a creature is looking might block some of the object from
the left eye but that that part of the object might be visible to the right eye.
It gives binocular summation in which the ability to detect faint objects is enhanced.
Other phenomena of binocular vision include utrocular discrimination (the ability to tell which of
two eyes has been stimulated by light),eye dominance (the habit of using one eye when aiming
something, even if both eyes are open), allelotropia (the averaging of the visual direction of
objects viewed by each eye when both eyes are open), binocular fusion or singleness of
vision (seeing one object with both eyes despite each eyes having its own image of the
object),and binocular rivalry (seeing one eyes image alternating randomly with the other when
each eye views images that are so different they cannot be fused).
81
Binocular vision helps with performance skills such as catching, grasping, and locomotion. It
also allows humans to walk over and around obstacles at greater speed and with more assurance.
Orthoptists are eye care professionals who fix binocular vision problems.
Monocular Vision
The fact that depth perception is possible with only one eye shows that there are other visual
cues which allows us to perceive depth, and that this depth is not solely a result of retinal
disparity. It is vision in which both eyes are used separately. By using the eyes in this way, as
opposed by binocular vision, thefield of view is increased, while depth perception is limited. The
eyes of an animal with monocular vision are usually positioned on opposite sides of the animals
head, giving it the ability to see two objects at once. The word monocular comes from
the Greek root,mono for one, and the Latin root, oculus for eye.
Linear Perspective
Linear perspective describes the tendency of
parallel lines to appear to converge at the horizon.
This is also known as the ponzo illusion.is
a monocular cue that allows us to perceive the
depth and distance of an object. A monocular cue
is any depth cue that can be processed by using
one eye alone. This is in contrast to binocular
cues that require the use of both eyes to perceive
distance and depth.
Interposition
82
83
From one perspective, the shadow...is roughly equivalent to the whole of the Freudian
unconscious; and Jung himself asserted that the result of the Freudian method of elucidation is a
minute elaboration of mans shadow-side unexampled in any previous age.
Jung also believed that in spite of its function as a reservoir for human darknessor perhaps
because of thisthe shadow is the seat of creativity; so that for some, it may be, the dark side of
his being, his sinister shadow...represents the true spirit of life as against the arid scholar.
Texture Gradient
Texture gradient refers to the level of detail that you can see
in an image. The closer an image is to you, the more detail
you will see. But if it is too close, then that detail will start to
become distorted or blurry. Likewise, the further away an
image is, the less detail you will see it in. Texture gradient is
the distortion in size which closer objects have compared to
objects farther away. It also involves groups of objects
appearing denser as they move farther away. Also could be explained by noticing a certain
amount of detail depending on how close something is, giving a sense of depth perception. There
are three main forms of texture gradient: density, perspective, and distortion of texture elements.
Motion Parallax
Motion parallax describes the tendency when
moving forwards rapidly to perceive differential
speeds in objects that are passing by. A good
example of motion parallax occurs when driving .if
you see a lamp-post in front of you it appears to
approach slowly, but just as you are passing it, the
lamp-post seems to flash by quickly in front of you.
If you were to then look back behind you, the lamppost would appear to be slowly moving away from you until eventually it looked stationary.
When an observer moves, the apparent relative motion of several stationary objects against a
background gives hints about their relative distance. If information about the direction and
velocity of movement is known, motion parallax can provide absolute depth information. This
effect can be seen clearly when driving in a car. Nearby things pass quickly, while far off objects
appear stationary. Some animals that lack binocular vision due to their eyes having little common
field-of-view employ motion parallax more explicitly than humans for depth cueing
Size Constancy
84
85
Illusion
An illusion is defined as something which fools the senses such as by
appearing to exist when it does not, or by appearing to be one thing when in
fact it is another. Illusions are usually associated with a particular sense. For
example, the moon creates an optical illusion by appearing larger when it is
nearer the horizon and smaller when it is higher and overhead. Illusions are
sometimes confused with delusions and/or hallucination, but these are
something completely different.
Delusions
A delusion is a false belief .for example, if I were to believe
that I have eyes on the back of my head, and then this would be
a delusion because what I believe to be true is not.
A delusion is a belief held with strong conviction despite
superior evidence to the contrary. As pathology, it is distinct
from a belief based on false or incomplete
information, confabulation, dogma, illusion, or other effects of perception.
Delusions typically occur in the context of neurological or mental illness, although they are not
tied to any particular disease and have been found to occur in the context of many pathological
states (both physical and mental). However, they are of particular diagnostic importance
in psychotic disorders including schizophrenia, paraphrenia, manic episodes of bipolar disorder,
and psychotic depression
Hallucinations
86
Delusions of influence (Believe that their thought and actions are controlled by outside force)
Delusions of persecution (Believe that others are trying to harm)
87
Delusions of reference (Believe that some events in the environment have special meaning
to, and directed at the patient)
4 Grandiose delusions (The patients feelings of having special power and knowledge or
special relationships with important figures)
5 Somatic delusions (Feelings that the body has been manipulated by outside forces)
6 Delusion of love (Believe that he has a special romantic relationship with a public famous
figure)
7 Nihilism (Patient believe that the self-world and even time has been lost or
destroyed)Illusions
8 Illusions may occur more often when attention is not focused on the sensory modality, or
when there is strong affective state. For example, in a dark, a frightened person is more likely
to perceive the outline of a bush as that of an attacker.
9 Hallucinations
10 Hallucinations are not restricted to the mentally ill. A few normal people experience them,
especially when tired, also occur in healthy people during transition between sleep and
waking; they are called hypnagogic while falling asleep or hypnopompic while awaking.
Hallucination of deep sensation may occur as feelings of the viscera being pulled upon or
distended, or of sexual stimulation.
ESP is also sometimes referred to as a sixth sense. The term implies acquisition of information
by means external to the basic limiting assumptions of science, such as these organisms can only
receive information from the past to the present.
The scientific community rejects ESP due to the absence of an evidence base, the lack of a
theory which would explain ESP, the lack of experimental techniques which can provide reliably
positive results and considers ESP to be non-existent.
CHAPTER 5
CONSCIOUSNESS
Consciousness
Heres a riddle: Whats something we all experience, all the time, that we cant really
measure and barely have words to define? You cant hold it n your hand or take a bite of it. It
isnt something you learn or practice. It just is consciousness. Every science has certain concepts
89
that are so fundamental, yet abstract, that we have a hard time finding the appropriate words to
describe them.
We can simply define consciousness as our awareness of ourselves and our environment.
Its this awareness that allows us to take in and organize information from many sources and
senses at once. American psychologist, William James thought of consciousness as a
continuously moving, shifting, and unbroken stream, hence the term stream of consciousness,
others think of it as the brains roving flashlight, shining down an unbroken stream of light that
highlights one thing and then moves on to the next. The point is your conscious experience is
forever shifting. Beyond that moment to moment shifting, consciousness allows us to
contemplate life, think about infinity. Or consciousness helps us to plan our futures, consider
consequences and reflect on the past. It is both the most familiar and the most mysterious part of
our lives.
Prologue
Close your eyes imagine that your book rises slowly from your lap, drifts to your face,
and closes, lightly pinching your nose. Try it- seriously.
Could you see the book rise n your imagination? Did you feel a little pinch on your nose?
How about when you are daydreaming- do you sometimes get lost in your thoughts and have
conversations with people who are not there but who speak clearly to you, anyway?
My point is this: Life s made of many kinds of conscious awareness. Sometimes they are
based on what is out there, as when you are aware of the words in the textbook. But often you
create your conscious experiences entirely on your brain- like floating textbook that rose up and
pinched your nose. You create realities in your consciousness that never were and may never be.
You do so every time you imagine, daydream, or dream.
Nancy Kerr of the Georgia Mental Health Institute conducted a classic study that
illustrates this point beautifully. Kerr studied the dreams of adult men and women who had lost
their eyesight as young children, She found that, when they dreamed about friends, their dreams
were very much like those of sighted adults. Indeed, when they dreamed about people they had
met as blind adults- friends they had never seen- they dreamed about them in visual images.
They could see what their friends looked like in their dreams, even though they had never seen
them with their eyes. They created these visual images entirely in their brains.
In this topic, we will define consciousness as a state of awareness- awareness of the
outside world, of our own thoughts and feelings, and sometimes even of our own consciousness.
Consciousness is not a single state, however. Rather, there are many different states of conscious
awareness. Even during the course of a typical day our wakefulness is composed of a variety of
states of consciousness: loosely drifting consciousness, and daydreams.
90
When the waking day ends, moreover, we do not cease to be aware; rather, we experience
other kinds of consciousness. As we drift off to sleep, we pass through a dreamlike twilight
phase, and even amid the shifting stages of sleep itself we experience the strange reality of
dreams. Apparently, these dreams are important to our well-being. Indeed, sleep may not rest and
restore us for the next day if we do not dream sufficiently.
Other states of consciousness are experienced much less often. Some states of altered
awareness occur spontaneously, as do hallucinations and other distorted perceptual experiences.
Other altered states of consciousness are achieved in part through deep concentration and
relaxation, such as during meditation and hypnosis. Still other altered states are induced by
taking certain kind of drugs.
Definition
What does it mean to be conscious? Clearly, it has something to do with awareness.
When conscious, we are aware of the sights and sounds of the outside world, of our feelings, our
thoughts, and sometimes even our own consciousness. When unconscious, we are not aware of
any of these things. Consciousness, simply defined, is a state of awareness.
However, there is more than one kind of conscious state; it comes in more than the wideawake-and-thinking variety. The qualities of conscious awareness that people experience when
daydreaming, hypnotized, high on drugs, or dreaming are so different from one another that we
need to think of consciousness as being many different states of awareness. To understand
consciousness fully, we need to explore its many varieties and the conditions under which they
occur.
We spend our lives passing from one state of consciousness to another. We read a book,
we daydream, we drift off to sleep, we dream, and so on. Each of these states of conscious
awareness is so different from the next that the very sense of reality it imparts differs. What is
logical and possible in a dream may seem absurd when considered the next day. We seldom
wonder which state contains the ultimate reality, however. We assume without questioning that
the waking state in which we spend most of our lives is the real consciousness. Its the standard
by which we judge other states and find them to be distorted or unreal.
Waking consciousness is so much a part of us, in fact, that its difficult to step back and
look at it objectively. When we do, we see that it is not a single state of consciousness; instead, it
includes at least three varieties: directed consciousness, flowing consciousness, and daydreams.
91
Functions of Consciousness
William James in Gazzaniga (1980) describes the function of consciousness as a selecting
agency. He says that it enables us to cope with conditions that require us to choose among a wide
variety of stimuli. We notice, emphasize and decide; we ignore or pay less attention to the stimuli
that we do not have to deal with at the moment. When we are reacting automatically or
habitually, consciousness is minimal; we need not be conscious of what we are doing. However,
when we encounter something new or different, when we hesitate or need to make a choice, full
consciousness comes into play. We do not respond to every stimulus around us, but rather, only
to those that require a response.
Similarly, Mandler in Silverman (1979), brings out the point that consciousness
apparently enables us to decide among various courses of action. He identifies five adaptive
functions of consciousness.
1
It permits us to choose our course of action on the basis of the most probable or most
desirable outcome.
92
2
3
4
States of Consciousness
Are you conscious? If youre presently awake and is focused on listening, the answer is
most probably yes! Most likely, youre now familiar with the term conscious as well as the
word, unconscious. We tend to use the word conscious interchangeably with the word
aware. How aware are you at this moment? Your answer is likely to include how alert you feel,
what youre currently thinking about, what you feel, your emotions and what youre noticing
about your surroundings. Our answer to this question is obviously subjective because it depends
on what were currently experiencing at this point in time.
Life is basically made up of every kinds of consciousness. We may not be aware of it, but
it is a part of our system. Using our brains, the most complex thing in the entire universe, we
create our own conscious experiences. We create realities in our consciousness. These realities
might even never happen before or never existed in the first place. We do so every time we
imagine, daydream or dream.
To further understand the above statements, we will explore the notion of the different
states of consciousness and compare it to altered states (which will be discussed in the later
reports). Perhaps you are paying attention on what Im saying, on the report, but what were you
focusing on the moment ago? Maybe youre daydreaming, making plans for the week. Can you
still remember what your dream was about when you woke up from sleep? All this different
mental activities represent different states of consciousness.
Our level of awareness varies throughout the day. You will have times when youre alert
and times when youre feeling quite drowsy. Consciousness can be thought of as operating on a
continuum from a high level of consciousness or awareness to the point of being unconscious or
being totally unaware. The more aware we are of our thoughts, feelings, perceptions and
surroundings, the higher the level of consciousness. So, the level of awareness of internal events
and external surroundings is known as a State of Consciousness (SOC).
Think about how aware you are of your thoughts and feelings and what is happening around
you at the moment. Ask yourself these questions: Who are you? Where are you? What are you
doing? What time is it? Who are you with? Are you thinking about something? So if you have a
real understanding of where you are, what time is it, what you are thinking, how you are feeling
and so on, you are experiencing a Normal Waking Consciousness (NWC)a state that is
93
relatively organized, meaningful and clear. It is a state of consciousness that you experience
when you are awake and aware of your thoughts, feelings, and perceptions from internal events
and the surrounding environment. During normal waking consciousness, you experience a real
sense of time and place.
Directed Consciousness
There are times when our conscious awareness is directed toward a single focus. When we
read a book, we are focused on the words and phrases on the pages, we get absorbed by what
were reading. The state where our conscious awareness is focused, ordered, and one-tracked is
known as Directed Consciousness. For example, when you drink, pay attention to how wet your
drink feels, how cold it is in your mouth, how it tastes like. Focus on your drink. If you do that,
youll taste your drink as youve never tasted one before.
Flowing Consciousness
A goldfishs attention span is 3 seconds. Did you know that the average human attention span
is 2.8-8 seconds? But according to statistics, when browsing the web, the average adult has a
shorter attention span than a goldfish. One moment were thinking about something, we get
distracted, then our attention shifts to another. William James compared this kind of
consciousness to the flow of water in a stream. He viewed consciousness as an ever-changing
stream of thoughts that can shift smoothly and effortlessly from one moment to the next, just like
water flowing in a stream.
Daydreams
What is the greatest desire of your heart? Do you have a wish you want to be granted? Do
you have things you want to happen in your life? Sigmund Freud believed that daydreams
reduced the tension left by our unfulfilled needs and wishes. Daydreams are focused and directed
thinking but these involve fantasies. What we cannot do in reality, we accomplish in the fantasy
world of daydreams. Was Freud right about daydreams reducing tension of unmet needs? To
answer this, researchers asked college students to jot down their daydreams for several days.
They found out as predicted that most of the daydreams involve fulfillment of a wish. Also, with
these, people feel more relaxed. They proved that instead of releasing tension, daydreams create,
for they are merely a slightly distorted reflection of our current concerns and emotion.
Divided Consciousness
This may happen when youre deeply absorbed in the novel youre reading. (Especially,
when youre a bookworm!) Imagine yourself sitting on a nook, reading the Harry Potter series
and the scene where the Golden Trio set off to save the sorcerers stone comes in. Youd
probably share the same experience along with the fictional characters. Studies show that when
this happens, most readers forget the time passing by especially when theyre so into the story.
Ernest Hilgard (1975) believes that our conscious awareness hormones split and we
simultaneously perform two activities requiring conscious awareness. Simply, it means being at
two places (mentally) at the same time.
94
Dreams
Do you know that the average person spends about six years of their lives dreaming? Our
dreamsthose vivid, emotional images racing through our sleeping brainshave long been a
source of curiosity. Nobody knows for certain why we dream. Ancient people have tried to find
the meaning and purpose of dreams, using them as prophecy or messages from some sort of
spirit.
One of the first people to come up with a scientific explanation as to why we dream was
the Greek philosopher Aristotle wherein he spoke of the soul exercising special clairvoyant
powers, in accord with its divine nature, when freed in sleep from the bodys constraint. He also
concluded that the function of sleep and dreams was to dissipate the vapors that rose from the
stomach after eating. And also, for centuries people believed that blood rose to the brain and kind
of like caused congestion there and when a person sleeps, the blood is drained back to the rest of
the body.
In the early 20th century, sleep and dreams were thought to be a function of elimination.
Scientific theories proposed that lactic acid, carbon dioxide and cholesterol collected in the
brain during waking and were dissipated during sleep. But it was said that the real inquiry on the
process of dreaming began with Sigmund Freuds The Interpretation of Dreams (1900).
Freud believed that the problems of his patients could be the cause of their past conflicts
or traumatic events that had been buried in their unconscious minds since childhood. So, one of
the ways Freud devised to get to those early memories was to examine his patients dreams. He
believed that the true meaning of dreams were hidden and were only expressed in symbols.
Sometimes, we get really crazy dreams. But mostly, average dreams usually just sort of
unpack and reshuffle what you did that day. If something traumatic happen to you, your brain
might provide you with a nightmare to help extinguish your daytime fears.
Oneirology, the study of dreams is a mix of neuroscience and psychology. Oneiros is a
Greek term for dream. Thus, they seek to find answers as to why we dream and what the purpose
of dreaming is. Back with Freud, he believed that our dreams were some sort of censored and
symbolic version of whatever inner conflict that was going on in the dreams latent content. But,
eventually it was flunked because we can interpret a dream any way that we want.
There are other theories to consider, though. Theres this Information Processing Theory
that proposes that our dreams help us process or sort out the days events and fix them into
memories. Theres also this idea that dreams are part of our cognitive development. It proposes
that dreams draw on our knowledge and understanding of the world. And finally, there are
theories that say that dreams are just some sort of accidental side-effects, something like the
brains attempt to weave a story out of the bunch of emotion, random sights and memories that
we may have felt or had.
However, there is also what we call mystical meaning of dreams. Early human cultures
believed that dreams were glimpses of the divine world, possibly messages or warnings from
95
supernatural beings. The earliest cultures considered dreams to be of great importance and
treated them with utmost reverence. Ancient Greeks also believed that dreams were messages
from the gods.
So, what do people mostly dream about? It is typically about events that occur in
everyday life. There are dreams about flying, falling, trying to do something, there are
nightmares. Even with the above statements as to why we dream, the topic continues to be a
great subject for debate for researchers. All we know is that every dream can be interpreted in
many ways and this just proves how complex and special our brain really is.
Stages of Sleep
When a person sleeps, he/she goes through 5 Stages of Sleep, these 5 stages are what
make up the entire length of our sleep each night that we go to bed. The 5 stages, namely stage
1,2,3,4 and the R.E.M. Stage are the 5 stages we go through when we sleep. Each stage affects
our brain differently throughout the night.
96
The 2nd stage of sleep is generally referred to as the 1ST Real Stage of Sleep, because its
essentially the stage in sleep wherein were being prepared for the stage of Deep Sleep. This
stage is still in the category of light sleep though, since brain activity is still fairly high, but that
brain activity diminishes over time which leads us to the stage of deep sleep.
Stage 3 & 4 / The Stages of Deep Sleep
Stages 3 and 4 are what we commonly refer to as the stages of Deep Sleep since these are
the stages when our brain activity diminishes and we fall into a deep, comfortable sleep where
waking us up is much harder than waking up someone in Light Sleep.
Stage 3
In this 1st part of the stages of deep sleep, the brain begins producing Delta Waves, which
are extremely slow brain waves. Smaller, faster brain waves however are still scattered along
throughout the brain but there are more delta waves which gives us deep sleep.
Stage 4
In the 2nd stage of deep sleep, the brain pretty much exclusively produces delta waves,
which takes what was already a very deep slumber and makes it even deeper.
The R.E.M. Stage / Rapid Eye Movement Stage
Up till this point where we hit the R.E.M. Stage, we were still in what we would call
Non-R.E.M. Sleep, where there is little to no eye movement. Its also worth noting that in NonR.E.M. Sleep the mental activity is still quite thought-like and normal, while during R.E.M.
Sleep mental activity becomes more bizarre and seemingly very hallucinatory.
As you might have guessed, during the R.E.M. Stage, the eyes move, and jerk rapidly,
this is due to the sudden rise of brain activity that occurs. Brain activity increases to match the
brain activity of someone awake during this stage, which is generally what leads to the creation
of Dreams. If someone is awoken during R.E.M. Sleep theres a possibility that that person can
remember his dream that he experienced during his R.E.M. Sleep.
Another major difference between Non-R.E.M. Sleep and R.E.M. Sleep is how during
R.E.M. Sleep, the muscles are paralyzed which means we cant move an inch, while during NonR.E.M. Sleep, our muscles are fine, which can sometimes lead to Sleepwalking. Other things
that occur during R.E.M. Sleep are as follows: Heart rate and Blood Pressure increase, the body
loses its ability to regulate temperature.
97
Generally during the stages of deep sleep, most children will experience bedwetting,
sleepwalking or even night terrors.
One full cycle of sleep can last anywhere between 90 110 minutes.
During the 1st few cycles of sleep during the night, R.E.M. Sleep is much shorter while
Non-R.E.M. Sleep stages are much longer. The next few cycles will have longer R.E.M.
Sleep and Less Non-R.E.M. Sleep which makes waking up easier.
Infants generally have more R.E.M. Sleep than adults, and adults in turn have more NonR.E.M. Sleep.
The cycle of sleep will typically repeat around 4 6 times each night.
In 2008, The Sleep Profession in the US eliminated the 4th stage and merged it with the
3rd.
Length of Sleep
Circadian Clock
Biologically, the most important circadian clock currently known to science is a dense
cluster of neurons in the suprachiasmatic nucleus, a part of the brain directly above the optic
chiasm, where the optic nerves cross on their paths from the two eyes to the visual cortex. This
clock measures the time of day, primarily based on input from outside light signals. An organism
whose circadian clock exhibits a regular rhythm corresponding to outside signals is said to
be entrained; the rhythm so established persists even if the outside signals suddenly disappear. If
you take an entrained human and put them in a bunker with constant light (or darkness), they will
continue to experience rhythmic increases and decreases of body temperature and melatonin, on
a period which slightly exceeds 24 hours. Scientists refer to such conditions as free-running of
the circadian rhythm. (Under natural conditions, light signals regularly adjust this period
downward, so that it corresponds better with the exact 24 hours of an Earth day.)
The clock exerts constant influence on the body, effecting continuous sinusoidal
oscillation of body temperature between ~36.2 C and ~37.2 C. The suprachiasmatic nucleus
itself shows conspicuous oscillation activity, which intensifies during subjective day (i.e., the
part of the rhythm corresponding with daytime, whether accurately or not) and drops to almost
nothing during subjective night. The circadian pacemaker in the suprachiasmatic nucleus has a
direct neural connection to the pineal gland, which releases the hormone melatonin at
night. Melatonin is an important circadian indicator but its mechanisms of action are not well
understood. Nocturnal mammals, which tend to stay awake at night, have higher melatonin at
night just like diurnal mammals do. And, although removing the pineal gland in many animals
98
abolishes melatonin rhythms, it does not stop circadian rhythms altogetherthough it may alter
them and weaken their responsiveness to light cues. Cortisol levels in diurnal animals typically
rise throughout the night, peak in the awakening hours, and diminish during the
day. Circadian prolactin secretion begins in the late afternoon, especially in women, and is
subsequently augmented by sleep-induced secretion, to peak in the middle of the night. Circadian
rhythm exerts some influence on the nighttime secretion of growth hormone.
The circadian rhythm influences the ideal timing of a restorative sleep episode.
In diurnal animals, sleepiness increases during the night. REM sleep occurs more during the low
part (i.e., near body temperature minimum) of the circadian cycle, whereas slow-wave sleep
occurs relatively independently of circadian time.
The internal circadian clock is profoundly influenced by changes in light, since these are
its main clues about what time it is. Exposure to even small amounts of light during the night can
can suppress melatonin secretion, increase body temperature, and increase cognitive ability.
Short pulses of light, at the right moment in the circadian cycle, can significantly reset the
internal clock. Blue light, in particular, exerts the strongest effect.
Modern humans often find themselves desynchronized from their internal circadian
clock, due to the requirements of work (especially night shifts), long-distance travel, and the
influence of widespread indoor lighting. Even if they have sleep debt, or feel sleepy, people can
have difficulty staying asleep at the peak of their circadian cycle. Conversely they can have
difficulty waking up in the trough of the cycle. A healthy young adult entrained to the sun will
(during most of the year) fall asleep a few hours after sunset, experience body temperature
minimum at 6AM, and wake up a few hours after sunrise.
Nocturnal animals have higher body temperatures, greater activity, rising serotonin, and
diminishing cortisol during the nightthe inverse of diurnal animals. Nocturnal and diurnal
animals both have increased electrical activity in the suprachiasmatic nucleus, and corresponding
secretion of melatonin from the pineal gland, at night.
age, an adult with a cold will need more sleep than one who is well, and an individual with
depression may require more sleep than a non-depressed person.
Though there is no magic sleep number, there are general rules for how much sleep
certain age groups need.
Adult
The optimal amount of sleep is not a meaningful concept unless the timing of that sleep is
seen in relation to an individuals circadian rhythms. A persons major sleep episode is
relatively inefficient and inadequate when it occurs at the wrong time of day; one should be
asleep at least six hours before the lowest body temperature. The timing is correct when the
following two circadian markers occur after the middle of the sleep episode and before
awakening: maximum concentration of the hormone melatonin, and minimum core body
temperature.
Human sleep needs vary by age and amongst individuals, and sleep is considered to be
adequate when there is no daytime sleepiness or dysfunction. Moreover, self-reported sleep
duration is only moderately correlated with actual sleep time as measured by actigraphy, and
those affected with sleep state misperception may typically report having slept only four
hours despite having slept a full eight hours.
A University of California, San Diego psychiatry study of more than one million
adults found that people who live the longest self-report sleeping for six to seven hours each
night. Another study of sleep duration and mortality risk in women showed similar results. Other
studies show that sleeping more than 7 to 8 hours per day has been consistently associated with
increased mortality, though this study suggests the cause is probably other factors such as
depression and socioeconomic status, which would correlate statistically. It has been suggested
that the correlation between lower sleep hours and reduced morbidity only occurs with those who
wake naturally, rather than those who use an alarm.
Researchers at the University of Warwick and University College London have
found that lack of sleep can more than double the risk of death from cardiovascular
disease, but that too much sleep can also be associated with a doubling of the risk of death,
though not primarily from cardiovascular disease.
Professor Francesco Cappuccio said, Short sleep has been shown to be a risk factor for
weight gain, hypertension, and Type 2 diabetes, sometimes leading to mortality; but in
contrast to the short sleep-mortality association, it appears that no potential mechanisms by
which long sleep could be associated with increased mortality have yet been investigated. Some
candidate causes for this include depression, low socioeconomic status, and cancer-related
fatigue... In terms of prevention, our findings indicate that consistently sleeping around seven
hours per night is optimal for health, and a sustained reduction may predispose to ill health.
100
Furthermore, sleep difficulties are closely associated with psychiatric disorders such
as depression, alcoholism, and bipolar disorder. Up to 90% of adults with depression
are found to have sleep difficulties. Dysregulation found on EEG includes disturbances in sleep
continuity, decreased delta sleep and altered REM patterns with regard to latency, distribution
across the night and density of eye movements.
Young
By the time infants reach the age of two, their brain size has reached 90 per cent of an adultsized brain; a majority of this brain growth has occurred during the period of life with the highest
rate of sleep. The hours that children spend asleep influence their ability to perform on cognitive
tasks. Children who sleep through the night and have few night waking episodes have higher
cognitive attainments and easier temperaments than other children.
Sleep also influences language development. To test this, researchers taught infants a faux
language and observed their recollection of the rules for that language. Infants who slept within
four hours of learning the language could remember the language rules better, while infants who
stayed awake longer did not recall those rules as well. There is also a relationship between
infants vocabulary and sleeping: infants who sleep longer at night at 12 months have better
vocabularies at 26 months.
Children need many hours of sleep per day in order to develop and function properly: up to
18 hours for newborn babies, with a declining rate as a child ages. Early in 2015, after a twoyear study, the National Sleep Foundation in the US announced newly revised
recommendations as shown in the table below.
Age and condition
Sleep Needs
14 to 17 hours[73]
12 to 15 hours
11 to 14 hours
10 to 13 hours
9 to 11 hours
8 to 10 hours
Adults
7 to 9 hours
101
Measuring Sleep
Scientists measure sleep with the following:
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
It is a device that measures the electrical activity of the brain. This is the measure scientists
rely on most when determining which stage stage of sleep a person is in. When using the EEG,
we look at each wave in terms of the: a) frequency how many times the wave occurs within a
specific period, and b) the amplitude the size of the wave. These two submeasures help us
identify wave types so that, in turn, we can identify different stages of sleep.
Electrooculagram (EOG)
Its a device that measures eye activity. During different stages of sleep, our eyes move in
distinct ways. For example, during slow wave sleep (SWS), we have slow, rolling eye
movements, However, during REM sleep, our eye movements are much more rapid and occur in
a sharp, back and forth way. The EOG is a vital tool for identifying REM sleep since the EEG in
REM, wake and stage look so similar. But, when we combine the EEG and EOG it is easy to see
the differences.
Electromyogram (EMG)
This device is used to measure the muscle activity that occurs during sleep, and is
particularly helpful when attempting to identify REM sleep. During REM sleep (as you will soon
read), humans experience a type of temporary paralysis during which the EMG drops to almost
nothing (close to a flat line).
As you most likely know, the electrocardiogram is a measure of heart muscle contractions.
Temperature
Body temperature is connected with sleep via the sircadian rhythms (your bodys internal,
biological clock). Although most people believe that the circadian rhythms are a function of time,
they in fact work according to body temperature that fluctuates over a 24 (or so) hour period. So,
our internal clock seems to function according to our body temperature that varies across a 24
hour period, and not strictly according to time. So, the clock showing 11:00 am does not
influence a persons ability to sleep. The body temperature that occurs at that time of day is more
important.
102
Sleep Disorders
Sleep is a behavioral state that is a natural part of every individuals life. We spend about
one-third of our lives asleep. Nonetheless, people generally know little about the importance of
this essential activity. Sleep is not just something to fill time when a person is inactive. Sleep is a
required activity, not an option. Even though the precise functions of sleep remain a mystery,
sleep is important for normal motor and cognitive function. We all recognize and feel the need to
sleep. After sleeping, we recognize changes that have occurred, as we feel rested and more alert.
Sleep actually appears to be required for survival.
Sleep is a dynamic process. Sleep is not a passive event, but rather an active process
involving characteristic physiological changes in the organs of the body.
Problems with sleep can be due to lifestyle choices and can result in problem sleepiness
that is, feeling sleepy at inappropriate times. Environmental noise, temperature changes,
changes in sleeping surroundings, and other factors may affect our ability to get sufficient restful
sleep. Short-term problem sleepiness may be corrected by getting additional sleep to overcome
the sleep deficit. In other cases, problem sleepiness may indicate a sleep disorder requiring
medical intervention. Alcohol abuse can cause or exacerbate sleep disorders by disrupting the
sequence and duration of sleep states. Alcohol does not promote good sleep, and consuming
alcohol in the evening can also exacerbate sleep apnea problems.
Hypersomnia
contribute to the disorder. Some people appear to have a genetic predisposition to hypersomnia;
in others, there is no known cause. Hypersomnia typically affects adolescents and young adults.
Symptoms
Causes
Treatments
Stimulants, such as amphetamine, methylphenidate, and modafinil, may be prescribed.
