psychology

 Please reply to the discussion question with a 200-word minimum 

6) Both classical and operant conditioning can involve learning that is entirely unconscious to the learner (i.e., you aren’t even aware that you’ve been conditioned).  Now that we know about both types of conditioning, please reflect on your life and provide us with at least one example of how you’ve been conditioned (either through classical or operant conditioning).  Please use the proper terminology (e.g., UCS/UCR and CS/CR associations if Classical Conditioning or Positive/Negative Reinforcement/Punishment if Operant Conditioning) when discussing your example.  Please be specific. 

7) Think of a time when you forgot something.  Now that we know how memory works, why do you think you forgot this information?  What kind of strategies could you have used to learn it better and protect yourself from forgetting?  Please be specific.

8) We constantly rely on heuristics to make quick decisions and solve problems.  After learning about some of our heuristics and biases (e.g., anchoring heuristic, availability heuristic, representativeness heuristic, confirmation bias), can you identify a time in your life when a heuristic/bias led you to an incorrect solution or conclusion about something?  Please explain in detail.  What can you do to avoid this from happening in the future? 

9) We know that development is the result of a complex interaction between nature and nurture (i.e., our genetics and our environment), but if you had to pick, which do you think has the greatest influence on our development?  Why?  Please provide specific examples from physical, cognitive, and psychosocial development. 

10) What is something that you REALLY struggle with finding the motivation to do?  Given the research on motivation, why do you think this is?  Using the motivational theories that we’re learning about, what could you do to increase your level of motivation for this activity?  Please be specific. 

PSY-101:
Principles of Psychology

Chapter 10: Motivation

MOTIVATION
From the latin “movere” → to move

● Factors that direct and energize the goal
directed behavior of humans and other
organisms
○ In other words, why we are “moved” to do the

things we do

INTRINSIC AND EXTRINSIC
MOTIVATION

● To be motivated
intrinsically suggests
that we are “moved” to
action from within

● To be motivated
extrinsically suggests
that we are “moved” to
action from without

INTRINSIC AND/OR EXTRINSIC
● It doesn’t have to be one or the other

○ For any activity, we can be:
■ Just intrinsically motivated
■ Just extrinsically motivated
■ Both intrinsically AND extrinsically motivated
■ Neither intrinsically or extrinsically motivated

THE EFFECT OF REWARDS
● Some rewards (i.e., extrinsic motivators) can

decrease our intrinsic motivation
○ e.g., Tangible rewards like MONEY

● Other rewards, however, can increase intrinsic
motivation
○ e.g., Non-tangible rewards like PRAISE

SOME MAJOR MOTIVATIONAL
THEORIES

● The Instinct Perspective
● Drive-Reduction Theory
● Self-Efficacy Theory
● Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

INSTINCT PERSPECTIVE
● Our behavior is driven by our instincts

○ Instincts are innate (i.e., unlearned)
patterns of behavior
■ e.g., Eating, sleeping, having sex

● Ignores the role of learning in the shaping of
our motivated behavior

DRIVE-REDUCTION THEORY
● We are driven (i.e., “motivated”) to reduce our needs in

order to maintain physical and psychological homeostasis
○ Primary drives are based within our instincts

■ e.g., the need for food drives us to the refrigerator
○ Secondary drives are learned

■ e.g., the need for money drives us to go to work

● Adds to the instinct perspective by including learned
drives

SELF-EFFICACY THEORY
Self-efficacy

● One’s expectation of success in an activity or task
○ i.e., “can I successfully do this?” → it’s a belief!
○ Can range from very low to very high depending on

the activity

● A high self-efficacy predicts a high level of motivation
● A low self-efficacy predicts a low level of motivation

MASLOW’S
HIERARCHY
OF NEEDS

MASLOW’S HIERARCHY
● Suggests that before higher-order needs (e.g., self-worth)

can be met, certain primary needs (e.g., food) must be
satisfied

● Ends in self-actualization
○ A state of self-fulfillment in which people realize their highest

potential
○ People can “transcend” and begin to focus on the needs of others
○ Not many get here!

