Chapter 1
1) Give an example in the field of motivation and emotion that illustrates the Three Circle
Paradigm.
Phylogeny (biological make-up) the building blocks of each individual. Ontogeny
(personality and behavior) what have we, as individuals, experienced in our life.
Epistemogeny (social environment) Where do we live, learn, go to church?
Everything in the Three Circle Paradigm work together and aide in motivation
and emotion.
2) What is a need?
A need is something that would be detrimental to our health if we did not have
it. Physically, we need to hydrate and give our body nutrients in order to survive
and thrive. Psychologically, love and emotional connections help maintain our
psychological health.
3) Is research that relies on self-report trustworthy?
In a nutshell, no. There are too many contributing factors that make self-report
unreliable and untrustworthy.
4) “Cognitions” are an interval source of motivations. Give some examples regarding the
types of cognitions that exist.
We have position and negative cognitions. A positive cognition would be like, “I
plan to finish my homework today; I will finish my homework today.” A negative
cognition is “I am not smart enough to finish this assignment.”
Chapter 2
1) List and describe the “Four Forces” in psychology.
Psychoanalytic: All of our thoughts are unconscious.
Behaviorism: Freud believed that behavior was not just about how someone
acted but knew that it was motivated by biological needs.
Humanistic/Cognitive Revolution: Our motivation stems from our mental
processes. How we view the situations, our plats, and our end goals.
Existential/Transpersonal/Evolutionary/Positive Psychology: Our general life
meaning and what we need to focus on in order to improve the quality of our
life.
2) List and describe each Grand Theory and why they fell into “disfavor”.
Will: “will” was no easier to explain and created more uncertainty regarding
“will” and “motivation”.
Instinct: It was perceived as having an idea and circling that idea with no end in
sight. It was a repetitive idea that sounded good but explained no more than
“will”.
Drive: Failed to explain instances that happened beyond drives.
3) Explain how Plato, Aristotle, and Freud’s “tripartite” models related to the Three Circle
Paradigm.
Plato believed motivation and emotion stemmed from biological needs
(phylogeny). Aristotle agreed but emphasized how history shapes motivation and
emotion (ontogeny). Freud believed that motivation was driven by internal and
external (epistemogeny) factors.
4) What were some of the earliest paradigms in psychology and their founders?
William Wundt, William James, and Freud. Their paradigms were on
structuralism, functionalism, and psychoanalytic.
Chapter 3
1) What roles does oxytocin play in child-rearing and sexual intercourse?
When released, it makes you feel more of a bond.
2) Give an example of an opponent process within the human body and explain how it
works.
I was able to find this in Chapter 1. How I perceived it is this euphoric feeling that
keeps a person pushing through pain. Ex: If you are competing and have
overwhelming pain, you will continue to push through that to beat your
opponent.
3) Which areas of the brain are involved in reward/reinforcement?
Amygdala, striatum/nucleus accumben’s, ventral tegmental area, hypothalamus,
prefrontal cortex, and orbitofrontal cortex.
4) What is the amygdala and what function/purpose does it serve?
The amygdala is associated with behavior/emotion. It recognizes fear and
threat. It can stimulate anger as a response. The amygdala is the are in the brain
that protects and defends in an attempt to keep safe.
Video (Stress Portrait of a Killer)
1) List and describe the negative effects that stress can have on your body.
The body will begin to shut down. All nonessential functions shut down and the
immune system is compromised. There are negative cardiovascular responses,
like: blood pressure, clogged arteries, restricted blood flow, and even heart
attacks. Stress is also known to kill braincells, distort or limit memory, shorten
telomeres, weight gain, and cause accelerated aging. In a nutshell, stress can kill.
2) Give an example of serendipitous discovery that Dr. Robert Sapolsky made.
Dr. Sapolsky discovered that aggressive monkeys died after ingesting spoiled
food. The non-aggressive monkeys were then able to get incoming males to
cooperate and adjust their behavior according to their community.
3) How can we live a longer and healthier life?
Compassion and caring for others.