Other drugs used to treat hypersomnia include clonidine, levodopa, bromocriptine,
antidepressants, and monoamine oxidase inhibitors. Changes in behaviorfor example avoiding
night work and social activities that delay bed timeand diet may offer some relief. Patients
should avoid alcohol and caffeine.
Insomnia
Insomnia is the feeling of inadequate or poor-quality sleep because of one or more of the
following: trouble falling asleep (Initial Insomnia); trouble remaining asleep through the night
(Middle Insomnia); waking up too early (Terminal Insomnia); or unrefreshing sleep for at least
one month. These can all lead to daytime drowsiness, poor concentration and the inability to feel
refreshed and rested upon awakening.
104
Insomnia is not defined by the hours of sleep a person gets or how long it takes to fall
asleep. Individuals vary normally in their need for, and their satisfaction with, sleep. Insomnia
may cause problems during the day, such as tiredness, difficulty concentrating and irritability.
Insomnia can be classified as transient, intermittent and chronic. Insomnia lasting from a
single night to a few weeks is referred to as transient. If episodes of transient insomnia occur
from time to time, the insomnia is said to be intermittent. Insomnia (or Primary Insomnia) is
considered to be chronic if it occurs on most nights and lasts a month or more. Secondary
insomnia is the symptom or side effect of another problem. This type of insomnia often is a
symptom of an emotional, neurological, or other medical or sleep disorder.
Women, the elderly and individuals with a history of depression are more likely to
experience insomnia. Factors such as stress, anxiety, a medical problem or the use of certain
medications make the chance of insomnia more likely.
Symptoms
People will be unable to carry out their daily responsibilities either because they are too
tired or because they have trouble concentrating due to lack of restful sleep.
Insomnia may cause a reduced energy level, irritability, disorientation, dark circles under
the eyes, posture changes and fatigue.
Patients with insomnia are evaluated by a medical history and a sleep history. The sleep
history may be obtained from a sleep diary filled out by the patient or by an interview with the
patients bed partner concerning the quantity and quality of the patients sleep. Specialized sleep
studies may be recommended, but only if there is suspicion that the patient may have a primary
sleep disorder such as sleep apnea or narcolepsy.
Treatments
There are several steps people can take to help them sleep. Obvious ones are taking no
caffeinated drinks or foods that cause indigestion before bedtime, taking medication for pain, and
dealing with anxieties in the daytime rather than facing them at night. Here are some other
helpful hints (Kupfer& Reynolds, 1997)
1
Go to bed only when you are sleepy. If you lie in bed for 20 minutes and are still awake,
get up and do something like reading or watching television until you feel sleepy, and
then go back to bed.
Dont do anything in your bed but sleep. Your bed should be a cue for sleeping, not
studying or watching television. Because sleep is a reflex response, using the bed as a cue
for sleeping is a kind of learning called classical conditioning or the pairing of cues and
automatic responses.
105
4
5
Dont try too hard to get to sleep, and especially do not look at the clock and calculate
how much sleep you arent getting. That just increases the tension and makes it harder to
sleep.
Keep to a regular schedule. Go to bed at the same time, even on days that you dont have
to go to work or class.
Dont take sleeping pills or drink alcohol or other types of drugs that slow down the
nervous system. Thesedrugs force you into deep sleep and do not allow you to get any
REM sleep or lighter stages.
If none of these things seem to be working, there are sleep clinics and sleep experts who can help
people with insomnia.
Nightmares
A nightmare is a dream occurring during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep that results in
feelings of strong terror, fear, distress or extreme anxiety. This phenomenon tends to occur in the
latter part of the night and oftentimes awakens the sleeper, who is likely to recall the content of
the dream.
Most nightmares may be a normal reaction to stress, and some clinicians believe they aid
people in working through traumatic events. Frequent occurrence of nightmares becomes a
disorder when it impairs social, occupational and other important areas of functioning. At this
point, it may be referred to as Nightmare Disorder (formerly Dream Anxiety Disorder) or
repeated nightmares.
Repeated nightmares is defined more specifically as a series of nightmares with a
recurring theme. Nightmares usually begin in childhood before age 10 and are considered normal
unless they significantly interfere with sleep, development or psychosocial development. They
tend to be more common in girls than boys, and they may continue into adulthood. Adult
nightmares are often associated with outside stressors or exist alongside another mental disorder.
Nightmares might be associated with anxiety and trauma.
Symptoms
Symptoms are not caused by general medical condition or by use of medications or other
substances.
Nightmares tend to be more common among children and become less frequent toward
adulthood. Nevertheless, about 50 percent of adults experience occasional nightmares, women
more often than men, and do not require any treatment. Eating just prior to going to bed, which
raises the bodys metabolism and brain activity, may cause an increase in nightmares.
Approximately 1 percent of adults will experience repeated nightmares and should seek help.
Causes
Anxiety or stress is the most common: In 60 percent of cases, a major life event precedes
the onset of nightmares
Illness with a fever
Death of a loved one (bereavement)
Adverse reaction to or side effect of a drug
Recent withdrawal from a drug such as sleeping pills
Excessive alcohol consumption
Abrupt alcohol withdrawal
Breathing disorder in sleep (sleep apnea)
Sleep disorders (narcolepsy, sleep terror disorder)
Eating just before going to bed, which raises the bodys metabolism and brain activity,
may cause nightmares to occur more often.
Treatments
If you are experiencing severe stress, you should seek out the support of friends and
relatives. Talking about what is on your mind can go a long way. It is also recommended that you
follow a regular fitness routine, including aerobic exercise if possible. You will find yourself able
to fall asleep faster, having a deeper sleep and waking up feeling more refreshed. Learn
techniques to reduce muscle tension (relaxation therapy), which will also help lessen anxiety.
Avoid long-term use of tranquilizers, and avoid caffeine and other stimulants.
If your nightmares started shortly after beginning a new medication, contact your healthcare provider. He or she will advise you on discontinuing that medication if necessary and
recommend an alternative.
For nightmares resulting from the effects of street drugs or persistent alcohol use, seek
counsel on discontinuing usage. Alcoholics Anonymous, for example, might suggest a safe way
for you to stop drinking. You can also attend their regularly scheduled meetings. In addition, look
at your lifestyle-friends, work and family-to rid yourself of factors that encourage substance
abuse. Call your health-care provider if nightmares occur more often than weekly, or if they
107
prevent you from getting a good nights rest and persist for a prolonged period. Your medical
history will be obtained and a physical examination performed.
Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a serious, potentially life-threatening condition that is far more common than
generally understood. First described in 1965, sleep apnea is a breathing disorder characterized
by brief interruptions of breathing during sleep. It owes its name to the Greek word, apnea,
meaning, want of breath. There are two types of sleep apnea: central and obstructive. Central
sleep apnea, which is less common, occurs when the brain fails to send the appropriate signals to
the breathing muscles to initiate respiration.
Obstructive sleep apnea is far more common and occurs when air cannot flow into or out of
the persons nose or mouth although efforts to breathe continue.
In a given night, the number of involuntary breathing pauses or apneic events may be as
high as 20 to 30 or more per hour. These breathing pauses are almost always accompanied by
snoring between apnea episodes, although not everyone who snores has this condition. Sleep
apnea can also be characterized by choking sensations. The frequent interruptions of deep,
restorative sleep often lead to early morning headaches and excessive daytime sleepiness.
In normal conditions, the muscles of the upper part of the throat keep this passage open to
allow air to flow into the lungs. These muscles usually relax during sleep, but the passage
remains open enough to permit the flow of air. Some individuals have a narrower passage, and
during sleep, relaxation of these muscles causes the passage to close, and air cannot get into the
lungs. Loud snoring and labored breathing occur. When complete blockage of the airway occurs,
air cannot reach the lungs.
Early recognition and treatment of sleep apnea is important because it may be associated with
irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke.
Sleep apnea occurs in all age groups and both sexes, but is more common in men (though it
may be under-diagnosed in women) and possibly young African Americans. It has been
estimated that as many as 18 million Americans have sleep apnea. Four percent of middle-aged
men and 2 percent of middle-aged women have sleep apnea along with excessive daytime
sleepiness. People most likely to have or develop sleep apnea include those who snore loudly and
also are overweight, or have high blood pressure, or have some physical abnormality in the nose,
throat, or other parts of the upper airway. Sleep apnea seems to run in some families, suggesting
a possible genetic basis.
Narcolepsy
Narcolepsy is a sleep disorder. The principal symptoms are excessive daytime sleepiness
(EDS) including sudden, brief (about 15 minutes) sleep attacks, cataplexy (sudden loss of muscle
108
tone), hallucinations, that occur at the onset or offset (when starting to wake up) of sleep, and
sleep paralysis.
Narcolepsy is believed to be caused by a deficiency of the brain chemical orexin A and B
(also known as hypocretin 1 and 2). 90 % of patients that have narcolepsy with associated
cataplexy have little or no orexin in the fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord
(cerebrospinal fluid). Those who have narcolepsy without cataplexy probably have a different
cause, as their orexin levels are normal.
To some extent narcolepsy runs in families, but genetics alone are not usually enough for a
patient to develop narcolepsy. Scientists believe that it may be secondary to the bodys own
immune system attacking the areas in the brain that produce orexin, but it is unclear why some
people develop narcolepsy and others do not
It affects both sexes equally. It usually begins in early adult life and levels off in severity at
about 30 years of age.
Symptoms
Often, the person who has obstructive sleep apnea does not remember the episodes of
apnea during the night. The predominant symptoms are usually associated with excessive
daytime sleepiness due to poor sleep during the night. Other symptoms include:
Loud snoring
Periods of not breathing (apnea)
Awakening not rested in the morning
Abnormal daytime sleepiness, including falling asleep at inappropriate times
Morning headaches
Weight gain
Limited attention
Memory loss
Poor judgment
Personality changes
Lethargy
An estimated 18 million Americans have sleep apnea. However, few of them have had
the problem diagnosed. Patients with the typical features of sleep apnea, such as loud snoring,
obesity, and excessive daytime sleepiness should be referred to a specialized sleep center that can
perform a test called polysomnography. This test records the patients brain waves, heartbeat, and
breathing during an entire night. If sleep apnea is diagnosed, several treatments are available.
Mild sleep apnea frequently can be overcome through weight loss or by preventing the person
from sleeping on his or her back. Other people may need special devices or surgery to correct the
109
obstruction. People with sleep apnea should never take sedatives or sleeping pills, which can
prevent them from awakening enough to breathe.
Causes
Certain mechanical and structural problems in the airway cause the interruptions in
breathing during sleep. In some people, apnea occurs when the throat muscles and tongue relax
during sleep and partially block the opening of the airway. When the muscles of the soft palate at
the base of the tongue and the uvula (the small fleshy tissue hanging from the center of the back
of the throat) relax and sag, the airway becomes blocked, making breathing labored and noisy
and even stopping it altogether. Sleep apnea also can occur in obese people when an excess
amount of tissue in the airway causes it to be narrowed. With a narrowed airway, the person
continues his or her efforts to breathe, but air cannot easily flow into or out of the nose or mouth.
During the apneic event, the person is unable to breathe in oxygen and to exhale carbon
dioxide, resulting in low levels of oxygen and increased levels of carbon dioxide in the blood.
The reduction in oxygen and increase in carbon dioxide alert the brain to resume breathing and
cause an arousal. With each arousal, a signal is sent from the brain to the upper airway muscles
to open the airway; breathing is resumed, often with a loud snort or gasp. Frequent arousals,
although necessary for breathing to restart, prevent the patient from getting enough restorative,
deep sleep.
Because of the serious disturbances in their normal sleep patterns, people with sleep
apnea often feel very sleepy during the day and their concentration and daytime performance
suffer. The consequences of sleep apnea range from annoying to life threatening. They include
depression, irritability, sexual dysfunction, learning and memory difficulties, and falling asleep
while at work, on the phone, or driving. It has been estimated that up to 50 percent of sleep apnea
patients have high blood pressure.
Risk for heart attack and stroke may also increase in those with sleep apnea. In addition,
sleep apnea is sometimes implicated in sudden infant death syndrome.
For many sleep apnea patients, their spouses are the first to suspect that something is
wrong, usually from their heavy snoring and apparent struggle to breathe. Coworkers or friends
of the sleep apnea victim may notice that the individual falls asleep during the day at
inappropriate times (such as while driving a car, working, or talking).
Treatments
The objective of treatment is to keep the airway open to prevent apneic episodes during
sleep. The specific therapy for sleep apnea is tailored to the individual patient based on medical
history, physical examination, and the results of polysomnography. Medications are generally not
effective. Oxygen administration may safely benefit certain patients but does not eliminate sleep
110
apnea or prevent daytime sleepiness. Thus, the role of oxygen in the treatment of sleep apnea is
controversial, and it is difficult to predict which patients will respond well. It is important that
the effectiveness of the selected treatment be verified; this is usually accomplished by
polysomnography.
For mild cases of obstructive sleep apnea, treatment often consists of using methods to
avoid sleeping on ones back. For people with significant nasal congestion, a decongestant
therapy may be prescribed. Patients with obstructive and central apnea should avoid central
nervous system depressants such as alcoholic beverages, sedatives and narcotics. Weight loss and
diet control are encouraged for overweight patients. Many serious cases of obstructive sleep
apnea can be relieved by a treatment called nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nasal
CPAP). Nasal CPAP uses a mask-like device and pump that work together to keep the airway
open with air pressure during each inspiration. Surgery may benefit some patients by eliminating
or reducing the narrowing of the airway due to anatomical defects.
Behavioral Therapy
Behavioral changes are an important part of the treatment program, and in mild cases
behavioral therapy may be all that is needed. The individual should avoid the use of alcohol,
tobacco, and sleeping pills, which make the airway more likely to collapse during sleep and
prolong the apneic periods. Overweight persons can benefit from losing weight. Even a 10
percent weight loss can reduce the number of apneic events for most patients. In some patients
with mild sleep apnea, breathing pauses occur only when they sleep on their backs. In such
cases, using pillows and other devices that help them sleep in a side position is often helpful.
Night leg cramps, also called nocturnal leg cramps, are painful, involuntary spasms, aching
or contractions of muscles in your legs. In most cases, night leg cramps involve your calf
muscles, but muscles in your feet or thighs may cramp as well.
Most of the time, night leg cramps occur for no known reason, and theyre usually harmless.
In general, night leg cramps are likely to be related to muscle fatigue and nerve problems.
111
The risk of having night leg cramps increases with age. Pregnant women also have a higher
likelihood of experiencing night leg cramps.
In rare situations, night leg cramps can be associated with an underlying disorder, such as
peripheral artery disease in which narrowed arteries reduce blood flow to your limbs
diabetes or spinal stenosis.
Some drugs, particularly intravenous iron, estrogens and naproxen, have been linked to night
leg cramps.
Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is sometimes confused with night leg cramps, but its a
separate condition. In general, pain is not a main feature of RLS, but RLS could be the cause of
night leg cramps.
Cause
Most of the time, night leg cramps occur for no known reason, and theyre usually
harmless. In general, night leg cramps are likely to be related to muscle fatigue and nerve
problems.
The risk of having night leg cramps increases with age. Pregnant women also have a
higher likelihood of experiencing night leg cramps.
In rare situations, night leg cramps can be associated with an underlying disorder, such as
peripheral artery disease in which narrowed arteries reduce blood flow to your limbs
diabetes or spinal stenosis.
Some drugs, particularly intravenous iron, estrogens and naproxen, have been linked to
night leg cramps.
Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is sometimes confused with night leg cramps, but its a
separate condition. In general, pain is not a main feature of RLS, but RLS could be the cause of
night leg cramps.
Circadian rhythm disorders are disruptions in a persons circadian rhythma name given to
the internal body clock that regulates the (approximately) 24-hour cycle of biological
processes in animals and plants. The term circadian comes from Latin words that literally mean
around the day.
112
The diagnosis of circadian rhythm disorders is challenging and often requires a consultation with
a sleep specialist. Keeping a detailed sleep history and a sleep log for 1 to 2 weeks is essential. It
is also important to exclude other sleep and medical disorders, including narcolepsy, which often
mimics delayed sleep phase disorder.
Enuresis
Enuresis is the involuntary discharge of urine by a child age 5 and over. It can be
psychologically distressful and a source of embarrassment for a child, but not physically
harmful. Enuresis places a child at risk of being a target for name-calling and teasing from peers,
behavior that can damage a childs self esteem and place him or her at risk of rejection. The
presence of enuresis can place a limit on participation in highly desirable social experiences such
as sleepovers and summer camp. The child may also have to face anger and humiliation from
parents who do not understand the nature of this disorder.
113
Enuresis can be nocturnal-only or diurnal-only. Nocturnal enuresis is the most common form
and is defined as passage of urine only during nighttime sleep. Diurnal enuresis, the voiding of
urine only during waking hours, is more common in females than in males and is uncommon
after age 9. Children being so preoccupied with a particular event that they are reluctant to use
the toilet may cause it. A combination of nocturnal and diurnal enuresis can occur but it is
extremely rare.
Primary enuresis refers to a condition whereby the child has not established at least 6 months
of continuous nighttime control after reaching age 5. Secondary enuresis, whereby children
establish urinary continence and relapse after age 5 or 6 is less common, and is associated with
more stressful life events.
Roughly 20% of children still wet their beds at age 5, only 5% do so by age 10, and 2% by
age 15. Only 1 out of 100 children who wet their bed continues to have a problem in adulthood.
Bruxism
The involuntary yet habitual phenomenon of grinding and gnashing ones teeth while
sleeping. The condition is often associated with inner feeling of tension, frustration, fear,
and anger. Also called stridor dentium- bruxomania.
Jet lag
Jet lag is a type of circadian rhythm disorder that is new to the modern world. Circadian
rhythms evolved to allow organisms to benefit from preparing for predictable changes in
the environment before they occur. As an example, for a creature that has to find food during
the day, having a mechanism to wake up as the sun is rising, even on cloudy days, is very
beneficial. The circadian or 24 hour system can slowly adapt to changes in the environment, say
for example, as the period of daylight shortens in northern latitudes in the fall and winter. Jet lag
is a disorder unknown before the 20th century as no one before the invention of the airplane could
travel fast enough to cross enough time zones to affect the circadian system. With older forms of
transportation, the circadian system has a chance to slowly shift to keep up with changes in the
difference between the internal and external clocks as when sailing ships slowly made their
way around the world. Jet lag affects east-west travel rather than north-south travel as there is no
change in time zone with north-south travel. Being very far north or south can, of course, lead to
other circadian problems, such as those experienced by Antarctic scientists who spend months in
the dark.
Jet lag occurs when there is a temporary mismatch between the internal timing of the
sleep wake cycle and the external time demands for the sleep wake schedule of the changed
time zone. Symptoms are usually experienced if three or more time zones are crossed and appear
within a day or two of being in the new time zone. Generally, the more time zones crossed the
worse the symptoms and the longer they persist. With travel of seven time zones or more the
114
internal clock may shift opposite of the direction of travel. This results in severe and prolonged
jet lag. A significant problem is exposure to light at inappropriate times as this can shift the
internal clock in the wrong direction. Symptoms typically include disturbed sleep, impaired
functioning and decreased alertness. Traveling eastward is usually more difficult to adjust for
than westward travel. This is the case, at least in part, because you can generally force yourself to
stay up later but cannot make yourself fall asleep.
subject after a hypnotic induction. The subjects score is based on the number of passes. About
10 percent of subjects are completely non-responsive, 10 percent pass all or nearly all of the
items, and the rest fall in between (Hilgard, 1977).
Hypnotic susceptibility is a stable characteristic. In one study, Stanford students differed
by no more than one point on a 12-item scale when tested 25 years later (Piccione et al., 1989).
Hypnotic susceptibility can be enhanced by increasing peoples expectation that they have the
ability to be hypnotized (Spanos et al., 1991; Vickery & Kirsch, 1991).
Hypnotic Suggestion
Its a directive to a subject in trance, which is carried out either during or after the trance.
Hypnotic Susceptibility
Susceptibility scales typically contain a number of test suggestions which the participant will
either pass or fail.
116
suspended in this manner can support at least 130 kilometres on his chest with little discomfort
and no need of a hypnotic trance.
Pain Tolerance
Scottish surgeon James Esdaile performed more than 300 major operations in the mid1800s using hypnosis as the sole anaesthetic (Figure 5.31). Joseph Barber (1977), a noted
hypnotherapist, needed an average of only 11 minutes to hypnotically produce analgesia (an
absence of pain) in 99 out of 100 dental patients. Experiments confirm that hypnosis often
increases pain tolerance, and that this is not due to a placebo effect (Farthing et al., 1997; Spanos
& Katsanis, 1989). For patients who experience chronic pain, hypnosis can produce relief that
persists for months or even years (Barber, 1998). But research also shows that nonhypnotic
psychological techniques, such as mental imagery, also can reduce pain (Weisenberg, 1998).
We do not know exactly how hypnosis produces its painkilling effects. It may influence
the release of endorphins, decrease patients fear and anxiety about pain, produce muscular
relaxation, distract patients from their pain, or somehow help them separate the pain from
conscious experience (Barber, 1998; Chaves, 1994).
Controlling pain
117
Reducing smoking
Treating psychological disorders
Assisting in law enforcement
Improving athletic performance
Meditation
Meditation is the practice of focusing attention. People meditate to enhance awareness
and gain more control of physical and mental processes. Techniques used in meditation vary and
include activities such as repetitive chanting and breathing exercises.
Meditative states are associated with an increase in alpha and theta brain waves, and physical
indicators of relaxation such as slowed pulse and breathing. Some researchers have found that
meditation has long-term effects such as improving physical and mental health and reducing
stress. However, researchers disagree about whether meditative states are unique states of
consciousness. Some researchers believe relaxation techniques can produce the same kind of
state produced by meditation.
In all of its forms, meditation results in a relaxed yet fully alert state; a state achieved through
suppression of the sympathetic nervous system (the part of the nervous system that prepares the
body for strenuous activity).
Meditation results in the following physiological changes:
Drug Use
118
Psychoactive drugs are chemical substances that change moods, perceptions, mental
functioning, or behavior.
In nearly every known culture throughout history, psychoactive drugs have been
consumed, alcohol being the one most widely used. However, how drugs are used and what
drugs are used have changed over the centuries. The motives for using drugs have changed from
a time when drugs or alcohol were used as a part of religious rituals or for medicinal purposes,
for nutritional benefits or for use as culturally-approved stimulants, to their consumption for
recreational reasons in contemporary society. The drugs themselves are stronger today, and
synthetic drugs are also being consumed.
Psychoactive Drugs
Its a drug that influences people emotions, perceptions, and behavior.
Addictive Drugs
A drug that produce a biological or psychological dependence in the user so that withdrawal
from them leads to a craving for the drug that, in some cases, may be nearly irresistible.
119
Depressants
Depressants decrease nervous system activity. In moderate doses, they reduce feelings of
tension and anxiety, and produce a state of relaxed euphoria. In extremely high doses,
depressants can slow down vital life processes to the point of death.
Alcohol
Alcohol increases the activity of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), the main inhibitory
neurotransmitter in the brain (Korpi, 1994). By increasing the action of an inhibitory
neurotransmitter, alcohol dampens down neural firing. Alcohol also decreases the activity of
glutamate, a major excitatory neurotransmitter (Gonzales & Jaworski, 1997). This further
depresses neural firing. Why then do many people report getting a high from alcohol and
initially seem livelier? The answer is that the neural slowdown depresses the action of inhibitory
control centres in the cerebral cortex, so the person literally becomes less inhibited and feels
euphoric. At higher doses, the brains control centres become increasingly disrupted, thinking
and physical coordination become disorganized, and fatigue and psychological depression may
occur.
Thus alcohols subjective effects seem to have an initial upper phase from the release
of inhibitions, followed by a downer phase as brain centres become increasingly depressed
(Marlatt, 1987). But both phases result from alcohols action as a nervous system depressant.
Unfortunately, some people respond to the downer phase by drinking even more alcohol in the
hope that it will make them feel high again, a self-defeating strategy if ever there was one.
120
Stimulants
Stimulants increase neural firing and arouse the nervous system. They increase blood
pressure, respiration, heart rate, and overall alertness. They also can boost mood, produce
euphoria, and heighten irritability.
Amphetamines
Cocaine
121
Cocaine is a powder derived from the coca plant, which grows mainly in western South
America. Usually inhaled or injected, it produces excitation, a sense of increased muscular
strength, and euphoria. Like amphetamines, cocaine increases the activity of norepinephrine and
dopamine, but it does so in only one major way: It blocks their reuptake.
In large doses cocaine can produce fever, vomiting, convulsions, hallucinations, and paranoid
delusions. A severe depressive crash may occur after acocaine high, particularly with repeated
doses. Crack is a chemically converted form of cocaine that can be smoked, and its effects are
faster, more intense, and more dangerous. Overdoses of crack cocaine can cause sudden death
from cardio respiratory arrest (Ruttenber et al., 1997).
Opiates
Opium is a product of the opium poppy, a plant grown in hot, dry climates. Opium and drugs
derived from it, such as morphine, codeine, and heroin, are called opiates. Opiates have two
major effects. First, they provide pain relief. Second, they cause mood changes, which may
include intense euphoria. Opiates bind to and stimulate receptors normally activated by
endorphins, thereby producing pain relief. Opiates also increase dopamine activity, which may
be one reason they induce euphoria (Bardo, 1998).
Heroin
Experienced heroin users feel an intense, pleasurable rush within several minutes of an
injection. For a time, users feel peaceful and non-aggressive, as if they are on top of the world
with no concerns. Heroin users, however, often pay a substantial price for these transient
pleasures. High doses can greatly reduce a persons breathing rate and may lead to coma.
Overdoses can cause death. Withdrawal symptoms are traumatic, as illustrated by the following
description from a former addict:
Its like a terrible case of flu. Your joints move involuntarily. Thats where the phrase kick the
habit comes from. You jerk and twitch and you just cant control it. You throw up. You cant
control your bowels either and this goes on for four or five days afterwards. You cant sleep and
you cough up blood, because . . . you cant eat and thats all there is to cough up.
Hallucinogens
Hallucinogens are powerful mind-altering drugs that produce hallucinations. Many are
derived from natural sources; mescaline comes from the peyote cactus and psilocybin from
mushrooms. Natural hallucinogens have been considered sacred in many tribal cultures because
of their ability to produce unearthly states of consciousness and contact with spiritual forces.
Hallucinogens usually distort or intensify sensory experience and can blur the boundaries
between reality and fantasy. Users may speak of seeing sounds and hearing colours, of mystical
122
experiences and insights, and of feeling exhilarated. They also may have violent outbursts,
experience paranoia and panic, and have flashbacks after the trip has ended. The mental effects
of hallucinogens are always unpredictable, even when they are taken repeatedly. This
unpredictability constitutes their greatest danger.
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is a powerful hallucinogen. Also known as acid, LSD
causes a flooding of excitation in the nervous system. A dose of pure LSD no larger than the tip
of a pin can affect a user for 8 to 16 hours. Tolerance develops rapidly, but decreases quickly.
Although chronic use does not appear to produce withdrawal symptoms, about five percent of
Americans have developed a dependence on LSD or other hallucinogens (Anthony et al., 1997).
Marijuana
Marijuana is a product of the hemp plant (Cannabis sativa). Some experts classify it as a
hallucinogen, others as a sedative, and some feel it belongs in its own category (Diaz, 1997).
THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) is marijuanas major active ingredient, and it binds to receptors
on neurons throughout the brain. You might wonder, as scientists have, why the brain would have
specific receptor sites for a foreign substance like marijuana. The answer is that the brain
produces its own THC-like substances, called cannabinoids (Devane et al., 1992; Stella et al.,
1997). With chronic use, THC may increase GABAactivity, which slows down neural activity
and produces relaxing effects (Diaz, 1997). THC also increases dopamine activity, which may
account for some of its pleasurable subjective effects (Ameri, 1999).
MDMA
The causes of substance abuse and dependence are complex, the result of a combination
of factors that vary from person to person, and depend on the drug or drugs that are used.
Biological Factors
At least half of a persons susceptibility to drug addiction is linked to genetic factors. This
link has been strongly established with respect to alcohol addiction.
Heredity can influence the amount of enzymes a person has that break down alcohol in
the body.
Tolerance levels for alcohol in the blood also may be inherited.
Heredity may also impact the quantity of neurotransmitters in the brain and the number of
receptors that respond to those neurotransmitters.
Studies have shown that people use or abuse alcohol because they expect that drinking
will help them to feel better. Similar expectations are held about marijuana.
The environment in which a child grows up shapes attitudes and beliefs about drugs,
ultimately playing a more powerful role than genetics in determining whether a person
starts to drink or use drugs (although genetics are more influential in determining who
eventually abuses substances).
Cultural norms and practices also influence the degree to which people use drugs or
alcohol. Alcohol plays an important role in the rituals of certain cultures, whereas other
cultures limit or prohibit its consumption.
CHAPTER 6
LEARNING
Learning
Introduction
Psychologist define learning as the enduring changes in Rishevel that occur with
experience.As we try things out in the world, changes in sensation, perception, Rishevel, and
brain function alter owe are, what we know, and what we do.
Learning and memory work together. Without learning and memory we could not process, retain
or make use of new information. Learning occurs when information moves from short term to
long term memory. During this process, new knowledge is stored in networks in the brain.
124
meat powder was presented, when the laboratory technician who fed them prepared the apparatus
to collect their saliva. Pavlov guessed that the dogs had formed an association with the sound of
the apparatus and the meat powder.
He designed a laboratory experiment that mimicked in which the dog salivated to sounds
made by the technician (which is a stimulus with no inherent food value). Working with different
dogs, Pavlov presented a bell (neutral stimulus) before showing them the meat powder. The dogs
had no previous experience with the bell while they salivated to the meat powder from the first
time they smelled it due to the cause that the reaction is innate. Again and again, Pavlov
presented the belong along with the meat powder to the dogs. Then he tried presenting the bell
alone to see if the dogs would associate the bell to meat powder. Results show that the dogs
salivated to the bell alone. The dogs learned that they would get meat powder after the bell
sounded.
How Classical Conditioning Works
Pavlov called the kind of learning he had observed as conditioning of reflex, which we know
now as classical conditioning. He coined the term unconditioned response (UCR) to describe the
automatic, inborn response to a stimulus. In the case of his experiment, salivation is the
unconditioned response. Pavlov used the term unconditioned stimulus (UCS) to refer to the
environmental input that always produces the same inborn response. In his experiments case, the
meat powder is the unconditioned stimulus. Pavlov defines reflexes as fixed stimulus-response
patterns.
Pavlov presented the neutral stimulus (bell) before showing the unconditioned stimulus
(meat powder). Salivation in the presence of the meat powder was the unconditioned response.
After repeated paring of the bell and meat powder, when the bell alone led to salivation, the bell
would be now called as a conditioned stimulus. A conditioned stimulus (CS) is a previously
neutral stimulus that the organism learns to associate it with the unconditioned stimulus. If the
salivation occurred in response to the conditioned stimulus, it will e now called as a conditioned
response. A conditioned response (CR) is a behavior that an organism learns to perform when
presented with the conditioned stimulus alone.
