Chapter 3

Lev Vygotsky

Vygotsky's levels of development: emphasis on sociocultural approach (socialization/learning experiences that form identity) ¬ key distinction: learning takes place through interactions with others that promote acquisition of culturally valued behaviors/beliefs ♣ individuals learn self-control in selecting socially appropriate actions performs social roles form identity ¬ development is defined in terms of current/potential levels of achievement at point in time ♣ current developmental level: tasks that child can do without help ♣ potential developmental level: most advanced tasks done with guidance from more knowledgeable people • zone of proximal development (in between current and potential): skills that can be accomplished with help ♦ significance: where development is fostered ♦ cycle: more knowledgeable person makes their though process explicit child internalizes it new skills turn potential into current

biological basis of schizophrenia

1) genetic vulnerability: correlated to degree of relatedness -associated genes also implicated in bipolar disorder - interacts with environmental influences in increase/decrease risk 2) neurotransmitters: excessive dopamine activity - research: drugs that block dopamine receptors are anti-psychotics - dopamine associated more closely with positive symptoms 3) brain atrophy (Walker et al. 2003) - multiple structures are smaller than normal --> indicate inability to generate new neurons - brain atrophy exists before onset of disorder and continues to worsen

conventional level

?

humanistic theory

CARL ROGERS definition: - people continually seek experiences that make them better/more fulfilled individuals - conscious decision make people who they are (vs. uncontrollable traits/unconscious impulses) Carl Rogers: humanistic psychologist - Overlap of actual/ideal/perceived self (self-concept) = healthy personality Distress = when these selves are different/incongruous of each other

how culture affects attributions

Cultural bias: ♣ Mason and Morris (2010): fundamental attribution error is bias to Western viewpoint of individualistic perspective (vs. universal/fundamental) ♣ Self-serving bias is more favored with Western

attribution theory

Definition: Both conscious/unconscious processes contribute to decide what CAUSED other's behavior influence one's behavioral response Types of attribution 1) dispositional attribution: assigning cause to inherent (internal) quality/desire/factor 2) situational attribution: assigning cause to environmental forces Factors that affect attribution/perception of other people 1) fundamental attribution error: fundamental tendency to automatically favor dispositional attributions over situational when judging people -cause: dispositional requires less information/time/attention 2) self-serving bias: - tendency to attribute one's success to internal factors • believes they control their successes - attribute other's failures to external factors • blames failure on factors out of their control 3) Cultural bias: - Mason and Morris (2010): fundamental attribution error is bias to Western viewpoint of individualistic perspective (vs. universal/fundamental) - Self-serving bias is more favored with Western 4) Influence of our self-perceptions - Ex) influence of group identity: having reference groups results in adoption of the group's perceptions of others - in-group are viewed ,more positively, and greater variability on assorted personality traits 5) Perceptions of environment - Ex) conscious/unconscious stereotype activation

self-concept

Overlap of actual/ideal/perceived self

behaviorist theory

SKINNER definition of language: form of behavior development: - through continuing interactions with environmental reinforcements -operant conditioning (reinforcements and punishments) as development advances, behaviors become specific

situational attribution

assigning cause to environmental forces

dispositional attribution

assigning cause to inherent (internal) quality/desire/factor

Kohlberg's theory of moral development

children progress through stages of moral reasoning for development sequence: level 1) preconventional morality (personal): morality based solely on anticipated consequences of behavior • stage 1: punishment • stage 2: motivation by reward level 2) conventional morality (interpersonal): social judgements • stage 3: social disapproval (from others after finding out one's behavior) • stage 4: rule following (not because it is right, but because it is the established law by society) level 3) postconventional morality: universal principles and fully-developed ideas of right and wrong • stage 5: social contract ♦ guided by social contracts for the good of society • stage 6: universal ethics ♦ will have own beliefs about what is right or wrong advances in moral reasoning is fundamental to development ♣ preconventional childhood ♣ conventional adolescence and continuing throughout adulthood Kohlberg and Gilligan (1971): - moral development is intertwined/parallel to identity development ♣ Transition between conventional/postconventional has same kinds of questioning of self and society • Associated with identity moratorium (active identity crisis) ♦ Remaining in conventional level identity foreclosure - Theorized that those in postconventional has well-established identity ♣ However, not all with identity achievement has reached postconventional

