Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

· We are influenced by both biological and psychological needs

Conflicting motives

· Approach – approach (you want to do both)

· Avoidance – avoidance

· Approach – avoidance

· Multiple approach – avoidance

Eating

· We all eat

· How is it regulated?

Eat or not to eat

· Stomach

§ Contraction – signal hunger

§ Distension – time to stop

· Nutrients and hormones in blood

§ Nutrients – e.g., glucose

§ Hormones – insulin, glucagons

§ Study – Injection of blood of a rat that was just fed – reduced hunger of a food deprived rat.

Brain mechanism

· Hypothalamus

§ Ventromedial nucleus – satiety center (stop) (cannot stop eating) if damaged) The damage causes rapid digestion and secretion of insulin

§ Lateral Hypothalamus – feeding center (initiate)

§ Paraventicualr nucleus – Amount of food being consumed.

· Destruction of these areas are not fatal

§ Control – set point (how much to eat)

Other Factors

Eating disorder

· Obesity (20% - 40% above standard)

§ Gain more energy than they can metabolize

§ Cause is complex

· Anorexia Nervorsa

§ Self starvation

§ Dangerous

§ 95% females

· Bulimia Nervosa

§ Binge and purge

Sexual Behavior

· Difficult to study – Survey?

· Kinsey did.

· But, Americans are more conservatives that you might think

· Most of them are monogamous

Biology of sex

· Four cycles (Master & Johnson)

§ Excitement

§ Plateau

§ Orgasm (climax)

§ Reafactory Period

Orientation and identify

· Orientation

§ Heterosexual

§ Homosexual

§ Bisexual

§ Biological or learned? Still controversial.

· Gender Identity

§ Whether you are male or female

§ Some go through sex change

Achievement

· nAch

· A number of measures

· For adults – Thematic Apperceptism Test (FAT)

· High versus low achievers

Interesting Finding

· Which task would they prefer?

§ Very difficult

§ Moderately difficulty

§ Easy

· High achievers tend to prefer moderately difficult tasks

· Low achievers – “fear of failure”???

James-Lang theory

· Perception of a stimulus

· Sensing of physiological responses

· Emotional experience

· You are sad because you are crying

Evidence

· Different facial expressions give rise to different emotional experience. (facial feedback hypothesis).

Schater-Singer theory

· Perception of a stimulus

· Sensating of psycholocal responses

Violence

· Why?

· Frustration – aggression hypothesis

· neurotransister