126
If the neutral stimulus is being shown just before the unconditioned response, it is called
forward conditioning. One example is presenting the bell just before the meat powder. If the
neutral stimulus is being shown after the unconditioned stimulus, it is called backward
conditioning. It is less successful compared to the forward conditioning. Pavlov laid out certain
criteria for the stimulus-response conditioning to succeed.The two most fundamental criteria are
as follows:
Multiple pairing of UCS and neutral stimulus are necessary for an association to occur
and for the CS to produce a conditioned response.
The UCS and the CS must be paired very closely together in time in order for the
association to form.
The phenomenon where the extension of the association of the UCS and the CS to a broad
array of similar stimuli is the stimulus generalization. Example of this is the dog salivated from
the sound of a triangle which is similar to the sound of a bell. The opposite of this phenomenon
is the stimulus discrimination, which occurs when the CR only occurs to the exact CS to which it
is conditioned. Example of this is the dog only salivated from one specific bell and no other. It
does not salivate from a sound of wind chimes or other percussions. The phenomenon where the
UCS is no longer paired with the CS is called extinction. It can be difficult to extinguish
behaviors. Some behaviors takes great amount of presentation of CS without the UCS to get
extinction, and the behavior can still return. The sudden reappearance of the extinguished
behavior is known as spontaneous recovery.
Types of Learning
TYPES OF LEARNING
17. Perceptual learning ability to learn to recognize stimuli that have been seen before
Primary function is to identify and categorize objects and situations
Changes within the sensory systems of the brain
127
128
For instance, when a child is ready to answer a question and he is not called upon, he
becomes annoyed because he was ready to act but was not called upon to do so.
2. Law of Exercise the law of exercise is made up of two parts: the law of use and the law
of disuse. The law of use asserts that, other things being equal, the more frequently
modifiable connection between a situation and response is used, the stronger is that
connection. The law of disuse asserts that, other things being equal, when a modifiable
connection between a situation and response is not used over a period of time, the
strength of that connection is weakened.
3. Law of Effect the law of effect supplements the law of exercise. This law states that
connections which are pleasant tend to be repeated and strengthened, and those that are
unpleasant tend to be avoided or weakened. This fact, according to Thorndike, is the
fundamental law of teaching and learning.
In addition to the three major laws of learning, Thorndike formulated five secondary
characteristics for the purpose amplifying the basic laws.
a. Law of Mind-set this refers to the mental condition of the individual when
the reaction is made to a situation.
b. Multiple-response this means that in a situation where some elements are
new, the learner will respond in one way, and if such response does not prove
satisfactory, he will try one response after another until the appropriate
response is attained, that is, trial-and-error learning. This response, being
satisfying, will be selected and stamped-in.
c. Partial Activity this designates the fact that an element or an aspect of a
situation may be prepotent in causing a response. This involves selectivity
in learning. The learner may select the important elements from a situation
instead of responding in an unselected way or at random.
d. Analogy this law indicates that when a situation involves a stimulus for
which the learner has no native or acquired response, he may react by
interpreting the situation in the light of similar experiences, and adjust himself
as best as he can.
e. Associative Shift this is related to conditioned reflex. When stimuli occur
together frequently, the response elicited by one will tend to become attached
129
to the other as well. When responses occur frequently together, the stimulus
for one tends to suggest the other as well.
Retention and Transfer
Retention refers to the extent to which material originally learned still persists (Deese,
1967). When the child, for example, correctly spells a word or solves a problem for the first time,
we say that he has then acquired that particular Rishevel. If the same child correctly repeats the
performance later, we say that he has remembered, or retained what he acquired earlier.
Deese pointed out that almost all educational and training programs are built upon the
basic premise that human beings have the ability to transfer what they have learned in one
situation to another. Transfer occurs when whatever is learned in one situation is used in a new or
different situation (Klausmeier and Ripple, 1991). The influence that learning one task may have
on the subsequent learning of another is called transfer of learning (Morgan and King, 1986).
Factors Affecting Learning
concentrate.
Emotional attitudes and factors can have adverse effects upon learning.
Learning Phobias
Introduction:
Only a few of us enjoy the spiders, snakes, or heights, but most of us feel only mild levels
of fear about such objects or experiences. Some of us, however, go beyond mild levels of fear
about such objects or experiences. As many as 1 in 8 people will develop a specific phobia for a
particular object or situation, such as spiders(arachnophobia), heights, flying, enclosed spaces
(claustrophobia), doctors and dentists, or snakes ( Kessler et al., 2005).
130
Phobia
-
The amygdala, on the other hand, is the part of the brain that gets an unpleasant stimulus and
screams, What are you doing? Run, stupid! When people say that phobias arent rational,
theyre right. The amygdala is not there to be rational. Its there to get results. And it does, often
in the form of a panic attack.
When it comes to the reasons why the amygdala is triggered at the sight of, say, a rat, the
psychiatric community gives a big shrug. The top four answers are genetics, trauma, overall
stress, and a combination of the three. The way science arrived at these answers is much more
interesting than the answers themselves.
131
Some scientists look to simple genetics to see if they can find the answer to phobias. It makes
sense, to an extent. Most of the things people are afraid of things like creepy-crawlies, heights, or
tight enclosures. All could have caused our too-bold ancestors to die off early. It makes sense that
some extreme aversion would be hard-wired into certain people.
Pure nature is tough to establish independently of that pesky thing known as nurture, however.
Families are raised together, and one persons phobia can affect anothers likelihood of
developing the same phobia. Researchers figured the most likely way to ferret out the genetic
reason behind phobias was a twin study. In the nineties and early 2000s, a group of studies found
twins raised apart tended to have similar phobias.
But with phobias the threat is greatly exaggerated or nonexistent. For example, it is only natural
to be afraid of a snarling Doberman, but it is irrational to be terrified of a friendly poodle on a
leash, as you might be if you have a dog phobia.
The difference between normal fear and a phobia
Normal Fear: anxious when flying through turbulence or taking off during a storm
Phobia: Not going to your best friends island wedding because youd have to fly there
Normal Fear: Experiencing butterflies when peering down from the top of a skyscraper or
climbing a tall ladder
132
Phobia: Turning down a great job because its on the 10th floor of the office building
Normal Fear: Getting nervous when you see a pit bull or a Rottweiler
Phobia: Steering clear of the park because you might see a dog
Normal Fear: Feeling a little queasy when getting a shot or when your blood is being drawn
Phobia: Avoiding necessary medical treatments or doctors checkups because youre terrified of
needles
Normal fears in children
Many childhood fears are natural and tend to develop at specific ages. For example, many young
children are afraid of the dark and may need a nightlight to sleep. That doesnt mean they have a
phobia. In most cases, they will grow out of this fear as they get older.
Many childhood fears are natural and tend to develop at specific ages. For example, many young
children are afraid of the dark and may need a nightlight to sleep. That doesnt mean they have a
phobia. In most cases, they will grow out of this fear as they get older.
Common types of phobias and fears
There are four general types of phobias and fears:
1
2
Animal phobias. Examples include the fear of snakes, spiders, rodents, and dogs.
Natural environment phobias. Examples include fear of heights, storms, water, and of
the dark.
Situational phobias (fears triggered by a specific situation). Examples include fear of
Fear of spiders
Fear of snakes
133
Fear of heights
Fear of storms
Fear of flying
Fear of germs
Some phobias dont fall into one of the four common categories. Such phobias include fear of
choking, fear of getting a disease such as cancer, and fear of clowns.
Signs and symptoms of phobias
The symptoms of a phobia can range from mild feelings of apprehension and anxiety to a fullblown panic attack. Typically, the closer you are to the thing youre afraid of, the greater your
fear will be. Your fear will also be higher if getting away is difficult.
Physical signs and symptoms of a phobia
Difficulty breathing
Racing or pounding heart
Chest pain or tightness
Trembling or shaking
Feeling dizzy or lightheaded
A churning stomach
Hot or cold flashes; tingling sensations
Sweating
Knowing that youre overreacting, but feeling powerless to control your fear
CHAPTER 7
MEMORY AND THINKING
Introduction
For us to recall events, facts or processes, we have to commit them to memory. The
process of forming a memory involves encoding, storing, retaining and subsequently recalling
information and past experiences.
Cognitive psychologist Margaret W. Matlin has described memory as the process of retaining
information over time. Others have defined it as the ability to use our past experiences to
determine our future path.
When they are asked to define memory, most people think of studying for a test or recalling
where we put the car keys. However, memory is essential in our everyday lives. We would not be
able to function in the present or move forward without relying on our memory.
Biology of Memory
Memory is a complicated phenomenon. Researchers still dont know exactly how it
works at the physiological level. Long-term memory involves the hippocampus of the brain.
Some researchers think the hippocampus binds together different elements of a memory, which
are stored in separate areas of the brain. In other words, the hippocampus helps with memory
organization. Other researchers think that the hippocampus helps with memory consolidation, or
the transfer of information into long-term memory.
The brain area involved in processing a memory may determine where memories are stored. For
example, memories of visual information probably end up in the visual cortex. Research suggests
that there may be specific neural circuits for particular memories. Psychologists also think that
memory relates to changes in neurotransmitter release from neurons, fluctuations in hormone
levels, and protein synthesis in the brain.
135
Memory is a special case of the more general phenomenon of neural plasticity. Neurons can
show history-dependent behavior by responding differently as a function of recent input, and this
plasticity of nerve cells and synapses is the basis of memory. In the last decade of the nineteenth
century, researchers proposed that the persistence of memory could be accounted for by nerve
136
cell growth. Others have restated this idea, developing the hypothesis that the synapse is the
critical site of change. In principle, there are many possible ways for such structural change to be
realized, including alterations in the number of synaptic contacts or in the strength of existing
contacts. Plasticity Neurobiological evidence from animal studies supports two basic conclusions
about the biology of memory. First, specific synaptic events, including an increase in
neurotransmitter release, are responsible for short-lasting plasticity, which may last for seconds
or minutes. Second, long-lasting memory depends on new protein synthesis, physical growth of
neural processes, and an increase in the number of synaptic connections.
Distortions of Memory
Memories arent exact records of events. Instead, memories are reconstructed in many different
ways after events happen, which means they can be distorted by several factors. These factors
include schemas, source amnesia, the misinformation effect, the hindsight bias, the
overconfidence effect, and confabulation.
A schema is a mental model of an object or event that includes knowledge as well as beliefs and
expectations. Schemas can distort memory.
137
Source Amnesia
Another reason for distorted memories is that people often dont accurately remember the origin
of information. This inaccurate recall of the origin of information is called source amnesia,
source misattribution, or source monitoring error.
Source amnesia is the inability to remember where, when or how previously learned information
has been acquired, while retaining the factual knowledge. This branch of amnesia is associated
with the malfunctioning of ones explicit memory. It is likely that the disconnect between having
the knowledge and remembering the context in which the knowledge was acquired is due to a
dissociation between semantic and episodic memory an individual retains the semantic
knowledge (the fact), but lacks the episodic knowledge to indicate the context in which the
knowledge was gained.
CAUSES
Source amnesia is not a rare phenomenon everybody experiences it on a near daily basis as, for
much of our knowledge, it is important to remember the knowledge itself, rather than its source.
Individuals with frontal lobe damage have deficits in temporal context memory, source memory
can also exhibit deficits in those with frontal lobe damage. It appears that those with frontal lobe
damage have difficulties with regency and other temporal judgments (e.g.: placing events in the
order they occurred), and as such they are unable to properly attribute their knowledge to
appropriate sources i.e.: source amnesia. Those individuals with frontal lobe damage have
normal recall of facts, but they make significantly more errors in source memory than control
subjects, with these effects becoming apparent as shortly as 5 minutes after the learning
experience. Individuals with frontal lobe damage often mistakenly attribute the knowledge they
have to some other source (e.g.: they read it somewhere, saw it on TV, etc.) but rarely attribute it
138
to having learned it over the course of the experiment. It appears that frontal lobe damage causes
a disconnection between semantic and episodic memory in that the individuals cannot associate
the context in which they acquired the knowledge to the knowledge itself.
Age related
Elderly individuals have been shown to exhibit source amnesia. Compared to younger
individuals, in experiments where the individuals are presented with obscure or even made up
trivia facts, older people remember less information overall in both recall and recognition tasks
and they often misattribute the source of their knowledge, at time periods of both long and short
delays.
This effect is potentially due to the neuronal loss associated with aging occurring mainly in the
frontal lobes. It has been previously noticed that frontal lobe damage can cause source amnesia,
so the loss of neurons in this area of the brain associated with aging may very well be the cause
of the age-related source amnesia seen.
Alzheimers disease
Alzheimers disease (AD), which is known to be associated with frontal lobe dysfunction, is
implicated as a cause of source amnesia. In laboratory conditions, one study found source
monitoring to be so poor that the AD participants were correctly performing source memory
attributions at approximately chance. This lack of ability to attribute the source of memories is
likely related to AD patients deficits in reality monitoring. Reality monitoring, the process of
distinguishing whether information originated from an external or an internal source, relies on
judgment processes to examine the qualitative characteristics of the information in order to
determine if the information was real or imagined. It appears that it is this process that is
experiencing the dysfunction, which causes mild confabulation in some AD patients, as well as
being related to the source amnesia experienced in some individuals with AD.
139
Schizophrenia
140
Depression
Depression is associated with overly generalized memories and individuals with depression
perform more poorly on source memory attribution tasks as compared to non-depressed
individuals. These individuals show a memory bias for remembering negative information,
possibly due to enhanced amygdala activity during the encoding of emotional (particularly
negative) information. Overall, there is a relationship between the emotional arousal of an
episode and its source memory there is some evidence that the enhanced processing of negative
memories results in poorer source memory, and thus individuals who are depressed would have
increased amounts of source amnesia.
Hypnosis
Hypnosis as a cause of source amnesia involves carrying out hypnosis and having the subjects
remember post-hypnotically, experiences they had during hypnosis as tested by asking the
individuals about esoteric knowledge that they learned during hypnosis. These individuals
typically have no recall of the hypnotic experience whatsoever however, when tested on these
obscure pieces of knowledge they are able to supply the correct answer; thus demonstrating they
have source amnesia they are able to recall the knowledge but they lack the capacity to indicate
the context in which they learned this knowledge. In fact, the subjects often attribute their
knowledge of the obscure facts to learning experiences other than during hypnosis (e.g.: I read
it somewhere, Somebody must have told me, etc.).
Perspective of Memory
Without A Memory We Would Not Seem Human
You rely on your memory every moment of the day. Without it, you would have no sense
of continuity, no realization of the past; and you couldnt benefit from learning and experience.
Without memory, it would be impossible for you to function. All images and materials not
141
immediately available to your senses must be drawn from your memory. Your very sense of selfawareness requires that you remember you had a self yesterday (Dworetzky, 1988). Without a
memory, you would not seem human.
What Are Memories Made Of?
Engram: Memory trace
Memory exists in the brain. Theorists propose that they are somehow chemically or
electrically contained within brain tissue. In this view, any given memory will be located in
specific location in the brain. In 1917, neurophysiologist, Karl Lashley (1950) began a search for
what he called the brains engram, a hypothetical structure that contains memories.
Engrams are means by which memory traces are stored as biophysical or biochemical changes in
the brain (and other neural tissue) in response to external stimuli.
They are also sometimes thought of as a biological neural network or fragment of memory,
sometimes using a hologram analogy to describe its action in light of results showing that
memory appears not to be localized in the brain. The existence of engrams is posited by some
scientific theories to explain the persistence of memory and how memories are stored in the
brain. The existence of neurologically defined engrams is not significantly disputed, though their
exact mechanism and location has been a focus of persistent research for many decades.
Neural: Synapse
By the beginning of the 1980s, experts tell us that by using the more sophisticated
technology that was becoming available, scientists were uncovering evidence that memories are
held in the brain by specific chemicals, probably in certain locations. In the nervous system,
a synapse is a structure that permits a neuron (or nerve cell) to pass an electrical or chemical
142
signal to another neuron. Some authors generalize this concept to include the communication
from a neuron to any other cell type, although such non-neuronal contacts may be referred to
as junctions (a historically older term). Santiago Ramn y Cajal proposed that neurons are not
continuous throughout the body, yet still communicate with each other, an idea known as
the neuron doctrine.
Synapses are essential to neuronal function: neurons are cells that are specialized to pass signals
to individual target cells, and synapses are the means by which they do so. At a synapse,
the plasma membrane of the signal-passing neuron (the presynaptic neuron) comes into close
apposition with the membrane of the target (postsynaptic) cell. Both the presynaptic and
postsynaptic sites contain extensive arrays of molecular machinery that link the two membranes
together and carry out the signaling process. In many synapses, the presynaptic part is located on
an axon, but some postsynaptic sites are located on a dendrite or soma. Astrocytes also exchange
information with the synaptic neurons, responding to synaptic activity and, in turn, regulating
neurotransmission.
Concept of Thinking
The mind is the idea while thinking processes of the brain involved in processing information
such as when we form concepts, engage in problem solving, to reason and make decisions. Some
limit the definition of thinking is as follows:
1. Thinking is the activity of human reason as a process of strengthening the relationship
between stimulus and response.
2. Thinking is a reasonable working mengasosiasika various views with the knowledge that
has been stored in the mind long before the emergence of new knowledge.
3. Thinking can be interpreted to remember something, and questioned whether there is a
relationship between what is intended.
4. Thinking in exploring substantive Paing psychic awareness of human nature.
5. Thinking is processing information mentally or cognitively by rearranging the
information from the environment and the symbols are stored in the memory of his past.
6. Thinking is a symbolic representation of some event train of ideas in a precise and careful
that began with the problem.
143
Kinds of Memory
Explicit Memory
- It is also referred to as declarative memory is a type of long-term memory that
refers to facts, data or events that can be recalled at will. Things that are explicit are
clear, or clearly as stated or explained. The use of the term declarative indicates that
these memories state or reveal (that is, declare) specific information. The information
-
144
episodic memories. We tend to use the phrase I remember. . . when we are referring
to episodic memories, as in I remember the blizzard of 2004.
Implicit Memory
- Also referred to as procedural memory is memory of how to perform a task. It is the
act of itself, doing something, like riding a bike, accessing your cell phone contacts
-
145
Retrospect Memory
- Retrospective Memory is the recalling of information that has previously learned.
Episodic, semantic and implicit memories involve remembering things that were
learned.
Prospective Memory
- Prospective Memory refers to remembering to do things in the future, such as pay
-
we are preoccupied, distracted, or stressed-out about time (Knight and Titov, 2009).
There are various kinds of prospective memory tasks. For example, habitual tasks
such as getting to class on time are easier to remember than occasional tasks such as
meeting someone for coffee at an arbitrary time (Henry et al, 2004). But motivation
also plays a role. You are more likely to remember the coffee date if the person you
The raw sensory information that is selected is then represented or encodedin a form(sound,
visual image,meaning) that can be used in the next stages of memory. Other control mechanisms
might then transfer selected information into a more permanent memory storage. When it is
needed, it is retrieved from memory. However, just like in computer, some information in human
memory may be lost or become irretrievable. Some information needs to be stored in memory for
only brief periods of time, whereas other information must be tucked away permanently. The
influential STAGE THEORY OF MEMORY (Atkinson & Shiffrin, 1968; Baddeley, 1999)
assumes that we humans have a three-stage memory that meets our need to store information for
different lengths of time. We seem to have one memory store that holds information for
exceedingly brief intervals, a second memory store that holds information for no more than 30
second unless its renewed and a third, more permanent memory store. Each of these memories
operates according to a different set of rules and serves a somewhat different purpose. Because
information must pass through each stage of memory to get to the next, more permanent one,
these memory stores are best thought of as three closely linked stages of memory rather than
three separate memories. These three stages are known as the sensory register, short-term
memory, and long-term memory
Sensory Register
The first stage of memory. It is a very brief one, designed to hold and exact image of each
sensory experience until it can be fully processed. We apparently retained a copy of each sensory
experience in the sensory register long enough to locate and focus on relevant bits of information
and transfer them into the next stage memory. For visual information, this snapshot fades very
quickly, probably lasting about one-quarter of a second in most cases. For auditory information,
a vivid image of what we hear is retained for about the same length of time(Cowan,1987), but a
weaker echo is retained for up to 4 seconds (Tarpy & Mayer,1978). The information stored in
the sensory register doesnt last long, but its apparently a complete replica of the sensory
experience. Visual information in the sensory register is lost and replaced so rapidly with new
information that we seldom are aware we even have such a memory store. Sometimes the longerlasting, echo like traces of auditory information can be noticed, though.
Short-Term Memory (STM)
147
When a bit of information is selected for further processing, its transferred from the
sensory register into short-term memory. Its not necessary to intentionally transfer information
to STM; generally, just paying attention to the information is enough to transfer it. Once
information has been transferred to STM, a variety of control processes may be applied.
Rehearsal and Chunking are two important examples of these control processes.
Rehearsal: Overcoming STMs Limited Life Span
As the name implores, STM is good for only temporary storage of information. In
general, information is lost from STM in less than half a minute unless its renewed, and its
often lost in only a few seconds (Ellis & Hunt, 1993). Fortunately, information can be renewed in
STM by mental repetition, or rehearsal, of the information.
Our first reliable estimate of the limited life span of information in STM was provided by
an experiment conducted by Lloyd and Margaret Peterson (1959).
Humans have a preference for transforming information into sounds, or ACOUSTIC
CODES, whenever possible for storage in STM. We probably use acoustic codes in STM as
much as possible because its easier to rehearse by mentally talking to ourselves than by mentally
repeating the images of sights, smells, and movements. Nonetheless, STM can store any form of
information that can enter the brain through the senses.
Chunking: Overcoming STMs Limited Capacity
Perhaps the most important thing to know about STM is that its storage capacity is quite
limited. The exact capacity differs slightly for different kinds of information, but, as psychologist
George Miller (1956) put it, its constant enough to call it the magic number seven plus or minus
two.
STM also serves as our working memory (Baddeley, 1992; 1999). This means that space
in STM is used when old memories are temporarily brought out of long-term memory to be used
or updated. Space in STM is also used when we think about this information (Morris,1986).
148
One advantage of the small storage capacity of STM is that its easy to search through
it. When we try to remember something in STM, we apparently examine every item that is stored
there. Experiments conducted by Saul Sternberg (1969) confirmed that we exhaustively search
STM every time we try to recall something.
Fortunately, there are some effective ways to get around the limited capacity of STM.
One way is to learn the information well enough to transfer it into long term memory. Another
way is to put more information into the 7+_ 2 units of STM. George Miller (1956) calls the units
of memory chunks. Although its true that we can hold only 5-9 chunks in STM, we can often put
more than one bit of information into each chunk.
Long-Term Memory(LTM)
LTM is the storehouse for information that must be kept for a long time. LTM DIFFERS
FROM STM IN 4 MAJOR WAYS:
1. The way in which information is recalled Because the amount of information stored in LTM is
so vast, we cannot scan the entire contents of LTM when we are looking for a bit of information,
as we do in STM. Instead, LTM has to be indexed. We retrieve information from LTM using
cues. This retrieval can be an intentional act of unintentional one. Only information relevant to
the cue is retrieved, rather than the entire contents of LTM
2. The form in which information is stored in memory LTM differs from STM in the kind of
information that is most easily stored. You will recall that information is usually stored in STM
in terms of the physical qualities of the experience, with a special emphasis on acoustic codes.
Although sensory memories can be stored in LTM, information is stored in LTM primarily in
terms of its meaning, or semantic code (Cowan,1988)
3. The reasons that forgetting occurs Unlike STM, where information that is not rehearsed or
processed appears to drop out of the system, information stored in LTM isnt just durable but
actually appears to be permanent. Not all psychologist agree that memories in LTM are
permanent. If memories in LTM are indeed permanent, this means that forgetting occurs in
149
LTM not because the memory is erased but because we are unable to retrieve it for some reason
(Baddeley, 1999; Matlin, 1983).
4. The physical location of these functions in the brain STM is primarily a function of the frontal
lobes of the cerebral cortex (Buckner & Barch, 1999; Fuster, 1995; Williams & Goldman-Rakic,
1995), whereas information that is stored in LTM is first integrated in the hippocampus and then
transferred to the areas of the cerebral cortex involved in language and perception for permanent
storage (Nadel & Jacobs, 1998)
Level of Processing Model An alternative to the stage theory of memory stating that
distinction between STM and LTM is a matter of degree rather than different kinds of memory
and is based on how incoming information is processed. O Elaboration creating more
associations between the new memory and existing memories. Forgetting Decay theory the
theory that forgetting occurs as the memory traces fades over time Interference Theory occurs
when other information competes with the information we are trying to recall. It can happen in
two ways: Retroactive Interference occurs when new information causes people to forget
previously learned information. Proactive Interference occurs when previously learned
information interferes with the learning of new information Schema Theory the theory that
information stored in LTM sometimes changes over time to become more consistent with our
beliefs, knowledge, and expectations. The distortion of memories to fit our schemas doesnt
naturally occur gradually over time but occurs during the process of retrieval itself Theory of
Motivated Forgetting forgetting that is believed to be based on the upsetting or threatening
nature of the information that is forgotten. O Repression Sigmund Freuds theory that
forgetting occurs because the conscious mind often deals with unpleasant information by pushing
it into unconsciousness.
Ailments of Memory
150
Memory disorders can range from mild to severe, but they all result from some kind of
neurological damage to the structures of the brain, thus hindering the storage, retention and
recollection of memories.
The disease was first identified by Alois Alzheimer as early as 1906, although up until the 1960s
it was usually referred to as senile dementia and considered a normal part of ageing. Scientific
interest in Alzheimers was only re-awakened in the 1960s and 1970s as the consequences of an
ageing society began to be examined, and it was during the 1980s that research first focused on
the toxic proteins amyloid in plaques and tau in tangles.
The most commonly recognized symptom of AD is an inability to acquire new memories and
difficulty in recalling recently observed facts, but it is by no means the only sympton. As the
disease advances, symptoms include confusion, irritability and aggression, mood swings,
language breakdown, long-term memory loss, and ultimately a gradual loss of bodily functions
and death. A number of non-invasive life-style habits, such as mental stimulation, physical
exercise and a balanced diet, have been suggested for the prevention or delayed onset of
Alzheimers disease, but no effective treatments to delay or halt the progression of the disease
are as yet available.
151
Amnesia
Amnesia is the general term for a condition in which memory (either stored memories or the
process of committing something to memory) is disturbed or lost, to a greater extent than simple
everyday forgetting or absent-mindedness. Amnesia may result either from organic or
neurological causes (damage to the brain through physical injury, neurological disease or the use
of certain drugs), or from functional or psychogenic causes (psychological factors, such as
mental disorder, post-traumatic stress or psychological defence mechanisms).
Anterogade Amnesia
It is the loss of the ability to create new memories, leading to a partial or complete inability
to recall the recent past, even though long-term memories from before the event which caused
the amnesia remain intact. Sufferers may therefore repeat comments or questions several times,
for example, or fail to recognize people they met just minutes before.
Retrograde Amnesia
It is a form of amnesia where someone is unable to recall events that occurred before the
development of the amnesia, even though they may be able to encode and memorize new things
that occur after the onset.
Psychogenic Amnesia
Post-Traumatic Amnesia
152
It is a state of confusion or memory loss that occurs immediately following a traumatic brain
injury. The injured person is disoriented and unable to remember events that occur after the
injury, and may be unable to state their name, where they are, and what time it is, etc.
Korsakoffs Syndrome
Korsakoffs syndrome, or Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, is a brain disorder caused by
extensive thiamine deficiency, a form of malnutrition which can be precipitated by overconsumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages compared to other foods. It main symptoms are
anterograde amnesia (inability to form new memories and to learn new information or tasks) and
retrograde amnesia (severe loss of existing memories), confabulation (invented memories, which
are then taken as true due to gaps in memory), meagre content in conversation, lack of insight
and apathy.
Individual Korsakoffs sufferers may exhibit wildly differing symptoms. In some cases, a
patient may just continue living in the past, convinced that their life and the world around them
is unchanged since the onset of the condition (which may have been twenty or thirty years
before). Others may adopt a constant, almost frenzied, fever of confabulation (see box at right),
constantly inventing a series of new identities, often with detailed and convincing back-stories,
in order to replace the reality which has been forgotten and lost.
Parkinsons Disease
Parkinsons disease is a chronic and progressive degenerative disorder of the central
nervous system that impairs motor skills, speech and other functions. It is usually characterized
by muscle rigidity, tremor, postural instability, and a slowing or loss of physical movement.
Ageing is an important risk factor, and the incidence of Parkinsons increases with age,
although about 4% are diagnosed before the age of 50. An estimated 7-10 million people
worldwide (roughly 1 in 1,000 of the total population) are thought to be living with Parkinsons.
153
CHAPTER 8
COGNITION
Cognition refers to how humans think and use knowledge. This is the field of cognitive
psychologists, who also deal with how people organize their thoughts into language. Cognition
begins with attending to something and categorizing what it is. How can researchers learn about
cognitive processes? During the era when behaviorists dominated experimental psychology,
researchers devoted little effort to cognition. Since about 1970, research has increased
substantially, as psychologists developed ways to infer the unobservable.
Attention
You are constantly bombarded with more sights, sound, smells, and other stimuli than
you can process. Attention is your tendency to respond to and to remember some stimuli more
than others at a given time.
Sometimes, something (e.g., a loud noise) suddenly grabs your attention. Psychologists
call that a bottom-up process because the peripheral stimuli control it. Magicians use this
tendency. A magician pulls a rabbit or a dove out of a hat, and the surprised viewers
automatically watch the rabbit hop away or the dove fly away. During the brief time that their
attention is occupied, the magician sets up the next trick, unnoticed. (Macknik et al., 2008)
In contrast to a bottom-up process, you can deliberately decide to top-down process.
Going back to the bottom-up process, in which a stimulus automatically grabs your attention.
Hearing your name or seeing your photograph is almost sure to attract your attention. Your
attention also flows to anything unusual.
When an object differs drastically from those around it in shape, color, or movement, we
find it by a pre-attentive process, meaning that it stands out immediately. On the other hand,
154
attentive process is the one that requires searching through items in series. The Wheres Waldo
books are an excellent example of a task requiring an attentive process.
Conflict in Attention
Can you do two things at once? Sure you can do two things at once, such as walk and
chew gum. However, if you closely watch someone who is walking and chewing at same time,
you may notice that the activities are synchronized. The person might chew once per footstep,
once per two footsteps, two times per three footsteps or whatever, but the activities are linked.
More important, you cannot plan two actions at once.
Even simple activities interfere with each other. Your response to the second task will be
slower than it would have been without the first task. You needed time to shift attention from one
task to the other. Most people are not aware of this delay (Corallo, Sackur, Daheane, & Sigman,
2008).
Change Blindness
Movie directors discovered long ago that if they shot different parts of a scene on
different days, few viewers noticed the changes in the cloud pattern, the background props, and
the actors clothes (Simons and Levin, 2003). Why is that? Most people believe they see a whole
scene at once, but in usually dart around from one fixation point to another, fixating about three
times per second. You would notice anything that changed at the point where you fixate at a
given moment, and a big, sudden change somewhere else might grab your attention, but you
cannot attend to every detail at once.
Psychologists call this phenomenon change blindness the failure to detect changes in
parts of a scene. If anything moves or changes its appearance suddenly, it automatically draws
your attention, but you seldom notice similar changes that occur slowly or while you are moving
your eyes, (Henderson & Hollingworth, 2003). You are especially unlikely to notice changes if
your working memory is occupied with other matters, such as plot of a movie.
