1. Motivation and Emotion Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll

2. Motivational Theories and Concepts Drive theories emphasize how internal states of tension(due to disruptions of homeostasis)push organisms in certain directions. Incentive theories emphasize how external goals pull organisms in certain directions. Evolutionary theories assert that motives are product of natural selection that have had adaptive value in terms of fostering reproductive fitness.

3. Biology v Social Most theories of motivation distinguish between biological motives originating in bodily needs and social motives originating in social experiences.

4. Biological factors regulation hunger Research originally suggested that the lateral and ventromedial areas of the hypothalamus were the brain’s on-off switches for hunger, but the dual- centers model proved too simple. LH produces orexin, a hormone that triggers hunger. Today, scientists think that neural circuits passing through the hypothalamus play a larger role in the regulation of hunger. Higher brain structues play a role in what we eat and drink. Fluctuations in blood glucose monitored by glucostats also influence hunger.

5. Hunger cont. In the digestive system, the stomach can send two types of satiety signals to the brain. Secretions of the pancreatic hormone insulin are associated with increased hunger. The recently discovered hormone leptin provides the hypothalamus with information about the body’s fat stores. High leptin leads to low hunger. Hunger depends on complex interactions between neural circuits, neurotransmitter systems, digestive processes, and hormonal fluctuations.

6. Environmental factors regulating hunger Incentive-oriented theorists emphasize that the palatability, quantity, and variety of available food, and presence of others, are key factors influencing eating behavior. Hunger can be triggered by food cues in the environment, such as odors. Humans show some innate taste preferences, but learning is much more influential. At birth prefer sweet tastes and humans prefer high fat foods seems to be partly genetic.

7. Enviornment cont. Classical conditioning and observational learning shape what people prefer to eat. Food preferences are also governed by exposure, which is why there are huge cultural variations in eating habits. Stressful events can elicit arousal, and heightened arousal is associated with overeating.

8. The Roots of Obesity Obesity is a significant health problem that elevates one’s risk for many diseases. Research suggests that some people inherit a genetic vulnerability to obesity. In overweight people, energy intake from food consumption chronically exceeds energy expenditure.

9. Obesity cont. According to set point theory, the body monitors fat-cell levels to keep them fairly stable, making it challenging to lose weight and keep it off. According to settling point theory, weight tends to drift around the level at which food consumption and energy expenditure tend to achieve an equilibrium. Vacillations in dietary restraint may also contribute to obesity.

10. Sexual Motivation and Behavior Masters and Johnson’s groundbreaking research in the 1960s Divided the sexual response into 4 stages – Excitement – Plateau – Orgasm – multiorgasmic (more likely females) – Resolution - refractory period

11. Sexual Motivation Determinants of desire Hormonal fluctuations clearly regulate sexual desire in the animal kingdom, but they appear to have only a small impact on sexual desire in humans. Erotic material stimulate transient increases in sexual desire in many people, but researchers have found little evidence of an association between the availability of erotica and the incidence of sex crimes.

12. Sexual Desire cont. Exposure to erotica may alter attitudes about sexual behavior. In particular, aggressive pornography may contribute to sexual coercion. Attraction to a potential partner is another key factor governing sexual desire in both animals and humans.

13. Evolutionary analyses According Robert Triver’s parental investment theory - the sex that makes the smaller investment in offspring will compete for mating opportunities with the sex that make the larger investment, which will be more discriminating in selecting partners. Human males are required to invest little in offspring, so their reproductive potential is maximized by mating with as many partners as possible.

14. Evolution cont. Human females have to invest months to years in carrying and nourishing offspring, so they maximize their reproductive potential by mating with males who are able to invest more resources in their offspring.

15. Gender Difference in sexual activity Males think about sex and initiate sex more often than females. Males are more willing to engage in casual sex and have more partners than females

16. Gender differences in mate preferences Males around the world place more emphasis than females on potential partners’ youthfulness and attractiveness. Females around the world place more emphasis than males on partners’ intelligence and financial prospects.

17. Sexual Orientation People tend to view heterosexuality and homosexuality as an all-or-none distinction, but it is more accurate to view them as endpoints on a continuum. Environmental explanations of sexual orientation have not been supported by research. Biological explanations have fared better in recent years, as twin studies have shown that genetic factors influence sexual orientation.

18. Orientation cont. Research also suggests that idiosyncrasies in prenatal hormonal secretions may influence sexual orientation. Females’ sexual orientation appears to be characterized by more plasticity than that of males.

19. Achievement Motivation Need to master difficult challenges, to outperform others, and to meet high standards of excellence. Individual Differences in the Need – Stable part of personality – TAT (Thematic Apperception Test) David McClellan – Higher educational attainment, competitive careers – Usually choose moderately difficult talks in lab studies

20. Situational Determinants John Atkinson identified three determinants of achievement behavior – Strength of one’s motivation to achieve success – stable aspect of personality – One’s estimate of the probability of success. – Incentive value of success – Ex. Calculus tests are unfair–expectancy of success Good grade not required-incentive value of success

21. Emotion Cognitive component Physiological component Behavioral component Cultural considerations Theoretical views Emotion- involves a subjective conscious experience accompanied by bodily arousal and by characteristic overt expressions

22. Cognitive component Consists of subjective feelings that are often intense and difficult to control Cognitive appraisals of events influence the emotions that people experience Researchers have tended to focus on negative emotions while neglecting positive emotions

23. Physiological Dominated by automatic arousal A polygraph detects emotional arousal, which is a far from perfect index of lying According to Joseph LeDoux, the amygdala lies at the core of a complex set of neural circuits that process emotion. Emotions depend on activity in a constellation of interacting brain centers.

24. Behavioral component At the behavioral level, emotions are revealed through body language. People can identify at least six emotions based on facial expression. According to the facial-feedback hypothesis, facial muscles send signals to the brain that aid in the recognition of emotions.

25. Cultural Considerations Ekman and Friesen have found cross-cultural agreement in the identification of emotions, based on facial expressions. Cross-cultural similarities have also been found in the cognitive and physiological components of emotion However, there are cultural disparities in how emotions are categorized and in public displays of emotions.

26. Theoretical views The James-Lange theory asserted that the conscious experience of emotion results from one’s perception of autonomic arousal. The Cannon-Bard theory asserted that emotions originate in sub cortical areas of the brain. According to the two-factor theory, people infer emotion from autonomic arousal and then label it in accordance with their cognitive explanation for the arousal. Evolutionary theories of emotion assert that emotions are innate reactions that do not depend on cognitive processes.