Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Psychology and Sociology

Core Concepts in Psychology: Questions and Answers

Motivation and Physiological Needs

1. Motivation is defined as: A need or desire that energizes and directs behavior towards a goal. (B)

2. Professor Sanford explains the organization of needs, such as the need for physical safety, within a hierarchy of motives. (D)

3. Prisoners of war placed on a starvation diet tend to spend a great deal of time daydreaming about food. (E)

4. Research on obesity and weight control indicates that once we become fat, our body often adapts, requiring less food (fewer calories) to maintain that weight compared to someone who has never been obese. (E)

Sexual Response and Social Behavior

4. Secretion of the female hormone, estrogen, peaks during ovulation. (D)

5. The ability of humans to

Dissociative Disorders and Identity

Dissociative Fugue

Sudden, unexpected travel away from home or one’s customary place of work with an inability to recall one’s past.

Associated Features of Dissociative Fugue

• Confusion about personal identity or assumption of a new identity.
• Semantic and procedural memory remain intact.
• Very rare.
• Often serves as a defense against overwhelming stress.

Dissociative Amnesia

Inability to recall important personal information that cannot be explained by ordinary forgetfulness.

Associated Features of Dissociative Amnesia

• Episodic/autobiographical memory is impaired.
• Loss is (usually) reversible.
• Procedural and semantic memory remain intact.
• Lasts from days to weeks (rarely, years).

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

Formerly... Continue reading "Clinical Definitions of Dissociative, Sexual, and Somatic Disorders" »

Language and Culture Concepts

Chris Barker: Not what culture is, but rather how Language of Culture (L of C) is used. He thinks that there is no correct or definitive meaning because its usage and meaning change over time.

=> In general, many different notions of LTC (Language and Thought Connection)

1. Kramsch

Language is used to express and create categories of thought, shared by members of a social group. Language is responsible for attitudes and beliefs.

2. LRT (Language and Relativity Theory)

A young field, it has not been explored until the 1990s when the field of Applied Linguistics (AL) explored it. There is a growing interest because of advances in Cognitive Linguistics (CL) and Linguistic Anthropology (LA).

3. Johann Herder & Wilhelm

Defining Stress: A Complex Reaction

Stress is a complex series of reactions, both psychological and physical, in response to demanding or threatening situations.

What Are Stressors? Events Causing Demands

Stressors are events that produce physical and psychological demands on a person.

Common Types of Stressors Categorized

Types of stressors include:

• Environmental: Such as heat, noise.
• Physiological: Such as drugs, tobacco.
• Emotional: Such as pressures, life events.

Signs of Being Stressed: Typical Manifestations

Typically, people who are stressed out may show signs such as:

• Eating too much food.
• Abusing substances.
• Having difficulty focusing attention, making decisions, or sleeping.

Key Human Responses to Stress

Responses to stress can be:

• Psychological
• Cognitive
• Emotional
• Behavioral

Selye'

The Four Subfields of Anthropology

The four subfields of anthropology - and how applied anthropology fits in:

1) Biological anthropology

2) Cultural anthropology

3) Linguistic anthropology

4) Archaeology

- Applied anthropology draws on information provided by the other four specialties.

Anthropology: Holistic and Comparative

Athropology as Holistic and Comparitive

Holistic: Anthropologists integrate all that is known about humans and their activities.

Comparative: Anthropologists examine similarities and differences between human societies.

Labwork vs Fieldwork

- Labwork involves spending time in a lab testing and analyzing, 

- Fieldwork typically involves an extended stay with a local community

The Concept of Culture

Culture Concept

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