Attention-Deficit Disorder
People vary in their ability to maintain attention, as in anything else. Attention-deficit
Disorder (ADD) is characterized by easy distraction, impulsiveness, and failure to follow
155
Categorization
After you have attended to something, you want to know what it is. You put it into a
category of some type, such as building, tree or river. The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus
said that you cannot step into the same river twice. The river constantly changes, so the todays
Mississippi River is not the same as yesterdays. Nevertheless, to think and communicate about
anything, we have to group items into categories, and the formation of categories or concepts is a
major step in cognition.
156
157
Before problem-solving can occur, it is important to first understand the exact nature of the
problem itself. If your understanding of the issue if faulty, your attempts to resolve it will also be
incorrect or flawed.
There are a number of different mental process at work during problem-solving. These include:
Problem-Solving Strategies
Algorithms
An algorithm is a step-by-step procedure that will always produce a correct solution. A
mathematical formula is a good example of a problem-solving algorithm. While an algorithm
guarantees an accurate answer, it is not always the best approach to problem solving. This strategy is
not practical for many situations because it can be so time-consuming. For example, if you were
trying to figure out all of the possible number combinations to a lock using an algorithm, it would
take a very long time!A mechanical repetitive procedure for solving problem or testing every
hypothesis is called an algorithm.
Heuristics
A heuristic is a mental rule-of-thumb strategy that may or may not work in certain
situations. Unlike algorithms, heuristics do not always guarantee a correct solution. However, using
this problem-solving strategy does allow people to simplify complex problems and reduce the total
number of possible solutions to a more manageable set. Heuristics are strategies for simplifying a
problem and generating a satisfactory guess.
158
maximizing, and others prefer satisficing, although of course you might switch strategies depending
on the situation.
Overconfidence
Overconfidence refers to the tendency to be very sure of a fact and later finding that the
objective reality was different. It remains to be studied how personality and mental abilities
affect this Overconfidence, but tests show that when asked difficult questions about an
159
unfamiliar topic, individuals believe they will have a low percentage of errors when they actually
end up with a lot more mistakes.
Confirmation Bias
A psychological phenomenon that explains why people tend to seek out information that
confirms their existing opinions and overlook or ignore information that refutes their beliefs.
Confirmation bias occurs when people filter out potentially useful facts and opinions that dont
coincide with their preconceived notions. It affects perceptions and decision making in all
aspects of our lives and can cause us to make less-than-optimal choices. Seeking out people and
publications with different opinions than our own can help us overcome confirmation bias and
make better-informed decisions. We often error by accepting a hypothesis and then looking for
evidence to support it instead of considering other possibilities. The tendency is the confirmation
bias. A special case of confirmation bias is functional fixedness, the tendency to adhere to a
single approach or a single way of using an item.
Framing Questions
The framing effect is an example of cognitive bias, in which people react to a
particular choice in different ways depending on how it is presented; e.g. as a loss or as a gain.
People tend to avoid risk when a positive frame is presented but seek risks when a negative
frame is presented. Gain and loss are defined in the scenario as descriptions of outcomes. A
logical person should give the same answer no matter how a question is worded. The tendency to
answer a question differently when it is framed (phrased) differently is called framing effect.
EXPERTISE
160
How can we overcome the errors of human reasoning? Although all of us make mistakes
in our reasoning, some develop expertise within a given field that enables them to solve
problems quickly with a minimum of error. They apply the algorithms quickly, and they
recognize which heuristics work in a particular situation. Reaching that point requires enormous
effort.
Note: This does not allow for variation in letters unless there are templates for each variation.
Feature analysis According to this theory, the sensory system breaks down the
incoming stimuli into its features and processes the information. Some features may be
more important for recognition than others. All stimuli have a set of distinctive features.
Feature analysis proceeds through 4 stages.
Detection
Pattern dissection
Recognition
False Pattern Recognition- The human tendency to see patterns that do not actually
exist is called apophenia ( is a human tendency of perceiving patterns or connections
in random or meaningless information) . Examples of apophenia include the Man in the
Moon, faces or figures in shadows, clouds and in patterns with no deliberate design, such
as the swirls on a baked confection, and the perception of causal relationships between
events which are, in fact, unrelated. Apophenia figures prominently in conspiracy
theories, gambling, misinterpretation of statistics and scientific data, and some kinds
of religious and paranormal experiences. Misperception of patterns in random data is
called pareidolia ( is a psychological phenomenon involving a stimulus, an image or a
sound wherein the mind perceives a familiar pattern where none actually exists.).
162
SUMMARY
163
Availability heuristic. We generally assume that the more easily we can think of
examples of some category, the more common I category is. However, this heuristic
meisleads us when items in rare categories get much publicity.
Critical thinking. Even people who try conscientiously to evaluate the evidence for every
claim sometimes find themselves repeating a nonsensical statement that they know they
should have doubted.
Some reasons for errors. People tend to be overconfident about their own judgments on
difficult questions. They tend to look for evidence that confirms their hypothesis instead
of evidence that might reject it. They answer the same question differently when it is
framed differently. They sometimes take unpleasant actions to avoid admitting that
previous actions where waste of time or money.
Expertise. Becoming an expert requires years of practice and effort. Experts recognize
and memorize familiar and meaningful patterns more rapidly than less experienced
people .
Cognitive Development
Involves changes in how the children understand and things about their world as they
grow older. Researchers show that children understand and think about their world in
qualitatively different ways as they pass through various stages of cognitive development.
Piagets theory
In the early years, American behaviorist also discovered in their research the
relationship between stimuli and observable response. Their theories held that learning at all
ages can be explained without considering what goes on in a persons mind. He argued that we
cannot understand learning without understanding thinking and that children thinks differently
from adults.
In Piagets theory observation and experiments to find out how children interpret object
and events in a world around them, he conclude that children of the same age make similar
incorrect responses, which are different from errors made by both older and younger children.
164
This pattern of errors suggested that the children develop qualitatively different ways of
organizing and responding of cognitive development is divided into series of stages.
He assumed that the stages are organized around a dominant theme and that each stages
contains qualitatively different behaviors. He stated that all children goes into same stages in the
same order.
Sensor motor
From birth to about 2 years old. It remain the theme in discovering relationships
between sensation and motor behavior.
Object permanence, is knowledge that objects continue to exist even when they can no
longer be experience.
1
Preo-pre-rational stage
Extends to about 2 years to 7 years old, its dominant theme is discovering
operations,
which are plans, strategies, and rules for solving problem and fo
classifying information.
Extend 13 years old of stage to adult hood. Its main theme is the ability to
consider many possible solutions to problem and the ability to systematically test
those possibilities.
CHAPTER 9
LANGUAGE
-
A means of communicating thoughts and feelings, using a system of socially shared but
arbitrary symbols (sounds, signs or written symbols) arranged according to rules of grammar.
Structure of Language
Psycholinguistics
165
It is the study of how language is acquired, produced and used and how the sounds
and symbols of language are translated into meaning.
Phonemes
- The smallest unit of sound in a spoken language.
Example:
Three phonemes together c/a/t forms the word cat.
Morphemes
- The smallest units of meaning in a language.
Example:
A single morpheme book is a singular noun but when added an
ending s itll give a plural meaning to a word and will form the word
books.
Syntax
Aspect of grammar that specifies the rules for arranging and combining
words to form phrases and sentences.
Example:
The rules of grammar in English is that adjectives come before
nouns (the White House)
Semantics
- Meaning or the study of meaning derived from morphemes, words
and sentences.
Example:
The same word can have different meanings depending on how it
is used in sentences.
Loving to read, the young girl read three books last
week.
Pragmatics
- The patterns of intonation and social roles associated with a language.
Example:
Do you want a cookie? A tone of asking a question.
166
Language Development
During their first few months, infants communicate distress or displeasure through
crying. But they begin rapidly to acquire language.
During the second or third month, infant begin cooing-repeatedly uttering vowel sounds
such as ah and oo. At about 6 months, infants begin babbling. They utter phonemes which
form words when combined. During the first part of the babbling stage, infants babble all the
basic speech sounds that occur in all the languages of the world. Language up to this point seems
to be biologically determined, because all babies throughout the world, even deaf children,
vocalize the same range of speech sounds.
At about 8 months, babies begin to focus attention on those speech sounds (phonemes)
common to the language spoken around them and on the rhythm and intonation of that language.
And by 1 year, the babbling stage gives way to the one-word stage. The first words usually
represent objects that move or those that infants can act on or interact with. From 13 to 18
months of age, children markedly increase their vocabulary, and 2-year-olds know about 270
words.
Initially a childs understanding of words differs from that of an adult. When they lack
the correct word, children may act on the basis of shared features and apply a word to a broader
range of objects than is appropriate. This is known as overextension. For example, any man may
be called dada and any four-legged animal, doggie. Underextension occurs, too; this is
when children fail to apply a word to other members of the class. The familys poodle is a
doggie, but the German shepherd next door is not.
Between 18 to 20 months of age, when their vocabulary is about 50 words, children begin
to put nouns, verbs and adjectives together in two-word phrases and sentences. At this stage,
children depend to a great extent on gesture, tone and context to convey their meaning.
Depending on intonation, their sentences may indicate questions, statements or possession.
Children adhere to rigid word order. You might hear mama drink, drink milk or mama
milk but not drink mama. milk drink or milk mama.
Between 2 to 3 years of age, children begin to use short sentences, which may contain
three or more words. Labeled telegraphic speech, these short sentences follow a rigid word
order and contain only essential content words, leaving out all plurals, possessives, conjunctions,
articles and prepositions. Telegraphic speech reflects the childs understanding of syntax. When a
167
third word is added to a sentence, it usually fills in the word missing from the two-word sentence
(for example, mama drink milk). After using telegraphic speech for a time, children gradually
begin to add modifiers to make their sentences more precise.
Children pick up grammatical rules intuitively and apply them rigidly.
Overregularization is the kind of error that results when a grammatical rule is misapplied to a
word that has an irregular plural or past tense. Thus, children who have correctly used the words
went, came and did incorrectly apply the rule for past tenses and begin to say goed,
comed and doed. What the parents see as a regression in speech actually means that the child
has acquired a grammatical rule.
Sex /Gender
Girls tend to speak earlier and skillful than boys.
Socioeconomic Status
Children from higher socioeconomic groups speak earlier, speak themselves better, and
talk more than those from lower groups.
Family Relationship
A healthy family relationship facilitates speech development.
Number of Siblings
An only child acquires language earlier than those sibling closes in age.
Health
Severe and prolonged illness during the first two years of life delays the beginning of
speech and the use of sentence by 1 to 2 months.
CHAPTER 10
INTELLIGENCE
People are the most important organism in this world. They reach the highest level of
organization, they are able to stand independently. People are capable of many things but how
can people learn this things? How they solve their problems? And how they are able to think?
168
A famous symposium on Intelligence and its measurement was published in the Journal of
Educational Psychology in 1921. Fourteen experts gave their own informal definitions of
intelligence, some of which may be paraphrased as follows:
1. The ability to carry out abstract thinking (L.M. Terman).
2. The ability to give responses that are true or factual (E.L. Thorndike).
3. The capacity to inhibit instincts, coupled with analytical ability and perseverance (L.L.
Thurstone).
4. The ability to acquire abilities (H. Woodrow).
5. The ability to learn or to profit by experience (W.F. Dearborn).
6. The ability to adjust oneself to relatively new situations in life (R. Pinter).
7 .The ability to adjust oneself to the environment (S.S. Colvin).
18. The capacity for knowledge and knowledge possessed (V.A.C. Henmon).
After 1921, many other informal definitions appeared in the psychological literature (see
Miles, 1957, for an interesting summary and discussion)
Three factors which emerged from the analysis were: verbal intelligence, problem solving and
practical intelligence. Sternberg interpreted these as the major components of intelligence, at
least according to expert opinion. Sternberg and his colleagues also showed that experts and nonexperts rave remarkably similar conceptions of intelligence. When ordinary people were asked to
rate the same kinds of Rishevel as the experts, there was almost complete agreement about how
characteristic each one is of intelligence. In technical terms, the correlation between the two sets
of ratings was 0.96, which is very high. The technique of correlation is often used in the study of
intelligence and in other branches of psychology, so it is worth pausing briefly to explain it.
Definition of Intelligence
Intelligence, term usually referring to a general mental capability to reason, solve
problems, think abstractly, learn and understand new material, and profit from the past
experience .Intelligence can be measured by many different kinds of task. Likewise, this ability
is expressed in many aspects of a persons life. Intelligence draws on a variety of mental
processes, including memory, learning, decision-making, thinking and reasoning.
Intelligence can be defined informally as intellectual ability. A person who solves a
difficult crossword puzzle quickly or gives the right answer to a tricky mathematical problem or
169
gets a high score on an IQ (intelligence quotient) test is showing intelligent Rishevel, and it is
reasonable to infer that such a person is intelligent. Someone who does badly at the same tasks is
not showing intelligent Rishevel and may have a low intelligence, but the inference is uncertain
in this case because other explanations are possible. Poor performance, even on an IQ test, might
be due to tiredness, lack of interest or motivation, test anxiety, or many other causes apart from
low
Faculty theory
It is the oldest theory regarding the nature of intelligence and flourished during 18 th and
19th century. According to this theory, mind is made up of different faculties like reasoning,
memory, discrimination, imagination, etc. These faculties are independent of each other and can
be developed by vigorous straining. Faculty Theory had been under criticism by experimental
psychologists who disproved the existence of independent faculties in the brain.
170
Thorndike believed that there was nothing like General Ability. Each mental activity requires an
aggregate of different set of abilities. He distinguished the following four attributes of
intelligence:
(a) Levelrefers to the level of difficulty of a task that can be solved.
(b) Rangerefers to a number of tasks at any given degree of difficulty.
I Areameans the total number of situations at each level to which the individual is able to
respond.
(d) Speedis the rapidity with which we can respond to the items
Thurstones theory
Primary mental abilities/Group factor theory: States that Intelligent Activities are not an
expression of innumerable highly specific factors, as Thorndike claimed. Nor is it the expression
primarily of a general factor that pervades all mental activities. It is the essence of intelligence,
as Spearman held. Instead, the analysis of interpretation of Spearman and others led them to the
conclusion that certain mental operations have in common a primary factor that gives them
psychological and functional unity and that differentiates them from other mental operations.
These mental operations then constitute a group. A second group of mental operation has its own
unifying primary factor, and so on. In other words, there are a number of groups of mental
abilities, each of which has its own primary factor, giving the group a functional unity and
cohesiveness. Each of these primary factors is said to be relatively independent of the others.
Thurstone has given the following six primary factors :
The Number Factor (N)Ability to do Numerical Calculations rapidly and accurately.
The Verbal Factor (V)Found in tests involving Verbal Comprehension.
The Space Factor (S)Involved in any task in which the subject manipulates the
imaginary object in space.
Memory (M)Involving ability to memorize quickly.
The Word Fluency Factor (W)Involved whenever the subject is asked to think of
isolated words at a rapid rate.
The Reasoning Factor IFound in tasks that require a subject to discover a rule or
principle involved in a series or groups of letters.
Based on these factors Thurstone constructed a new test of intelligence known as Test of
Primary Mental Abilities (PMA).
171
172
The fluid aspect of this theory says that intelligence is a basic capacity due to genetic
potentiality. While this is affected by the past and new expriences, the crystallized theory is a
capacity resultant of experiences, learning and environment.
Verbal skills: The ability to think in words and use language to express meaning
Sensitivity to the meanings and sounds of words, mastery of syntax, appreciation of the
ways language can be used (authors, journalists, speakers, poets, teachers)
Mathematical skills: The ability to carry out mathematical operations
Understanding of objects and symbols and of actions that be performed on them and of
the relations between these actions, ability for abstraction, ability to identify problems and seek
explanations (scientists, engineers, accountants)
Spatial skills: The ability to think three-dimensionally
Capacity to perceive the visual world accurately, to perform transformations upon
perceptions and to re-create aspects of visual experience in the absence of physical stimuli,
sensitivity to tension, balance, and composition, ability to detect similar patterns (architects,
artists, sailors, chess masters)
Bodily-kinesthetic skills: The ability to manipulate objects and be physically adept
Use of ones body in highly skilled ways for expressive or goal-directed purposes,
capacity to handle objects skillfully (surgeons, craftspeople, dancers, athletes, actors)
Musical skills: A sensitivity to pitch, melody, rhythm, and tone
173
Anderson proposes that human cognitive architectures will have adapted optimally to the
problems posed in their environment. Therefore, the optimal solution to the problem posed by
the environment, independent of the architecture, is equivalent to discovering the mechanism
used by the architecture. A Rational Analysis, as it is called, takes into account the available
information in the environment, the goals of the agent, some basic assumptions about
computational cost (in terms of a general architecture mechanism), and produces the optimal
behavioral function. This function the of course can be tested empirically and assumptions
modified if it proves inaccurate. A contrasting point of view to this is espoused by Simon, and is
centered around the claim that, in a rational analysis, the assumptions about the architecture
actually do most of the work.
Conclusion
Until a clear-cut definition of intelligence can be given, theories will continue not to be
able to explain it. The likelihood of such a definition occurring is virtually zero, as there will
always be alternatives given, and so theories of intelligence are bound to be self-defeating.
175
MEASURING INTELLIGENCE
Early Tests
Sir Frances Galton, a British scientist, was among the first to investigate differences in
intelligences. In his book Hereditary Genius (1869), he compared the accomplishments of people
from different generations of prominent English families. No formal measures of intelligence
existed at that time, so Galton evaluated each of his subjects on their fame as judged by
encyclopedia entries, honors, awards, and similar indicators. He concluded that some human
abilities are derived from hereditary factors, and founded the eugenics movement.
Between 1884 and 1890 Galton operated a laboratory at the South Kensington Museum
in London (now the Victoria and Albert Museum) where, for a small fee, people could have
themselves measured on a number of physical and psychological attributes. He tried to relate
intellectual ability to skills such as reaction time, sensitivity to physical stimuli, and body
proportions, Galton was a pioneer in the study of individual differences. His work helped
develop statistical concepts and techniques still in use today. He also was the first to advance the
idea that intelligence can be quantitatively measured.
In the 1890s American psychologist James McKeen Cattell, developed a battery of 50
tests that attempted to measure basic mental ability. Cattell focused on measurements of sensory
discrimination and reaction times. Later researchers, however pointed out that Cattells test
subjects were limited to Columbia Universuty students, whose high academic performance was
not a representative of the general population. Better-designed test given to broader samples have
shown that reaction time and processing speed on perceptual tasks do correlate with academic
achievement.
176
higher by their teachers also scored higher on the test. Thus, Binets test successfully predicted
how student perform in school.
The IQ test
Lewis Terman, an American Psychologist, revised the Binets test by adapting some of
Binets questions, adding questions appropriate for adults, and establishing new standards for
average performance at each age. His first adaptation, published in 1916, was called the
Standford-Binets Intelligence Scale.The name of the test is derived from Termans affiliation
with Standford University.Instead of giving persons performance on the Standford-Binet as a
mental age, Terman converted performance into single score, which he called the Intelligence
Quotient or commonly known as IQ.
Intelligence quotient is computed by dividing a childs mental age (MA), as measured in an
intelligence test by the childs chronological age (CA) and multiplying the result by 100.
IQ =
Legend:
MA
x 100
CA
IQ = Intelligence
MA = Mental Age
CA = Chronological Age
III (WISC-III) is designed for children ages 6 16, while the Wechsler Preschool and Primary
Scale of Intelligence-R (WPPSI-R) is designed for children age 4 6 years.
The WAIS-III
The WAIS-III is the 1997 revision of the test originally published in 1955 and first
revised in 1981. The WAIS-III contains the following scales:
Verbal Scales
1. Information: 28 items on a variety of information adults have presumably had opportunities
to acquire in our culture. No specialized or academic information included; however, some of the
items cover quite sophisticated information.
2. Comprehension: 18 items that require examinee to explain what should be done in certain
circumstances, the meaning of proverbs, why certain societal practices are followed, and so
forth. The test measures practical judgement, common sense, and the ability to understand and
adapt to social customs. Score on each item varies (0-2 pts) according to the degree to which the
response describes the most pertinent aspects of the question.
3. Arithmetic: 20 arithmetic problems similar to those encountered in elementary math courses.
Problems are administered orally and must be solved without paper and pencil. In addition to
math knowledge, test measures concentration and systematic problem-solving ability.
4. Similarities: 19 items requiring examinee to describe how two given things are alike. Score
on each item varies according to the degree to which the response describes a general property
primarily pertinent to both items in the pair. Measures concrete, functional, and abstract concept
formation.
5. Digit Span: Two parts, Digits forward and digits backwards. Examinee required to repeat 3
9 digits forward and 2 9 digits backwards. Measures short-term memory, attention, and
concentration..
6. Vocabulary: 66 words of increasing difficulty are presented orally and visually. Examinee
required to define the words. Score (0-2) based on sophistication of definition. Measures verbal
knowledge and concept formation.
7. Letter-Number Sequencing (Optional Test): Examiner presents combinations of letters and
numbers, from 2 to nine letter-number combinations. Examinee must repeat each series by, first,
repeating the numbers in ascending order, then the letters in alphabetical order (e.g., 9-L-2-A;
correct response is 2-9-A-L). Measures working memory, the ability to simultaneously recall
178
and organize stimuli of different, similar types. This also is a standard test on the Wechsler
Memory Scale-III.
Performance Scales
8. Coding-Digit Symbol: Numbers 1 7 are paired with symbols on a key presented to
examinee. Examinee has 120 seconds to go through a grid of 90 numbers and place the correct
symbol above each number. Measures visual-motor speed and complexity, motor coordination.
There are two additional, optional extensions of the coding test that measure the examinees skills
in learning the coding process after completing the initial task.
9. Picture Completion: 25 cards, each containing a picture having a part missing. Examinee
must identify the missing part. Measures ability to observe details and recognize specific features
of the environment (I.e., whole to part discrimination). Also measures performance in
deliberately focusing attention.
10. Block Design: Perhaps the butt of more jokes than any other WAIS scale! Included in the test
are nine red and white square blocks and a spiral booklet of cards showing different color
designs that can be made with the blocks. The examinee must arrange the blocks to match the
design formed by examiner or shown on cards. In addition to being scored for accuracy, each
item is scored for speed as well. Measures spatial problem-solving and manipulative abilities,
and part to whole organization.
11. Picture Arrangement: Eleven items. Each item consists of 3 to 6 cards
containing pictures. The examinee must arrange the pictures from
left to right to tell the intended story. Again, both accuracy and
speed are scored. Partial credit is given for alternate, but less
commonly
given
arrangements
to
some
items.
Measures nonverbal reasoning and sequencing skills, and grasp of
social cause and eff ect (also known as social intelligence).
12. Matrix Reasoning: A new test on the WAIS-III. Examinee is presented with a series of
design with a part missing. Examinee chooses the missing part that will complete the design,
from five choices. Measures nonverbal analytical reasoning.
13. Object Assembly (Optional Test): Four items, each item being a cut up object, like a
puzzle. Examinee must correctly assemble the parts of the puzzle. Measures visual-motor
problem-solving and organizational abilities, and visual anticipation skills.
179
14. Symbol Search (Optional test): Examinee must match one or two symbols shown on the left
column with the same symbol/s in the right column of each page in the supplemental test
booklet. Measures organization accuracy and processing speed
The WISC-III
Originally, the WISC (1950) was a downward extension of the Wechsler-Belle view test
to children. A revision, the WISC-R, was published in 1974. The WISC-III was published in
1992. Most of the scales in the WISC-III are similar to those in the WAIS-R. Like the WAIS-III,
administration alternates a Verbal scale and a Performance scale. Also, whereas Digit Span is
always given in the WAIS-R, it is an optional test in the WISC-R (it may be substituted for any
one of the other Verbal scales, if the other scale cannot be administered due to an examinees
handicap or because administration of a scale was disrupted). Also, a Mazes subtest may be
substituted for the Coding test on the Performance scale. Order of administration of the tests is as
follows:
19. Picture Completion; 2) Information; 3) Coding; (4) Similarities; 5) Picture Arrangement;
6) Arithmetic; 7) Block Design; 8) Vocabulary; 9) Object Assembly; 10) Comprehension;
11) Symbol Search (Optional); 12) Digit Span (Optional); 13) Mazes (Optional).
The WPPSI-R
The WPPSI was introduced in 1967 as an adaptation of the WISC to preschool
children and an alternative to the Stanford-Binet. Like the WISC-R, the WPPSI tests are
administered in alternating order (Verbal-Performance) and yield scale, Verbal, Performance, and
Full Scale IQ scores. Tests, in order of administration, are:
20. Information; 2) Animal House; 3) Vocabulary; 3) Picture Completion; 5) Arithmetic; 6)
Mazes; 7) Similarities; 8) Geometric Design; 9) Comprehension; 10) Block Design.
The Animal House test is a substitute for the WISC-R Coding test and the WAIS-R Digit Symbol
test. The test consists of a board, at the top of which is a key containing pictures of a cat, fish,
chicken, and dog.
Below each animal on the key is a colored cylinder (the child is told that the cylinder is the
animals house). The rest of the board contains pictures of each animal with a hole underneath.
180
The child is given twenty colored cylinders and told to give each animal a house the same color
as the house for that animal in the key. Speed and accuracy are scored.
The Geometric Designs test requires the little flowers to copy ten simple designs on paper using
a colored pencil. Again, speed and accuracy are scored.
In addition, there is an alternative test for the Verbal scale. The Sentences test is similar to the
Digit Span test, but requires the child to repeat sentences after the examiner
Other most widely used modern tests of intelligence are Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale
(WAIS) and Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (Kaufman-ABC).
used to establish norms (standards) of performance on the test. Normative samples usually
consist of thousands of people from all areas of the country and all strata of the society. Test
scores of people are statistically analyzed to compile the test norms. When the test is made
available for general use, these norms are used to determine a score for each person who takes
the test. The IQ score of overall score reflects how well the person did compared to people of the
same age in the normative sample.
Reliability refers to the consistency of test scores. A reliable test yields the same or close
to the same score for a person each time it is administered. In addition, alternate forms of the test
should produce similar results. By these criteria, modern intelligence tests are highly reliable. In
fact, intelligence tests are the most reliable of all psychological tests.
Validity is the extent to which a test predicts what is designed to predict. Intelligence
tests were designed to predict school achievement, and they do that better than they do anything
else.
Distribution of IQ Scores
IQ scores, like many other biological and psychological
characteristics, are distributed according to a normal
distribution, which forms a normal curve, or bell curve, when
plotted on a graph. In a normal distribution, most values fall in
the average, and few values fall far above average or far below
the average. Although raw scores are not exactly normally
distributed, test makers derive
IQ scores using a formula that forces the scores to conform to the normal distribution.
The normal distribution is defined by its mean (average score) and its standard deviation (a
measure of how average scores are dispersed relative to the mean). Usually the mean of an IQ
test arbitrary set at 100 with a standard deviation of 15.
In business,
employers frequently use intelligence and aptitude test to select job applicants.
In medicine,
physicians use intelligence tests to assess the cognitive functioning of patients, such as
those
with brain damage or degenerative diseases of the nervous system. Psychiatrist and
psychologists may use intelligence tests to diagnose the mental capacities of their clients.
In military,
military officials screen new recruits through intelligence tests.
Genetic Influences
In behavioral genetics, the heritability of a trait refers to the proportion of the traits
variation within a population that is attributable to genetics. The heritability of intelligence is
usually defined as the proportion of the variation in IQ scores that is linked to genetic factors. To
estimate the heritability of intelligence, scientists compare the Iqs of individuals who have
differing degrees of genetic relationship. Scientists have conducted hundreds of studies,
involving tens of thousands of participants, that have sought to measure the heritability of
intelligence .The generally accepted conclusion from these studies is that genetic factors account
for 40 to 80 % of the variability in the intelligence test scores, with most experts settling on a
183
figure of approximately 50%.It affirms the reason why genetic factors influence but do not fix a
predetermine intelligence.
Correlation coefficient provides a measure of the strength of relationship between two
variables, and; bound by limits from -1.00 to +1.00. The higher is the correlation coefficient; the
higher is the strength of relationship.
Psychologists have drawn evidence from a number of studies to examine the relative
influence of hereditary and environmental factors on intelligence The two kinds of
studies discussed below are: (a) studies of twin children; and (b) studies involving
adopted children.
influence on intelligence. However, the role of the environment cannot be ruled out, because the
correlation drops from .86 to .72 as the environment changes for the identical twins.
Environmental Influences
If genetic influences account for between 40 and 80 percent of the variation in
intelligence, then environmental influences account for between 20 and 60 percent of the total
variation. Environmental factors comprise all the stimuli a person encounters from conception to
death, including food, cultural information, education, and social experiences. Although it is
known that environmental factors can be potent forces in shaping intelligence, it is not
understood exactly how they contribute to intelligence.In fact, scientists have identified few
specific environmental variables that have direct, unambiguous effects on intelligence. Many
environmental variables have small effects in their effect on each person, making them difficult
to identify.
Gender Differences
Are women smarter or are men smarter?
Gender differences have been studied since the
beginning of intelligence testing. The question is
very complicated one, though. One problem is test
makers sometimes eliminate questions that show
differences between males and females to eliminate
bias from the test. Intelligent tests, therefore may not show gender differences even if they exist.
Men and women tend to be equivalent in most aspects of intelligence.
Women as a group
Men as a group
Over represents the extremes (both low and high ends) of IQ distribution.
Tend to be stronger in visual-spatial processing, in science, and in mathematical problem
solving.
185
(Some psychologists speculate that spatial ability evolved more in men because men were
historically hunters and required spatial ability to track prey and find their way back from
hunting forays.
Are differences in abilities between men and women biologically based or are they due to
cultural influences?
There is some evidence on both sides.
On the biological side, researchers have studied androgenized females. Individuals who
are genetically female but were exposed to high levels of testosterone, a male hormone, during
gestation. As these individuals grow up they are culturally identified as female, but they tend to
play with boys toys, like blocks, trucks, and have higher levels of spatial ability than females
who were not exposed to high levels of testosterone. Further evidences for a biological basis for
spatial gender differences comes from the comparison of the brains of men and women. Even
when corrected for body size, males tend to have slightly larger brains than females. Some
scientists speculate that this extra brain volume in males may be devoted to spatial ability.
On cultural side, many social scientist argue that differences in abilities between men
and woman arise from societys different expectations of them and from their different
experiences. Girls do not participate extensively as boys do in cultural activities thought to
increase spatial and mathematical ability. As children girls are expected to play with dolls and
other toys that develop verbal and social skills while boys play with blocks, video games, and
other toys that encourage spatial visualization.
It is important to remember that sex differences, where they exist represent average
differences between men and women as groups, not individuals. Knowing whether an individual
is female or male reveals a little about that persons intellectual abilities.
Personality dispositions
There is some evidence to suggest that changes in IQ are related to general pattern of
adjustment and personality. In a longitudinal study (5 Baker, and Nelson, 1958), 140 children
186
were tested at intervals bet and 12 years of age. The 35 children, whose Iqs increased remarkable
found to have personality traits of assertiveness, independence, self-in and competitiveness.
On the contrary the 35 children who showed a d trend were found to lack these traits. If
the personality traits were not acceptable, the advantages would be minimized. For example,
child show temper tantrums have been found to display drops in their Iqs (Peskin, 1964). Good
intellectual functioning requires the ability to harness ones emotions and utilize them in a
constructive manner.