depression

definition: - pervasive feelings of sadness/hopelessness/loss of interest in activities Effect: - lowered functioning in life - sleep and eating disruptions - thoughts of suicide - inability to concentrate biological basis of depression: - genetic inheritance of many genes: heritability of depression is ~40% - polygenetic influence (common to many psychological disorders) - also depends on heritability of personalities like neuroticism biological malfunctioning involves multiple areas of altering in brain two hypothesis: 1) monoamine hypothesis: deficiency in availability/potency of monoamines in synapses contribute to depression by not being able to carry out desired effect on post-synaptic neuron - monoamine neurotransmitters: serotonin/norepinephrine (noradrenaline)/dopamine - supporting evidence: a) first successful treatment using monoamine oxidase inhibitors (inhibit monoamine breakdown increase availability) b) Belmaker and Agam (2008): found that monoamine activity is widespread areas of the brain in thought and emotion 2) hypothalamic pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis: interactive process of hormone from hypothalamus ACTH release from anterior pituitary cortisol release by adrenal cortex response to stress ♦ supporting evidence: ¬ depression patients have elevated levels of one/more of these hormones (over-activation of stress response)

anxiety disorders

definition: - experiences of unwarranted fear and anxiety, physiological tensions, and behaviors associated with emotional and physical experience of anxiety - worries about future/hypothetical circumstances (vs. reality in the present) - response to stress physical symptom: -excessive sympathetic nervous system activation "fight or flight" readiness without the threat categories (depending on type of stimulus) 1) generalized anxiety disorder: wide variety of stimuli persistent anxiety 2) panic disorder: frequent/short-lived panic attacks 3) phobias: specific object or situation trigger excessive fear

biological theory

definition: - person's genome contributes to formation of personality. -Traits differ in extent to which they are influenced by heredity vs. environmental factors - start with temperament and modified throughout life by environmental influences (temperament: innate/genetically influenced baseline of personalities that includes infant's tendency towards certain patterns of emotion and social interaction) separating effects of genes and environment: - Twin studies: separate genetic and environment effects by 1) building picture of which traits are more closely tied to genetics than others Result: elevated similarity between monozygotic twins relative to dizygotic twins Conclusion: there is a genetic influence 2) studying twins separated at birth to eliminate effects of shared environment - truly difficult: genes interact with environment to control gene expression - genetic inheritance provide potential for disorder/trait development through environmental triggers - evolutionary psychology: theorize that men and women have trait differences because different behaviors led to reproductive success - genes associated with traits that are evolutionarily favorable is conserved

fundamental attribution error

definition: fundamental tendency to automatically favor dispositional attributions over situational when judging people cause: dispositional requires less information/time/attention

self-efficacy

feeling of being able to carry out action successfully ♣ affects: • types of experiences that people choose • how well they perform • correspondingly on identity and self-concept

classification of psychological disorders

follows DSM5 (diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders) uses: 1) diagnosis 2) communication with other professionals 3) collection of data individual disorder characterized by set of psychological factors both (1) observable by clinician and (2) described by patient to distinguish from other disorder's symptoms tied to cultural ideas: some disorders tied to certain cultures or cultural standards of given time each version reevaluates based on research and cultural understanding of mental illness

biological basis of depression

genetic inheritance of many genes: heritability of depression is ~40% polygenetic influence (common to many psychological disorders) also depends on heritability of personalities like neuroticism

imitation

imitation contributes to identity formation by: 1) allowing to view oneself as similar to imitated person ♦ ex) gendered behavior of parent child's gender identity formation 2) allowing role-taking ♦ role-taking: adopting role of another person, either by ¬ A) imitating behaviors associated with specific social roles ¬ B) taking other person's point of view in social interaction effect: - help develop sense of who they are in relations to other people - a looking-glass self that provides a mirror to see myself related to symbolic interactionism: - requires ability to use/understand symbols A) behavior is symbol of particular social roles B) identity is one's symbolic representation of who they are

in group

individual identifies with the group

temperament

innate predisposition towards certain personality characteristics

somatic symptom and related disorders

o characterized by physical symptoms that are accompanied by negative thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that cannot otherwise be explained by substance use or any other psychological disorder. Includes hypochondriasis, pain disorder, body dysmorphic disorder, somatization disorder, and conversion disorder.