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Introduction to Psychology
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Greg Mullin, 2022 – Licensed CC BY – SA

PSY-101:
Principles of Psychology

Chapter 7: Memory

MEMORY
The process by which a person encodes, stores, and retrieves information

● We often use the computer metaphor:

SENSORY MEMORY
● Holds

information

that has been pulled in from our senses
● Has a duration of one or two seconds

○ Needs to make room for new sensory information

● We don’t pay attention to most of the information in our sensory
memory
○ Therefore, majority of information in sensory memory is lost

● Once you pay attention to information from your sensory memory,
it is pulled into your working memory

WORKING / SHORT-TERM MEMORY
● “Works” with information that is attended to from sensory memory and also

information retrieved from long-term memory
○ It’s your mental workspace
○ You’re using it right now!

● Can typically hold 5 to 9 pieces of data for 5 to 20 seconds (unless
rehearsed)

Rehearsal strategies
● Maintenance Rehearsal

○ Repeating information to keep it in working memory
● Elaborative Rehearsal

○ Connecting information to things you already know (THIS IS HOW WE LEARN)

LONG-TERM MEMORY
● Your “hard drive”
● Potentially unlimited capacity

○ Some argue ONE MILLION GIGABYTES of storage

Knowledge can exist in long-term memory as three main types
● Semantic

○ Language-based word meanings and facts
● Episodic

○ Events from your life (i.e., autobiographical memory)
● Procedural

○ How to do things

MEMORIES ARE CONSTRUCTED
(AND RECONSTRUCTED)

● Memories are influenced by our past experience, emotions, and
expectations
○ Nobody is recording the TRUTH in high definition

● Every time we retrieve a memory, we may reconstruct it
○ Especially true for episodic memories

Our memories are affected by misinformation and suggestibility
● We can unknowingly alter existing memories or even create false

memories given the right cues

WHY WE FORGET
Encoding Failure

● Either did not pay attention to or did not rehearse the information

Decay
● Loss of information through lack of use
● Neural associations have weakened

Interference
● Information disrupts either the encoding or retrieval of other

information

PROACTIVE AND RETROACTIVE INTERFERENCE

AMNESIA

Retrograde Amnesia

● Loss of existing memories after trauma
● E.g., hit your head in a car accident and forget the entire day

leading up to the accident
● Sometimes memories return, but sometimes they don’t

Anterograde Amnesia
● Inability to make new explicit memories after trauma
● E.g., can’t form new episodic memories following brain surgery
● VERY rare

CLIVE’S
ANTEROGRADE

AMNESIA

ENHANCING MEMORY
● Use elaborative rehearsal to process information deeply

○ How does the information connect to what you already know?

● Revisit the information repeatedly
○ Overlearning prevents decay

● Avoid distractions when studying
○ You need your attention for effective encoding and storage

● GET SOME SLEEP
○ Your brain needs sleep to build long-term memories
○ Try not to sacrifice sleep for extra study time

HELP ME BUILD
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The material for these slides was adapted from:

Introduction to Psychology
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by multiple individuals and organizations

Greg Mullin, 2022 – Licensed CC BY – SA

PSY-101:
Principles of Psychology

Chapter 6: Learning

WHAT IS LEARNING?
Any relatively permanent change in an
organism that results from experience

Three major types
● Classical Conditioning
● Operant Conditioning
● Observational Learning

THE BEHAVIORAL VIEWS OF LEARNING
(i.e., Classical and Operant Conditioning)

Focus on observable behavior
● This way, learning is measurable and can be studied

objectively

Don’t care what’s happening in the mind
● The mind is a “black box” which can’t be studied objectively

Argue that EVERYTHING we do and know is a result of our
environmental experiences

● In other words, ALL things are learned

CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
Type of learning in which a neutral stimulus comes to elicit a
conditioned response after being paired with an unconditioned
stimulus that naturally brings about that response

● Results in an involuntary response
○ We automatically produce a physiological conditioned

response when presented with the conditioned stimulus
● Stimulus → Response associations

PAVLOV’S DOGS
(a) Before conditioning
● Neutral Stimulus (NS) causes nothing
● Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS) causes the

Unconditioned Response (UCR)

(b) During conditioning
● Associate (i.e., pair) the NS and UCS
● Causes the UCR because UCS is present

(c) After conditioning
● You can take away the UCS
● Conditioned Stimulus (CS – previously the NS)

now causes the Conditioned Response (CR)