The children of low socioeconomic status score approximately 10 to 15 IQ points below the
middle-class and higher-class children (Hall and Kaye, 1980). These differences are present by
the first grade and are sustained throughout the school years. Parental occupation is closely
related to the IQ level of children (Harrell and Harrell, 1945).
The intellective support provided to children at home differs from one SES to another.
Moreover, children from varying SES levels bring different attitudes and cognitive styles to the
problem-solving situation, which affect their performance (Yando, Seitz and Zigler, 1979).
In Orissa, Jachuck and Mohanty (1974) found that children of high SES performed
significantly better than children from low SES on a variety of intellectual tasks. Even older
children from low SES performed poorly than the younger children of high SES. For low SES
children, they observed progressive retardation in intellectual skills. Rath, Dash and Dash (1975
reported the adverse effects of social class on intellectual reasoning. These finding have been
supported by a number of studies conducted in the Indian subcontinent.
187
Physiological conditions
The physiological conditions such as nutrition, health, drugs, disease, and physical injury
affect the cognitive competence of the child. Healthy body gives a healthy mind. The mental
development is associated with biochemical processes and hormones within the body. The
biological processes within the body provide a necessary but not sufficient condition for
intellectual development.
Poor health and susceptibility to diseases would retard the growth of brain cells, and
consequently the intellectual skills. Physical injury to the brain during early childhood years is
likely to result in minimal brain damage thus seriously restricting the development of intellectual
faculty. Similarly, intoxicating drugs and alcohol consumption would adversely affect the
biological processes and the development of brain cells.
Thus, the internal physiological conditions are critical for the expression of intelligent behavior
CHAPTER 11
CREATIVITY
Divergent Thinking
Divergent Thinking is the process of generating multiple related ideas for a given topic or
solutions to a problem. Dont vergent thinking occurs in a spontaneous, free-flowing, nonlinear manner.
The idea if divergent thinking has become important in the scientific study of creativity because
many widely used test for creativity are measures of individual differences in divergent thinking
ability.
CHAPTER 12
MOTIVATION
The act or an instance of motivating, or providing with a reason to act in a certain way:
I dont understand what her motivation was for quitting her job.
Synonyms: motive, inspiration, inducement, cause, impetus.
Components of Motivation
189
TYPES OF MOTIVATION
Intrinsic Motivation
Intrinsic motivation refers to behavior that is driven by internal rewards. In other words, the
motivation to engage in a behavior arises from within the individual because it is intrinsically
rewarding. This contrasts with extrinsic motivation, which involves engaging in a
behavior in order to earn external rewards or avoid punishments. Intrinsic motivations are
those that arise from within the individual, such as doing a complicated cross-word puzzle purely
for the personal gratification of solving a problem.
Intrinsic motivation refers to the reason why we perform certain activities for inherent
satisfaction or pleasure; you might say performing one of these activities in reinforcing in-and-of
itself.
(Brown, 2007)
Intrinsic motivation occurs when we act without any obvious external rewards. We simply enjoy
an activity or see it as an opportunity to explore, learn, and actualize our potentials.
(Coon & Mitterer, 2010)
The factors that are identified as increasing intrinsic motivation are:
190
Challenge: People are more motivated when they pursue goals that have personal meaning,
that relate to their self-esteem, when performance feedback is available, and when
attaining the goal is possible but not necessarily certain.
Curiosity: Internal motivation is increased when something in the physical environment
grabs the individuals attention (sensory curiosity) and when something about the activity
stimulates the person to want to learn more (cognitive curiosity).
Control: People want control over themselves and their environments and want to determine
what they pursue.
Cooperation and Competition: Intrinsic motivation can be increased in situations where
people gain satisfaction from helping others and also in cases where they are able to compare
their own performance favorably to that of others.
Recognition: People enjoy having their accomplishment recognized by others, which can
increase internal motivation.
EXTRINSIC MOTIVATION
Extrinsic motivation refers to behavior that is driven by external rewards such as money, fame,
grades, and praise. This type of motivation arises from outside the individual, as opposed to
intrinsic motivation, which originates inside of the individual.
The rewards can be something as minor as a smiley face to something major like fame or
fortune.
For example, an extrinsically motivated person who dislikes math may work hard on a math
equation because want the reward for completing it. In the case of a student, the reward would be
a good grade on an assignment or in the class.
Specific Theories
In addition to theories proposed by psychologists like Clark Hull or Abraham Maslow,
Sigmund Freud and William James were psychologists who developed theories that resonate
with the concept of acting by instinct.
Freuds Death (Thanatos) and Life (Eros) Drives
Freud stated that humans have two instinctual drives: life and death. Each drive causes
humans to behave in certain ways. Depending on which drive is dominant, the person will act in
a way to promote life or death.
The life drive (Eros) causes us to engage in behaviors promoting the preservation of life such as
engaging in sex, eating to survive, and exercising to maintain health.
The death drive (Thanatos) causes us to engage in risky or aggressive behaviors such as doing
stunts, starting fights, or driving dangerously.
William James: Our Instinct is to Survive
James believed that we behave in ways that promote our survival. Some important factors in his
theory were:
Fear For example, fear is what keeps us away from fire and causes us to flinch if we hear
gunshots. If we didnt have a sense of fear, we might get burned or shot because we wouldnt be
afraid enough to move away.
Love This includes sexual drives, care, and affection. Instinctively, people engage in sex to
recreate. Parents care for their children with care and affection because they act with love. Babies
cry if they need affection.
Sociability Since groups are more powerful than individuals, we socialize and make friends.
This feeds our need for company as well as protection. When walking down a street at night, we
feel protected and are less targeted when with a large group.
According to drive theories, the source of motivation lies within the organism. According to
incentive theories, the source of motivation lies outside the organism, in the environment. This
means that incentive models dont operate according to the principle of homeostasis, which
hinges on internal changes in the organism. Thus, in comparison to drive theories, incentive
theories emphasize environmental factors and downplay the biological bases of human
motivation.
As youre painfully aware, people cant always obtain goals they desire, such as good
grades or choice promotions. Expectancy-value models of motivation are incentive theories that
take this reality into account (Atkinson & Birch, 1978). According to expectancy-value models,
ones motivation to pursue a particular course of action will depend on two factors: (1)
expectancy about ones chances of attaining the incentive and (2) the value of the desired
incentive. Thus, your motivation to pursue a promotion at work will depend on your estimate of
the likelihood that you can snare the promotion (expectancy) and on how appealing the
promotion is to you (value).
193
Physiological Needs The basic needs for survival have to be met, such
water, sleep, and homeostasis. Without these basic needs one cannot
think about anything else beyond how to survive.
as
food,
possibly
Love/belonging The person has some sort of friendship, relationship with family, or sexual
intimacy. This is a feeling of belonging, which we all want to feel and leads to the next step.
Esteem This need includes a good feeling of self-esteem and maybe a sense of achievement,
which results in a show of confidence, respect for others, and respect by others. When humans
feel good about themselves, they worry less about what others think of them and start taking
more chances.
HUNGER MOTIVATION
Our bodies need food, however, we sometimes eat even when we do not need food.
Thus, the motivation for hunger goes beyond simple nourishment. There are both biological and
psychological factors around the motivation of hunger.
194
195
Culture and background also effect our food preferences. For example, when I was
growing up my mother would make me a peanut butter and jelly omelet. It was really good!!!
But when I made one for my wife, she almost upchucked. But she can eat fried pig skin and ask
for more where that makes me gag. Think about what various cultures might eat around the
world. Here are some examples- camel eyes, dog, beer-jelly, monkey brains, fish flavored ice
cream etc.... Just realize that hunger goes way beyond the body and nurture plays a large part in
the foods we choose.
Eating Disorders
When exploring hunger motivation, one cannot help but encounter eating disorders. In
the United States we have three major types of eating disorders. It is important to be aware that
although there is a biological component to eating disorders, they are largely cultural. Some
eating disorders that we find in the United States do not even exist in other countries.
Bulimia- Bulimics eat large amounts of food in a short period of time (binging) and then
get rid of the food (purging) by vomiting, excessive exercise or the use of laxatives.
Bulimics are obsessed with food and their body weight. The majority of bulimics are
women.
Anorexia Nervosa- Anorexics starve themselves to below 85% of their normal body
weight and refuse to eat due to their obsession with weight. The vast majority of
anorexics are women.
Obesity- People with diagnosed obesity are severely overweight, often over 100 pounds,
and the excess weight threatens their health. Obese people typically have unhealthy
eating habits rather than the food obsessions of the other two disorders. Some people
may also be genetically predisposed to obesity.
SEXUAL MOTIVATION
Some scientists say that sexual motivation is one of the most
important aspects of humanity. If we were not motivated to have sex, then
we probably would not procreate (have babies) and the human species
would end. So according to that logic, feeling like you want to have sex
(being horny) is just you doing your job as part of the human species
(way to take one for the team).
Although we have been having sex since the dawn of humans,
we have only began serious scientific study of sex in the United States
196
60 years ago. The first major scientist to analyze human sexual behavior in the US was Alfred
Kinsey.
Kinsey, who studied the genealogy of flies by trade, set out and surveyed thousands of
people of their sexual behaviors. He discovered some pretty interesting things about human
sexual being (like the % of people masturbating and having pre-marital sex). But what made
Kinsey so important was 1. He attempted to use the scientific method to study sex and 2. He
showed us that our perceptions about what others are doing are a whole lot different than our
reality. Before Kinsey, many people believed that they were part of the dirty few who
masturbated, but after Kinseys reports they realized that everyone and their mom did it
(hopefully not literally).
Initial excitement: Genital areas become engorged with blood, penis becomes erect,
clitoris swells, respiration and heart rate increases.
Plateau phase: Respiration and heart rate continue at an elevated level, genitals secrete
fluids in preparation for orgasm.
Orgasm: Rhythmic genital contractions that may help conception. Respiration and heart
rate increase further, males ejaculate (there is evidence of female ejaculation as well),
often accompanied by a pleasurable euphoria.
Resolution phase: Respiration and heart rate return to normal resting states. Men
experience a refractory period- a time period that must elapse before another orgasm.
Women do not have a similar refractory period and can repeat the cycle immediately.
Unlike many animals, our sexual desire is not motivated strictly by hormones. Many
studies demonstrate that sexual motivation is controlled to a great extent by psychological rather
than biological sources. Sexual desire can be present even when the capacity to have sex is lost.
Accident victims who lose the ability to have sex still have sexual desires. Erotic material can
inspire sexual feelings and physiological responses in men and women, including elevated levels
of hormones (remind me to tell you about the research on this in class). The interaction between
our physiology and psychology creates the myriad of sexual desires we see in society and
ourselves.
Sexual Orientation
Ok- lets just get the myths out of the way. Studies have shown again and again that
homosexuality is NOT related to traumatic childhood experiences, parenting styles, the quality of
relationships with parents, masculinity or femininity, or whether we are raised by heterosexual or
homosexual parents. Although researchers believe that environmental influences probably affect
sexual orientation, these factors have NOT yet been identified.
Researchers have identified possible biological influences. Scientist Simon LeVay
discovered that certain brain structures are different in homosexual and heterosexual males. But
that does not mean than genetics caused the brain differences (one can argue that environmental
influences change neural structures.). But twin studies indicate a genetic influence on sexual
orientation since a twin is much more likely to be gay if his or her identical twin is gay.
The most current research points to the prenatal environment (the womb) that may alter brain
structures and influence sexual orientation. Since 3-10% of the population is homosexual, I
suspect that research in this area will continue and the differences become more clear.
Motivation aswers whys of your life.
Once something is a passion, the motivation is there.- Michael Schumacher
CHAPTER 13
EMOTION
198
EMOTION
At one time or another, all of us have experienced
the strong feelings that accompany both pleasant and very
negative experiences. Perhaps, we have felt the thrill of
getting a sought-after job, the joy of being in love, sorrow
over someones death, or the anguish of inadvertently
hurting someone. Moreover, we experience such reactions
on a less intense level throughout our daily lives: the
pleasure of a friendship, the enjoyment of a movie, and the
embarrassment of breaking a borrowed item. Despite the
varied nature of these feelings, they all represent emotions.
Emotions are part of our life. All emotional states
give richness and meaning to our lives. Otherwise, life will
be dull and colorless.
The term emotion comes from the latin word emovere which means to stir-up or to
move. Emotion is defined as an affective state involving a high level of activation arising from a
psychological situation accompanied by visceral changes and strong feelings. Emotion can also
be described as the stirred-up state of an organism involving internal and external responses.
Milder emotional states occur in the form of feelings, moods, interests, attitudes and
prejudices. The milder forms of emotions can affect behavior by lowering or increasing the
individuals capacity for action and effectiveness.
Feelings are less disruptive. It is an aspect of emotion.
Feeling is a simple pleasurable or painful aspect of mental or
bodily conditions or the awareness of pleasantness or
unpleasantness that accompanies mental processes or bodily
conditions (Kelly: 165). Emotions are feelings that generally
have both physiological and cognitive elements and that
influence behavior. (Feldman: 339) But it is said that emotions
are more complex than feelings.
199
EMOTIONS
Positive
Love
Negative
Joy
Infatuation Bliss
Pride Annoyance
Fondness
Contentment
Worry
Anger
Jealousy
Sadness
Agony
Hostility Contempt
Guilt
Fear
Horror
Grief Loneliness
200
experiences. Learning may take in the form of conditioning or learning by association and
imitation.
In contrast, other theorist propose that people first develop cognitions about a situation
and then react emotionally. This school of thought suggests that we must think about and
understand a stimulus or situation, relating it to what we already know before we can react on an
emotional level (Lazarus, 1991a, 1991b, 1994, 1995).
They can ask patients to describe how they are feeling and these verbal reports
provide an account of the individuals subjective awareness of emotional changes.
They can observe behavioral changes associated with emotional states. In
particular there are specific changes in facial expression, body language, posture
which are found with different emotions.
They can use psycho physiological approach which involves the use of electrical
monitoring equipment to record the activity of various physiological functions
which can then be related to the emotion which is experienced.
Many bodily responses may take place during emotional states and the most widely
investigated ones are the following according to John Weinman.
1
2
3
4
201
Functions of Emotions
Imagine what it would be like if we didnt experienced emotion- no depths of despair, no
depression, no remorse, but at the same time, no happiness, joy or love. Obviously, life would be
considerably less satisfying, and even dull, if we lacked the capacity to sense and express
emotion.
But do emotions serve any purpose beyond making life interesting? Indeed they do.
Psychologists have identified several important functions that play in our daily lives. Among the
most important functions are the following:
Preparing us for action. Emotions act as link between events in our environment and our
responses. For example, if we saw an angry dog charging over us, the emotional reaction
(fear) would be associated with physiological arousal of the sympathetic division of the
autonomic nervous system, the activation of the flight-or-fight response.
Shaping our future behavior. Emotions promote learning that will help us make
appropriate responses in the future. For example, the emotional response that occur when
we experience something unpleasant- such as threatening dog- teaches us to avoid similar
circumstances in the future. In the same way, pleasant emotions act as a positive
reinforcement for prior behavior and therefore may lead an individual to seek out similar
situations in the future.
Helping us interact more effectively with others. We often communicate the emotions we
experience through verbal or nonverbal behaviors, making our emotions obvious to
observers. These behaviors can act as a signal to the observers, allowing them to
understand better what we are experiencing and to predict our future behavior. In turn,
this promotes more effective and appropriate social interaction.
Kinds of Emotions
A Unpleasant Emotions
Unpleasant emotions are harmful to the individuals development. The following are
kinds of unpleasant emotions:
22. Fear
202
Give the person an opportunity to become acquainted with the feared stimulus
of his own accord.
Lead him gradually into contact with the thing he fears.
Encourage him to acquire skills that will be of specific aid to him in dealing
with the feared situation.
Build up pleasant associations with the feared object.
Opportunity for self-expression which will lead to self-scrutiny and personal
reorientation.
23. Anger
Anger is more frequent emotional response than fear. It is defined as the thwarting of goalseeking activity. Anger responses may be classified into two, the impulsive and inhibited
expression. Impulsive expression consists of responses directed outward against a person or
object. Inhibited expressions are kept under control within the individual.
24. Jealousy
B Pleasant Emotions
Pleasant emotions are helpful and essential to normal development in the individuals
life.
25. Affection
203
26. Happiness
Theories of Emotion
1 James- Lange Theory
The earliest theory of emotion was formulated by William James and Carl Lange. They
believe that the emotional experience occurs after the bodily changes. James and Lange
took the view that the instinctive response of crying at a loss leads us to feel sorrow, that
striking out at someone who frustrates us results in our feeling anger, that trembling at a
menacing threat causes us to feel fear. They suggested that for every major emotion there
is an accompanying physiological or gut reaction of internal organs- called the visceral
experience. It is the specific pattern of visceral response that leads us to label the
emotional experience.
In sum, James and Lange proposed that we experience emotion as a result of a
physiological changes that produce specific sensations as particular kinds of emotional
experiences. This view has come to be called the James-Lange theory of emotion
The order of emotional states are as follows:
a
b
c
Perception of Emotion
producing stimulus
Reaction to situation
(activation of visceral
and skeletal
responses)
Emotion
Feedback to brain
from bodily responses
produces experience
of emotion.
206
207
The purpose of the experiment was to determine how the participants would react
emotionally to the confederates behavior. When they were asked to describe their own
emotional state at the end of the experiment, the participants exposed to the angry confederate
reported that they felt angry, while the other exposed to the happy confederate reported that they
were happy. In sum, the results suggest that the participant turned to the environment and the
behavior of others for an explanation of the physiological arousal they were experiencing. Then,
the experiment supported a cognitive view of emotions, in which emotions are determined jointly
by a relatively nonspecific of physiological arousal and the labeling of that arousal on the basis
of cues from the environment.
They believe that the perception of our emotional state is influenced by our
interpretation of the situation and physiology.
Memory of past
experiences and
appraisal of current
situation give rise to
additional information
Conscious
experience of
emotion
(Integration of input
from three sources)
CHAPTER 14
PHYSIOLOGICAL
FACTORS
Inputs to brain from internal
organs
and skeletal muscle
PERSONALITY
Personality
Personality literally means to sound through which is derived from the Latin words
per sonare. It was first used as a term to describe the sounds that a masked actor projects. It is
the sound the character that he portrays which is termed as his personality.
Gordon Allport (1990) defines personality as a a pattern of habits, habits, and traits that
determine an individuals characteristics, behavior and traits. He further describes personality as
the dynamic organization within the individual of those psychological systems that determine
his characteristic behavior and thoughts.
208
The Encyclopedia International (1967) describes personality as the end result of the
typical ways in which a person reacts: the product of his motivation, emotions, feeling tones,
style of thinking, and attitudes. Personality is partly inborn, partly acquired. Such biological
factors as the endocrine glands and nervous system are largely responsible for the inborn aspects.
The acquired aspects are picked up chiefly from the people with whom we associate, either
through imitation or through hostile reactions when we are thwarted.
Factors that may affect Personality
Nature and Nurture the stability of interindividual differences in personality traits tends to
increase with age until it plateaus in middle adulthood and finally decreases in old age. Rankorder continuity also tends to decrease as the time intervals between occasions of personality
assessment increase, irrespective of age. These patterns show that personality development is
a lifelong process. Yet the sources of these patterns are unknown. Theories suggest that
personality continuity and change may result from environmentally mediated processes of
identity development due to age-graded social roles and individual life experiences, but also
from biological maturation.
Genetics While researches estimates that trait may be around 50% heritable, it is widely
accepted that personality type is developed based on a wide variety of factors. However,
biology plays a very important role in the development of personality. The study of the
biological basis of personality focuses primarily on identifying the role of genetic
determinants and how they mold individual personalities. Genetic personality studies have
previously focused on correlating specific genes with specific personality traits. Over time,
this focus has changed and todays studies investigate the activation and expression of genes
and how they relate to personality. DNA-environment interactions are important in the
development of personality because this relationship determines what part of the DNA code is
actually activated within an i9ndividual. In the end, while different choices are made available
by the genome, environment is the ultimate determinant of what becomes activated. Small
changes in DNA in individuals are what lead to the uniqueness of every person as well as
differences in looks, abilities, brain functioning, and all the factors that culminate to develop a
cohesive personality.
Components of Personality
Personality is more than charm, poise or physical appearance. It includes habits, attitudes,
and all physical, mental, emotional, social, moral, and religious characteristics that an individual
possesses.
Habits reactions so often repeated as to become fixed characteristics or tendencies. Good
habits result from choice and are acquired through effort.
Attitudes certain ways of viewing things gained from the environment, changed by the
working of the mind, and the imagination and somewhat influenced by the physical
endowment, particularly by the emotions. It may be positive or negative, favorable or
unfavorable, learned or acquired.
Physical Traits includes facial appearance, height, weight, physical defects, complexion,
strength, and health.
Mental Traits include our ability to control the mind, Floyd Allport lists the following
mental abilities:
209
a) Problem-solving ability
b) Memory and learning ability
c) Perceptual ability
d) Constructive ability
e) Special imagination
f) Soundness judgment
g) General adaptability
Emotional Traits give an individual the capacity to face different situations in life, and still
maintain his composure. He is said to have a stable personality.
Social Traits gives an individual the ability to get along with others to be sociable and
friendly.
Moral and Religious Traits standards for a persons actions and behavior. His moral traits
are manifested by his conduct. His religious traits guide his actions according to his belief.
210
211
A Trait is a personality characterisric, attribute, or behavioral tendency that can vary along a
dimension, say, from low to high. And by definition, traits are relatively stable and consistent
across the situations they apply to. From there, however,theories differ in how traits should be
described and classified , and to an appreciable extent, what traits are viewed as the most basic.
Gordon Allport was among the first to describe personality in terms of measurable traits, within
a view that traits are building blocks of personality that guide and otherwise determine
behavior from one situation to next. After narrowing the many thousands of English adjectives
that relates to personality traits Rish to about 4,500, Allport then classified traits in two different
ways (1) common versus personal, with reference tto how generally they apply to people; and (2)
cardinal versus central versus secondary, with reference to how generally they apply to the
individual across situations.
*Common Traits are those that apply to people in general and which therefore can be used to
compare one person to another. A trait such as trustworthiness potentially applies to everyone,
and one person can generally be more trustworthy than another.*
*Personal Traits are unique qualities that are more specific to the individual. Two people might
both be highly trustworthy, and yet differ in how their trustworthiness interacts with other traits:
one person might view being honest as an importatnt part of being trustworthy,another person
not.
*Cardinal Traits are those that are evident in an individuals behavior across all relevant
situations. Trustworthiness is cardinal in a person who is absolutely trustworthy, no matter whats
at stake and regardless of the situation or context. Thus, cardinal traits meaning individuals with
cardinal traits-are relatively rare.
*Central Traits affect a broad variety of situations but not necessarily all. A person who is
mostly trustworthy, with only occasional lapses, has a central trait of trustworthiness.
Approaches to assessing and describing personality tend to use central traits, meaning that its
understood that an individual who scores high or low on a given trait wont necessarily behave
that way all the time.
*Secondary Traits involve specific situations. A person might be highly trustworthy in business
relationships and yet not especially trustworthy otherwise, such as in relationships involving
friendship cells.
Theories of Personality
In an attempt to explain the complex nature of personality structures, the following theories
are derived from the names of the cell layers of the embryo where different bodily tissues
originate.
A. Theory of Body Types (William Sheldon). This theory relates personality with bodily
constitution, health, and vigor. The types names are derived from the names of the cell layers
of the embryo where different bodily tissues originate.
1. Endomorphic Components. This means prominence of intestines and visceral organs, and
fats are in proportion to height. Individuals under this type are classified temperamentally
212
as viscerotonic. Such persons seek comfort, love to fend food, and eat too much. They are
sociable and are greatly interested in seeking affection.
2. Mesomorphic Components. This refers to bones and muscles. This individual is strong,
tough, and athletic. He is well built and proportionate. Temperamentally, he is somatotonic.
Such persons are energetic. They like exercise and are direct in manners. They tend to be
aggressive and self-assertive.
3. Ectomorphic Components. The individual tends to be long, thin, and poorly developed. He
is generally weak physically. Temperamentally, he is cerebraronic. Such persons are
characterized by excessive restraint, inhibition, and avoidance of social contacts.
B. Theory Based on body Build and Strength (Ernest Kretschmer). An individual may be
classified under any of the following types.
1. Asthentic type of individuals are those who are thin, wall, and emaciated. They look very
sickly and weak. They want to be alone maybe because of frailty. They tend to cough or
show signs of other physical illness.
2. Pyknic type is the opposite of asthenic. Such type of individuals can be called human ball
because of their short stature and round solid body. A pyknic person never walks but
waddles like a duck or rolls like a ball.
3. Athletic type is between the asthenic and the pyknic type who are extremes in body build.
The individual is strong and robust, and has the stamina for real hard work. He has a good
body build which is wiry. He is a picture of good health and his personality is often the
object of envy.
4. Dysplastic type are those who cannot be classified among the three types above.
C. Psychological Type Theory. Carl Jung gives the following classifications of individuals:
1. Introverted individual. This type of person tends to withdraw into himself in times of
emotional stress or conflicts. His characteristics include shyness and preference to work
alone.
2. Extroverted individual. And extrovert tends to be very sociable, well-dressed, and outgoing.
His decisions and actions are determined primarily by objective relationships. His attention
andinterest ar centered on the immediate environment, and he tends to lose himself among
people.
D. Theory Based on Body Chemistry, Endocrine Balance and Temperament. Galen
categorizes individuals into sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholic, and choleric.
1. A sanguine person is warm-hearted and pleasant. He looks alive and is very optimistic.
2. The phlegmatic person is listless, slow, unexcitable and calm, attributed to the phlegm. He
is cautious, and thinks twice before doing anything.
3. A melancholic person is one who suffers from depression and sadness because of having
too much black bile. He is very pessimistic.
4. The choleric person is easily angered or temperamental as influenced by his yellow bile.
He is serious, easily provoked, and aggressive when he fails.
213
E. Theory of Personality Based on Birth Order (Maxine Abrams, 19787). The advocates of
this theory, amidst controversy, stress that a growing personality trait is attributed to family
rank. They say that whatever kind of personality you possess is in one way or another
influenced by the rank you occupy in the family.
The birth-order influences grow out of interactions of the various relationships within a
family; parent with parents, parents with children, and siblings with each other and these
several relationships fraught as they may be with power plays and competitive struggle for
supremacy, must all be taken into account.
The birth order and the common personality traits manifested are as follows:
1. First Borns. They can keep secrets than the other siblings. They are conscientious, taskoriented, and responsible, high achievers. They also resent sharing parental attention and
may not be happier than the other siblings. Because of strong parental influence, they are
jealous of the latter-borns so they spend the rest of their lives in a subconscious effort to
regain the spotlight. They tend to require their partners to be dependent so as to dominate
them. This is an attempt to assert ones dominance on others.
2. Middle Borns. They talk the last. They are diplomatic and skillful in interpersonal
relationships because of the interpersonal give-and-take they share with the older and the
younger siblings. The middle of three girls tends to be the most difficult because of an
attempt to get parental attention especially from the father.
3. Later Borns. They are very creative, charming and playful, very popular, and often are
spoiled. They are sometimes deprived because of constantly receiving hand-me-downs and
financial leftovers. Some develop a low sense of responsibility; some especially in large,
encouraging families become high achievers.
4. Only Child. The child is very dependent but may enjoy a high sense of self-esteem and
optimism, reflecting the unchecked attention of two adults who praise him as he grows.
Others may have difficulty with interpersonal relationships as they are accustomed to
having their way. They tend to take advantage of others. Yet others have great charms and
charisma.
F. Psychoanalytic Theory. Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, believed that personality has
three structures: the id, the ego, and the superego. The id can be thought of as a sort of
storehouse of biologically based motives and instinctive reactions for satisfying motives.
These instinctive drives are the sexual and destructive urges which are termed libido. Left to
itself, the id-libido would satisfy fundamental motives as they arise, without regard to the
realities of life or to morals of any kind.
The id, however, is usually controlled by the ego. This consists of elaborate ways of
behaving and thinking that are learned to deal effectively with the world. It delays the
satisfaction of motives, and it channels motives into socially acceptable outlets. The ego keeps
a person working for a living, getting along with people, and generally adjusting to the
realities of life.
The superego corresponds closely with conscience. It consists of restraints acquired in
the course of personality development, on the activity of the ego, and the id. It is a set of
socially derived motives that affect, and sometimes conflict with the first two personality
structures (Hall and Gardner, 1986).
G. Superiority and Compensation Theory. Alfred Adler, an early disciple of Freud, rejected
Freuds theory emphasizing the biological drives, sex in particular. He emphasized the drive
214
for superiority or power. It is to Adler that we owe the concept of the inferiority complex.
Because of this feeling, we try to overcome our weakness.
In connection with the emergence of inferiority complex, Adler also introduced the
concept of compensation. Being aware of a weakness, we may strive especially hard to
overcome it by excelling in other fields. For example, a frail boy may become superior in
academics when he fails in athletics.
H. Trait Theory. Gordon Allport developed this theory assuming a multiplicity of needs that are
never quite can be distinguished from other theories in two important respects (Morgan,
1986).
One is the concept of the uniqueness of personality. Each person with his unique
background of childhood experiences develops a set of traits that are unique to him.
The second concept is the functional autonomy of motives. In the course of development,
each person acquires of learns motives as part of satisfying other motives.
215
MEASUREMENT OF PERSONALITY
The reliability of a test is the stability of ones test results from one testing to another. We usually
determine the reliability of tests by comparing testing results on different occasions or at
different ages.
Test standardization is a process that checks out the scores, validity, and reliability of a test with
people of various ages and from various groups. We cannot assess the intellectual functioning of
an individual without relating it to other people in the same age group.
Measures of personality are used to make important decisions, such as whether a person is suited
for a certain type of work, a particular class in school, or a drug to reduce agitation.
Validity Scales
Question
Lie
Frequency
may have
Correction
Denies Problems
Hypochondriasis
Hs
Depression
Hysteria
insight
Hy
Clinical Scales
Psychopathic Deviate Pd
relationships
Masculinity/ feminity Mf
stereotypical
Paranoia
nature
Pa
Psychasthenia
Pt
Schizoprenia
Sc
216
Hypomonia
Ma
Social Introversion
Si
Projective Tests
In projective tests there are no clear, specified answers. People are shown ambiguous stimuli
such as inkblots or ambiguous drawings and asked to say what they look like or to tell stories
about them. There is no one correct response. It is assumed that people project their own
personalities into their responses. The meaning they attribute to these stimuli are assumed to
reflect their personalities as well as drawings or blots themselves.
The Rorschach Inkblot Test
There are a number of psychological tests made up of inkblots, and test takers are asked to say
what the blots look like to them. The best known of these is the Rorscach inkblot test, named
after its originator, Hermann Rorscach.
Objective Tests
Objective tests present respondents with a atandardized group of test items in the form of a
questionnaire. Respondents are limited to a specific range of numbers. One test might aks
respondents to indicate whether items are true or false for them. Another might aks respondents
to select the preferred activity from groups of three.
Some tests have a forced-choice format, in which respondents are asked to indicate which of two
or more statements is more true for them or which of several activities they prefer. The
resppondents are not usually given the option of answering none of the above. Forced-choice
formats are frequently used in interest inventories, which help predict whether the person would
function well in a certain occupation.
