Motivation
What is a motive?
A motive is a stimulus that moves a person to behave to accomplish a specific goal.
What are emotions described as in the text (two-part definition: state + components)?
Emotions are states of feeling with biological, cognitive, and behavioral components.
What does behaviorism emphasize as the main influence on behavior?
Behaviorism emphasizes external forces and reinforcement (environmental influences).
What is an achievement test? Give one classroom example.
Achievement test: measures learned skills/knowledge (e.g., a chapter exam).
What is a projective test? Name one example.
Projective test: open-ended ambiguous stimuli (e.g., Rorschach or TAT).
Name the two broad types of needs psychologists discuss
Biological needs and psychological needs.
Which brain/physiological system becomes active during anxiety (name the division)?
The sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system
Name Maslow’s highest-level need and briefly define it.
Self-actualization — the need to become what one believes one is capable of being.
What two features must a good psychological test show (reliability and _______)?
Validity
What is the MMPI used for (one short phrase)?
MMPI: diagnosing and assessing psychological disorders / clinical assessment.
Explain drive-reduction theory in one sentence (include how homeostasis relates).
Drive-reduction theory: needs create drives (unpleasant tensions) that motivate actions to reduce the tension and restore homeostasis.
Describe the James-Lange view of emotion in one sentence.
James-Lange: bodily reactions come first and emotions follow as the perception of those bodily reactions.
Contrast trait theory and psychoanalytic theory in one sentence each (focus on what they emphasize).
Trait theory: describes stable personality traits; Psychoanalytic: emphasizes unconscious conflict and early childhood influences.
Explain what norms are in testing.
Norms are established standards of performance from a representative norm group; individual scores are compared to these norms.
List the “Big Five” personality factors.
Big Five: extroversion, emotional stability (neuroticism reversed), conscientiousness, agreeableness, openness to experience.
Give two differences between biological needs and psychological needs
Biological needs are inborn and based on deprivation (e.g., hunger); psychological needs may be learned and not always based on deprivation (e.g., achievement).
Summarize cognitive-dissonance theory using the classic Festinger & Carlsmith experiment
Cognitive-dissonance: people change attitudes to reduce tension between beliefs and actions — Festinger & Carlsmith: $1 vs $20 participants rated a boring task differently.
What is Bandura’s concept of self-efficacy?
Self-efficacy: belief in one’s ability to succeed at specific tasks.
How do validity scales help with test interpretation?
Validity scales detect inconsistent or dishonest responding (e.g., lie, infrequency scales).
Briefly summarize Freud’s three structures of the mind (id, ego, superego).
Id: instinctual desires (pleasure principle); Ego: reality-based mediator (reality principle); Superego: internalized moral standards (conscience).
Define stimulus motives and give two examples of stimulus motives from the text.
Stimulus motives are desires for stimulation (sensory, exploration, manipulation); examples: sensation seeking, curiosity/exploration, manipulating objects.
Explain opponent-process theory and give an example (from the text or classroom-friendly).
Opponent-process: strong emotion followed by opposite emotion to restore balance (example: anxiety before performance followed by relief/elation).
Describe two key differences between humanistic and behaviorist perspectives.
Humanistic: focuses on conscious experience, free will, self-growth; Behaviorist: focuses on observable behavior shaped by reinforcement.
Differentiate aptitude and achievement tests and give one example of each from the text.
Aptitude predicts potential (SAT, MCAT); Achievement measures learned knowledge (course final).
Explain what fixation is in Freud’s stages and give one example of an adult behavior that might be linked to an oral fixation.
Fixation: remaining stuck at an early psychosexual stage due to unresolved conflict — oral fixation example: smoking, overeating, nail-biting.