APPLYING CLASSICAL CONDITIONING

ACQUISITION, EXTINCTION, AND SPONTANEOUS
RECOVERY OF CONDITIONED RESPONSES

THE CASE OF LITTLE ALBERT
An example of Stimulus Generalization

● Occurs when a conditioned response follows
a stimulus that is similar to the original
conditioned stimulus

CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
Can explain a lot of human behavior

● Phobias
● Food aversions
● Sexual fetishes
● PTSD (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder)

OPERANT CONDITIONING
Type of learning in which a response (i.e., behavior) is
strengthened or weakened depending on its consequences
(i.e., stimuli)

● Results in a voluntary response
○ We CHOOSE to respond (or not respond) in order to get

(or avoid) a stimulus as a result of past consequences
● Response → Stimulus associations

TYPES OF CONSEQUENCES
Reinforcement
● Process by which a stimulus increases the probability that a preceding

behavior will be

repeated

○ Reinforcers (e.g., money) increase the likelihood that a behavior will be

repeated

Punishment
● Process by which a stimulus decreases the probability that a preceding

behavior will be repeated
○ Punishers (e.g., pain) decrease the likelihood that a behavior will be

repeated

CHANGING BEHAVIOR
to Increase Behavior to Decrease Behavior

Add a stimulus as
a consequence

Positive
Reinforcement

Positive
Punishment

Remove a stimulus
as a consequence

Negative
Reinforcement

Negative
Punishment

SCHEDULES OF REINFORCEMENT
AND PUNISHMENT

Fixed Schedules
● Reinforcement or punishment is given after a

specific number of responses or period of time

Variable Schedules
● Reinforcement of punishment is given after a

varying number of responses or period of time

SHAPING

Reinforcing behaviors that
don’t come naturally
● Process of teaching a

complex behavior by
rewarding closer and
closer approximations of
the desired behavior

THINGS TO REMEMBER
Reinforcement works better than punishment

● Try to reinforce when you see people “doing good” instead of waiting
for them to “do bad” so you can punish

Attempted punishments are sometimes reinforcement
● E.g., ATTENTION can act as reinforcement

○ Yelling mean things at someone (perceived positive punishment), is
still showing the person attention, which can serve as positive
reinforcement

Be aware of which schedules you use
● Use fixed (continuous) for punishment and variable for reinforcement

OBSERVATIONAL LEARNING
We can learn by observing

others

● Conditioning PLUS social factors
○ Learning by observing the consequences of

others’ behavior

Modeling
● Process of observing and imitating the behavior of

others

MODELS
● Those we observe and imitate
● Two types

○ Live Model – someone directly observed in person
● Peers, parents, teachers

○ Symbolic Model – not directly observed, does not
exist in the same environment

● Fictional characters from books, TV, and movies
● Can be real people if not observed in person

WHAT MAKES A GOOD MODEL?
Relevance

● Model is similar to the

observer

(age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic
status) and is performing a behavior the observer finds interesting

Competence
● Model is viewed as being competent by the observer

Status
● Model has high social status according to the observer

Gender-Appropriateness
● Model is performing gender-appropriate behaviors according to the

observer

WHAT DOES THE OBSERVER
NEED TO DO?

Attention
● Must attend (i.e., pay attention) to the behavior being observed

Retention
● Must retain (i.e., remember) the observed behavior

Reproduction
● Must be able to physically produce the observed behavior

Motivation
● Must be motivated to perform the behavior

THE BOBO DOLL STUDY
● Aggression and violence

can be modeled
○ Kids are constantly

observing adults

● Research suggests that
youth violence is reduced
when physical
punishment is banned

HELP ME BUILD
A BETTER CLASS!

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remove from these slides?

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topic? What are they?