The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) contains hundreds of items presented
in a true-false format . The MMPI is designed to be used by clinical and counseling
psychologists to help diagnose psychological disorders.
The Thematic Apperception Test
The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) was developed in the 1930s by Henry Murray and
Christiana Morgan. Its Risheve of drawings. Individuals are given the cards one at a time and
asked to make up stories about them. The TAT is widely used in research on motivation and in
clinical practice. The assumption is that we are likely to project our own needs into our responses
to ambiguous situations, even if we are unaware of them or reluctant to talk about them. The TAT
is also widely used to assess attitudes toward other people, especially parents and intimate
partners.
217
CHAPTER 15
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
Social Psychology
Introduction
Human beings are social animals: We enjoy people, need people, and are profoundly
influenced by them. Indeed, we often behave a bit like sheep in a flock. We are likely to dress and
act like other people even when we are not asked to conform, and we are often influenced by
persuasive arguments- even illogical ones.
Social psychologists focus on attitudes because they play a key role in our social
interactions; they are a large part of what determines our behavior toward others. Most of our
attitudes are learned from others and can be changed through persuasion. But other people are not
the only cause of attitude change. Surprisingly, when circumstances cause our behavior to be
inconsistent with pour attitudes, our attitudes will often change to become consistent again with our
behavior.
For most of us, our most interactions are with people we like and love. We like to walk with
them, talk with them, and snuggle with them. Who do you like and why? Other things being equal,
we are attracted to people who are similar to us (or whose opposite characteristic are good for us),
who are reasonably competent (but not perfect), who are physically attractive, and who like us, too.
Once mutual attraction leads to a relationship, out likelihood of staying in that relationship is
determined by (a) how well our expectations of what the person is like are met and (b) how fairly
balanced the relationship is.
The process of liking and disliking others is based on a complex combination of the
positive and negative qualities that we see in them. Some of our reasons for liking a person have a
little to do with the other person at all, however. Lets look at one extraneous factor that influences
the process of liking by looking at a well-known experiment (Curtis & Miller, 1987). You walk to
the psychology department to take a part in a study. You are introduced to another student whom
you have never met and spend a five minutes in a get to know one another conversation. Then
you are separated and taken to separate cubicles. The experimenter talks with the other student for a
while, and then comes to your cubicle. She tells you that the study is about the ways in which
people get to know one another. She also tells you that the other student has been misled into
thinking that you are not a very likable person (by showing the other student a bogus personality
test that made you look bad.) To prove it, the experimenter shows you what the other students
initial ratings of you are, and they are not very positive.
The experimenter explains that she wants to know how the other student will act toward you
after being given this initial negative opinion. You and the research participant are brought together
for a 10-minute conversation. Then you and the other student rate each other on likability, warmth,
ad a number of other similar dimensions.
Half of the students who participated in the study were told that the other person was given
positive information about them and half were told that the other person was given negative
information about them. Actually, experimenters didnt give either positive or negative information
to the other students. The social psychologists who conducted this study wanted to know if we act
differently toward people who we think like or dislike us. The experimenters observed the students
through one-way mirror and rated their behavior. You and the other research participants who
thought the other students did not like them were rated as less warm and less open. In addition, the
person rated you and the other individuals in your group as less likable at the end of the study, too.
218
The other person who you thought did not like you actually didnt like you very much in the end
because of how you behaved toward them. Human relationships are maddeningly complex.
Definition of Social Psychology
Social Psychology is a branch of psychology that studies individuals as they interact with
others. Up to this point in this course, we have studied people as individuals removed from the
social context in which they live. But people live with other people. Their most important
learning comes from others; their most important motives are social motives, and so on.
People are almost always with other. Its part of human nature to be social. Social
psychologist Elliot Aronson (1995) reminds us that this insight is among the oldest in social
psychology. In 328 B.C., Aristotle wrote, Man is by nature a social animal Anyone who either
cannot lead the common life or is so self-sufficient as not to need to, and therefore does not
partake of society, is either a beast or a god. People need, like, and are profoundly influenced by
people. Social psychologists study these attractions, needs, and influences.
Groups and Social Influence
Lets begin our study of social influence with a look at the effects of being a member of a
group. Although some of what you will learn will make you embarrassed to be a member of the
human race, you can understand the power of social influence only by looking at its negative and
positive faces.
Social influence is the change in behavior that one person causes in another, intentionally
or unintentionally, as a result of the way the changed person perceives themselves in relationship
to the influencer, other people and society in general.
Three areas of social influence are conformity, compliance and obedience.
Conformity is changing how you behave to be more like others. This plays to belonging
and esteem needs as we seek the approval and friendship of others. Conformity can run very
deep, as we will even change our beliefs and values to be like those of our peers and admired
superiors.
Compliance is where a person does something that they are asked to do by another. They
may choose to comply or not to comply, although the thoughts of social reward and punishment
may lead them to compliance when they really do not want to comply.
Obedience is different from compliance in that it is obeying an order from someone that
you accept as an authority figure. In compliance, you have some choice. In obedience, you
believe that you do not have a choice. Many military officers and commercial managers are
interested only in obedience.
Solomon Asch showed how a person could be influenced by others in a group to claim
that a clearly shorter line in a group of lines was, in fact, the longest.
219
Stanley Milgram did classic experiments in obedience, where people off the street obeyed
orders to give (what they thought were) life-threatening electric shocks to other people.
220
Lynch Mobs
A lynch mob is a group of people intent on an extrajudicial execution. Their victim is a
specific individual, but the mob may direct their collective rage at persons who resemble their
intended victim. Historically, the term referred to groups who went to capture and then hang
someone, but nowadays it refers to any group that gets angry at an individual.
Historical Use:
Historically, a lynch mob is any mob of people whipped up to kill someone, usually by
hanging. In the Southern United States, from the Reconstruction era until the 1960s (possibly the
1930s depending on what one considers to be a mob), it was a common occurrence for groups of
whites to catch black men who were accused of some offense, including rape or other sexual
misconduct, and lynch them. Rarely were these accusations ever fairly adjudicated (Condemning
lynchings should not be confused with rape apology, which is used to falsely defend people of all
colors accused of rape or sexual misconduct today).
Recently found and restored photographs have documented the often festive air of these
lynchings, where whole communities would get together and have picnics in the shadow of a
dead black man. Overlapping that phenomenon is the use of mob violence to repress organized
labor in the South and the American West. One of the first major civil rights fights of the 20th
century was the fight to make lynching a federal crime. This struggle led to the emergence of the
NAACP as a major civil rights organization.
Modern Use:
In modern usage, the term lynch mob usually refers to any attempt by a large group to
unfairly destroy someones life based on belonging to some group or holding some belief. This
usage can be controversial, since it is often said to mask the true horror of the literal and
historical lynch mob. The single most controversial usage of this was probably Clarence Thomas
saying that he was being subjected to a high-tech lynching.
Those thinking about taking part in lynch mobs should first ask themselves if they may be
guilty of groupthink.
Uninvolved Bystanders
The adoption by a group of persons of a herd mentality of inaction in the face of a dread
situationhomicides, sexual assaults, muggings that have occurred in view of others.
Bystander Effect:
Individuals who see or hear an emergency (but are otherwise uninvolved) are called
bystanders. The bystander effect describes the phenomenon in which such individuals are less
likely to seek help or give assistance when others are present. This does not mean that bystanders
are apathetic to the plight of others, for bystanders often show signs of distress, anxiety, and
concern if they delay responding or fail to respond at all. It also does not necessarily mean that a
victim will be less likely to receive help as the number of bystanders present increasesafter all,
the greater the number of other people present, the greater is the likelihood that at least one of
221
them will intervene. In the event of a medical emergency, for instance, a larger group of
bystanders is more likely to contain someone trained to administer appropriate first-aid
measures. Rather, the term refers simply to any given individual bystanders diminished
likelihood of offering help when part of a group.
Conformity
INTRODUCTION
Describes the case of David R. Stewart who is accused of calling fast food restaurants, posing as
a police officer, and instructing the manager on duty to conduct a strip search of an employee.
CONFORMITY: WHEN AND WHY
Conformity is a change in behavior due to the real or imagined influence of others.
American culture celebrates the rugged individualist, but even in our own culture extremes of
conformity, such as Jonestown, Heavens Gate, and the My Lai massacre occur. Social
psychologists suggest that these events occurred not because the people involved were crazy but
because they were subjected to very strong situational influences.
INFORMATIONAL SOCIAL INFLUENCE: THE NEED TO KNOW WHATS RIGHT
In many situations, we are uncertain how to think or to act. We use the behavior of others to
help us figure out what is going on in the situation and what to do about it. Informational social
influence occurs when we conform because we see other people as a source of information. We
conform because we believe that others interpretation of an ambiguous situation is more correct
than ours and will help us choose an appropriate course of action.
Humans are not the only ones who engage in informational social influence. Whiten et al.
(1999) show that chimpanzees pass on new and innovative behaviors to each other through
informational social influence, demonstrating that particular groups develop behavioral
conventions that are not seen in other groups.
Sherif (1936) conducted an experiment that made use of the autokinetic effect, the illusion that
a still point of light in an otherwise dark visual field moves. People vary in how much motion
they perceive. Thus the autokinetic effect provides an ambiguous situation. When people were
put in groups to make their estimates, over several trials the differing estimates of the people
converged. This conformity was apparently due to informational social influence because it
resulted in private acceptance of the group norm out of genuine belief in their correctness
(rather than public compliance, or a change in behavior without a change in belief): participants
in variations of the study maintained their adherence to the group norm in private and up to a
year later.
Administrators at colleges and universities combat binge drinking among their students via the
social norms method in which students receive accurate information about the drinking levels
on their campus, which are typically lower than students, believe them to be.
222
223
Baron, Vandello, & Brunsman (1996) gave participants an eyewitness task, showing them a
picture of a perpetrator and then having them pick that person out of a lineup. The task was made
ambiguous by having the perpetrator dressed differently in the lineup than in the original photo
and by flashing the lineup for only half a second. The importance of the task was manipulated by
telling some groups that this was a new test to identify accurate eyewitnesses that the local police
department was adopting, that they were helping develop norms for the task, and that they would
receive $20; and by telling other groups that the task was a test under development. Participants
completed the task in groups with three confederates who gave the wrong answer on seven
critical trials. Baron et al. found that Ps were more influenced (in this case by informational
social influence) by the confederates answers when the task was more importantan important
extension of Sherifs work.
36. When Informational Conformity Backfires
Informational influence is often involved in crisis situations. For example, the 1938 Orson
Welles War of the Worlds radio broadcast (a teleplay, presented in broadcast news format, about
an alien invasion) led to widespread panic because many people missed the beginning of the
broadcast (which identified it as a play) and turned to each other to see how they should behave.
Additionally people interpreted other events in their environment (e.g., no cars driving down the
street) as due to the invasion, intensifying their fears and leading to a contagion situation (one
where emotions or behaviors spread rapidly through a crowd).
Another example of informational conformity backfiring is mass psychogenic illness, the
occurrence, in a group of people, of similar physical symptoms with no known physical cause.
A recent case occurred in Tennessee in 1998 when a teacher and many students experienced a
variety of symptoms that led to their being hospitalized and the school evacuated. No physical
cause for the incident was found. Jones et al. (2000) determined that mass psychogenic illness
was the cause.
Cases of mass psychogenic illness typically begin with just one or a few people, and typically
these people are experiencing some kind of stress in their lives. As a reasonable explanation for
the illness is developed, it becomes more credible and thus more widespread.
Such occurrences can spread more rapidly today than formerly because of instantaneously
available media (which can also more quickly try to squelch the panic).
C. When Will People Conform to Informational Social Influence?
1. When the Situation Is Ambiguous.
Ambiguity is the most crucial variable in determining whether people use each other as a
source of information.
37. When the Situation Is a Crisis.
224
Crisis situations leave us limited time to act, which may make us scared and panicky. If we turn
to others who are also panicked for information, our own panic and irrationality may be
intensified.
38. When Other People Are Experts.
The more expertise or knowledge someone has, the more people will turn to them as a guide in
an ambiguous situation. Unfortunately experts are not always reliable sources of information.
225
areas devoted to negative emotions and modulating social behavior were activated. This research
thus supports the idea that normative social influence occurs because people feel negative
emotions when they go against the group.
41. The Importance of Being Accurate, Revisited
The Baron et al. (1996) study described earlier included experimental conditions designed to
trigger normative social influence. In these conditions, the eyewitness identification task was
made extremely easy by showing participants the lineup for five seconds and by letting them
view each pair of slides twice. Control subjects got 97% correct on these conditions,
demonstrating that this task was indeed unambiguous and analogous to the Asch line judgment
situation. Importance of being accurate was manipulated as before. In this case, participants in
the low-importance condition conformed 33% of the time, a result similar to Aschs findings.
Participants in the high-importance condition conformed 16% of the timeindeed, a lesser
amount of conformity, but still some. Even when the group is wrong, the right answer is obvious,
and there are strong incentives to be accurate, people will find it difficult to risk social
disapproval.
42. The Consequences of Resisting Normative Social Influence
What happens when people manage to resist normative group influence? Other group members
start paying attention to the deviant and trying to convince him or her to conform; if s/he doesnt,
eventually the deviant will be rejected.
Schacter (1951) demonstrated how groups respond to an individual who ignores the groups
normative influence. Groups read a case history of Johnny Rocco, a juvenile delinquent. The
case typically led to middle-of-the-road positions about the case. An accomplice in the group was
instructed to disagree with the groups recommendations. The deviant received most of the
communication from other group members until near the end (when it was apparent that
communication wouldnt work); at this point, other group members began to ignore the deviant,
and on a subsequent task, they recommended that the deviant be eliminated from further group
discussions if group size were reduced.
43. Normative Social Influence in Everyday Life
Fashions and fads represent innocuous examples of normative conformity.
44. Social Influence and Womens Body Image
A more pernicious example of social influence is womens attempts to conform to cultural
definitions of an attractive body, where the current fashion is to be extremely thin.
Anderson et al. (1992) analyzed 54 different cultures perception of the ideal female body.
Heavy female bodies were considered the most beautiful in cultures with unreliable food
supplies; only in cultures where the food supply was very reliable was the slender body valued.
227
In all cultures except those where the food supply was very reliable, the moderate-to-heavy body
range was preferred by the majority.
What is attractive has changed many times over the past 100 years, as an analysis of models in
womens magazines indicates .Women learn what standard is appropriate through informational
social influence, but normative social influence helps explain their attempts to create the desired
body through dieting and eating disorders.
Research shows that women tend to perceive themselves as overweight and heavier than they
actually are, especially when they have just been looking at media portrayals of thin women.
These pressures lead to an increase in eating disorders: recent statistics show that one-third of
12-13 year-old girls are actively trying to lose weight.
Crandall (1988) examined normative social influences on bulimia in two college sororities. He
found that each sorority had its own norm for the right amount of binge eating and that
popularity within the sorority was associated with adherence to this norm. Although pledges
friendships were not related to the norm at first, they were by the end of the first year.
Aschs research (and subsequent investigations) show that conformity does not increase much
after group size reaches 4 or 5 other people.
47. When the Group is Important.
Normative pressures are much stronger when they come from people whose friendship, love, or
respect we cherish. A consequence is that it can be dangerous to have important policy decisions
made by highly cohesive groups who may care more about pleasing each other than about
making the best decision.
48. When One Has No Allies in the Group
A variation of Aschs experiment demonstrated the importance of group unanimity: when only
one other person gave the right answer, the level of conforming to the group dropped to only 6%
(from 32%). This influence explains how members of cults or other groups can maintain beliefs
that seem ridiculous to most others.
229
230
231
62.5% of the participants gave the full 450 volt Danger XXX shock and that 80% continued
past the learners announcement that he had a heart condition and refused further participation.
College students, middle-class adults, and professional scientists asked to estimate beforehand
the degree of obedience estimated that only 1% of the participants would go all the way.
53. The Role of Normative Social Influence
A variation on the Milgram experiment demonstrates the role of normative influence (Figure
8.9). Significantly less compliance was demonstrated if two other teachers refused to continue.
54. The Role of Informational Social Influence
Other variations on the experiment demonstrate the role of informational influence due to how
confusing the situation was. Significantly less compliance was demonstrated if (a) the orders to
continue came from another teacher rather than from the experimenter; or (b) two
experimenters disagreed about whether the experiment should be continued.
C. Other Reasons Why We Obey
1. Conforming to the Wrong Norm
Anther factor influencing obedience in situations such as the Milgram experiment and the My
Lai massacre are mindlessness and the foot-in-the-door phenomenon: mindlessness leads to
initial compliance, and initial compliance begets subsequent compliance. In the Milgram
experiment this was abetted by the quick pace of the experiment and the fact that the shock
increased in very small doses.
55. Self-Justification
Additionally, dissonance reduction played a factor: each increase in shock led to dissonance,
and each rationalization of this dissonance provided the basis for escalating the shock a bit
further.
56. The Loss of Personal Responsibility
Participants believed that the experimenter was the authority figure and that he was responsible
for the end results while they were just following orders.
Research by Osofsky, Bandura, and Zimbardo (2005) found that guards who carried out capital
punishments showed much more moral disengagement from their jobs than did guards who did
not carry out executions.
57. Its Not About Aggression
232
Social Roles
There are a number of ways in which we socially construct the world around us. In other words,
we use our social interactions with others to make sense of and give purpose to our lives. One
way in which we do this is to create social structures that give us cues for how to behave.
Statuses and roles are two of these structures. We previously discussed statuses in depth, so now
we turn to social roles.
A social role defines a set of behaviors that are expected of someone who holds a particular
status. Its easy to confuse a status and a role, but the basic difference between them is that we
occupy a status and play a role. Every status has an expected set of behaviors a role. A woman
becomes a mother when she has a child and so occupies the status of mother. She is expected to
also play the role of mother by caring for and loving her children (among other things).
Interestingly, role expectations can change over time and also differ between cultures. Not that
long ago, it was a role expectation for mothers to stay at home with their children and keep
house while the fathers played breadwinner. Today in our culture, this still occurs but is no
longer a strict expectation of the mothers role just an acceptable option. In other cultures,
however, a mother working outside the home is still considered to be strange or even
unacceptable.
All of us typically occupy many statuses and play the roles attached to each one. Sometimes, a
status has more than one role associated with it. This is known as a role set. For example, a
teacher plays one role in relation to his students, another role in relation to his fellow teachers,
another in relation to the school board and so on.
Social Roles refer to the expectations, responsibilities, and behaviors we adopt in certain
situations. The ideas for expected or normal behavior are reinforced both by the individual and
by society. Each of us takes on many different roles, and we shift among them throughout our
lives and throughout each day. For example, a working mother starts her day in the role of a
mom, in which she is expected to feed her children and get them ready for school. At the office
she shifts to the role of project manager, where she oversees projects in a timely and professional
manner. On her lunch break she may take on the role of friend, in which she listens to a
coworkers problems. If she fails to fulfill any of these roles she may face consequences, such as
the loss of a relationship or loss of a job.
Role Conflict vs. Role Strain
233
It can be stressful to play so many roles at once. Have you ever been stressed because of
overlapping work, school and social commitments? Did you feel as if there wasnt enough time
in the day to make everyone happy? If so, you were probably experiencing role conflict, which
is what happens when role demands from different statuses conflict with each other and cause
stress.
The more statuses we have and the more roles we play, the more likely we are to experience role
conflict. If our fictional mother worked as an office manager, volunteered for a philanthropic
organization, participated in church activities and provided care for her own aging mother, she
would likely experience role conflict, because the responsibilities would sometimes overlap and
clash.
Though meeting the role demands of different statuses can be overwhelming, it can also be
difficult to meet all of the role obligations of a single status. Role strain is when the role
demands from a single status cause conflict or become stressful. For example, a teacher might
feel overwhelmed by the demands of his role set. The demands of the school board, principal and
students arent always complementary. He would probably feel stressed or even burdened by the
different aspects of his job.
Obedience
Obedience is compliance with commands given by an authority figure. In the 1960s, the social
psychologist Stanley Milgram did a famous research study called the obedience study. It
showed that people have a strong tendency to comply with authority figures.
Milgrams Obedience Study
Milgram told his forty male volunteer research subjects that they were participating in a study
about the effects of punishment on learning. He assigned each of the subjects to the role of
teacher. Each subject was told that his task was to help another subject like himself learn a list of
word pairs. Each time the learner made a mistake, the teacher was to give the learner an electric
shock by flipping a switch. The teacher was told to increase the shock level each time the learner
made a mistake, until a dangerous shock level was reached.
Throughout the course of the experiment, the experimenter firmly commanded the teachers to
follow the instructions they had been given. In reality, the learner was not an experiment subject
but Milgrams accomplice, and he never actually received an electric shock. However, he
pretended to be in pain when shocks were administered.
Prior to the study, forty psychiatrists that Milgram consulted told him that fewer than 1 percent
of subjects would administer what they thought were dangerous shocks to the learner. However,
Milgram found that two-thirds of the teachers did administer even the highest level of shock,
despite believing that the learner was suffering great pain and distress. Milgram believed that the
teachers had acted in this way because they were pressured to do so by an authority figure.
234
The authority figure was present in the room with the subject
In everyday situations, people obey orders because they want to get rewards, because they want
to avoid the negative consequences of disobeying, and because they believe an authority is
legitimate. In more extreme situations, people obey even when they are required to violate their
own values or commit crimes. Researchers think several factors cause people to carry obedience
to extremes:
People justify their behavior by assigning responsibility to the authority rather than
themselves.
People define the behavior thats expected of them as routine.
People dont want to be rude or offend the authority.
People obey easy commands first and then feel compelled to obey more and more
difficult commands. This process is called entrapment, and it illustrates the foot-in-the-door
phenomenon.
The more questions you answer yes, the more appropriate it is to use group problem
solving. However, the deciding question is always: Are suitable and relevant people
available to work together in solving this problem.
When people are working together its inevitable that they will be influenced by each
other. This can have a significant effect on the efficiency of group problem solving.
Advantages and disadvantages of using a group to solve a problem:
The disadvantages of group problem solving can include:Competition
Most people working in a group unconsciously perceive the situation as competitive. This
generates behavior which is destructive and drains the creative energy of the group. For
example, we often perceive disagreement with our ideas as a put-down. The natural reaction is
to regain our self-esteem, often by trying to sabotage the ideas of those who disagreed with us.
236
Instead of looking for ways to improve on their ideas we choose to destroy them.
Eager to express our own ideas, we may totally ignore what others are suggesting. Powerseekers may use ploys such as highlighting flaws in others arguments, barbed questions
and displays of expertise to show their supremacy. These types of behavior create an
atmosphere which is incompatible with effective problem solving.
Conformity
There is a strong tendency for individuals in a group to want to conform to the consensus.
This can be for a variety of reasons, including the need to feel liked, valued or respected,
and tends to make people censor their ideas accordingly. The comparative status of the
individuals present also has an important influence. Senior members often want to
maintain their image of being knowledgeable, while junior members want to avoid
appearing the inexperienced upstart. Because agreement on ideas can be gained quickly
in a group setting, groups tend to select and approve solutions quickly, without exploring
all the possibilities.
Lack of objective direction
Most traditional meetings and group discussions convened to solve problems are
ineffectively directed. Sometimes there is no effective leader to give direction to the
discussion, with the result that it wanders aimlessly. Even when there is strong leadership,
the group leader or chairman often exerts undue pressure on the direction and content of
the discussion. In addition, the ideas aired during a meeting are not usually recorded,
apart from the minutes and individual note-taking, with the result that many ideas are
forgotten and cannot act as a constant stimulus to the discussion.
Time constraints
Group problem solving is a relatively slow process compared with working alone. It
requires individuals to come together at an agreed time, usually for about one hour, and
this can cause organizational problems as well as impatience amongst participants to get
it over with as quickly as possible.
The advantages of group problem solving can include:
Greater output
Simply because of the number of people involved, each with differing experience,
knowledge, points of view and values, a larger number and variety of ideas for solving a
problem can be produced.
Cross fertilization
237
The exchange of ideas can act as a stimulus to the imagination, encouraging individuals to
explore ideas they would not otherwise consider.
Reduced bias
The shared responsibility of a group in arriving at decisions can. Encourage individuals to
explore seemingly unrealistic ideas and to challenge accepted ways of doing things.
Individual biases and prejudices can be challenged by the ,group, forcing the individual to
Rishevele them. Group pressure can also encourage individuals to accept that change is
needed.
Increased risk taking
Shared responsibility makes individuals more willing to take risks. The discussion of
different points of view also helps the group to be more realistic in assessing the risks
associated with particular courses of action.
Higher commitment
When goals are agreed it gives a common purpose to the group, within which individuals
can gain a feeling of self-determination and recognition through their contribution.
Individuals who have contributed to finding a solution feel a greater commitment to its
successful implementation.
Improved communication
When .people who are affected by a problem or who will be involved in implementation
are involved in finding a solution, they will know how and why that particular solution
was chosen. Also, people with knowledge relevant to the problem can communicate that
knowledge directly if they participate in solving the problem.
Better solutions
Groups of individuals can bring a broad range of ideas, knowledge and skills to bear on a
problem. This creates a stimulating interaction of diverse ideas which results in a wider
range and better quality of solutions.
Leon Festinger is an American social psychologist who proposed the theory of Cognitive
Dissonance.
Cognitive Dissonance Theory focuses on how humans strive for internal consistency. An
individual who experiences inconsistency (dissonance) tends to become psychologically
uncomfortable, and is motivated to try to reduce this dissonanceas well as actively avoid
situations and information likely to increase it.
Basic Hypotheses of Cognitive Dissonance Theory:
1. The existence of dissonance [or inconsistency], being psychologically uncomfortable, will
motivate the person to try to reduce the dissonance and achieve consonance [or consistency].
2. When dissonance is present, in addition to trying to reduce it, the person will actively avoid
situations and information which would likely increase the dissonance.
Four methods of reducing dissonance:
1. Change behavior or cognition (I will not eat any more of this doughnut)
2. Justify behavior or cognition by changing the conflicting cognition (Im allowed to
cheat every once in a while)
3. Justify behavior or cognition by adding new cognitions (Ill spend 30 extra minutes at
the gym to work this off)
4. Ignore or deny any information that conflicts with existing beliefs (This doughnut is not
high in fat)
Research:
1. Induced-compliance Paradigm (Forced compliance behavior)
Forced compliance occurs when an individual performs an action that is inconsistent with his or
her beliefs. The behavior cant be changed, since it is already in the past, so dissonance will need
to be reduced by re-evaluating their attitude to what they have done.
Experiment: Leon Festinger and J. Merrill Carlsmith (1959) asked participants to perform a
series of dull tasks (such as turning pegs in a peg board for an hour). As you can imagine,
participants attitudes toward this task were highly negative. They were then paid either $1 or
$20 to tell a waiting participant (relay a confederate) that the tasks were really interesting.
Almost all of the participants agreed to walk into the waiting room and persuade the subject
accomplice that the boring experiment would be fun.
Aim: Festinger and Carlsmith (1959) investigated if making people perform a dull task would
create cognitive dissonance through forced compliance behavior.
239
Method: In their laboratory experiment, they used 71 male students as participants to perform a
series of dull tasks (such as turning pegs in a peg board for an hour). They were then paid either
$1 or $20 to tell a waiting participant (a confederate) that the tasks were really interesting.
Almost all of the participants agreed to walk into the waiting room and persuade the confederate
that the boring experiment would be fun.
Results: When the participants were asked to evaluate the experiment, the participants who were
paid only $1 rated the tedious task as more fun and enjoyable than the participants who were
paid $20 to lie.
Conclusion: Being paid only $1 is not sufficient incentive for lying and so those who were paid
$1 experienced dissonance. They could only overcome that dissonance by coming to believe that
the tasks really were interesting and enjoyable. Being paid $20 provides a reason for turning pegs
and there is therefore no dissonance.
2. Free Choice Paradigm (Decision-making)
Decisions (as a general rule) arouse dissonance.
Both alternatives have their good points and bad points. The rub is that making a decision cuts
off the possibility that you can enjoy the advantages of the unchosen alternative, yet it assures
you that you must accept the disadvantages of the chosen alternative.
People have several ways to reduce dissonance that is aroused by making a decision
(Festinger, 1964). One thing they can do is to change the behavior. A common way to reduce
dissonance is to increase the attractiveness of the chosen alternative and to decrease the
attractiveness of the rejected alternative. This is referred to as spreading apart the
alternatives.
Jack Brehm (1956) was the first to investigate the relationship between dissonance and
decision-making. In the experiment conducted by Jack Brehm, 225 female students rated a series
of common appliances and were then allowed to choose one of two appliances to take home as a
gift. A second round of ratings showed that the participants increased their ratings of the item
they chose, and lowered their ratings of the rejected item.
3.
240
241
The human mind must think with the aid of categories, Allport explained. Once formed,
categories are the basis for normal prejudgment. We cannot possibly avoid this process. Orderly
living depends upon it.
Ingroups and Outgroups
Peoples social identities depend on the groups they belong to. From a persons perspective, any
group he belongs to is an ingroup, and any group he doesnt belong to is an outgroup.
Some of the most well-known types of prejudice include:
1. Racism the belief that one race is superior to all others.
2. Sexism different treatment or discrimination based on a difference of sex or
gender.
3. Classism discrimination on the basis of social class.
4. Homophobia fear, dislike, or hatred of gays and lesbians.
5. Nationalism is the belief that a particular nation and its culture, people, and
values are superior to those of other nations.
6. Religious prejudice treating a person or group differently because of what they
do or do not believe.
7. Ageism discrimination based on the age of a person or a group.
Roots of Prejudice:
1. Social Sources
Unequal status
The Self-fulfilling prophecy
Negative belief results to negative behavior; positive behavior results to positive behavior.
(Pygmalion Effect)
Stereotype threat
A self-conforming apprehension that one will be evaluated based on a negative stereotype.
Social identity
Part of our self-concept our sense of who we are contains not just personal identity (our sense
of personal attributes and attitudes) but also social identity
Social Identity Theory:
We Categorize, We Identify, We Compare
Ingroup bias
242
According to this theory, when two groups realize that they have a common issue that can only
be solved by pooling their resources together, they are more likely to engage in cooperative
behaviors
Intergroup Contact
Contact approaches to prejudice reduction are based on Gordon Allports Contact Hypothesis.
According to this hypothesis, prejudice is best reduced under optimal contact between those
who hold prejudiced beliefs and those who are the targets of prejudiced beliefs.
Social Identity
According to social identity theory, people are biased to favor their ingroup the group that
they identify as belonging to at the expense of the outgroup the group that they do not
identify with. Social identity-based approaches to prejudice reduction attempt to make a
particular group-based identity, such as race or gender, less salient to individuals from different
groups by emphasizing alternative ways of categorizing people.
Alternative ways of categorizing people:
a. Decategorization
b. Recategorization.
c. Crossed categorization
d. Integrative models
Disclosure
Disclosure approaches rely on self-disclosure of personal information. Here, two individuals
from different social groups would each reveal a piece of personal information about
themselves. The act of disclosure signals vulnerability. This increases trust and liking, and that
then results in a decrease of prejudiced beliefs.
59. Individual Approaches
Individual approaches to prejudice reduction are not dependent on intergroup interaction. These
approaches only require that an individual be exposed to some relevant information and/or
engage in an activity intended to reduce prejudice.
Affective approaches
Perspective taking.
Empathy.