locus of control

person's belief about extent to which internal/external factors play a role in shaping one's life ♣ internal: complete control over behavior/events ♣ external: external factors (people/environment/luck) determine outcomes

Erik Erikson

psychosocial stages (not psychosexual) ¬ interaction between self and society across lifespan ¬ each stage = crisis that must be resolved. If not resolved fixation ♣ crisis: dilemma between two opposite ways of viewing the world (psychological healthy vs. not) ♣ success in resolution gain new perspective in between two opposites identity formation ¬ Stages: ♣ 1) trust vs. mistrust • develop ideas about trust according to parent actions ♣ 2) autonomy vs. shame/doubt • sense of competence in self-care ♣ 3) initiative vs. guilt • ability to execute plan ♣ 4) industry vs. inferiority • whether or not child views oneself as capable of mastering societally valued skills ♣ 5) identity vs. role confusion • explores role in society/personal beliefs/goals ♦ success stable sense of identity ♦ failure role confusion (lack of clear ideas about self/belonging) • James Marcia: 4 types of identity status to describe progress in this stage ♦ A. identity achievement: successful resolution of identity crisis with strong sense of identity after exploration ¬ associated with internal locus of control ♦ B. identity foreclosure: failed to undergo crisis unquestioningly adopt values/expectations of others ♦ C. Identity moratorium: ongoing with identity crisis actively attempting to develop own set of values and understanding of self ♦ D. identity diffusion: no sense of identity/motivation to engage in exploration ¬ Opposite of identity achievement ¬ Associated with external locus of control ♣ 6) intimacy vs. isolation • formation of emotionally significant relationships with others ♣ 7) generativity vs. stagnation • generativity: investing energy back into family/work/community • stagnation: caring for their own needs ♣ 8) integrity vs. despair • evaluation of life development of how well they have lived

Freud's theory of developmental stages

sequence of psychosexual stages in early childhood ¬ stages are framed in terms of id impulses ♣ fixation: failing to move onto next stage if child gets too much/little satisfaction of urge associated with specific stage ¬ stages: ♣ 1) oral stage: • age: 1st year • characteristics: nursing, other oral stimulation (sucking, biting) • develop: ♦ trust ♦ capacity for delayed gratification ♣ 2) anal stage: • age: 2nd year • characteristics: toilet training • develop: self-control ♣ 3) phallic stage: • age: 3-6 • characteristics: gender and sexual identification by ♦ focusing on sexual impulses of opposite-sex parent ♦ identifying with same-sex parent • develop: superego (internalize society's rule) ♣ 4) latent stage (calm): • age: 7-12 • characteristics: social development. Sexual desires are suppressed and shift focus on other developmental tasks ♣ 5) genital stage: • age: adolescence and older • characteristics: mature sexuality

stress

when these selves are different/incongruous of each other

observational learning

¬ Learn by observing actions of others, not rewards/punishements ¬ Modeling: ♣ 1) witnessing other's action ♣ 2) retain information on that behavior ♣ 3) later re-enact what was learned in one's own behavior ¬ can be task-oriented or more general influence on behavior ¬ very important in childhood: learn/understand what behaviors are socially acceptable ¬ advantages: ♣ benefits from being introduced to new skills/techniques ♣ learn from mistakes of others ¬ mirror neurons: ♣ definition: specialized nerve cells that fire both when • 1) person is completing an action • 2) person observes someone else completing the same action ♣ purpose: help understand actions of others and learn by imitation ¬ vicarious emotions: feeling emotions of others as though they are one's own

different types of identities

¬ Race/ethnicity ¬ Gender ¬ Age ¬ Sexual orientation ¬ Class

trait theory

¬ definition: personality consists of set of traits ♣ trait: • characteristics that vary between people • stable over course of lifetime regardless of environmental factors • continuous variables rather than categorical a spectrum ¬ traits are reliable predictors of behavior