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The material for these slides was adapted from:

Introduction to Psychology
An open-access text written and edited

by multiple individuals and organizations

Greg Mullin, 2022 – Licensed CC BY – SA

PSY-101:
Principles of Psychology

Chapter 8: Thinking and Intelligence

COGNITION
In other words, thinking

We organize our thinking by:

Building Concepts
● Mental groupings of similar objects, events, or people
● Allow us to organize complex things into simpler categories

Developing Prototypes
● Best example or representation of a concept
● E.g., Eagle may be my prototypical bird, not Ostrich

HOW DO WE SOLVE PROBLEMS?
Three main approaches that use our concepts and prototypes:

● Trial and Error
○ Try different solutions until the problem is solved

● Algorithms
○ Applicable to formula/equation-type problems
○ If used the right way, guarantees correct solution
○ Time consuming but accurate

● Heuristics
○ General strategy that has been used in a similar situation
○ Saves time and energy, but can be entirely inaccurate

COMMON HEURISTIC ERRORS
Anchoring Heuristic

● You make a decision by focusing on a certain piece of information (an “anchor”)
● Keeps you from recognizing the importance and value of other information

Availability Heuristic
● You judge the probability of an event based upon how “available” memories of that

event are in your long-term memory
● Keeps you from recognizing actual statistical probabilities

Representativeness Heuristic
● You judge people, places, and behaviors based upon your existing

“representations” of those things in your concepts (this is STEREOTYPING!)
● Keeps you from recognizing that people, places, and behaviors are all unique and

may not fit some stereotype that you have

USEFUL HEURISTICS
● Work backwards

○ Focus on the end result first, and “work backward” from there
○ Can give us a new perspective on the solution

● Create subgoals
○ Break problem into a set of smaller steps
○ Large problems become more manageable as you work

through the smaller steps

PROBLEM-SOLVING PROBLEMS
Functional Fixedness

● Tendency to think of an object only in terms of its typical use
● Lack creativity

Mental Sets
● Tendency for old patterns of problem solving to persist, even in the

face of repeated failure

Confirmation Bias
● Tendency to focus on, and search out, information that “confirms”

your existing beliefs
● Ignore information that contradicts your existing beliefs

INTELLIGENCE
Capacity to understand the world, think rationally, and use
resources effectively when faced with challenges

Two contemporary theories of intelligence:

● Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
○ Breaks intelligence into (at least) eight different intelligences

● Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory of Intelligence
○ Breaks intelligence into three parts that relate to one’s success in

life, not just school

GARDNER’S
MULTIPLE

INTELLIGENCES

STERNBERG’S TRIARCHIC THEORY

CREATIVITY
Ability to generate or discover new ideas, solutions, and
possibilities

● A part of Sternberg’s theory of intelligence!

Divergent Thinking
● Process of arriving at multiple unique solutions to a

given problem
● Thinking “outside the box”

MEASURING INTELLIGENCE
● Traditionally done through an IQ (Intelligence Quotient) Test

○ Assumes intelligence is a singular factor though most
contemporary psychologists agree that intelligence is
multidimensional

○ Hyperfocus on Gardner’s logical-reasoning and linguistic
intelligences and Sternberg’s analytical Intelligence

○ Culturally biased and discriminates against minority-group
members whose experiences differ from the white majority

○ Still widely used in educational and clinical settings to
identify those who may benefit from extra attention/help

THE SOURCE OF INTELLIGENCE
As with pretty much EVERYTHING… it’s a result of a
complex interaction between our Nature and Nurture

● We inherit a predisposition for a certain “level” of intelligence
from our biological parents
○ NATURE

● This predisposition is either facilitated or inhibited as a result
of our environmental experiences
○ NURTURE

HELP ME BUILD
A BETTER CLASS!

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remove from these slides?

● Could I ask better discussion questions for this
topic? What are they?

Please use this google doc to share your feedback

The material for these slides was adapted from:

Introduction to Psychology
An open-access text written and edited

by multiple individuals and organizations

Greg Mullin, 2022 – Licensed CC BY – SA

PSY-101:
Principles of Psychology

Chapter 9: Lifespan Development

DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY
● Study of the patterns of growth and change that occur

throughout the lifespan
○ Physical, Cognitive, and Psychosocial Changes

● The Nature vs. Nurture debate
○ Psychologists typically take an interactionist

perspective
■ Both nature and nurture interact

PRENATAL DEVELOPMENT
● “Before birth” Development

● Environmental influences
○ Mother’s nutrition
○ Mother’s illness
○ Mother’s emotional state
○ Mother’s drug use