244
Cognitive approaches
Thought awareness and suppression.
Attitude reconditioning.
Thought process reconditioning.
Experts and norms.
Accountability and value consistency.
Self-affirmation.
60. Integrated Approaches
Integrated approaches to prejudice reduction include both intergroup and individual components,
such as vicarious intergroup contact, perspective taking, and empathy. Many of these integrated
approaches involve some form of entertainment.
Reading interventions. Reading interventions typically take place in schools and last an average
of 5 weeks. They attempt to influence prejudiced beliefs through the use of engaging stories.
Formation of Stereotype:
61. Correspondence Bias
The correspondence bias refers to the tendency to ascribe a persons behavior to her or
his disposition or personality and to underestimate the extent to which situational factors elicited
the behavior.
62. Illusory Correlation
Research has shown that stereotypes can develop based on a cognitive mechanism known as
illusory correlation an erroneous inference about the relationship between two events. If two
events which are statistically infrequent co-occur, observers overestimate the frequency of cooccurrence of these events. The underlying reason is that rare, infrequent events are distinctive
and salient and, when paired, become even more so.
63. Common Environmenta
One explanation for why stereotypes are shared is that they are the result of a common
environment that stimulates people to react in the same way.
64. Socialization and Upbringing
245
Another explanation says that people are Risheveled to adopt the same stereotypes. Some
psychologists believe that although stereotypes can be absorbed at any age, stereotypes are
usually acquired in early childhood under the influence of parents, teachers, peers, and the
media.
65. Intergroup Relations
According to a third explanation, shared stereotypes are neither caused by the coincidence of
common stimuli, nor by RisheveledRon. This explanation posits that stereotypes are shared
because group members are motivated to behave in certain ways, and stereotypes reflect those
behaviours.
Effects of stereotype:
66. Attributional Ambiguity
Attributional ambiguity refers to the uncertainty that members of stereotyped groups experience
in interpreting the causes of others behavior toward them.
67. Stereotype Threat
Stereotype threat occurs when people are aware of a negative stereotype about their social group
and experience anxiety or concern that they might confirm the stereotype.
68. Self-fulfilling Prophecy
Stereotypes lead people to expect certain actions from members of social groups. These
stereotype-based expectations may lead to self-fulfilling prophecies, in which ones inaccurate
expectations about a persons behavior, through social interaction, prompt that person to act in
stereotype-consistent ways, thus confirming ones erroneous expectations and validating the
stereotype.
4. Discrimination
5. Self-stereotyping
Interpersonal Attraction: Friendship and Love
Who are your friends? Why do you suppose you became friends with them rather than
with other people you know? Are you in love with someone, or have you ever been in love with
someone, or have you ever been in love? What attracted you to him or her and made you
experience such intense feelings? Friendship and love are powerful social phenomena that touch
all of our lives in one way or another. As such, they have been of special interest to social
psychologists. In this section, we will look at variables that influence our perception of others,
246
the role played by attribution processes in person perception, the qualities of others that make
them attractive to us, and the factors involved in maintaining personal relationships.
Person Perception
The first step toward understanding why we are attracted to one person rather than
another is to understand something about the process of person perception. What factors are
important in the way we perceive others? We seem to go through a complex of cognitive
algebra to reach an average of all the many factors that enter into our perceptions of otherswith some factors contributing more to the average than others (Fiske, 1993; Kaplan, 1975). We
sum up a person as if we assign a weight to each persons positive and negative characteristic in
accordance with how important the characteristic is to us, and then we add them all together to
arrive at a total perception is complicated further by the ways we gather and use information
about others.
Negative Information: The Bad Outweighs the Good
Other things being equal, we tend to assign higher weights to negative than to positive
formation (Hamilton & Zanna, 1972). Put yourself in this situation: You are a person who values
warmth, physical attractiveness, and honesty in others. You meet a person in class whom you
find extremely warm and attractive; you have an enjoyable conversation with him after class, but
during the course of the conversation he asks you to help think of a lie to his girlfriend
explaining to where he has been. Your opinion of him will probably become quite negative if
honesty is really important to you. The fact that he is being dishonest with his girlfriend will
overshadow his positive characteristics. Most of us will pass up a delicious-looking cake if we
know it contains even a small amount of rat poison.
Primacy Effects: The Importance of First Impressions
Our first impressions are usually very important in the person perception process. When
you pause for a moment and think about this, its quite disturbing. A factor that is irrelevant to
the nature of the person we perceive- the order in which we learn information about that good
person- can greatly influence our perception of that person. All of us have our good days and bad
days, and its a shame that the perception that others form of us is influenced so much by
whether their first impression of us on a good or a bad day.
The first information that we are exposed to about a person tends to be given greater
weight than later information (Asch, 1946; Belmore, 1987; Hovland, 1957.) This is called the
primary effect.
First impressions (primary effects) are not always of overriding importance, however.
Their impact is greatly reduced under three conditions.
247
69. Prolonged exposure. Prolonged exposure to a person tends to reduce the importance of
your first impression of that person. Although its important to try to make a favorable
first impression on the first day of your new job, do not worry too much about it if you
do. Eventually, your fellow employees will get to know the real you. Information about
you gathered over a long period of time will erase any first impressions. Working in favor
of prolonged exposures correcting any inaccuracies in our first impressions is the fact
that we are more likely to notice and remember information that is inconsistent with our
first impression of a person (Belmore, 1987; Belmore & Hubbard, 1987).
70. Passage of time. Like anything else, first impressions tend to be forgotten over time. If a
substantial period of time passes between first and subsequent impressions, the more
recent impression will be of greater importance. Thus, if you flubbed your first attempt to
favorably impress that gorgeous person, wait awhile and try again later.
71. Knowledge of primacy effect. When people are warned to avoid being influenced by first
impressions, the primacy effect can be reduced (Hovland, 1957). Personnel managers and
others to whom accurate person perception is important are educated to the dangers of
primacy effects and may be able to reduce the importance of primacy in their perceptions.
Emotions and Person Perception
Another important factor in person perception that can be irrelevant to the nature of the
person about whom we are forming an impression is our emotions. The emotional state that we
are in when we meet a person has a great deal to do with our liking that person (Foster & others,
1998). Positive emotional states lead to greater attraction to others than negative emotion do.
William Griffith and Russel Veitch (1971) had radio news broadcast turned on as individuals
waited for an experiment in interpersonal attraction to begin. The broadcast was actually taped
beforehand, so that half of the participants heard a depressing broadcast and half heard happy
news. Afterward, the participants hearing the sad news did not like the strangers they had met in
the experiment as well as did the persons who had heard the good news. These findings were
confirmed in a well-designed study by Joseph Forgas and Gordon Bower (1987), who also found
that we are able to remember positive information about another person when we meet him or
her when we are in a good mood, and we are better able to remember negative information when
we meet another person when we are in a bad mood. The effects of mood on person perception
are likely, then, to be relatively enduring.
Attribution Process in Person Perception
We have a strong tendency to evaluate other people both on the basis of what they do and
why we think they do it. Unfortunately, when we judge the reasons that other people behave as
they do, we typically underestimate the effects of social situation and overestimate the
importance of their personal characteristics (Aronson, 1995; Ross, 1977). If you meet a man at a
party who is acting sullen and depressed, you are more likely to assume that he is an unhappy
person in general than to assume that he is usually happy but something happened recently to
make him feel lousy.
In contrast, we are more likely to see the influence of social situations on our own
behavior. For example, a few years ago I was invited to a large party hosted by an association of
248
professional women. I found myself quite shy in the company of these women, nearly all of
whom seemed more intelligent, self-secure, and stylish than I.
249
It was easy for me to see the effect of this social situation on my own behavior, but if I had seen
another male behaving shyly at the same party, I probably would have just assumed he was an
inherently shy person without thinking about it.
Social psychologists Fritz Heider (1985) has termed this the fundamental attribution
error, meaning our tendency to underestimate the impact of situations on others, while more
readily seeing its impact on ourselves. In simple terms, attribution is the process of making
judgments about what causes people to behave the way they do. The most important aspect of
attribution process is deciding whether a person is behaving in a particular way because of some
external cause (situational attribution) or because of an internal motive or trait (dispositional
attribution). Unless we can see that someones behavior consistently changes in a situation, we
tend to attribute that persons behavior to dispositional causes (Kelley, 1973.) Because we often
lack information on the extent to which another persons behavior is consistently influenced by
situations, we make dispositional attributions too often.
People in all culture make the fundamental attribution error, but people living in East
Asian collectivistic cultures are less likely to do so than people living in individualistic West
cultures (Choi, Nisbett & Norenzayan, 1999). The Chinese and Japanese, for example, are less
likely than North Americans to attribute the behavior of other people to dispositional causes (to
their personal characteristics) and more likely to perceive situational influences on their
behavior. This makes sense, as collectivistic cultures emphasize the importance of the social
context and deemphasize the importance of the individual. This encourages people to think in
terms of social influences rather than personal characteristics as a cause of actions.
The East Asian view of the importance of situational influences on human behavior is
often quite correct. Social situations can exert powerful influences on our behavior.
General Determinants of Interpersonal Attraction
Through the complicated process of person perception, a unique impression of each
person is formed. But, although person perception is a highly personal process, some general
factors influence whether one person will be attracted to another. These include proximity,
similar and complementary characteristics, competence, physical attractiveness, and mutual
liking.
Proximity
An important, but not very romantic cause of attraction is proximity, or geographical
closeness. Its difficult to fall in love with someone you hardly ever spend time with. Physical
closeness and the resulting interpersonal contact are essential to the development of attraction.
You are more friendly with people who live next door to you than with people who live father
away. Why does this happen? Physical proximity increases interactions, and repeated exposure to
people tends to increase liking (Zajonc, 1968). Perhaps you can remember a song you didnt like
at first but learned to like after hearing it played on the radio many times- its the same with
people.
Similar and Complementary Characteristics
In terms of personal attraction, do birds of a feather flock together or do opposites
attract? Are you more likely to be attracted to someone as a friend or lover who is similar to you
in many ways or quite different from you? The answer is both, in different ways (Bem, 1996).
250
We tend to be most attracted to those people who have similar values, interests, and
attitudes (Caspi & Herbener, 1990; Feingold, 1998).
251
Opposites can also attract, however. Sometimes the attractiveness of persons unlike us is
purely erotic (Bem, 1996). But opposites also attract when the opposite characteristic
complements, or advantageously fits with, one of our own characteristics. Similarly, a
dominant person might prefer a submissive person, and a person who likes to take care of
others might prefer someone who liked to be taken care of (Winch, 1958).
Another condition under which opposites attract is when people are different from you
like you (Aronson, 1995). Its often more flattering and attractive to be liked by someone who
holds opposite values and opinions than by someone who holds similar ones (Jones, Bell &
Aronson, 1971). But take note that opposites usually do not attract; instead, opposites usually
repel in personal relationships. A person who intensely advocates liberal causes probably would
not like a person who vocally supports conservative causes. And a highly religious person
probably would not find a disdain for religion attractive in another person.
Competence
We tend to be more attracted to competent than to incompetent people. Intelligence,
strength, social skill, education, and athletic prowess are generally thought of as attractive
qualities. But people who are seen too competent may suffer a loss in attractiveness, perhaps
because it makes us uncomfortable to compare ourselves unfavorably with them. Elliot Aronson
and associates conducted a clever experiment that demonstrates that its best to be little less than
perfect (Aronson, Willerman, & Floyd, 1966).
Physical Attractiveness
Other things equal, people tend to be more attracted to physically beautiful people. In the
absence of information, we tend to like beautiful people more and think of them as nicer, better,
adjusted, more sexual, and more intelligent (Eagly, Ashmore, Makhijani, 1991; Feingold, 1992).
Not only is physical attractiveness important, but it also seems to be most important factor in the
early stages of attraction. (1996).
Elaine Walster and colleagues randomly paired male and female college students for
blind dates. They rated each students physical attractiveness and gave them tests to measure
attitude, intelligence, and personality characteristics. After the blind dates, the students were
asked how much they liked each other and whether they intended to go out on other dates with
one another. The overwhelmingly important variable in determining attraction was physical
attractiveness- more so than intelligence, personality, and attitudes. The couples who were most
likely to like each other well enough to continue dating were the ones in which both the male and
female rated each other as attractive. (Walster, Aronson, Abraham &Rottman, 1966)
But dont despair; there may be some hope for the rest of us yet! Although we might all
prefer to be dating someone who looks like Joseph Sugg or Harry Styles, people actually tend to
choose dates and mates who closely match themselves in degree of physical attractiveness
(Berscheid, Dion, Walster, & Walster, 1971). What is more, physical beauty is highly subjective
quality. Thus even if you do not think your next-door neighbor is much to look at, chances are
that someone else will come along who thinks he or she is just beautiful.
Perhaps the nicest thing about physical attractiveness and liking, though, is that
relationship goes both ways. Not only is it true that we tend to like people better when we think
they are beautiful, but, as we get to like people better, we begin to think they are more beautiful
252
(Langlois & Stephan, 1981). Thus, to a certain extent, love is blind and beauty is in the eye of the
beholder- and nothing could be nicer.
Mutual Liking
Lets end this discussion of factors involved in interpersonal attractiveness on an upbeat
note. Liking often leads to liking in return. Liking someone will make yourself more attractive to
someone you like by liking him/her. Liking someone will not turn you into an irresistibly beauty,
but it will help.
One reason this seems to be so is that liking someone actually makes you seem more
physically attractive, especially if a little lust is thrown in. You have heard people way that
person is more beautiful when in love, and its true. Your eyes are more attractive. The pupils are
more dilated (opened) when you look at someone you find more attractive sexually (Hess, 1975).
And your posture and movements are more attractive and seductive. In subtle ways, you are
more physically alluring when you are attracted to another person.
Another reason that liking tens to lead liking is that you are nicer to the people whom you
like, and being nicer makes you more attractive to them. A number of studies show, for example,
that we tend to like people more when they praise us or when they have done favors for us.
Favors and praise feel nice, and we like the giver better for having giving them to us. As you
might expect, there are limits in the impact of praise favors. If they are excessive, and especially
if the other person thinks you are insincere and have selfish motives for fiving them, praise and
gifts will not lead to increased liking and may even lessen the liking. (Aronson, 1995)
Gender Differences in Interpersonal Attraction
Its a commonly held belief in our culture that men are not very interested in romantic
love but, rather, enter into long-term relationships for the sex and the domestic help (cooking,
cleaning , and mending). Women, in contrast are viewed as approaching relationships in a more
emotional, romantic way. The results of surveys conducted during 1960s, however, suggested
that this popular stereotype not only was incorrect but had reality inversed. Men rated falling in
love as being more important reason for beginning a relationship than did women. Women saw
other qualities of relationship, such as respect and support as being more important. In one
survey, two-thirds of male unmarried college students said they would not marry unless they felt
more romantic love for their prospective wife, whereas less than one-fourth of college women
felt that romantic love was a prerequisite for marriage. (Hill, Rubin & Peplau, 1976; Kephart,
1967)
However, more recent surveys suggest that things have changed in western countries
concerning gender differences in valuating romantic love (Simpson, Campbell, & Berscheid,
1986). Today, the great majority of women and men feel that being in love is necessary for
marriage. Perhaps as women have come to feel less dependent on marriage for financial support
they have felt able to enter into marriage only when they are in love with their future partner.
This does not mean that men and women fall in love for all the same reasons, however.
The evidence is clear that women place more emphasis on their romantic partners intelligence,
character, education, occupational status, ambition, and income than do men (Feingold, 1990,
1992; Myers, 1999). These qualities are not important to men, but they are comparatively more
important to women. In contrast, there are no gender differences in how much sense of humor
and a pleasant personality are valued in romantic relationships, but men place greater emphasis
on physical attractiveness than do women. Again, it is not that physical attractiveness does not
253
play a role in romantic attraction for women (it does), but women place considerably less
emphasis on physical attractiveness than do men. Interestingly, these same results have been
found in different generations. (Feingold, 1992)
It is important to keep in mind, however, that there are large differences among the
members of both genders. Perhaps the most striking thing about cognitive algebra person
perception is that different people often seem to be using different equations.
Whether a characteristic is considered positive or negative and how much weight it will carry in
person perception differs markedly from individual to individual. Different people evaluate the
same characteristics in different ways, some people are going to love you, some are going to
dislike you, and the rest will find you so-so.
Maintaining Relationships
We have talked about some of the factors that determine whether you will be attracted to
another person. How about the factors that are involved in maintaining relationships? Assuming
that one of the people whom you are attracted to becomes your friend, lover, or spouse, what
things determine whether you and your partner will stay in the relationship? So many
relationships that begin in joy end in long cry. Why? Two of the major factors are (1) the
difference between what you expect to find in a relationship and what you actually find and (2)
the degree to which the relationship is fairly balanced or equitable.
Expectations vs. Reality in Relationships
When you begin a relationship with someone you do not know very well, part of what
you fall in love with is what you expect the person to be like. Some of these expectations may be
based on good evidence. One of his friends has told you that he is an especially nice and fair
person, so its reasonable to expect him to be fair and nice to you. You know that he is in the
same profession as you, so you can expect to be able to share your workday experiences easily
with him. Other expectations are based on less evidence. He has behaved in a strong, self-assured
way so far, so you assume that he will always be this way, even though the biggest challenge you
have seen him handle is the waiters mistake of bringing tomato soup instead of minestrone. You
know that he is a wonderful lover, even though he has only just kissed you goodnight once. He
dresses like an outdoorsman, so you expect him to love backpacking as much as you do. And he
is well educated, so you feel sure he will share your love of serious literature.
The point is that, even when your expectations are fairly well grounded, some of them
will turn out to be incorrect. He will not be exactly as you expect him to be before the
relationship begins. This is one primary reason relationship end. If the other person turns out to
be significantly different from the person you expected, you may be unwilling to stay in the
relationship. This disappointment may not lead directly to an end of the relationship; it may
affect the relationship indirectly. Disappointment can lead you to be an unenthusiastic or irritable
partner, which can lead to discord an unhappy ending of the relationship. (Graziano & Mazzer,
1982)
Even when you know a person well before beginning a serious relationship, differences
between expectations and reality can be a problem. One common source of unfulfilled
expectations is the predictable shift from passionate love to compassionate love (Hatfield,
1998; Myers, 1999). When two people first fall in love, they often feel intense passions that are a
heady and magnificent mixture of romantic, sexual, and other feelings. Even in the healthiest and
enduring relationship, however, passionate love gradually becomes companionate love- a less
254
intense but wonderful blend of friendship, intimacy, commitment, and security. Although
romantic and sexual emotions often continue to be an important part of companionate love, these
feelings almost inevitably become less intense over time.
If one or both of the partners does not expect passionate love to change, or if the change
takes place before expected, the reality of passionate loves blending into companionate love can
be difficult. On the other hand, if both partners truly want a long-term relationship (many people
stay in relationships only as long as the passionate love remains, then leave feeling unfulfilled or
hurt), and if the disappointment that often surrounds the lessening of romantic love is handles
with compassion on both sides, the transition usually can be managed.
Finally, expectations about a love relationship can fail to match its reality because
partners change over time. Sometimes, the outdoor person becomes a happy couch potato, and
the party animal becomes a health-conscious, jogging vegetarian. If children arrive, and if
promotions are received (or not received), these and other changes can alter the reality of the
relationship as well. If these changes in ones partner are not welcome, the reality of the changed
relationship can be upsetting. Sometimes, however, a change in a partner can make a good
relationship even better.
Equity in Relationships
Relationships are more likely to endure when the good things that we give to our partner
are about equal to what our partner gives us. These good things that partners give to one
another are many and varied. They include compliments, back rubs, help with homework, a day
off without the kids, flowers, jokes, love making, a willingness to listen about a bad day,
interesting meals, kisses, and interesting conversations. They also include things like physical
attractiveness, honesty, faithfulness, and integrity.
The common sense idea that enduring relationships are ones in which the partners give
and receive in equal proportion has been formalized and improved by social psychologists
(Adams, 1965; Myers, 1999; Walster & Walster, 1978) under the name equity theory. Equity
theory states that partners will be comfortable in their relationship only when the ration between
their perceived contributions and benefits is equal. Equity theory is often summarized by the
following equation:
Perceived benefits of person X
= Perceived benefits of person Y
Perceived contributions of person X
Perceived contributions of person Y
These benefits and contributions cannot be easily translated into numerical terms, but
suppose for a moment that person X perceives that she gives 10 things to the relationship,
whereas person Y perceives that he gives only 5 things. Is this an equitable relationship? It is if
person X perceives 10 benefits from the relationship, whereas person Y perceives 5 benefits,
because the equation is balanced.
There are two important points to notice in the equity theory: First, the benefits that the
two people receive from one another do not have to be equal, but the ratio between their benefits
and contributions must be equal. A person who both gives and receives a lot can be in an
equitable relationship with a person who gives much less.
Second, notice that the equation is written in terms of perceived benefits and
contributions. The only person who can judge how much he or she is giving and receiving is that
person. An outside observer might see a relationship as being highly inequitable when the partner
themselves are very happy with it. Tender love might be highly important to one person but
255
much less important than good cooking to someone else. Unfortunately, people tend to believe
that the amount of good things that we ourselves should be fairly receive (Messick & Sentis,
1979). If we are not careful to compensate for this natural perceptual distortion, it can lead us to
perceive an inequity in our relationships when there is none at all.
If either member of a relationship perceives the relationship to be inequitable, that partner
will either take steps to restore equity or will leave the relationship. Interestingly, we become
uncomfortable in relationships either when we feel that we receive too little compared with what
we give or when we receive too much compared with what we give. In either case, we will be
motivated to restore equity by giving more or less or by asking (or in some other way inducing)
the other person to give more or less.
CHAPTER 14
ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY
INTRODUCTION
Abnormal psychology is the study of mental disorders (also called mental illness,
psychological disorders or psychopathology) what they look like (symptoms), why they
occur (etiology), how they are maintained, and what effect they have on peoples lives.
WHAT DOES ABNORMAL MEAN?
Defining abnormality is deceptively difficult. When asked to describe abnormal behavior,
people typically say that it occurs infrequently, is odd or strange, is characterized by
suffering, or is dangerous. All of these are reasonable answers for some types of abnormal
behavior, but none of them is sufficient in itself, and making them all necessary results in
too strict a definition. One parsimonious and practical way to define abnormal behavior is
to ask whether the behavior causes impairment in the persons life. The more a behavior
gets in the way of successful functioning in an important domain of life (including the
psychological, interpersonal and achievement/performance domains), the more likely it is
to be considered a sign of abnormality. When several such behaviors or symptoms occur
together, they may constitute a psychological disorder.
WHAT CAUSES ABNORMAL BEHAVIOUR?
Biology and genetics Biological and genetic models assert that mental disorders are
diseases, and symptoms of mental disorders are caused by factors such as brain defects
(abnormalities in the structures of the brain), biochemical imbalances (complex
dysregulation processes involving various neurotransmitters) and genetic predispositions
(risk for psychopathology carried via our genetic material). Genetic models of mental
disorder suggest that psychopathology is inherited from parents, and there is certainly
evidence for the familial transmission of many disorders
256
Psychodynamics and the parentchild relationship Freud emphasized the role of the
early parentchild relationship in the development of mental illness. According to Freud,
to the extent that the child did not successfully negotiate the psychosexual stages , mental
illness would develop. But Freud didnt focus on what actually occurred in the parent
child relationship (e.g. whether parents were actually poor caretakers). Instead, his focus
was on the unconscious internal desires and motivations of the child (e.g. sexual and
aggressive impulses) and how the child negotiated them as s/he progressed through the
early relationship with the childs parents. For example, if an adult male found himself
unable to deal with authority figures, this might be interpreted as unresolved aggressive
impulses towards his father. Whether his father behaved as a harsh authority figure or not
would be considered less relevant. So, according to Freud, mental illness is due to
intrapsychic (i.e. within the mind) conflict. This means a person may have very little
insight into the true causes of their symptoms, as these are thought to be occurring at an
unconscious level of processing
Attachment and security The attachment model of psychopathology, developed by
Bowlby (1969; 1973; 1980; see also chapter 9) resembles the contemporary
psychodynamic models in that it also emphasizes the early parentchild relationship and
how the resulting models of self and others guide development. Attachment theory
suggests that when parental Rishevel fails to make children feel safe, secure, and able to
turn to and trust the parent in times of need, then children will be unable to regulate their
emotions and needs adaptively and will develop negative, insecure views of themselves
and others. This would put children at risk for developing psychological disorders.
Research supports this hypothesis, as insecure children and adults show more
psychopathology than secure children and adults.
Learned Bishevel Behavioural models suggest that all Rishevel, abnormal included, is
a product of learning mainly learning by association (see chapter 4). For example,
according to the classical conditioning model of learning (e.g. Pavlov, 1928), if a man
experiences chest pains which result in anxiety while shopping in a department store, he
may develop a fear of department stores and begin to avoid them because he associates
them with anxiety. There is nothing inherently frightening about department stores, but
this man fears them because of the association that he has formed with his earlier anxiety
about having a possible heart attack.
Distorted thinking Cognitive models of abnormal Rishevel focus on the way people
think about themselves, others and the world (e.g. Beck et al., 1979). Distorted cognitive
processes such as selectively attending to some information and ignoring other
information, exaggerating negative feelings, expecting the worst, or making inaccurate
attributions about events (see chapters 14 and 17) have been shown to play an important
role in various types of psychological disorders.
257
PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS
Schizophrenia a living nightmare
Images of schizophrenia are easy to conjure a Risheveled person, alone, talking
to himself or yelling at someone else that only he seems to see. This is a
frightening image, for the symptoms it portrays are extremely odd and
disconcerting. Indeed, schizophrenia can be a frightening disorder to deal with,
not only for those involved with schizophrenic people, but for the sufferers
themselves.
Mood disorders depression
Although mood disorders have some symptoms in common, they are very
different in terms of their prevalence and causes. Major depressive disorder, also
called unipolar depression, is one of the most common of these disorders, whereas
bipolar disorder (also known as manic-depression), like schizophrenia, is less
prevalent
Anxiety disorders when fear takes over
Anxiety is a set of symptoms: n emotional (e.g. fear, worry) n physical (e.g.
shortness of breath, heart pounding, sweating, upset stomach) n cognitive (e.g.
fear of dying, losing control, going crazy). When someone experiences this cluster
of symptoms, it is often called a panic attack. Like depressed mood, anxiety is a
common experience almost everyone has felt some level of anxiety in their
lives. In many circumstances, it is a normal adaptive experience, physiologically
preparing our bodies to respond when we sense danger. Our autonomic nervous
system (see chapter 3) gets us ready for fight or flight and then, when the danger
has passed, calms us back down again so that we can go back to normal
functioning
Eating disorders bulimia and anorexia
Rather than being vain, people with eating disorders struggle with issues about
who they are, what they are worth, whether they will be able to take care of
themselves and how to negotiate relationships. Eating disorders are complex and
difficult to overcome. There are currently two eating disorders included in the
ICD-10 and DSM-IV bulimia nervosa and anorexia nervosa.
Although they differ in important ways, they have four things in common:
1. a distorted body image (inaccurate assessment about shape and weight);
258
SUMMARY
SOURCE: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/intropsych/pdf/chapter15.pdf
Supernatural Traditions
Throughout time, societies have proposed several explanations of abnormal behavior
within human beings. Beginning in some hunter-gatherer societies, animists have believed that
people demonstrating abnormal behavior is possessed by malevolent spirits. This idea has
been associated with trephination, the practice of cutting a hole into the individuals skull in
order to release the malevolent spirits. Although it has been difficult to define abnormal
psychology, one definition includes characteristics such as statistical infrequency.
A more formalized response to spiritual beliefs about abnormality is the practice of
exorcism. Performed by religious authorities, exorcism is thought of as another way to release
evil spirits who cause pathological behavior within the person. In some instances, individuals
exhibiting unusual thoughts or behaviors have been exiled from society or worse. Perceived
witchcraft, for example, has been punished by death. Two Catholic Inquisitors wrote the Malleus
Maleficarum (Latin for The Hammer against Witches), that was used by many Inquisitors and
witch-hunters. It contained an early taxonomy of perceived deviant behavior and proposed
guidelines for prosecuting deviant individuals.
Asylums
The act of placing mentally ill individuals in a separate facility known as an asylum
dates to 1547, when King Henry VIII of England established the St. Mary of Bethlehem asylum
in London. This hospital, nicknamed Bedlam, was famous for its deplorable conditions. Asylums
remained popular throughout the Middle Ages and the Renaissance era. These early asylums
were often in miserable conditions. Patients were seen as a burden to society and locked away
and treated almost as beasts to be dealt with rather than patients needing treatment.
However, many of the patients received helpful medical treatment. There was scientific curiosity
into abnormal behavior although it was rarely investigated in the early asylums. Inmates in these
early asylums were often put on display for profit as they were viewed as less than human.
In the late 18th century the idea of humanitarian treatment for the patients gained much favor due
to the work of Philippe Pinel in France. He pushed for the idea that the patients should be
treated with kindness and not the cruelty inflicted on them as if they were animals or criminals.
His experimental ideas such as removing the chains from the patients were met with reluctance.
The experiments in kindness proved to be a great success, which helped to bring about a reform
in the way mental institutions would be run.
Continuing institutionalization
Institutionalization would continue to improve throughout the 19th and 20th century due to
work of many humanitarians such as Dorethea Dix, and the mental hygiene movement which
promoted the physical well-being of the mental patients.Dix more than any other figure in the
nineteenth century, made people in America and virtually all of Europe aware that the insane
were being subjected to incredible abuses. Through this movement millions of dollars were
261
raised to build new institutions to house the mentally ill. Mental hospitals began to grow
substantially in numbers during the 20th century as care for the mentally ill increased in them.
By 1939 there were over 400,000 patients in state mental hospitals in the USA. Hospital
stays were normally quite long for the patients, with some individuals being treated for many
years. These hospitals while better than the asylums of the past were still lacking in the means of
effective treatment for the patients, and even though the reform movement had occurred; patients
were often still met with cruel and inhumane treatment.
Things began to change in the year 1946 when Mary Jane Ward published the
influential book titled The Snake Pit which was made into a popular movie of the same name.
The book called attention to the conditions which mental patients faced and helped to spark
concern in the general public to create more humane mental health care in these overcrowded
hospitals.
In this same year the National Institute of Mental Health was also created which provided
support for the training hospital employees and research into the conditions which afflicted the
patients. During this period the Hill-Burton Acts was also passed which was a program that
funded mental health hospitals. Along with the Community Health Services Act of 1963, the
Hill-Burton Acts helped with the creation of outpatient psychiatric clinics, inpatient general
hospitals, and rehabilitation and community consultation centers.
Deinstitutionalization
In the late twentieth century however, the public view on the mentally ill was no longer in
such a positive light. A large number of mental hospitals ended up closing down due to lack of
funding and overpopulation. In England for example only 14 of the 130 psychiatric institutions
that had been created in the early 20th century remained open at the start of the 21st century. In
1963, President John Kennedy launched the community health movement in the United States as
a bold new approach to mental health care, aimed at coordinating mental health services for
citizens in mental health centers. In the span of 40 years, the United States was able to see an
about 90 percent drop in the number of patients in Psychiatric hospitals.