reference group

¬ group that provides individual with model for appropriate actions/values/worldviews ♣ In-group: individual identifies with the group ♣ Out-group: individual does not identify

socialization

¬ lifetime process by which developing individuals learn values/norms/appropriate behaviors in society ♣ Learning the culture (guiding force of socialization) ♣ Facilitate identity formation as individual becomes aware of themselves as functioning members of society

self-esteem

¬ person's overall value judgement of oneself (global judgement of self) ♣ individuals tend to judge themselves more positively than they do others ♣ shapes interpretation of events mediates between self-concept and experience influence self-concept ♣ self-concept self-esteem social identity • self-concept ♦ changing self-concept modify self-esteem • social identity ♦ positive/negative evaluation of self-identified group influence self-esteem ♦ desire for high self-esteem motivate identifying with a social group

self-serving bias

¬ tendency to ♣ attribute one's success to internal factors • believes they control their successes ♣ attribute other's failures to external factors • blames failure on factors out of their control

psychoanalytic theory

ϖ (Sigmund Freud): ¬ definition: personality is determined by flow of psychic energy between three systems in different levels of consciousness: ♣ 1) id: • definition: seeks instant gratification/avoid pain without consideration for morality/social norms • learning: present at birth most primitive part of personality ♣ 2) superego • definition: internalization of society's rules for moral behavior • learning: learned through interactions with caregivers ♣ 3) ego • definition: part of personality that is forced to direct behavior in a way that balances id and superego demands • delays id's desires until socially acceptable method of gratification is found ¬ mental life/development of personality is a process of continual conflict between components of the mind ¬ *** assumption: crucial personality processes take place outside of conscious awareness ♣ conflict doesn't take place in conscious awareness ¬ *** assumption: early experiences can have lasting effects on individual throughout life

influence of individuals

ϖ 3 interrelated qualities important to identity formation ¬ 1) self-esteem: person's overall value judgement of oneself (global judgement of self) ♣ individuals tend to judge themselves more positively than they do others ♣ shapes interpretation of events mediates between self-concept and experience influence self-concept ♣ self-concept self-esteem social identity • self-concept ♦ changing self-concept modify self-esteem • social identity ♦ positive/negative evaluation of self-identified group influence self-esteem ♦ desire for high self-esteem motivate identifying with a social group ¬ 2) self-efficacy: feeling of being able to carry out action successfully ♣ affects: • types of experiences that people choose • how well they perform • correspondingly on identity and self-concept ¬ 3) locus of control: person's belief about extent to which internal/external factors play a role in shaping one's life ♣ internal: complete control over behavior/events ♣ external: external factors (people/environment/luck) determine outcomes

psychological disorders

ϖ Causes of psychological disorder ¬ Biological predispositions ¬ Psychological characteristics ¬ Environmental influences ϖ Psychological disorder: ¬ Definition: sets of psychological abnormalities that are maladaptive to individual ♣ Defining "abnormal" low or high is arbitrary as it exists on continuum, and is inherently socially-influenced ϖ classification of disorder: follows DSM5 (diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders)

influence of cluture and socialization

ϖ Identity developed by combination of ¬ Internal characteristics ¬ Pre-existing societal structures ¬ Personal interaction ϖ Influence of culture/socialization ¬ Socialization: lifetime process by which developing individuals learn values/norms/appropriate behaviors in society ♣ Learning the culture (guiding force of socialization) ♣ Facilitate identity formation as individual becomes aware of themselves as functioning members of society ϖ interaction between individuals ¬ smallest unit of socialization ¬ source of variation between people ¬ children egage in imitation of people most immediately available (larger social environment is too complex for now) ♣ imitation contributes to identity formation by • 1) allowing to view oneself as similar to imitated person ♦ ex) gendered behavior of parent child's gender identity formation • 2) allowing role-taking ♦ role-taking: adopting role of another person, either by ¬ 1) imitating behaviors associated with specific social roles ¬ 2) taking other person's point of view in social interaction ♣ effect: • help develop sense of who they are in relations to other people • a looking-glass self that provides a mirror to see myself ♦ related to symbolic interactionism: requires ability to use/understand symbols ¬ behavior is symbol of particular social roles ¬ identity is one's symbolic representation of who they are ¬ social comparison: evaluating oneself by contrast with others facilitate development of self in terms of similarity/difference from people ♣ different conclusions based on choice of point of comparison different impact on self-perception ϖ Group interactions ¬ Reference group: group that provides individual with model for appropriate actions/values/worldviews ♣ In-group: individual identifies with the group ♣ Out-group: individual does not identify ¬ People choose reference groups that align with own identity group exert influence on individual's identity ϖ Levels of social influence on identity formation (small to large) ¬ identity ¬ Individual interaction ¬ Reference group ¬ Socialization ¬ Culture