THE EXTRAORDINARY NEWBORN

● Reflexes
○ Unlearned (i.e., innate) automatic responses to stimuli

■ Rooting
■ Sucking
■ Gagging
■ Grasping

○ Most disappear within 4 to 5 months

ATTACHMENT
● The positive emotional bond that develops between a

child and a particular individual
● Feelings of comfort and security are the critical

components in building a positive attachment
○ See Harlow’s monkey studies

BAUMRIND’S PARENTING PRACTICES
● Authoritative is the ideal style in many cultures

○ High responsiveness: There is love, care, and affection
○ High control: There are rules, limits, and structure

● Other styles lack either control, responsiveness, or both
○ Lack of control (e.g., permissive parenting) can lead to

risky adolescent behavior
○ Lack of responsiveness (e.g., authoritarian parenting)

can produce anxious and unhappy children

ERIKSON’S PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
● Humans enter a “crisis” at each developmental period

○ Resolution of the crisis is mostly dependent on
environmental factors (e.g., interactions with parents,
teachers, peers)

● Resolution of a crisis does NOT predict the resolution of
following crises
○ One exception!

■ A resolution of the identity crisis in adolescence
predicts the resolution of the intimacy crisis

ADOLESCENCE
● The socially constructed stage between childhood and

adulthood
● Not as “bad” as once thought

○ Research does not support the idea of a typical
“adolescent rebellion”

● Frontal lobes of brain have not finished developing
○ Responsible for judgement, impulse control, planning

● Peer groups tend to become more important than family

PIAGET’S COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

Sensorimotor Stage (0 to 2 years)
● “Thinking” is sensory experience (e.g., seeing, hearing, touching, tasting)
● These infants lack object permanence

Preoperational Stage (2 to 6 years)
● One-way thinking through words and symbols; no logical reasoning
● These children are egocentric and lack conservation

Concrete Operational Stage (7 to 11 years)
● Logical thinking with tangible events and analogies
● These children aren’t able to think abstractly

Formal Operational Stage (12+ years)
● Thinking abstractly
● These people can engage in hypothetical reasoning

PIAGETIAN
EGOCENTRISM

PIAGETIAN
CONSERVATION

THINKING
ABSTRACTLY

PIAGET’S COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
● There are some major criticisms of Piaget’s theory

○ Many think development is continuous and therefore
this discontinuous stage-like model isn’t accurate

○ Many have observed children reaching cognitive
milestones long before Piaget would have argued

○ Argument for a fifth stage beyond Formal Operations
■ Postformal thought

● Emotions become more integrated with logic over
time

VYGOTSKY’S COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

● Argues that cognitive
development is continuous,
not stage-like

● If we receive scaffolding
(i.e., support) from more
capable individuals within
our zone of proximal
development, we’re able to
cognitively progress at
astonishing rates

KOHLBERG’S MORAL DEVELOPMENT
● People go through three broad levels of moral reasoning

as they age
○ Preconventional Morality (before age 9)

■ Something is wrong if there’s a punishment
○ Conventional Morality (early adolescence)

■ Something is wrong if it’s against the rules
○ Postconventional Morality (adolescence and beyond)

■ Something is wrong if it is against the “greater good”

ADULTHOOD
● For most, early adulthood is the peak of physical health

○ After 25, the body becomes slightly less efficient and
more susceptible to disease

● Cognitive ability can remain strong throughout life
○ Maintain a balanced diet
○ Exercise regularly
○ Engage in social interaction

WHY DO WE “GROW OLD”?
● Genetic Preprogramming Theory of Aging

○ Human cells have a built-in time limit to their reproduction
○ The “nature” side of aging

● Wear-and-Tear Theory of Aging
○ The mechanical functions of the body work more or less

efficiently depending on how it’s treated over time
○ The “nurture” side of aging

DEATH AND DYING
Kübler-Ross’s five-stage model of grief:

● Denial
● Anger
● Bargaining
● Depression
● Acceptance

● Not necessarily experienced in this order (or at all for some)
● Reaching acceptance allows one to die with dignity

HELP ME BUILD
A BETTER CLASS!

● Do you think there are things I should edit, add, or
remove from these slides?

● Could I ask better discussion questions for this
topic? What are they?

Please use this google doc to share your feedback

The material for these slides was adapted from:

Introduction to Psychology
An open-access text written and edited

by multiple individuals and organizations

Greg Mullin, 2022 – Licensed CC BY – SA