This trend was not only in the England and the United States but worldwide with
countries like Australia feeling the pain of too many mentally ill patients and not enough
treatment facilities. Recent studies have found that the prevalence of mental illness has not
decreased significantly in the past 10 years, and has in fact increased in frequency regarding
specific conditions such as anxiety and mood disorders.
This led to a large number of the patients being released while not being fully cured of
the disorder they were hospitalized for. This became known as the phenomenon of
deinstitutionalization. This movement had noble goals of treating the individuals outside of the
isolated mental hospital by placing them into communities and support systems. Another goal of
this movement was to avoid the potential negative adaptations that can come with long term
hospital confinements. Many professionals for example were concerned that patients would find
permanent refuge in mental hospitals which would take them up when the demands of everyday
life were too difficult. However, the patients moved to the community living have not fared well
262
typically, as they often speak of how they feel abandoned by the doctors who used to treat
them. It also has had the unfortunate effect of placing many of the patients in homelessness.
Many safe havens for the deinstitutionalized mentally ill have been created but they are not as
effective as needed. It is estimated that around 26.2% of people who are currently homeless have
some form of a mental illness. The placing of these individuals in homelessness is of major
concern as the added stress of living on the streets is not beneficial for the individual to recover
from the particular disorder with which they are afflicted. In fact while some of the homeless
who are able to find some temporary relief in the form of shelters, many of the homeless with a
mental illness lack safe and decent shelter.
Explaining Abnormal Behavior
People have tried to explain and control abnormal behavior for thousands of years.
Historically, there have been three main approaches to abnormal behavior: the supernatural,
biological, and psychological traditions. Abnormal psychology revolves around two major
paradigms for explaining mental disorders, the psychological paradigm and the biological
paradigm. The psychological paradigm focuses more on the humanistic, cognitive and
behavioral causes and effects of psychopathology. The biological paradigm includes the
theories that focus more on physical factors, such as genetics and neurochemistry.
Supernatural explanations
In the supernatural tradition, also called the demonological method, abnormal behaviors
are attributed to agents outside human bodies. According to this model, abnormal behaviors are
caused by demons, spirits, or the influences of moon, planets, and stars. During the Stone Age,
trephining was performed on those who had mental illness to literally cut the evil spirits out of
the victims head. Conversely, Ancient Chinese, Ancient Egyptians, and Hebrews, believed that
these were evil demons or spirits and advocated exorcism. By the time of the Greeks and
Romans, mental illnesses were thought to be caused by an imbalance of the four humors, leading
to draining of fluids from the brain. During the Medieval period, many Europeans believed that
the power of witches, demons, and spirits caused abnormal behaviors. People with psychological
disorders were thought to be possessed by evil spirits that had to be exorcised through religious
rituals. If exorcism failed, some authorities advocated steps such as confinement, beating, and
other types of torture to make the body uninhabitable by witches, demons, and spirits. The belief
that witches, demons, and spirits are responsible for the abnormal behavior continued into the
15th century. Swiss alchemist, astrologer, and physician Paracelsus (14931541), on the other
hand, rejected the idea that abnormal behaviors were caused by witches, demons, and spirits and
suggested that peoples mind and behaviors were influenced by the movements of the moon and
stars.
This tradition is still alive today. Some people, especially in the developing countries and
some followers of religious sects in the developed countries, continue to believe that supernatural
263
powers influence human behaviors. In Western academia, the supernatural tradition has been
largely replaced by the biological and psychological traditions.
Biological explanations
In the biological tradition, psychological disorders are attributed to biological causes
and in the psychological tradition, disorders are attributed to faulty psychological
development and to social context. The medical or biological perspective holds the belief that
most or all abnormal behavior can be attributed to a medical factor; assuming all psychological
disorders are diseases.
The Greek physician Hippocrates, who is considered to be the father of Western
medicine, played a major role in the biological tradition. Hippocrates and his associates wrote
the Hippocratic Corpus between 450 and 350 BC, in which they suggested that abnormal
behaviors can be treated like any other disease. Hippocrates viewed the brain as the seat of
consciousness, emotion, intelligence, and wisdom and believed that disorders involving these
functions would logically be located in the brain.
These ideas of Hippocrates and his associates were later adopted by Galen, the Roman
physician. Galen extended these ideas and developed a strong and influential school of thought
within the biological tradition that extended well into the 18th century.
The medical approach to abnormal psychology focuses on the biological causes on
mental illness. This perspective emphasizes understanding the underlying cause of disorders,
which might include genetic inheritance, related physical disorders, infections and chemical
imbalances. Medical treatments are often pharmacological in nature, although medication is
often used in conjunction with some other type of psychotherapy.
Psychological explanations
The behavioral approach to abnormal psychology focuses on observable behaviors.
In behavioral therapy, the focus is on reinforcing positive behaviors and not reinforcing
maladaptive behaviors. This approach targets only the behavior itself, not the underlying causes.
Multiple causality
The number of different theoretical perspectives in the field of psychological abnormality
has made it difficult to properly explain psychopathology. The attempt to explain all mental
disorders with the same theory leads to reductionism (explaining a disorder or other complex
phenomena using only a single idea or perspective). Most mental disorders are composed of
several factors, which is why one must take into account several theoretical perspectives when
attempting to diagnose or explain a particular behavioral abnormality or mental disorder.
Explaining mental disorders with a combination of theoretical perspectives is known as multiple
causality.
The diathesisstress model emphasizes the importance of applying multiple
causality to psychopathology by stressing that disorders are caused by both precipitating
causes and predisposing causes. A precipitating cause is an immediate trigger that instigates a
264
persons action or behavior. A predisposing cause is an underlying factor that interacts with the
immediate factors to result in a disorder. Both causes play a key role in the development of a
psychological disorder.
Recent Concepts Of Abnormality
Statistical abnormality when a certain behavior/characteristic is relevant to a low
percentage of the population. However, this does not necessarily mean that such individuals are
suffering from mental illness (for example, statistical abnormalities such as extreme
wealth/attractiveness)
Psychometric abnormality when a certain behavior/characteristic differs from the
populations normal dispersion e.g. having an IQ of 35 could be classified as abnormal, as the
population average is 100. However, this does not specify a particular mental illness.
Deviant behavior this is not always a sign of mental illness, as mental illness can occur
without deviant behavior, and such behavior may occur in the absence of mental illness.
Combinations including distress, dysfunction, distorted psychological processes,
inappropriate responses in given situations and causing/risking harm to oneself.
Approaches
Somatogenic abnormality is seen as a result of biological disorders in the brain. This
approach has led to the development of radical biological treatments, e.g. lobotomy.
Psychogenic abnormality is caused by psychological problems. Psychoanalytic
(Freud), Cathartic, Hypnotic and Humanistic Psychology (Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow)
treatments were all derived from this paradigm. This approach has, as well, led to some esoteric
treatments: Franz Mesmer used to place his patients in a darkened room with music playing, then
enter it wearing a flamboyant outfit and poke the infected body areas with a stick.
CHAPTER 15
PSYCHOTHERAPY
PSYCHOTHERAPY
-a systematic interaction between a therapist and a client that applies psychological
principles to affect the clients thoughts, feelings, or behavior in an effort to help the client
overcome psychological disorder, adjust to problems in living, or develop as an individual.
History of therapies
Asylums
265
Asylums originated in European monasteries. They were the first institutions meant
primarily for people with psychological disorders. But their function was ware-housing, not
treatment. Their inmate populations mushroomed until the stresses created by noise,
overcrowding, and disease aggravated the problems they were meant to ease. Inmates were
frequently chained and beaten.
The word bedlam derives from St. Marys of Bethlehem, the London asylum that opened
its gates in 1547. Here unfortunate people with psychological disorders were chained, whipped,
and allowed to lie in their own waste.
Humanitarian reform movements began in the 18th century. In Paris, the physician
Philippine Pinel unchained the patients at La Salpetriere. Rather than the run amok, as has been
feared, most patients profited from kindness and freedom. Many eventually reentered society.
Later movements to reform institutions were led by William Tuke in England and Dorothea Dix
in America.
Mental Hospitals
In the United Sates, mental hospitals gradually replaced asylums. In the mid-1950s more
than a million people resided in state, country, Veterans Administration, or private facilities. The
mental hospitals function is treatment, not warehousing. Still, because of high patient
populations and understaffing, many patients received little attention. Even today, with
somewhat improved conditions, one psychiatrist may be responsible for the welfare of several
hundred residents on the weekend when other staffs are absent.
The Community Mental Health Movement
Since the 1960s, efforts have been made to maintain people with serious psychological
disorders in their communities. Community mental health centers attempt to maintain new
patients as outpatients and to serve patients who have been released from mental hospitals.
Today, most people with chronic psychological disorders live in the community, not in the
hospital. Social critics note that many people who had resided in hospitals for decades were
suddenly discharged to home communities that seemed foreign and forbidden to them. Many
do not receive adequate follow-up care. Many join the ranks of the homeless.
TECHNIQUES OF PSYCHOTHERAPY
Psychodynamic Therapies
-also known as insight-oriented therapy, focuses on unconscious processes as they are
manifested in a persons present behavior. The goals of psychodynamic therapy are a clients
self-awareness and understanding of the influence of the past on present behavior.
Behavior Therapies
-also called behavior modification, is a treatment that helps change potentially selfdestructing behaviors. Medical professionals use this type of therapy to replace bad habits with
good ones. The therapy also helps you cope with difficult situations.
Systematic Desensitization
- Method of eliminating fears by substituting a response that is
incompatible
with anxietynamely, relaxation. The client is first trained to
relax deeply.
266
Selective Reinforcement
-Strengthening of specific desired behaviors, is based on the
principles of
operant conditioning and has also proved to be an effective method of modifying behavior,
especially with children.
Modeling
- Process by which person learns behaviors by observing and imitating
others.
Because observing others is a major way in which humans learn, watching people who are
displaying adaptive behavior should teach people with maladaptive responses better coping
strategies.
Behavior Rehearsal
-Often combined with modeling in every therapy session. The
the client rehearse or practice more adaptive behaviors.
therapist helps
Self-Regulation
-It involves monitoring, observing on ones behavior and using
various
techniquesself reinforcement, self-punishment, and control of stimulus conditions,
development of incompatible responsesto change maladaptive behavior.
COGNITIVE BEHAVIOR THERAPIES
Counter Conditioning- a substitute desirable response is elicited in the presence of a
stimulus that has evoked an undesired response. Under these are systematic desensitization and
aversion therapy.
Operant Conditioning- desired responses are taught and undesired ones discouraged by
applying reward and punishment. It includes token for economy in which rewards are provided
for activities and it will not be given if behavior is withdrawn; operant working with children
will ultimately change the childs behavior.
Modeling- it is helping the client acquire new responses and unlearn old ones by
observing models. This is very useful in eliminating fears efficient teaching new patterns of
behavior.
Cognitive Restructuring Techniques- a technique in altering thoughts that are believed
to underlie emotional disorder.
-
268
of unacknowledged feelings and having them reclaim the parts of the personality that have been
denied.
GROUP THERAPY
Insight- Oriented Group Therapy- sensitivity training and encounter groups encourage
participants to breakdown their personal communications and reactions into various components
so that they can examine their true feelings towards other persons and their perceptions of what
they are receiving from them.
Behavior Therapy Group- social skills particularly on assertiveness are taught to
groups of people who have similar deficits in relating to others; like interview skills,
conversational skills, dating skills- so that appropriate pace can be maintained for all group
members.
MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY
This therapy helps unhappy couples resolve the conflicts inevitable in any ongoing
relationship of two adults living together. One technique is caring days where one partner at a
time concentrates on giving pleasure to the other.
SOCIAL AND RECREATIONAL ACTIVITES
Facilities are put up for patients to participate and be actively involved. In some mental
health centers, basketball courts and volleyball courts are put up for the patients; television sets
are placed inside the campus for viewing.
SITE VISITATIONS
Mental patients are visited by groups of students, non- governmental organizations and
private foundations to socialize with them or offer songs, food and clothing. These activities can
make the inmates happy and feel elated.
Desensitization
Systematic desensitization, also known as graduated exposure therapy is a
type of behavior therapy used in the field of psychology to help effectively
overcome phobias and other anxiety disorders. More specifically, it is a form of counter
conditioning, a type of Pavlovian therapy developed by South African
psychiatrist, Joseph Wolpe. In the 1950s, Wolpe discovered that the cats of Wits
University could overcome their fears through gradual and systematic exposure. The
process of systematic desensitization occurs in three steps. The first step of systematic
desensitization is the identification of an anxiety inducing stimulus hierarchy. The second
step is the learning of relaxation or coping techniques. Once the individual has been
taught these skills, he or she must use them in the third step to react towards and
overcome situations in the established hierarchy of fears. The goal of this process is for
the individual to learn how to cope with, and overcome the fear in each step of the
hierarchy.
Problems that we brood about alone can become magnified beyond proportion,
and sharing those problems with someone else often makes them seem less serious.
Understanding or Insight
A behavior therapist might inform the client that current fears are the result of previous
conditioning and can be conquered by learning responses that are incompatible with the current
ones. A client in a cognitive-behavior treatment program might be told that his difficulties stem
from the irrational belief that one must be perfect or must be loved by everyone.
270
Defined as a psychological state in which socialized gender roles have negative consequences
for the individual or others. MGRC occurs when rigid, sexist, or restrictive gender roles result in
restriction, devaluation, or violation of others or self (ONeil 1982)
4 main aspects to MGRC:
Success, Power and Competition issues (SPC)
Restrictive Emotionality (RE)
Restrictive Affectionate Behaviour Between Men (RABBM)
Conflict Between Work and Family Relations (CBWFR)
Male therapist / male client
Restrictive Emotionality & Homophobia
Male therapists may find it difficult to show concern and caring to male clients
Male client may feel terrified of his warm and perhaps dependent feelings towards the
therapist (Ipsaro 1986) Male clients may feel shame and embarrassment in revealing feelings
Control and power issues more evident
Female therapist / male client
Represents the most typical care-giving patterns in our culture, and a reversal of the typical
power dynamics
Male clients tend to prefer female therapist because of their association with care giving
(Heppner & Gonzales 1987)
It is also uncomfortable for men to enter therapy and abdicate a degree of power to a woman
Power issues may be evidenced by client behaviours such as disagreement with therapist
interpretations
A female therapist who is uncomfortable with either her own authority or strong emotions in
men may engage in behaviours such as content changing or fidgeting (Carlson 1987).
Female Clients & Therapy
Women are much more likely to seek therapy, as helpseeking and dependence are more
familiar to the socialization of women than men (Collier, 1982)
More likely to assume a subordinate role, not questioning a therapists interpretations, and a
tendency to attempt to please the therapist (Kaplan 1979)
Female client interactions contained a higher percentage of communication patterns that were
control neutral, i.e. less motivation to be in control or be powerful (Heatherington & Allen
1984).
272
273
GAT principles can be integrated into all therapies, and at similarly typical stages of therapy,
placing particular focus on the influence of social forms, customs and structures on the
individuals development:
1. Problem conceptualization - What aspects of gender socialization might be at play?
2. Therapeutic Interventions - Discussion, support, clarification, confrontation, interpretation,
information offering, guided fantasy, experimentation, modeling, self-disclosure, family history
etc.
3. Endings - Male may learn to acknowledge feelings of sadness, vulnerability, pain of
saying goodbye - Female opportunity to further increase sense of self-reliance and selfdirection
GAT applied to Case Study A
Female client: Neglecting to actively explore both the benefits and liabilities of sacrificing her
career to assume child care responsibilities = abandoning the client to the pervasive societal
pressures urging her to leave her career.
Male Client: Therapist should not assume that a man in a dual career relationship would not
want to consider being the primary caretaker of the child
GAT applied to Case Study B
Male Client: Being in control; shame at having been overpowered;
Female Client: shame lest she be seen as seductress or blameworthy
Work with client to facilitate understanding of how he/she may have internalized stereotypic
views of maleness/femaleness and help them to realize that as a child they couldnt be
responsible for causing or preventing the act
Summary / Conclusions
Both theory & research indicate that sex / gender roles exert an influence on how clients (&
therapists) react in therapy, both positively and negatively
Gender is complex and must be understood in its socio-cultural context
Therapists require a good knowledge base and awareness of gender differences and roles for
effective, non-sexist therapeutic practice
Therapists need to engage in self-examination and supervision in order to avoid doing gender
following traditional gender ideas / interpretations in therapy (Gilbert & Scher 1999)
Patient Gender as Moderator in Individual Psychotherapy
274
Male patients had better outcome in interpretive therapy than in supportive therapy
Female patients had better outcome in supportive therapy than in interpretive therapy
Moderator effect during therapy. No significant long-term moderator effect of gender
Ogrodniczuk & al 2001
Patients with Bipolar I Disorder after treatment with interpersonal and social rhythm
therapy and/or intensive clinical management:
Women who received interpersonal and social rhythm therapy showed more marked and
rapid improvement than men
Resources
Therapy : Not a mans world A qualitative study of the influence of male gender role conflict
on male therapists and their work with clients (B. Gillen 2012)
Go to: http://esource.dbs.ie/ and click on Arts Thesis & Author name
Maguire, M., (2004) Men, women, passion and power: Gender issues in psychotherapy
Good, Gilbert & Scher (1990) Gender Aware Therapy: A Synthesis of Feminist Therapy &
Knowledge about Gender in Journal of Counselling & Development March/ April 1990 Vol 68.
Gilbert A., & Scher M., (1999) Through the Looking Glass: Sex & Gender in Counseling
Practice
BIOLOGICAL THERAPIES
The biological approach to abnormal behaviour assumes that mental disorders, like physical
illness are caused by biochemical or psychological dysfunctions of the brain. Biological
therapies include the use of drugs and electroconvulsive shock.
PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC DRUGS
Biological therapy is the use of drugs to modify mood and behaviour. The discovery in the early
1950s of drugs that relieved some of the symptoms of schizophrenia represented a major
breakthrough in the treatment of severely disturbed individuals. Intensely agitated patients no
longer had to be physically restrained by straitjackets, and patients who had been spending most
of their time hallucinating and exhibiting bizarre behavior became more responsive and
functional. As a result, psychiatric wards became more manageable, and patients could be
275
discharged more quickly. A few years, the discovery of drugs that could relieve severe depression
had a similar beneficial effect on hospital management and population. At about the same time,
drugs were being developed to relieve anxiety.
Antipsychotic Drugs- The first drugs that were found to relieve the symptoms of
schizophrenia belonged to the family called phenothiazines. Examples are thorazine
(chlorpromazine) prolixin (fluphenazine). These drugs have been called major tranquilizer, but
this term is not really appropriate because they do not act on the nervous system in the same way
as barbiturates or antianxiety drugs. They may cause some drowsiness and lethargy, but they do
not induce deep sleep, even in massive doses. They also seldom create the pleasant, slightly
euphoric feeling associated with low doses of antianxiety drugs. In fact, the psychological effects
of the antipsychotic drugs when administered to normal individuals are usually unpleasant. These
drugs are seldom abused.
Schizophrenia is caused by excessive activity of the neurotransmitter dopamine.
Antipsychotic drugs block dopamine receptors. Because the drugs molecules are structurally
similar to dopamine molecules, they bind to the postsynaptic receptors of dopamine neurons,
thereby blocking the access of dopamine to its receptors. A single synapse has many receptors
molecules. If all of them are blocked, transmission across the synapse will fail. If only some of
them are blocked, transmission will be weakened. The clinical potency of an antipsychotic drug
is directly related to its ability to compete for dopamine receptors.
Antipsychotic drugs are effective in alleviating hallucinations and confusion and restoring
rational thought processes, these drugs do not cure schizophrenia, and most patients must
continue to use the drugs to function outside of a hospital. Many of the characteristic symptoms
of schizophrenia-emotional blunting, seclusiveness, difficulties in sustaining attention-remain.
Nevertheless, antipsychotic drugs shorten the length of time patients must be hospitalized, and
they prevent relapse. Studies of people with schizophrenia living in the community find that the
relapse rate for those taking one of the phenothiazines is typically half the relapse rate for those
receiving a placebo.
Unfortunately, antipsychotic drugs do not help all people with schizophrenia. In addition,
the drugs have unpleasant side effects dryness of the mouth, blurred vision, difficulty in
concentrating that prompt many patients to discontinue their medication. One of the most
serious side effects is a neurological disorder known as tardive dyskinesia, which involves
involuntary movements of the tongue, face, mouth, or jaw. Patients with this disorder may
involuntary smack their lips, make sucking sounds, stick out their tongue, puff their cheeks, or
make other bizarre movements, over and over again. Tardive dyskinesia if often irreversible and
may occur in more than 20% of people who use antipsychotic drugs for long periods.
In recent years, new drugs called atypical antipsychotics have been found to reduce
symptoms of schizophrenia without causing so many side effects. These drugs include clozapine
276
and risperidone. They appear to work by binding to a different type of dopamine receptor than
the other drugs, although they also influence several other neurotransmitters, including serotonin.
Antidepressant Drugs. They help elevate the mood of depressed individuals. These
drugs energize, apparently by increasing the availability of two neurotransmitters
(norepinephrine and serotonin) whose levels are deficient in some case of depression.
Antidepressant drugs act in different ways to increase neurotransmitter levels. Monoamine
oxidase (MAO) inhibitors block the activity of an enzyme that can destroy both norepinephrine
and serotonin, thereby increasing the concentration of these two neurotransmitters in the brain.
Tricyclic antidepressants prevent the reuptake of serotonin and norepinephrine, thereby
prolonging the action of neurotransmitter.
Like the antipsychotic drugs, the antidepressants can produce some undesirable side
effects. The most common of these are dry mouth, blurred vision, constipation, and urinary
retention/ They can also cause a severe drop in blood pressure when a person stands up, as well
as changes in heart rate and rhythm. An overdose of tricyclic antidepressants can be fatal, a
serious concern when a depressed patient may be suicidal. The MAO inhibitors ca n interact with
certain foods, including cheese, chocolate and red wine, to create severe cardiac problems.
The search for drug that are more effective, have fewer side effects, and act more quickly
has intensified in the past 20 years. As a result, new drugs appear on the market almost daily. The
serotonin reuptake inhibitors selectively increase serotonin levels by blocking its reuptake.
Examples are Prozac(fluoxetine), Paxil(paroxetine), and Zoloft(sertraline). Even more recent
drugs increase the availability of both serotonin and norepinephrine (such as Remeron). In
addition to relieving depression, these drugs have proved helpful in treating the anxiety disorder
and panic disorder. They tend to produce fewer side effects than the other antidepressants,
although they can cause inhibited orgasm, nausea, and diarrhea, dizziness and nervousness.
People with bipolar disorder often take an antidepressant medication to control their
depression but must take other drugs to control their mania. Lithium reduces extreme mood
swings and returns the individual to a more normal emotional state. It appears to do so by
stabilizing a number of neurotransmitter systems, including serotonin and dopamine, and may
also stabilize levels of the neurotransmitters glutamate. People with bipolar disorder who take
lithium must take it even when they are not suffering from acute mania. Otherwise, about 80%
will lapse into new episodes of mania or depression.
Unfortunately, only about 30% to 50% of people with bipolar disorder respond to lithium.
In addition, it has severe side effects, including abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea,
tremors, and twitches. Patients complain of blurred vision and problems in concentration and
attention that interfere with their ability to work. Lithium can cause kidney dysfunction, birth
defects, and a form of diabetes if taken by women during the first trimester of pregnancy.
277
In sum, drug therapy has reduced the severity of some types of mental disorders. Many
individuals who would require hospitalization otherwise can function within the community with
the help of these drugs. On the other hand, there are limitations to the application of drug
therapy. All therapeutic drugs can produce undesirable side effects. Many people with medical
problems, as well as women who are pregnant or nursing, often cannot take psychoactive drugs.
In addition, may psychologists feel that these drugs alleviate symptoms without requiring the
patient to face the personal problems that may be contributing to the disorder or may have been
caused by the disorder(such as marital problems caused by the behaviors of a manic person).
ELECTROCONVULSIVE THERAPY
In electroconvulsive therapy(ECT), also known as electroshock therapy, a mild electric
current is applied to the brain to produce a seizure similar to an epileptic convulsion. ECT was a
popular treatment from about 1940 to 1960, before antipsychotic and antidepressant drugs
became readily available. Today it is used primarily in cases of severe depression when the
patient has failed to respond to drug therapy.
ECT has been the subject of much controversy. At one time it was used indiscriminately
in mental hospitals to treat such disorders as alcoholism and schizophrenia, for which it produced
no beneficial results. Before more refined procedures were developed, ECT was a frightening
experience for the patient, who was often awake until the electric current triggered the seizure
and produced momentary unconsciousness. The patient frequently suffered confusion and
memory loss afterward. Occasionally, the intensity of the muscle spasms accompanying the brain
seizure resulted in physical injuries.
Today, ECT is much safer. The patient is given a short-acting anesthesia and injected with
a muscle relaxant. A brief, very weak electric current is applied to the brain, typically to the
temple on the side of the nondominant cerebral hemisphere. The minimum current required to
produce a brain seizure is administered, because the seizure itself not the electricity is
therapeutic. The muscle relaxant prevents convulsive muscle spasms. The individual awakens
within a few minutes and remembers nothing about the treatment. Four to six treatments are
usually administered over a period of several weeks.
The most troublesome side effect of ECT is memory loss. Some patients reports a gap in
memory for events that occurred up to 6 months before ECT, as month or two after the
treatment. However, if very low dosages of electricity are used(the amount is carefully calibrated
for each patient to be just sufficient to produce a seizure) and administered only to the
nondominant side of the brain, memory problems are minimal.
No one knows how the electrically induced seizures relieve depression. Brain seizures
cause massive release of norepinephrine and serotonin, deficiencies of these neurotransmitters
may be an important factor in some cases of depression. Currently, researchers are trying to
determine the similarities and dissimilarities between ECT and antidepressant drugs in terms of
279
the way each affects neurotransmitters. However it works, ECT is effective in bringing some
people out of severe, immobilizing depression and it does so faster than drug therapy.
COMBINING BIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL THERAPY
Although in this chapter we divided therapies into psychological and biological therapies,
today there is a movement toward combined biological and psychological treatments. In
depression and the anxiety disorders, often both the patients biochemistry and his or her
functioning in social and occupational settings are affected by the disorder, and it can be helpful
to provide treatment at both the biological and psychological levels. Even in disorders like
schizophrenia, whose primary cause is biological, the patient often experiences severe losses in
social skills and ability to function on a job. Supplementing antipsychotic drugs with
psychotherapy designed to help the person to cope with the consequences of schizophrenia can
be very useful.
The fact that a wide range of both psychotherapies and drugs are effective in the
treatment of some disorders (especially depression) suggests that intervening at one level of a
persons bio-psycho-social system can affect all levels of the system. For example, intervening at
the psychological level may cause changes in the patients biochemistry and social behaviors.
When this occurs, it is because our biochemistry, our personalities and thought processes, and
our social behaviors are so thoroughly intertwined that each can affect the other in both positive
and negative ways.
280
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Psychology by Saundra K. Ciccarelli and J. Noland White (book) Topic: Principles Of
Development
ntroduction to Biological Basis of Behavior
Retrieved
from:https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Introduction_to_Psychology/Biological_basis_of_behavior
The Biological Basis of Behavior. ( Publishedonline 2010, February 8) Retrieved
from:http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articls/PMC2842067/
Biological Basis for Behavior (Adapted from McInerney JD. Genes and Behavior: A complex
relationship. 1999. Judicature. 83(3):112-115.)
Retrieved from: http://www.nchpeg.org/bssr/index.php?
option=com_content&view=article&id=121:biological-basis-for
Dr. Bustos, A., Dr. Ramirez A., Mrs. Malolos N., and Mrs. Ramos E. (1985). Introduction
to Psychology second edition. Quezon Ave., Q.C: KATHA Publishing Co., Inc.
Vision: The Visual System, The Eye, and Color Vision. (2014). Retrieved from
https://www.boundless.com/psychology/textbooks/boundlesspsychology-textbook/sensation-and-perception-5/sensory-processes38/vision-the-visual-system-the-eye-and-color-vision-161-12696/
Extrasensory perception. (2015, August 19). Retrieved from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extrasensory_perception
Magpantay, C.D. & ROWAN-Danao, R. (2014).Perception, Module 8. General
Psychology (pp. 104-106). Rizal: JenHer Publishing House.
Rhine, Joseph Banks. (1934). Extrasensory Perception
Mangal, S.K. (2009) General Psychology: Perception and Illusion (107-123). Sterling
Publishers Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi
Interposition in Psychology: Definition, Lesson & Quiz (2013, April 4) Retrieved from:
http://study.com/academy/lesson/interposition-in-psychology-definitionlesson-quiz.html
Delusions vs. Hallucinations vs. Illusions. (2012, September). Retrieved from:
https://bimaristanalmansuri.wordpress.com/2012/09/17/delusions-vshallucinations-vs-illusions/
Texture gradient. (2014, October 22). Retrieved from:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texture_gradient
Felicidad T. Villavicencio, Ed.D, Ph.D. General Psychology
Dermis. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dermis
Hypodermis. Retrieved fromhttp://skinscience.com/_int/_en/topic/topic_sousrub.aspx?
281
tc=SKIN_SCIENCE_ROOT%5EAN_ORGAN_REVEALED
%5ETHE_HYPODERMIS&cur=THE_HYPODERMIS
Sensation and Perception: Touch. Retrieved from
http://www.sparknotes.com/psychology/psych101/sensation/section6.rh
tml
Somatosensation: Pressure, Temperature, and Pain. 2015 Aug 20 Retrieved from
https://www.boundless.com/psychology/textbooks/boundless-psychologytextbook/sensation-and-perception-5/sensory-processes-38/somatosensation-pressuretemperature-and-pain-165-12700/
How does our sense of balance work? 2010 August 19. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279394/
Human Balance System. Retrieved from http://vestibular.org/understandingvestibular-disorder/human-balance-system#sthash.L7s6Uund.dpuf
Equilibrium Sense. Retrieved from
http://psychology.jrank.org/pages/221/Equilibrium-Sense.html
Ciccarelli, S., White J. (2009). Sleep Disorders. Psychology (2nd ed.) (p. 145). Jurong,
Singapore: Prentice Hall
Cognition
283
Creativity
1. Simonton, K. D. (2001).The Psychology of Creativity: A Historical Perspective.
2. Trajeco S.C.(2011).Psychology in Perspective: Theories and Application (Second Edition) .
Motivation
1. Cherry, K. (2015). What is Extrinsic Motivation. Retrieved from
http://psychology.about.com/od/eindex/f/extrinsic-motivation.htm
2. Components of Motivation (2013, April 9) Retrieved from
http://usepsychology.blogspot.com/2013/04/components-of-motivation_9.html
3.Definition of Motivation (2015). Retrieved from
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/motivation
4.Extrinsic Motivation (2015) http://psychology.about.com/od/motivation/f/intrinsicmotivation.htm
5.Hunger Motivation (2015). Retrieved from
http://www.appsychology.com/Book/Motivation/hunger_motivation.htm
6.Other Facts: Motivation Chapter 11 PSY1200
http://www.psych.purdue.edu/~willia55/120/11.MotivationMM.pdf
7. Other Theories of Motivation (2015) Retrieved from
http://psychology.about.com/od/psychologytopics/tp/theories-of-motivation.html.
8. Weiten, W. (2004). Psychology: Themes & Variation Sixth Edition. Belmont, California: Thomson
Learning, Inc.
Emotions
285
286