situational approach

ϖ a challenge to trait-based personality theories ¬ definition: enduring traits is flawed because of variations in behavior across different situations ♣ other theories: internal, stable traits ♣ situational approach: external, changing circumstances ¬ element of stability: people tend toward certain interpretations ¬ individuals apply own patterns of interpretations to situations/circumstances ♣ when situation requires particular behaviors environmental has greater influence ♣ when in less constricting environments personality differences has greater influence ¬ "if-then"

personality

ϖ collection of lasting characteristics that makes a person unique ¬ theories about how personality develops and affect behavior: ♣ 1) trait theory ♣ 2) biological theory ♣ 3) psychoanalytic theory ♣ 4) behaviorist theory ♣ 5) social cognitive theory ♣ 7)Humanistic theory

schizophrenia

ϖ definition: debilitating/rare disorder characterized by impaired connection with reality ϖ core symptoms: ¬ positive symptoms (addition/modification of psychological normal function): ♣ hallucination: sensory perception not corresponding to actual event.object of world • commonly auditory ♦ reason: correlated with neural activity in hearing and language part of brain ♣ delusion: unrealistic and unreasonable belief that individual holds onto despite contrary evidencee • defined by cultural norms ♣ disorganized speech: inability to effectively communicate due to nonsensical trains of thought ¬ negative symptoms (absence): lack of ♣ emotion ♣ motivation ♣ enjoyment of activities • having negative symptoms predicts worse outcomes for individual ϖ biological basis of schizophrenia ¬ genetic vulnerability: correlated to degree of relatedness ♣ associated genes also implicated in bipolar disorder ♣ interacts with environmental influences in increase/decrease risk ¬ neurotransmitters: excessive dopamine activity ♣ research: drugs that block dopamine receptors are anti-psychotics ♣ dopamine associated more closely with positive symptoms ¬ brain atrophy (Walker et al. 2003) ♣ multiple structures are smaller than normal --> indicate inability to generate new neurons ♣ brain atrophy exists before onset of disorder and continues to worsen

dissociative disorders

ϖ definition: experience of dissociation ¬ dissociation: split between different aspects of psychological functioning (identity, memory, consciousness) ϖ both positive and negative symptoms ¬ negative symptoms: may go unnoticed ♣ ex) dissociative amnesia: occurs when person forgets about past events ¬ positive symptoms: disruptive to individual ♣ ex) depersonalization/derealization disorder: feeling that either self or surrounding are unreal and disconnected from individual ϖ dissociative identity disorder (multiple personality disorder): significant disruption of stable identity ¬ symptom: ♣ multiple distinct personalities that may lack awareness of other personalities

mood disorders

ϖ definition: two extremes along spectrum of emotional experience: ¬ depression: extreme sadness and despair ¬ mania: detrimental intensity of excitement ϖ 1) Depressive disorders (depression): pervasive feelings of sadness/hopelessness/loss of interest in activities ¬ Effect: ♣ lowered functioning in life ♣ sleep and eating disruptions ♣ thoughts of suicide ♣ inability to concentrate ¬ biological basis of depression: ♣ genetic inheritance of many genes: heritability of depression is ~40% • polygenetic influence (common to many psychological disorders) • also depends on heritability of personalities like neuroticism ¬ biological malfunctioning involves multiple areas of altering in brain ♣ two hypothesis: • 1) monoamine hypothesis: deficiency in availability/potency of monoamines in synapses contribute to depression by not being able to carry out desired effect on post-synaptic neuron ♦ monoamine neurotransmitters: serotonin/norepinephrine (noradrenaline)/dopamine ♦ supporting evidence: ¬ first successful treatment using monoamine oxidase inhibitors (inhibit monoamine breakdown increase availability) ¬ Belmaker and Agam (2008): found that monoamine activity is widespread areas of the brain in thought and emotion • 2) hypothalamic pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis: interactive process of hormone from hypothalamus ACTH release from anterior pituitary cortisol release by adrenal cortex response to stress ♦ supporting evidence: ¬ depression patients have elevated levels of one/more of these hormones (over-activation of stress response) ϖ 2) bipolar disorders: episodes of mania and usually depression ¬ mania episodes: ♣ uncontrollable impulses ♣ reckless decisions ♣ distortion of self-concept (see oneself exaggerated in positive light) elevation of self-esteem ♣ delusions Schizophrenia ϖ definition: debilitating/rare disorder characterized by impaired connection with reality ϖ core symptoms: ¬ positive symptoms (addition/modification of psychological normal function): ♣ hallucination: sensory perception not corresponding to actual event.object of world • commonly auditory ♦ reason: correlated with neural activity in hearing and language part of brain ♣ delusion: unrealistic and unreasonable belief that individual holds onto despite contrary evidencee • defined by cultural norms ♣ disorganized speech: inability to effectively communicate due to nonsensical trains of thought ¬ negative symptoms (absence): lack of ♣ emotion ♣ motivation ♣ enjoyment of activities • having negative symptoms predicts worse outcomes for individual ϖ biological basis of schizophrenia ¬ genetic vulnerability: correlated to degree of relatedness ♣ associated genes also implicated in bipolar disorder ♣ interacts with environmental influences in increase/decrease risk ¬ neurotransmitters: excessive dopamine activity ♣ research: drugs that block dopamine receptors are anti-psychotics ♣ dopamine associated more closely with positive symptoms ¬ brain atrophy (Walker et al. 2003) ♣ multiple structures are smaller than normal --> indicate inability to generate new neurons ♣ brain atrophy exists before onset of disorder and continues to worsen

social cognitive

ϖ social learning perspective ¬ behavior and attitude change through reciprocal causation: interactions between ♣ personal factors (cognition, affect, biology) ♣ behavior ♣ environmental factors ¬ learn behaviors by observing other's actions/consequences ¬ people have strong ability to self-regulate: control behavior in absence of rewards/punishments

social identity

• perception of oneself as member of certain social groups ♦ group characteristics are seen as part of self influence personal sense of identity ♦ 2 components: ¬ 1) emotional: emotional attachment to groups they identify with ¬ 2) cognitive component: categorization of oneself into certain group ♦ both stable and flexible

perceptions of environment

♣ Ex) conscious/unconscious stereotype activation

influence of our self-perceptions

♣ Ex) influence of group identity: having reference groups results in adoption of the group's perceptions of others • in group are viewed ♦ more positively ♦ greater variability on assorted personality traits

biomedical

♣ Narrowly focuses on physical aspects of illness. Focuses only the biological factors of illness

biopsychosocial

♣ Studies at many levels

twin studies

♣ Twin studies: separate genetic and environment effects by • 1) building picture of which traits are more closely tied to genetics than others ♦ Result: elevated similarity between monozygotic twins relative to dizygotic twins ♦ Conclusion: there is a genetic influence • 2) studying twins separated at birth to eliminate effects of shared environment

out group

♣ doesn't share identity and feels competition or hostility

preconventional level

♣ morality based solely on anticipated consequences of behavior • stage 1: punishment • stage 2: motivation by reward

postconventional level

♣ postconventional morality: universal principles and fully-developed ideas of right and wrong • stage 5: social contract ♦ guided by social contracts for the good of society • stage 6: universal ethics ♦ will have own beliefs about what is right or wrong

role-taking

♦ role-taking: adopting role of another person, either by ¬ 1) imitating behaviors associated with specific social roles ¬ 2) taking other person's point of view in social interaction ♣ effect: • help develop sense of who they are in relations to other people • a looking-glass self that provides a mirror to see myself